I think your DH is wrong, LOL. Quiche and salad is like peanut butter and jelly - they just go together! I'd go ahead and make your spinach salad - hey, you're the chef, right? If he really gets uptight about it, then I'd go for some plain dark green veggie on the side like asparagus or broccoli other than just a slice of quiche.

You could make hundreds of other dishes, but I think quiche is wonderful! Possibly you could start with a cup of some nice, colorful soup - like roast tomato and garlic soup or roasted red pepper soup. If you'd like recipes, I'll post them - they're from the forum here!

What kinda "people" don't eat salad, especially if they eat quiche? LOL Quiche and salad are, as Woodie says, the perfect combo.

Other ideas could be crab cakes, Reubens, French Onion soup, enchiladas but to tell you the truth each one would benefit from a salad !!!

With the enchiladas you could do black beans and guacamole. Dills and cole slaw with the reubens, cole slaw with the crab cakes.

Decide what you want and the recipes will flow!

I know a lot of people who don't eat salad and would hate quiche, so really, you need to quiz your dh about what kind of people they are. Perhaps a crockpot bbq and coleslaw is more their fare.

Last night, we had some friends of my dh's over for dinner. I know these people quite well but even I could not have fathomed their ignorance.
Dh was upset with me for setting the table; he wanted paper plates. I said never. Anyway, I tried very hard to keep it simple and as asked, not intimidating. Dh wore clothes that would have been appropriate for a farm hand mucking out stables. He wanted to know why I was so dressed up. I said he made up for me...I had on khakis and a plain shirt!

I made the salads up while they were here and asked if they preferred iceberg or spring greens. They had no idea what I was talking about. They got iceberg. I always have both because my Dad likes only iceberg and dh only wants primo greens.
The hightlight dish of the night? Frozen corn from a bag cooked with some butter. They raved over it. They wouldn't try the Paula Deen appetizer shrimp dip recipe or put sour cream on their baked potatoes. They asked if there was coconut ( a no-no)in the very simple chocolate cake (texas sheet) I made for dessert.
It was really unbelievable that college graduates could be this way.

Sometimes it's easier to pick a theme like Mexican or Italian and run with that. Sharon (Chase) sort of suggests that above.

As for what goes with quiche. If a green salad won't do, I'd do a pasta salad with pesto (hey, it's green!) and fresh fruit salad with an optional dressing. Rolls or fresh hot bread. Something chocolate for dessert and coffee.

Oh BB, I feel for you!

You could do a pot of beef stew and serve it with a loaf fo French bread and avoid the whole issue...but I also think quiche and spinach salad would be very nice.
Will this be an all men meeting?...you could possibly pre cook some bratwurst in beer with onions and make some potato salad, and make or buy some cole slaw....and then warm the brats, toast some buns....and be done with it.
Linda C

I would go to the movies and leave money for a couple pizza's or a case of sliders or a bucket of chicken. Why stress?

I'm wondering if his business associates are mostly (or all) males? If so, maybe that was just his way of saying it's a meat-and-potatoes crowd. And if that's the case, I doubt they eat much quiche either. lol For women, your menu would be excellent. But after a lifetime of cooking primarily for guys, I'd honestly never plan something like that for a group of men. Since your dh seems to know their tastes, and since you want him to be really pleased with what you do, I'd recommend running ideas by him until you find something he's genuinely enthusiastic about.

Italian dishes like lasagna and stuffed manicotti are always extremely popular. Also very easy on the cook, since all you have to do once they arrive is stick casseroles and bread in the oven. If they're on the younger side, they're probably all crazy about Tex-Mex dishes. Chicken enchiladas would be a good make-ahead entree. If it's more of a 'working lunch', with everybody continuing to talk and take notes while eating, sandwiches with several yummy fillings, potato salad and coleslaw might be the most practical choice. Casual and easy to 'juggle', but still delicious.

Whatever you serve, it will be sooo much better than the fast-food or brown bag lunch they would have had otherwise, and they'll love it. Give us an update if we can help with recipes, suggestions for sides, etc.

sm

Hearty sandwiches would be a safe bet. There are many possibilities. That would not be so stressful for you as a cooked dish and I'm sure they would be well received. Serve some good pickles, olives and chips and some cookies for dessert. If you want to kick it up a notch, serve a nice cup of homemade soup as a starter.

