Okay, y'all. I'm planning a dinner party menu and am a little stumped, so suggestions, please..

I'm definitely making the smoked trout spread from The Quick Recipe to serve with water crackers as an hors d'oeuvres.

And most likely, for the actual meal, the butternut squash with chipotle and garlic soup from A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen. And definitely, for the main course, lamb shanks with a chocolate almond picada from The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen. And probably for dessert the lemon tart that was in last Sunday's NYT magazine.

I'm stumped, though, for side dishes. I'm looking for vegetable dishes that can be prepared in advance and served room temperature or kept warm in the oven (the lamb bakes at 250 and I can easily plonk something in the 250 oven 30 minutes before dinner, right?). Maybe the herb jam with olives and lemons and some flat bread, also from The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen? But even though that contains a lot of spinach, it seems more hors d'oeuvres-y. Something eggplanty? Glazed carrots? I'm stumped.