We are going to have an open house for my ds' graduation in May. There will be about 130 or so invited and I figure probably half or more will come. We will be renting the hall at the church as that will be too many people for my house. How do you know how much food to prepare? Is there a formula that you use? I need ideas for the menu items? Any suggestions? I would like for this to be really special because my ds' have worked really hard to graduate from high school and they want to share it with daer friends and family.
wow that sounds like fun. Is he graduationing for homeschool or ps? Any way I talk to my sil who caters and says to alway count like if you invited 130 people did you add spouse and children if not double it then divide by two. If you did she said figure at least half will come. Ideas, What about chips of several kinds. sandwich, ham, turkey, sloppy joes(a big pot of that). nuts, mints. Of course a wonderful cake. potato salad. mac. salad. and she said a fruit salad always goes over great. hope this helps some.
I found this site it has recipes for 50 and 100 maybe some inbetween too. http://members.tripod.com/~lotsofinfo/
I've always heard to prepare 1 1/2 servings per person. That way they'll be seconds for some that wan them, but not huge quantities of leftovers. I'd probably stick with finger foods as much as possible. I have a good recipe for hot mini-sandwiches if you want it.
Would love the recipe. Thanks! Sloppy Joe suggestion is a good one too. Put that in a crock pot to keep it warm.
You could also have Frito pie. Everyone calls it something different though. Make a crock pot of chili and have corn chips and shredded cheese to top it off. Add some baked potatoes to use the chili and cheese on. Maybe have some other toppings too. This is what we are doing for my future sil bridal shower. Just an idea.
YEAH! I agree...hot sandwich stuff filling crockpots is a good way to go... I have a hot roast beef sandwich recipe if you want. Meatballs are a good thing too - don't have to make your own, buy the super bulk bags at Costco or Walmart or the like - stick in a 6 quart crock pot and cook with your favorite sauce. Serve on rolls with provalone cheese. Tuna Salad and chicken salad are good too - if you have a way to keep things cold. Veggie trays. Finger foods are a GREAT idea...imagine 130 people milling around with filled plates...going for 2nds, etc. Our wedding was about 125 people...we bought WAY too much food! We had SOOO much leftover. We did the picnic style chicken salad, tuna salad, meat/cheese tray, hot roast beef and meatball sammies. Soooo yummy! Chips rounded it out. And of course, cake! I have a great chicken salad recipe too, if you would like that.
Don't forget that you can get disposable chafing dishes very inexpensively at Sams or even the local party supply store. Side dishes like baked beans, veggies, even baked potatoes (which would be a counted item, so probably not good for this event) keep nice and warm in them. And you can keep an extra pan of something in the back and swap out an empty one for a full one.
Mini ham & salami sandwiches: Hawaiian bread rolls sliced provolone cheese sliced deli ham sliced hard salami (I buy pre-packaged. It's cheaper) Remove rolls from pkg. keeping them together. Use a large knife to slice rolls in half. Set tops aside. Layer ham, salami, and cheese. Place tops back on and wrap sandwiches in foil. Bake at 350 until warmed and cheese is melted. These do need to be kept warm for the best flavor. *For those who do not like salami, this does not have a strong salami taste!!
I love all of these ideas. I am not good with dreaming up new stuff. I think with everyone's ideas, it will be a yummy hit! Thank you, keep them coming if you have more.
We have done a Taco Bar with great success for about 50 people. We used mini premade taco shells. I have no idea where I got them but they sure were cute. The kids loved them. You just make a bunch of taco meat, a big pot of beans (or in your case several big pots) and provide a bunch of toppings. We also had salsa and chips.
For both my graduation and my wedding my parents had a pig roast. We had salads to go along with it. Any left over pig got froze for dinners at a later time. We had both of them at my parents house which is an old farm house. Everyone loved it!
The taco bar would be good, do those mini shells, or regular, and maybe some small flour tortillas for soft tacos. Any left over taco meat can be frozen for quick meals later. We've done a potato bar too and it worked out ok, but they are a counted item so its hard to guesstimate how many you'll need. Maybe do a potluck where you provide the main dish, and bread and everyone brings a favorite side dish or dessert. The Barefoot Contessa on food network just did a show a few days back on a big cake for gatherings. It looked yummy. She said it wasnt expensive or hard to make.
You all have such great ideas! I had thought about having it at my house and bbq-ing but I don't think that everyone would follow my "no shoes in the house" rule! LOL Any recipes are always welcome! Thanks!
Taste of Home Magazine has regular menu/recipe suggestions for large numbers of people. You can find them online at http://tasteofhome.com/ Our local grocery store has a catering department. If you have one nearby, you can use their service, or get their brochure to learn how to gauge servings. Most of the time they'll have pictures of their offerings, as well as the number of people it would serve! If the church you're renting from has a group of ladies experienced in this area, you could glean info from them. Sounds like fun!!
Mamabear it all sounds so good. I think it would be neat if I flow the jet around pick up everyone and we will all come and help with the party.
That would rock! How long have you had your pilots license? I've always wanted to learn to fly. Do you think that you could show me a few flying maneuvers?
