whether you're planning a fabulous dinner party with friends or a special occasion for two, the original supper box company might just be what you're looking for. with a seasonal menu packed with a variety of meat, fish and veggie options, you simply select your favourite dishes like you would in a restaurant and pick a delivery date to suit you. before you know it, their super speedy delivery means if you order before 12pm, you can have a prix fixe package on your doorstep the very next day.
cue the beautifully packaged three course dinner party box at my door and ready for entertaining...
the menu
starter: goats cheese served with homemade beetroot jam, streaked bacon and a pea and rocket salad.
main: spring lamb rump with a butter bean and chick pea compote and polenta chips.
dessert: white chocolate and blueberry potted eclair.
(£36 for two people)
although i made the white chocolate dessert first and set aside in the fridge, i thought i'd go through the courses in, well, eating order! there are lots of elements that you could make ahead, which with the starter was the beetroot and red onion chutney.
this would be a brilliant dinner party starter as you only need to grill the goat's cheese and bacon and assemble the salad.
the savoury jam was simply made by slowly combining sliced red onion, grated beetroot and brown sugar. something i will definitely be trying again - though probably after investing in some plastic gloves to avoid "pink hand syndrome"! everything was perfectly measured in bags so i didn't need to worry about getting the scales out or any waste.
as you can see the original supper co use great quality ingredients which you can find more about on their website. you may notice the little yellow sticker on eva and flo's little faces - this was to coincide with the colour coordinated stickers for each recipe.
toss the pea and rocket with fresh tomatoes...
the bacon curls were achieved by par cooking, rolling and then crisping up. clever and not too difficult. perhaps this could be done ahead too and then crisped up at the same time as the goat's cheese. and voila - a simple and winning combo!
and onto the main event...
for anything that requires home baked chips, i always put these on as soon as i start cooking. i'd never made polenta chips before so got these on straight away for the recommended 25 minutes. there's no harm in extra crispy chips :) one thing i thought was fab was the thought that went into the mini bottle of premium olive oil and mix of proper sea salt and cracked black pepper in the box.
again a great dinner party recipe as you could prepare these and have them in the oven when your guests arrive. similarly, the tasty butter bean and chick pea compote was something i made and heated up whilst the lamb was resting. no fuss.
with perfectly portioned olives (so difficult to resist eating...), butter beans, chick peas, fresh basil, smoked paprika, fresh thyme and even a cheeky dash of red wine, the compote simple simmered away making the kitchen smell delicious and inviting.
the clear instructions meant the spring lamb was cooked to our liking and rested well.
served up with tomatoes and fresh pesto which came in a tiny pot. i even stacked the chips like the picture... what do you think?
time for something sweet...
i picked this as i've not made a chocolate mousse before. the meal options clearly state the difficulty level and time that each dish takes to prepare; with the three dishes i picked all being medium. i have to say this one certainly benefited from having a stand mixer but elbow grease would work just fine if you leave plenty of time.
another great thing is the tips and tricks along the way, such as ideas of what to do with your leftover egg whites. i have to say they did well to transport the eggs safely too!
spongy eclairs, juicy blueberries, fresh basil and a cute little bottle of raspberry coulis.
drizzle the raspberry around the glass, layer up with blueberries and white chocolate mousse mixture. for me, i only like fruit desserts where the fruit is kept cool and free of alcohol as is (apple pies or fruit cake are a no from me) so this was a perfect summery dessert. a little bit naughty and a little bit nice.
a real treat for a friday evening and half the price of a three course prix fixe in a fancy restaurant.
what do you think? would it be something you'd try?
find out what is on the menu this week or see what other boxes are available at original supper box co or follow them on twitter @supperboxco ♥
note: i was sent the three meal dinner party box to review but all honest opinions are my own.
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