It will be both men and women, college grads and beyond (not that that means anything:) I'm really close to scrubbing the quiche idea. Thinking lasagna or manicotti or even baked ziti.

DH made it clear that when they arrive, they will eat first and then have their meeting. So it will not be a working lunch.

I have to thank everyone for your suggestions and advise. I am calmed down now, thanks to all of you.

How about BBQ pulled pork sandwiches, potato salad and fresh fruit? Nothing they'd expect, but *delish*! You can make everything ahead so all you have to do on Monday is toast the buns and heat the pork.

For the pulled pork, get a roast, rub some oil on it, then brown on all sides. Put it in a dutch oven, or whatever pot you have with a lid that will hold it whole or cut it up in a few big chunks. Add enough low sodium beef broth to barely cover the meat. Add 5 or 6 roughly chopped garlic cloves, a tablespoon of black pepper, and a roughly chopped medium onion.

Put in a 350 oven, turn after 1 hour, and cook until very tender, 30 minutes to an hour more. Remove pork, let cool a bit, then scrape off any big hunks of fat. Cut into 2" slices, then use two forks to pull apart into "hunky shreds". Put pork into a fresh pot, add BBQ sauce of your choice, and simmer for 30 minutes.

On Monday, heat the pork - you'll probably have to add a little water and maybe some more Q sauce to get a nice sorta wet consistency. Check to see if it needs any salt.

Barely brush the buns with butter and put in a hot pan to lightly brown them. You can also toast them under the broiler, but if you're like me, you'll get distracted and burn them ;) The buns don't have to be hot when you serve, room temp is perfect.

Potato salad: Make your favorite, use Google, or find a good recipe here. I've never met a potato salad I didn't like :)

(I would have some good sliced turkey breast on hand, just in case there is someone who doesn't like/can't eat pork.)

Forgot to say that if you're on board with my idea, the recipe is pretty much foolproof. As long as the pork is tender, which can be achieved easily by cooking as long as it takes, the Q sauce will be the dominating flavor. That takes a huge load off for me, anyway. My favorite is Sweet Baby Ray's, but any good bottled sauce will work!

I did bbq pork (butt) for 35-40 men and a few women last summer for a work lunch for dh's coworkers and it was very popular. The smell when dh and I were pulling it nearly made us both gag, however, it was delicious the next day with some sauce. I pulled it and then chopped later when it was cold.
I don't remember what else we had! A bunch of stuff. But I know the buns weren't toasted :)

I'd rather have quiche too but the quantities some of those engineers put away was astounding. And I was told it was as good as Big Daves, a local bbq joint!

Hope this won't make you feel nervous again, but the new details you supplied made me sorta kinda change my mind. So here are two more things to consider...

First, it's more common than not these days to find at least one vegetarian in a crowd of any size. If women are included in the group, that increases the odds considerably. So does your husband know for a fact that none of them are? Or that nobody has serious health issues, like high cholesterol, that would put an Italian feast off-limits? If he's certain the answer to both questions is 'no', then forget I brought it up. But if he's not absolutely sure, then offering a spinach quiche, in addition to another main dish, would be a great idea. A little more work for you. But if there's a veg. in the crowd, or even somebody on a serious diet, they'll really be grateful and brag on you to your dh. And even if nobody chooses the quiche, you will still look like such a gracious and considerate hostess for offering a healthy, vegetarian option. Plus you'll have a great dinner all ready to go, so win/win.

The other thing I'm wondering about is just how serious this meeting is. If the main point is to bring the group together in an enjoyable, relaxed atmosphere, or to impress clients/associates, or anything along those lines, then there's nothing better than homemade Italian to accomplish the goal. But if tough decisions have to be made, I personally would not want to eat a heavy meal and then get drowsy and prefer a nap to having the boss call on me for my opinion.

Am I making any sense or totally over-thinking this?

sm

I've found there is a problem with that sort of plan, sm. When an alternative is offered, many people naturally will take some of each. So you need to be prepared for several, not just the vegetarian, to take a portion of the alternative dish along with what you intended as the primary dish.

