1. Try not to make the menu so complex that you are chained to the kitchen 3 days prior to the meal occasion!
2. Always try to choose the best fresh produce that you can find - good quality ingredients give good quality meals!
3. Speak to your guests in advance about their likes and dislikes to avoid any uneaten meals.
4. Don't go over the top !! A simple well-cooked meal will be appreciated far more than something more ambitious but poorly executed.

Menu Planning Checklist

1 week prior to the meal occasion:
1. Make your final shopping list, planning amounts required - plus a little extra for any mishaps!
2. Speak to your butcher about your choice of meat; discuss what meals you have in mind - they may be able to advise you on different or more economic cuts you could use.
3.If you prefer, why not ask your butcher to prepare your meat. If you are buying a boneless product why not ask for the bones - these always come in handy for making stocks, soups & sauces.
4. Prepare the dish and try it on the family, just in case it needs any adjustments.
5. Try not to use the same type of meat or fish for both the starter & main course - variety is the spice of life!
2 Days Before
1. If your dish has a marinade, prepare the marinade and cover your meat. (If your marinade is very acidic, only prepare the dish 24 hours before, as the acid may start to "cook" the product).
2. Always store in fridge until ready to cook. See MEAT SAFETY
3. If you have decided to make your own stock with the bones that were with the meat, prepare and cook this now. Once cooked, cool quickly & store in a sealed container in the fridge.

24 Hours Before
1. If part of your menu is a cold dish, this can be prepared 24 hours before - it is essential that this is stored, covered, in the fridge .
2. Buy your fresh vegetables or salad items.
3. Check all your ingredients to ensure that you have everything you need & sort them into logical groups.
4. Mark all the relevant pages in you recipe book with a post it note, so you can find them easily tomorrow, determine how long each product will take to prepare & cook - then plan in what order you will do each task needed.

On the day
1. Prepare the menu items in the order you have planned, timing them to the desired mealtime.
2. Never have meat or other chilled food items "hanging around" out of the fridge for more than 20 minutes & never allow cooked product to come into contact with anything which has touched raw meat.
3. Try to clear away as you finish each item - can someone help you with the washing up?
4. Once you are happy that everything is under control, relax & enjoy it!!