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[+1 for Leo Maya's Chicken with Green Sauce]

@Cary--thank you thank you thank you for bringing that recipe to my attention! We had the Pepin chicken thighs last night and they were completely awesome. had no idea that sort of yummy crunchy skin was got through such simple methods. Totally putting that one in the arsenal for mid week meals.

Geeez, how can you leave out the ever popular Double Fatty Melt???

I've been on a life-long quest for the very best fried chicken and I believe that it is found in "Scott Peacock's and Edna Lewis's Miraculously Good Fried Chicken". You can find it here...

i'm in the deathly afraid of pie crust camp, and this seems very doable - and not scary at all :)

Making a flour pie crust from scratch is well and good, but some pies are better with a graham cracker crumb crust, like key lime pie.
I have a great recipe for coconut custard pie, from Cook's Illustrated. It calls for a Nabisco Barnum's Animal Cracker crumb-and-coconut crust, but I do it with a chocolate-coconut crust instead. Who can resist the combination of chocolate and coconut?

6 oz. Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers
8 tbsp. unsweetened shredded coconut
1-14 oz. can coconut milk
9 tbsp. granulated sugar
5 large egg yolks
6 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 cup whole milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 tsp. vanilla extract
whipped cream topping

Position oven rack in lower–middle position and preheat to 325°F. Combine the chocolate wafers, 2 tbsp. coconut, 1 tbsp. sugar, and a pinch of salt in the food processor. Pulse until crumbs are finely ground. Melt 4 tbsp. of the butter and cool slightly. Combine the crumbs and the melted butter in mixing bowl, and work together with a fork until mixture resembles wet sand.
Using the bottom of a ramekin, press this mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a 9" pie plate. Blind bake 15 min. @ 325°F, remove from oven, and cool to room temp on a wire rack, while you prepare the filling.
Combine 5 tbsp. coconut, coconut milk, whole milk, 8 tbsp. sugar, and the remaining 3/8 tsp. salt in a medium saucepan, and bring to a simmer over medium–high heat, stirring occasionally. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, cornstarch, and 1 tbsp. sugar. Temper the egg yolks by slowly drizzling the hot milk mixture into the eggs, a little at a time while whisking constantly. When the egg mixture and milk are fully incorporated, return mixture to saucepan and cook until thickened and mixture reaches boil, whisking constantly, about 1 min.
Off heat, whisk in remaining 2 tbsp. butter and 1 tsp. vanilla until smooth. Pour hot filling into cooled pie shell. Press plastic wrap directly against surface of filling and refrigerate pie for at least 4 hours to set.
Place remaining 1 tbsp. shredded coconut in a small, dry frying pan and toast over medium heat until golden brown. Reserve to garnish the finished pie.

To serve, top pie with fresh whipped cream, and sprinkle the toasted coconut.

Where I live they don't stock chocolate cookie wafers. Seriously. Can you believe it?!! I ended up using chocolate teddy grahams.

One more thing. Thirty years ago I lost my dad (car accident) right before Thanksgiving. (leaving 4 kids ages 15 and under). We had plenty of food delivered in the weeks following (and got sick of deli meat and lasagna big time) but it was the holidays right after (Thanksg. & Christmas) that were awfully hard. Please do remember that the deep grieving and need for food (and the comfort it brings) continues well into the year. It does taper off after that (can't say it ever really leaves you completely- it just changes into something manageable) but the first year is really tough.

I'm so sorry for your loss; I think it's wonderful how you are all rallying around the family during this time. In the past year, we've done 2 "food trees" for local families in similar situations -- for the first family, I made bourbon chicken with white rice: http://www.recipezaar.com/Bourbon-Chicken-45809, included a salad and dressing, and some homemade vanilla wafers; for the second (vegetarian) family, I made a large tortilla espanola, fresh bread, salad and dressing, and lemon cake. Each time, I packed up the whole meal (including disposable plates, napkins, etc.) in a paper grocery bag, and the meals were in disposable containers as well -- so that washing dishes and returning casserole containers is off the family's to-do list.

Take a muffin tin, line each cup with pastry, add sauteed broccoli and crumbled stilton, and spoon in egg mixture for mini quiches.

I proselytize a lot for haloumi here, but skewers of cherry tomatoes, haloumi, peppers, onions, mushrooms and whatever meat you like, marinated in seasoned olive oil and chucked on to a grill pan work well.

Grilled, crispy flatbread with hummus and olives.

The classic tomato and mozz salad. Fresh buffalo mozz and nice sliced tomatoes, with diced onions and a olive oil and white balsamic dressing. Squeeze a lemon over it, and add fresh black pepper. Home-made croutons work well with this too. Don't skimp on the garlic.

Wine glasses filled with sweetened whipped cream and a dash or two of liqueur topped with a chocolate biscuit and a vanilla biscuit, with a raspberry coulis on the side.

@CJ McD - it's a pretty cool feature!
Up at the top of the article/topic (ie "...and hot foods so I can do some dishes ahead.
19 Comments....) it should have a little yellow 'star' icon that should be a hyperlink you can click on.
These are stored in a tab in your profile.
I find it really really useful if I really want to read into an article or topc and its like "saving it for later" ....er...."leftovers" :-D

@ CJ McD - I have to favourite this topic now! Thanks for the ideas; I don't have a party anytime soon but I might have to now!!!!

I especially like the shooter idea, the skewers, french crepes and assorted fruits and cheeses. Thats the kind of stuff I run towards when I'm at fancy buffets.

I was once at a fancy party in Toronto and this girl walked around with a big 'art palette' looking tray and she had inserted sticks with prawns wrapped in bacon ....nom nom nom...thats my kinda lollipop!~ :D