One solution is to offer variations instead of alternatives. By that I mean, if you were serving sandwiches, have two or three different "flavors". Everyone would get a sandwich, but some would choose red meat, some would choose turkey or cheese. If you served casseroles, soups or quiches, the same principle would apply.

Hmm...maybe I'm over-thinking it! D'ya think? :-)

I think I would do lasagna, green salad or ceasar salad and french bread and a simple dessert. Maybe pound cake topped with sliced strawberries or something like that. It would all be easy and you could do most of the prep earlier and not be so stressed.

steelmagnolia, it is a somewhat serious meeting. So decisions will be made. The company usually rents a meeting room at the Mariott but DH decided to change it up and have it at our house. I would love to have sandwiches but DH said we always had cold sandwiches at the Mariott, please do something different. What a guy! :)

I didn't think about eating heavy and being tired. But it is true. And after questioning DH last night, 2 don't eat meat.

I love the idea about pulled pork (it's hot and not cold)..lol And now I'm back to the spinach quiche too. But jimster is right about others besides vegetarians eating it so I would have to make 2 or 3. Thinking of a veggie casserole perhaps?

DH knocked down a couple of my suggestions, so I think he is over-thinking it.

I would make 2 big quiche...one with spinach and mushrooms and the other with seafood of some sort...shrimp or surimi crab and spinach.
And a green salad and a loaf of French bread.
Tell your busband that's what civilized people eat for lunch when they don't have to order a tray of sandwiches at the Mariott.
You could also do a chicken pot pie...in a 8 by 11 casserole.
I would poach some boneless skinless chicken breasts with an onion cut into wedges and a couple of ribs of celery....and dice the meat....then make a white sauce using 1/2 milk and half of the broth from the chicken and add a chunk of cream cheese for creaminess...cut up some carrots into pennies and blanch in the micro...and mix the carrots, some uncooked frozen peas with the chicken and top with a crust...I would make it from bisquick and pat it out fairly thin...sprinkle with dried parsley and grated parmesan cheese and heat until hot and the crust is browned.
And how about a side of fruit salad?
Linda C

If your DH knows what he is talking about - that they don't eat salad, then my guess is that they don't eat quiche either. I wonder if he really knows what they don't like. Maybe he's the one who doesn't like salad. It's been my experience that most men do not like quiche, even the ones who like salad. Quiche and salad is my kind of meal though!

Jimster brought up a good point about people often taking some of each if you offer two totally different main dishes. So you end up making way too much of both for fear of running out. Lots of extra time and expense. To avoid that, I'd suggest you make two versions of the same thing. Don't know why I didn't think of that before since I do it so often. One ddil doesn't eat meat, so I make a small portion of whatever we're having without it.

One of her favorites is chicken tetrazzini, sans chicken. With pasta, mushrooms, cheese, etc., it's a wonderful vegetarian entree. A huge crowd-pleaser, too, since it's true comfort food that few people bother to make anymore. I'd do that with spinach or green beans, a salad and hot rolls.

Good luck!

sm

I suggest 2 recipes that I have gotten from this forum:We love this combination and it isn't to heavy, it will also satisfy the non meat eaters. I also agree a salad and a nice bread will add some variety. You can make the soup the day before. Both are easy, very different & definitely not like the Marriot!

Brie - Chili Soup
* Posted by marigene (My Page) on
Fri, Sep 29, 06 at 13:33

Here is a great soup.

Brie with Green Chili Soup

1 c Chopped onions
½ c Chopped celery
4 tb Butter
2 tb Flour
1 cn (16-oz) chicken broth
1 ct (16-oz) Half-and-Half (milk is okay too)
½ lb Brie
2 cn (4-oz) chopped green chiles (or preferably fresh roasted chiles)
Salt and pepper to taste

Saute onions, celery in butter for 5 minutes. Wisk in flour. Then add in half-and-half and broth. Stir throughly. Add brie to soup in small pieces. Stir until brie is melted (about 10 minutes). Add green chiles, simmer for another 2 minutes and serve

from canarybird:
SALMON QUICHE WITH WALNUT CRUMB CRUST

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

Pastry:
Easy - doesn't require rolling, just press down with fingers and back of a spoon into a 24 cm (9.5 inch) pyrex flan dish or pie plate.

