Perfect Party Food: All the Recipes and Tips You'll Ever Need for Stress-Free Entertaining from the Diva of Do-Ahead

by Diane Phillips

How do you throw a party without stressing out? Plan ahead and do-ahead. This entertaining guide from Diane Phillips, the Diva of Do-Ahead, with help you get out of the kitchen and into your own party. She presents nearly 500 recipes that can all be made ahead of time--some days and even weeks--that taste delicious, and are designed to be served buffet style. Handy icons show which recipes are just right for a backyard barbecue, an elegant cocktail party, or an all-night blow-out bash. Dozens of menu suggestions, templates for figuring out the menu range and quantities, easy decorating tips, and guidelines for stocking a bar complete this essential guide to entertaining.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking

707 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Aleeda]

With several hundred cookbooks in my home. I think long and hard before adding another one to the shelves. Perfect Party Food is worth making room for. The title of the book is misleading. The only thing that is consistently "party food" about this book is the size of the portions. Many recipes offer portions that will feed 10-12. The beauty of this book is the preparation; each recipe can be made ahead, to some extent, saving you time, and best of all, stress. I tried a few of the recipes in the book--I don't mind making extra, if I think I can freeze it, and found the instructions clear and concise; the tips were on the money every time. I was very surprised with the variety of recipes; instead of the typical dips, wings, etc., you will find recipes that are complex and tasty as well as easy to prepare because the process is broken down into manageable, do-ahead parts. For example, there are a bunch of tasty breads and dinner rolls, which would not normally be Party Food, because of the risings, but can be if you follow the steps. A favorite find was the killer recipe for Starbucks' Cranberry Bliss bars.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Diane's recipes give you a map on how to take the stress out of entertaining. The step by step directions and tips make this book invaluable to those of us who want to cook, but who also want to be free to enjoy our own parties and/or holidays. Adapting your your own tried and true recipes to her methods is simple and makes your cooking life easier.

[Mary Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best cookbook my mom ever got me. I have cooked more out of this cookbook than any other cookbook ever in my 40 years of cooking. The "Diva" hints are very useful and make cooking for a crowd a breeze!

[Jill]

Love this book

[Farrah Soares Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the past three years I have baked my ham by this book. The apple cider ham was delish last year!!!!