Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

-Caramelized onion, roquefort and thyme tart
-Filet mignon topped with a roquefort pepercorn sauce
-Dates stuffed with roquefort and wrapped in bacon or prosciutto

@JerzeeTomato: I already know that one of my guests does not eat shellfish and I will be making some chicken/onion/pepper fajitas as an alternative. I'm also going to have some hummus or baba ghanough and chips just in case someone brings along a vegetarian without letting me know! And yes, gambas al ajillo are made in a skillet on the stovetop. I'm thinking that the coconut shrimp can be flash-heated in the oven before serving but am not sure what to do about the bacon-wrapped shrimp. I have done them under the broiler before, but served them immediately and didn't have to worry about heating them up again.

@philandlauren: I will be saving the shells to make a seafood stock!

@kmgagne: the "deconstructed BLT" is a great idea. That way, the bacon could be prepared well ahead of time and I wouldn't have to worry about smoke.

Best Pizza is my favorite pizza place in the neighborhood, by far. I agree that sometimes the choice of music and the VOLUME at which it is played (often far too loud) doesn't add to the experience, but the guys there are friendly and the most of the food is consistently good. For the slideshow, please note that 6 garlic knots do not cost $1; they cost $3. I have ordered them twice and did a double-take at the price the first time because I expected it to be less. The Italian sub is excellent, and so is the meatball sandwich. However, I did not enjoy the chicken parm sandwich. The chicken was not crispy at all, and was actually quite greasy. With that said, I have enjoyed everything else on the menu. The white slice may be my favorite pizza item, with a pickled vegetable slice being a close second.

I like to serve it wrapped around dates or figs.

I also put in my vote for cornbread. If not that, then a baguette or another firm bread that doesn't fall apart into a mushy "savory bread pudding." Those "buttery croutons" that some of you find to be texturally "off" sound like a great accompaniment to the turkey! And hold the eggs, please!

"Late afternoon is grand, but I've served as late as 7 pm, when necessary. With plenty of snacks and adult beverages, the complaints are damn few. Short answer: When everything is ready." My sentiments exactly! Amen to that.

@ Carey: no, going to Greenpoint to buy lemon Fanta is not crazy. I literally did a little dance when I found the stuff. It is near-impossible to locate in the US.

I'm wondering the same thing as LucaL. Where can one find Roman-style pizza in NYC? Does anyone have a recommendation?

My parents are in their late fifties and grew up in suburban NJ. My dad was raised around Italian, Spanish, and German food, so he ate that in addition to standard American food. Though my mom grew up in the same area, her parents were extremely unadventurous eaters and only served standard American food. It's hard to fathom that my mom didn't even try Italian food until she was in high school or Puerto Rican or Chinese food until she was well into adulthood, but I guess it wasn't as readily available as it is now and you had to seek it out, something that someone that was raised as an unadventurous eater would not think to do.

I grew up near Miami eating standard American food, Italian food, and Cuban food. My family would occasionally go to a Chinese restaurant for dinner, but not to anything else. I don't recall there being any Indian or Thai or Middle Eastern places in my immediate area when I was a kid. I didn't try any of these cuisines until I was in college in Boston, and fully embraced them. Nowadays, when I go back to visit my parents, I cook a few meals for them. My dad pretty much eats anything he's served. He would not be eager to go to a restaurant whose cuisine is out of his comfort zone, but if I prepare it and put it in front of him, he will try it, and most of the time, has enjoyed it. My mom is quite a bit harder to please and needs to be cajoled to try new things. I do find that using new ingredients alongside familiar ones or with familiar techniques is the best way to get her to try something new. Sometimes she will warn that she doesn't plan to try something, but once it's sitting on the table and she sees other people enjoying it, she'll ask for a bite and will be pleasantly surprised.

I actually did a post on my cooking blog last week about this very method of making donuts. @Figlet: I much prefer these over Dunkin Donuts, Crispy Kreme, etc. and I don't think the dough tastes too "savory" at all. http://crispcooks.blogspot.com/2011/01/donuts-for-brunch.html

This is one of the most scrumptious-sounding stuffing/dressing recipes I have seen - I'm going to try it!

I was a little let down by these. These are made out of pretzels and potato chips? To me they tasted like they were made with regular cookie dough with a *little* bit of salt added. I was really hoping for a crunchy, salty cookie to contrast with the dark chocolate dip.