1 - 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup cheddar cheese (grated)
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup walnuts finely chopped

Mix these ingredients in a bowl, cutting in butter with two knives until crumbly then press into a pie dish, including up the sides. Bake in pre-heated oven for five minutes. Then remove from oven.
Meanwhile mix the following ingredients in a bowl:
Filling:
3 eggs beat till frothy
3/4 cup sour cream
1 cup mozzarella cheese (grated)
1/2 onion, chopped
1 can salmon (7 3/4 ounces) - I prefer fresh piece salmon that has been baked - 'smoked salmon' is really good too.
1/4 cup mayonnaise

Pour these ingredients into the pie crust - bake in oven approximately 45 minutes or until knife inserted in centre comes out clean.

I'd do grilled chicken (can be skewered with a dip but not necessary), rice pilaf (w/pecans, dried cranberries, green onion), green salad with lots of vegetables, red potato salad (or mac and cheese), rolls and a great dessert (key lime pie,fruit tray and cookies...endless choices).
The vegetarians can eat everything except the chicken.
Par cook the chicken so it reheats fine and make everything ahead.

The reason he thinks they don't eat salad is BECAUSE THEY ALWAYS HAD COLD SANDWICHES AT THE MARIOTT!!!! Furthermore, he is STEREOTYPING SALAD AS RABBIT FOOD!!!! There are MANY other kinds of salad. And you can be sure that VEGETARIANS EAT SALAD, AND LOTS OF IT!!!! He didn't even MENTION that there were vegetarians in the group until you asked, DID HE????? How many kudos would you have gotten if the vegetarians showed up and found NOTHING TO EAT???? HUH???? HUH????

Whew! Sorry. This is getting me a little frustrated. I'll calm down now.

OK. How about a selecton of:

a) steak salad
b) chicken salad
c) Greek salad

There should be something there to please everyone. Steak for the macho men, chicken for those who don't like rare beef (steak salad's gotta be rare) and Greek salad for the vegetarians. Also, mix and match is OK for those who want to.

Some bread sticks, garlic bread or just plain good bread would be pretty much the only other thing necessary except for a simple dessert (maybe lemon bars or chocolate chip cookies).

If this is not acceptable, I think casserole type dishes or baked pasta would be very good. But I would like a green salad with my pasta, thank you.

Yeh, it's been said that "real men don't eat quiche", but I like quiche and am perfectly secure in my masculinity. Red salmon and spinach is one of my favorites. But I agree that quiche is not a "safe" choice.

Everyone has been so great helping me plan DH's luncheon meeting. I have decided on 2 trays of stuffed shells. One with spinach and one with meat - salad (sorry DH) and bread. This will satisfy everyone. And if they eat too much, heck that's not my problem. For dessert, lemon bars (recipe from this forum) and apple cake. I can cut these into squares and be done with it.

jimster, I hope you calmed down :) DH is clueless when it comes to preparing a meal like this. I just thank everyone here for bringing up the vegetarian issue.

magothyrivergirl, thank you for the recipes. They sound fantastic and I will definitely make them in the near future when "I" can sit down and enjoy them.

Real men may not eat quiche...but real men do eat pie....and what is quiche but cheese pie?
Maybe it's my age.....but I only know one vegetarian...and I very very rarely see her.
I have teen age grands...and 40-ish kids and 40-ish friends...and they all eat meat.
The one exception was the old aunt...who didn't like meat...and fish turned her stomach, and chicken was beyond awful....and she was thew orlds' worst cook....but she had other issues as well! LOL!
I wouldn't worry about the non meat eaters....have a salad and bread...and if you make a quiche they can pick out the shrimp, if you have pot pie they can pick out the chicken
If mariott were sending in a sandwich tray, what would they eat?
Linda C

"Real men may not eat quiche...but real men do eat pie....and what is quiche but cheese pie?"

I like that reasoning. Pie! Mmmm.

cactuscatie, I think that is an excellent decision. It's fairly simple, convenient to serve and it will be delicious. Who doesn't love baked shells?