People are coming to visit and you’ve promised to cook dinner. What’s next? It doesn’t have to be complicated: what makes dinner great is usually the company, not just the food. So make sure you’re well-prepared and relaxed, and all will go well. Here are a couple of suggestions of how dishes on this site can be put together into a traditional three-course meal.

Mexican Mayhem

• Start with: Quesadilla with pico de gallo and sweetcorn.
• Make the main event: Chilli with guacamole, sour cream, grated cheese and salsa. Chilli and salsa can be prepared the day before.
• End with: Exotic fruit salad – papaya, kiwifruit and melon sprinkled with cashew nuts. The salad can be prepared the day before, just add the nuts last minute so they stay crunchy.

Middle-eastern Mystique

• Start with: Bread crisps made from baguette or crudities, hummus, baba ganoush and tzatziki. All of which can be prepared the day before.
• Make the main event: Moroccan-style chickpea and sweet potato stew served with tabbouleh. The stew can be made the day before.
• End with: Baclava bought in your nearest Asian shop, and, if you’re feeling fancy, ice cream.

French Fundamentals

• Start with: Onion soup with cheese crostini. The soup can be made days in advance.
• Make the main event: Winter vegetable stew with a French twist (rosemary and thyme, white beans), green salad. The stew can be made days in advance.
• End with: Chocolate mousse, or cheese board.

Italian Idiom

• Start with: A duo of crostini: say pesto and mushroom.
• Make the main event: Mushroom lasanga with a side salad and garlic bread (strictly unnecessary, but tasty).
• End with: The best quality vanilla ice cream you can afford, home-made warm chocolate sauce and a sprinkling of crushed amaretti.

Indian Irreverence

• Start with: Channa chat drizzled with tamarind dressing.
• Make the main event: Chickpea and spinach curry, sweetcorn fritters, rice, naan bread and raita.
• End with: Coconut sponge with a dollop of coconut cream. If everyone hates coconut, serve fresh mango, if you can find it.