Dinner for 16 Thursday night - need entree recipe

I am astounded at the great ideas you have all shared with such generosity. I have recipes for several dinners now! Thank you all!

Opps Gluten or Wheat Intollerance - Serve on Romaine Lettuce Boats

I was at a family party in northern Michigan when a cousin "Danny" showed up with a fresh caught Salmon, he painted it (one fillet) very lightly with mayonnaise (yes I said mayonnaise) placed it on a peice of brown paper bag and set t on the grill (skin side down) 20 minutes later we ate it on crackers right off the grill. The second fillet went on but we were full of fish and beer so it went into the fridge. Hours later we raided the fridge and ate the fish the same way but stone cold. It was better. The next day Danny gave the wife and I a half a salmon and upon returning home we did the same only with a second light coat of "inglehoffer creamy dill mustard with capers and lemon" we grilled it and placed it directly into the fridge, waited a couple hours and ate the whole thing on crackers. Sure throw it on a bed of fresh baby spinach with a few capers on top. If you serve it cold no timming to worry or stress you. Like Lox or Gravloxs - I need spell check

Salmon with basil pesto on the grill or finished under the broiler. You can cut up the salmon pieces in advance, make the pesto in advance (or if really in a pinch, buy it) and coat the salmon with the pesto then wrap and refridgerate. I have an excellent Quinoa Pilaf recipe that is veggie-full, colorfull and gluten free that can be made in advance and then re-heated (also good for a crowd).

Wow, I sure am embarrassed! Let's hear it for not reading things carefully at all. Well, save the Chicken Marbella for when you have a crowd of people who can eat chicken. Sorry about that. I will blame it on low blood sugar and go and eat some lunch. Anyone looking for a good chicken dish that will feed a crowd?

Chicken Marbella is easy to make for a crowd, and always seems to be a winner. You can find many different variations here. The original is from the Silver Palate Cookbook.

http://www.google.com/#hl=en&rlz=1W1RNTN_en&sa=X&ei=NqaHTcfHHov2tgOEq82FAg&ved=0CBQQvwUoAQ&q=chicken+marbella&spell=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=2373608f42b2bb24

You need to throw a bunch of ingredients into a bowl or casserole, let them mellow overnight, and then throw in the oven the next day. The flavors are wonderful. Serve with a nice salad, and crusty bread to sop up all of the amazing juices.

Soup is a great option for bigger groups (with homemade, no-need bread, perhaps?), particularly because it only gets better with time. Not sure how familiar you are with wheat issues but speaking as a gluten free person, don't forget that most soy sauce (often paired with salmon) has wheat, as do some packaged vegetable stocks.

Thank you all for your ideas! Much appreciated.

For that crowd, I'd do Falafel-Crusted Salmon on a Bed of Spinach. Message me if you'd like the recipe. It's easy to prep ahead and finish all at once in the oven.

I'd make the following recipe which is easy to do ahead:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/dave-lieberman/braised-hoisin-beer-short-ribs-with-creamy-mashed-yukons-and-sesame-snow-peas-recipe/index.html

You could replace the short ribs with brisket too and it would be equally wonderful. The sauce on this is really great.

love the idea of cioppino or salmon! you could also do a large composed salad, like salade nicoise with fresh tuna. easy to prep all the components ahead of time and it makes for a beautiful presentation.

Big giant pot of cioppino?

http://www.food52.com/recipes/9395_cioppino

The whole baked fish pictured above is also excellent and fun!

Mmmm the salmon sounds good! You could also go with poached fish or provencal fish en papillote (fish baked in parchment paper packages with vegetables). The fish en papillote is pretty easy, delicious, and totally doable for a crowd. My sister made it for a dinner party of 30 people and aside from the oven breaking halfway through, it went off without a hitch.

Perhaps salmon? I like the slow roast method from A New Way to Cook. You roast the fish at 275 degrees. First, oil the pan with olive oil. Put down a bed of whatever herbs or aromatics you want. Place the fish over the herbs, skin side down. Drizzle the top with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt. Schneider says to give a 1 1/2 inch thick piece of salmon 25-30 minutes. I suggest testing it at about 20 minutes and then judge how much additional time is needed.

Salmon can be served cold. Serve with a sauce. I'm hungry typing this!