PUtting on a "spread" on a budget

Jennie_2 · 3 December 2012 at 1:14PM

Me and my big mouth!!!

We have moved next door to my in-laws (that's another story, folks) and my mother in law has invited 16 family members to a pre Christmas buffet. She was going to get her party "catered" which was going to cost a fortune and without thinking I blurted out "that's an outrageous cost, I can do that" (those of you who watch the programme, think of the Catherine Tate character who reckons she can do anything).

Anyway, I have 13 days to become a culinary whizz and deliver the goods. Worse, I am not UK based so I can't take advantage of UK offers, whoopsies and the like.

Any ideas gratefully received (except keep your mouth shut in future, Jennie!):)

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WantToBeSE · 3 December 2012 at 1:18PM

What kind of 'do' is it?
Is it a sausage rolls and mini pasties (both very easy and store well) kind of do, or more like smoked salmon canapes?

katydo12 · 3 December 2012 at 1:29PM

I have to say for a bit of 'cheapness' Icelands party food is pretty good. Me and my partner cater buffets occasionaly (he's a chef) and we always use the 60 piece dessert platter (you dont have to use it all, keep some for xmas day tea!!) They have frozen pizzas for £1 which are good chopped up into 16 pieces. Then your usual sarnies, either cheap bread with fillings into finger sandwiches or you can buy 24 bread rolls for less than £2 at Asda, cut in half theres 48 open sarnies.
If you arent UK based I dont know what facilities you will have to make things like pies and scones but they are always a winner

nuatha · 3 December 2012 at 1:40PM

Failing to engage brain before tongue has often left me in a similar predicament.
16 isn't too bad, one starting point might be what was MIL planning to have catered? As you're not UK, I've no idea what the weather is going to be like where you are. Do you want hot, cold, finger food? Do you have or can you make a chunk of freezer/fridge space? What do you normally cook/bake?
Sorry that's lots of questions.
A fairly simple hot food would be chilli con carne with baked potato, you could then theme other dishes around a texmex style.
At the risk of spending a lot of the time in the kitchen, it would be possible to do a stream of hot hors d'œuvre across the party.

If you'll bear with one more question, what would you like to do? I'm sure there'd be plenty of advice available (there's also some older party catering type threads)

babyshoes · 3 December 2012 at 1:58PM

Do you have any ideas what sorts of things were in the catered menu? We can give you ideas for either how to make them or suitable alternatives.

Here's a few things I would make. A lot can be made in advance.

Can you make basic shortcrust pastry or can you get filo pastry? If so, you can pre-make pastry shells (can be frozen) and fill them with various mixes on the day. (Make up mixes day before and keep in fridge)
A bought pizza is always good, cut it up into canape size pieces. Served warm is nice, but cold tends to be easier to eat as the cheese solidifies and keeps the toppings on. I'd go for a veggie one in case you have vegetablearians in the group.
Sausage rolls can be made with bought sausages and bought puff pastry quite simply and easily. Buy the best sausages you can find for the most flavour.
Chicken legs usually go down well and are easy to make- simply marinade them beforehand (you can buy them now, put in marinade and freeze until needed) then cook in the oven - you can do this the day before and either serve cold or gently warm on the day, but be careful not to over-cook them.
If you want something smaller and daintier looking, use chicken wings instead - take off the smallest tip end at the joint and disgard (or use in stock) then separate the remaining two parts at the joint. Marinade and cook as for chicken legs.
Sandwiches are always popular if you get the fillings right. Using a slice each of white and brown bread makes them look interesting.
Chicken liver pate is quite easy to make - find a recipe with plenty of cream in it for a luxurious treat. Serve with melba toast or crisp crackers.
Dips are easy to make - I like a dollop each of cream cheese, mayo and chutney for a chutney flavoured dip, or c.cheese, mayo and avocado plus seasonings, or c.c, mayo, ketchup and finely grated cheese. Experiment with flavours depending on what you have in. Serve with both crisps / crispy crackers and veggies cut into strips and things like little tomatoes for those trying to eat healthier.
Pieces of fresh fruit are generally welcomed after fatty foods like sausage rolls. Grapes, berries, slices of apple, melon etc are good - just see what you can find that's fresh and can be picked up by hand without falling apart.
A tray bake is easy to make and serve. Brownies and/or a sponge will go down well.
Mince pies are a must at this time of year - feel free to buy them if you are feeling overwhelmed. A decent quality bought pie is quite acceptable.
I'd serve mulled wine and fruit juices. Have tea/coffe available too, or perhaps hot chocolate.

A lot will depend on what time of day this is happening. If over a meal time, then you need to provide more filling foods, but if not you just need snacks on the assumption that they will have an actual meal before or afterwards.
If it is at meal time, hot or cold roast meat plus rolls and a few salad-y bits to go inside with paper plates is quite easy to arrange. You will need plastic cutlery available for those who want the salad on the side. Slow roast pork plus apple sauce is generally tasty in a roll, or rare roast beef and horseradish sauce. Classier than hotdogs or burgers and actually easier as you can make it all in advance!

