Watch the video above to see what I made and scroll down for the written recipes!

Lately and strangely enough, I’ve been hosting quite a few dinner parties for friends. I don’t really know what happened but maybe it’s something to do with getting older. When I was younger, I’d always go out to socialize but there’s really something about getting a few friends together and having a nice and long dinner at home.

One thing that’s fantastic about not going out is that you get to save money but still enjoy the benefits of socialization and seeing your loved ones! Honestly, there’s no need to spend all your dollar bills to socialize – some of my favourite nights are nights in with friends having some yummy food and drinking wine.

I’ve been posting about my dinner parties on Instagram, and some of my followers have requested that I do a video about throwing a dinner party. I’m really not an expert but I decided to do one, budget-friendly style!

I wanted to cook a three-course meal with enough food to feed 4 people and I wanted to do it without spending more than $20. I ended up succeeding and I only spent $18.50! There were a few issues and a few little tweaks I made (you can watch the video to find out what) but I think I did well, for the most part.

Here’s how I structured the meal, please scroll down for the recipe –

1. Starter – Garlic Spinach with Roasted Potatoes
2. Main – Spaghetti with Homemade Tomato Sauce and Chickpea Balls
3. Dessert – Raspberry Coconut Pudding

Hope you enjoy these very simple ideas and recipes – everyone seemed to enjoy eating these!

Make sure you watch the video above to find out what I bought and how I made everything.

Garlic Spinach Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch spinach, rinsed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• pinch of salt

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in a large pan on medium-high heat, and add minced garlic.
2. Cook the garlic for 1-2 minutes on medium heat and then add spinach.
3. Sautee until spinach is wilted and very green. Add salt.

Air Fried Roasted Potatoes Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 pinch of salt 
• 1 tsp garlic powder 

Instructions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, add cubed potatoes, olive oil, salt and garlic powder and mix well.
2. Air fry at 400 degrees F for about 25 minutes, shaking or flipping the potatoes halfway through. If baking, bake in a pre-heated oven at 400 degrees F for about 30-35 minutes or until browned on the outside and tender in the inside.

Chickpea Balls (Vegan Meatballs) Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp ground flax seeds + 3 tbsp water 
• 1 tsp oil 
• 1/3 onion, diced
• 3-4 cloves garlic, diced 
• 1/2 cup mushrooms, chopped
• 1 can chickpeas or other beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup bread crumbs 
• 1/2 tbsp Italian seasoning 
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp salt 
• 4 tbsp canned diced tomato (optional) 

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a small bowl, mix together flax seeds and water to create the “flax egg” and place in fridge while preparing other ingredients. 
3. Heat oil in a large pan or wok on medium-high heat. Add onion, garlic and mushrooms and sautée until cooked. 
4. Add the mixture into a food processor along with the chickpeas. Process until chickpeas are mostly mashed. This doesn’t have to be perfect.
5. Add this mixture into a large mixing bowl along with half the bread crumbs, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt and a bit of the diced tomato. Mix everything well until nicely combined.
6. On a wide plate, place the rest of the bread crumbs.
7. With damp hands, use the chickpea mixture to create ball shapes and coat the balls with the bread crumbs.
8. Bake for about 30-40 minutes at 400 degrees F, flipping them half way through. You can also pan-fry, air-fry or deep fry these.

Simple Tomato Pasta Sauce Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp oil 
• 1 cup chopped mushrooms 
• 1/3 onion, diced 
• 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
• large can of diced tomatoes (796 ml can)
• 1/2 tbsp basil 
• 1/2 tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1/8 cup red wine (optional)

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in a large pan or wok on medium-high heat and add mushrooms. Cook on one side for about 2 minutes until slightly browned then stir. 
2. Add in onion then sautée for about a minute then add the minced garlic. Cook until onions have softened.
3. Add in the can of diced tomatoes, basil, italian seasoning and red wine and mix well.
4. Allow the mixture to come to a boil, then once it comes to a boil, turn it down to a low simmer, cover and let simmer for about 20-30 minutes.
5. Serve with your favourite pasta and the chickpea balls!

Raspberry Coconut Pudding Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 can of regular full-fat coconut milk, chilled overnight in the fridge (you must use one without emulsifiers – please see notes below)
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1/2 pint of raspberries

Instructions:

1. After you’ve chilled the coconut milk in the fridge overnight, when you open the can, there should be a solid block of coconut milk that’s separated from the water. If you don’t see a solid block, please see the notes below.
2. Take the solid coconut milk block out of the can and discard of the water. Add the coconut milk into a large mixing bowl.
3. Using an electric mixer, start whipping – this should turn into a nice whipped cream consistency soon enough.
4. Mix in the sugar into the whipped coconut cream.
5. In small serving cups or mason jars, add in a spoonful of the whipped coconut cream, then followed by a layer of raspberries then another layer of the whipped cream.
6. Top with a few raspberries and serve chilled.

Notes:

1. As you’ve seen in the video, I failed at this because I didn’t chill the coconut milk OVERNIGHT in the fridge. Make sure you do this before you try whipping the coconut milk. If you fail to do this and the coconut milk didn’t separate, don’t fret – add a few tablespoons of chia seeds, as I did to thicken up the coconut milk into a chia seed pudding.
2. If you use the wrong brand or kind of coconut milk (possibly one with an emulsifier), this may not separate at all. If so, this won’t whip into a whipped cream. Instead, you can thicken up the coconut milk using a few tablespoons of chia seeds just as I did in the video.