HOSTING ON A BUDGET

Citrus Mackerel Spaghetti with Pangrattato

a birthday spread made up exclusively of recipes from In for Dinner

Something I am always asked for, time and time again, is my top tips for hosting. As someone who has built their entire personality and career around enjoying feeding people, it’s something I do a lot of and I’ve learned a few tricks along the way for hosting without loosing your mind.

It was my birthday last week and it fell on a Wednesday, so I planned a little get together for Easter Sunday, when more of my friends were free for a relaxed lunch. This is my favourite way to host, a small group of friends (twelve to be exact) coming round in the mid afternoon, to feast on a table of food that’s been designed for sharing and hasn’t broken my back or the bank to put together. I like to make a collection of dishes, that cater to everyone’s dietary needs and compliment each other. For this occasion I chose six recipes from my book In for Dinner, four savoury and two sweet. On the menu was:

• Summer Holiday Bean Salad

• Crispy Chickpea Caesar Salad

• Citrus Mackerel Spaghetti with Pangrattato

• Pesto Pasta with Green Beans

• Salted Chocolate Miso Cake

• Grandma Margaret’s Raspberry sponge

The ingredients cost me a total of £64.98 which worked out at £5.42 per head. A pretty sweet deal if you ask me.

My motto is delicious food is possible on any budget, and I really stand by that. When I set out to write In for Dinner, I did it with the intention of giving under confident cooks the confidence to cook for their friends and family more often. I truly believe that sharing a meal with your loved ones is one of the most powerful acts of self care that we can commit and that the more we share, the happier we are.

This week I am sharing one of the recipes that I served on my birthday table, which also happens to be the cover girl of my book, the Citrus Mackerel Spaghetti with Pangrattato. This pasta really encapsulates my style of cooking, taking cheap pantry essentials and turning them into a delicious, chic little dinner in under 30 minutes.

I’m so excited for the book to be out and in the world on May 1st - in just 8 days! For my UK readers, it’s your last chance to support my favourite independent bookshop and order a signed copy from BookBar, to have it arrive on your doorstep by May 1st, you can do that here. They are offering everyone who orders a signed copy a free coffee or soft drink, to redeem in store for the whole month of May - a very good reason to pay a visit to their shop if you haven’t already.

And for my US readers, I have an exciting discount for you via the legendary Barnes & Noble - you can get 25% Off the List Price on preorders, including eBooks & Audiobooks + an additional 10% off physical preorders for Premium Members. You can do that here by using the coupon code PREORDER25 at checkout.

Now to the recipe - let this be your next casual dinner, maybe invite a friend or two round to share it with, you won’t regret it.

Sending love, Rosie x