Uniscots97 · 3 December 2012 at 1:58PM

Here's some ideas I've done in the past:

- chilli (make it mild and put a bottle of tobasco sauce at the side for those that like it hotter)
- mini jacket potatoes (a lot less fuss to eat and far cheaper to buy lots of smaller potatoes than lots of big ones
- vegetable crudities (stick to carrots and celery)
- dips (these can be used on the mini jacket potatoes and the crudities
- cheese straws (I know there's a recipe on this board somewhere)
- pizza (never mind with the mini ones buy a large one and cut it up into bite sized pieces)
- banoffee bites (digestive biscuit, squirt of caramel sauce, few slices of banana and either whipped or squirty cream)
- crisps (don't be ashamed of buying value as once they're out of the packs absolutely no one cares)
- peanuts (if you want to make your own chilli peanuts simply shake in about 1/2 tsp of chilli powder/flakes to a large bag of peanuts and give them a really good shake
- chocolate fondue (very moreish, but can be cheap. If you don't fancy doing this then you could serve chocolate dipped marshmallows, orange/satsuma segments, strawberries. Once dipped leave them on a sheet of greaseproof paper so the chocolate can harden.
- soup (slice up a french stick to go with it)
- large jugs of diluting juice made up (with a few ice cubes in it and maybe a slice of orange, no one will know what brand it is)

visit your supermarket near closing time to get the best bargains. I always think some of the specific party food can be poor value for money but check your prices and the weights of different items.

Butterfly_Brain · 3 December 2012 at 2:01PM

Cook a large Gammon and Beef and slice up
Chicken drumsticks with a chinese marinade, bbq or just spice up with a sprinkle of all purpose seasoning
Palmiers filled with mincemeat (Sweet variety) apple, pate etc
Vol au vents with crab, tuna, prawns, salmon, chopped Chicken and mayo or mushrooms in a cream sauce
Couscous with roasted veg
Mini roasties and have a plate of butter, garlic butter and some grated cheese
Bread sticks and bread rolls or make your own mini tortillas for wraps.
Cheese straws
Mini quiches
Smoked salmon and cream cheese rolled up with a sprig of dill
Salad
Pie Pops
http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/tv-show-recipes/make-do-and-mend-recipes/becky-and-chloe-s-pies-on-a-stick-recipe
Instead of a gateau make lots of cup cakes topped with buttercream and sprinkled with edible glitter

lostinrates · 3 December 2012 at 3:31PM

Op, can you tel us whether it's hot or cold where you are and if there are any culinary restrictions, or if there are seasonally relevant foods where you are....e.g. I am guessing that itof it's a Christmas do its not going to be halal or kosher, but it might be a place where particular foods are associated with the season or the celebration.

If its English speaking country are we to assume buffet not canap!s for example?

Buffets at Christmas what ever the weather benefit from a ham, I bake not boil my hams, but especially at Christmas. I would then glaze with something like marmalade and whisky or perhaps honey and mustard and always, always stud with cloves. Serve on a plate and the slicing of it signals the start of the buffet. (personally I would do two hams and use the left overs for the rest of the family time together).

Beautiful salads, with brighter coloured, and SMALL pieces. (nothing worse than trying to get half a lettuce leaf in your mouth while standing holding a ate and a glass!). Maybe studded with bright fruits.

Tbh, what else I did would depend on where I was.

Oh, punch is always fun if you are not afraid of a cliche....and works out cheaper than bottles!

Jennie_2 · 3 December 2012 at 5:39PM

Gosh, thanks for all the responses!

WantToBeSE - it is a family "do" but here in Norway food is super important and the table has to be groaning to ensure people have a good time. We're talking more smoked salmon that sausage rolls.

nuatha - glad to hear someone else suffers from verbal malfunctions! I am not sure what was on the list to be honest but it would be "typisk Norsk" food (typically Norwegian). Mother in law is doing a bit of that but it's not something I know how to do. I can cook quite well but I am struggling a bit with shortcrust pastry (I thought a couple of different quiches would be good). My pastry is coming out impossibly short.

I am so far thinking quiches, pigs in blankets, mini meatballs, coronation chicken, a couple of home made breads, garlic mayo, a big salad, something to do with smoked salmon, banoffee, a chocolate ganache tart (if I can ever sort out the pastry) and a strawberry cheesecake. I am cooking a turkey to go with sliced cold meats and I need some kind of sauces to go with them, aside from cranberry.

babyshoes - thanks for the ideas! I have been scribbling away! The do is a lunch that will end around 5 ish, I believe. It is known as "Koldtbord" which pretty much means "cold table" but I want to add some hot elements. The posh cutlery and crockery will be out - it's the way it's done over here.

unixgirluk - I had forgotten dipped fruit. Great idea! I am struggling to get the toffee to set for banoffee as the condensed milk seems a bit different. Mini ones sound great!

Butterfly Brain - love the idea of the couscous and roasted veg! Thanks for your ideas.

lostinrates - No dietary restrictions and I can get most things here. The Norwegian way is to put on a huge spread of loads of stuff and people "graze" for several hours. So lots of variety is key.

Pardon the pun but lots of food for thought. Thanks so much! Any other ideas would be greatly appreciated.

littlejaffa · 3 December 2012 at 6:19PM

Really delicate looking canap!s - cheap and easy!
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/superscrimpers/video/series-3/episode-2/s2-ep2-chic-on-the-cheap-canapes

meritaten · 3 December 2012 at 8:50PM

I guess you yourself are not Norwegian? why not mix Norwegian food (the easy bits) with some British 'delicacies'?
easy ones of course!

how about some devilled eggs? simply hard boil eggs slice in half (tip, slice a little bit off the 'curve' of the egg to make them sit up nicely on the platter) scoop out the yolk, mix it with very finely chopped spring onion or chives, a good dollop of mayo, and season with salt and pepper and pile it back in. decorate with a small sprig of chive or parsley.

or pinwheel sandwiches. buy an unsliced loaf and slice it lengthwise, butter and add filling (not too generously - you dont want it squirting out) and roll like a swiss roll - cut into quarter inch rounds. make the fillings different with each 'slice' but quite strongly coloured if you can. looks very pretty.

Celery 'boats' - one inch chunks of celery (de-stringed) piled with cream cheese and you can sprinkle with chives or add bits of smoked salmon, or those lovely sundried tomatoes in oil - anything that goes with cream cheese!

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PUtting on a "spread" on a budget

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