Q. “What’s your special occasion meal at home? We have family birthdays this month and I’d love to have a crowd-pleaser.” —Grace, Neenah
A. To answer this question, it is important to first consider our audience. Pleasing a crowd is not always easy, and guests may not feel special if the food prepared for them is something they do not like or will not eat. For example, for several years we prepared Seafood Cioppino for our family Christmas, and as our extended family grew, it became quickly apparent that a bowl full of fresh seafood with calamari tentacles and mussel shells staring at us was not necessarily appreciated by everyone around the table, unfortunately. Since that time, our featured entrée has primarily switched to beef, and it has been universally accepted by all. In recent years we have had smoked beef brisket, roasted beef tenderloin and grilled beef flank steak. For specific birthdays, I have usually solicited requests since it is hard to go wrong playing a request. My daughter is easy to please with Eggs Benedict with homemade hollandaise sauce and hash browns. It is a safe bet my son would request barbecued baby back ribs and creamy cabbage slaw. My wife really is not particularly fussy—after all, she married me, right?