Win Friends, Influence Eating

Fear of entertaining is everywhere in the land. How can people who work all the time find the spare hours to shop and cook and set the table? And, given the lack of practice, how can they reasonably expect to crank out a successful meal that will please friends (this is for those of you who still have friends)?

And that’s just it: Asking a couple of friends to come over just so you can feed them may be so rare that you could order from Domino’s and still get a positive reaction.

But don’t. Try instead these grown-up, straightforward recipes presented by California food writer Dan Goldberg and his wife, freelance writer Tessa DeCarlo, to a group of their hungry friends.

Maybe add some potatoes or rice, a bakery dessert (or plain old ice cream) and a couple of nice wines, and you may kick off a new dining tradition.

MUSHROOM PA^TE

1 onion, minced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound fresh shiitake mushrooms, cleaned, sliced and minced

Splash of white wine

Salt, pepper

2 cups chopped sorrel leaves

Baguette slices, optional

Sounds simple, tastes extraordinary.

Saute onion and garlic in oil until soft.

Add mushrooms. Saute, stirring often, until they are soft but quite dry. Add wine and salt and pepper to taste.

Continue to saute until liquid evaporates and mushrooms are just moist. Add sorrel. Scrape into small serving bowl and serve at room temperature with slices of baguette.

Makes 10 appetizer servings.

Each serving, without bread, contains about:

45 calories; 1 gram protein; 4 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams fat; 0 cholesterol; 110 mg sodium.

MUSTARD AND PEPPER LEG OF LAMB

1 (6-pound) leg of lamb

Juice of 2 lemons

4 cloves garlic, peeled

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup grainy mustard

1/4 cup finely minced fresh thyme

1 tablespoon crushed black pepper

Trim as much fat off surface of lamb as possible. Rub meat with lemon juice, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour or as long as overnight.

Place garlic on top of salt and crush thoroughly, to paste if possible, with flat of knife, or use mortar and pestle. Mix salt-garlic paste with mustard.

Dry lamb and pat with mustard mixture to cover. Mix thyme and pepper and press it into mustard coating.

Place lamb in roasting pan and roast at 325 degrees 1 1/2 to 2 hours, to desired doneness. Using meat thermometer, that’s 125 degrees for very rare, 130 degrees for medium-rare, 140 degrees for medium and 160 degrees for well-done.

Remove lamb from oven and allow to sit about 15 minutes before carving.

Makes 10 servings.

Each serving contains about:

273 calories; 38 grams protein; 3 grams carbohydrates; 11 grams fat; 116 mg cholesterol; 535 mg sodium.

ZUCCHINI AND PEAS WITH CREAM

1 onion, finely minced

1/4 cup olive oil

2 cups peas (fresh if possible)

6 zucchini, diced

Water

1/3 cup whipping cream

Salt, pepper

Saute onion in oil over low heat until soft but not brown.

Add peas and zucchini and few tablespoons water. Cook, covered, over low heat, until vegetables are tender, about 12 minutes.

Raise heat and add cream. Cook, stirring, until most liquid evaporates. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

Makes 10 servings.

Each serving contains about:

126 calories; 4 grams protein; 10 grams carbohydrates; 9 grams fat; 11 mg cholesterol; 115 mg sodium.