BIG family birthday tea - HELP!!!!

taurusgb

Hello all

I am giving a surprise birthday tea for my mum on Saturday for about 24 people (ages from 2 to 75 :eek: ). This is taking place in my home, which is a comfortable size for 4 of us, but is going to need much creative thought on where to sit people and how they can eat comfortably.

Basically, it will mean food that is not too messy. Food that can be eaten from paper plates and with plastic cutlery.

I am VERY nervous about this - for some reason I have always been the family 'joke' when it comes to food - even though I can cook, I get teased about whether it will be edible or 'normal' (I've always been OS and most of my family favour pre-prepared junk) :mad: I try to tell myself that it is just their way of having a bit of fum at my expense but it has happened soooo often I can feel myself shrinking inside when I think about it (in short - it hurts! )

I have a few ideas for food, but would really welcome any new ideas from anyone out there for some unusual but easy dishes ....... I would like not to have to spend too much as we don't have a lot of money, and although our original plan was that myself and my sisters shared the cost, one of them is on benefits and has no money and the other is in a BIG sulk because I wouldn't be bullied into doing things her way:mad: :mad: :mad:

Thanks for any help you may be able to give - it will be much appreciated :beer:

doraexplorer

when i have lots of visitors i make a nice big pan of soup, a few sandwiches, sausage rolls, quiche . and a pudding banoffee pie .

if the weather is nice put all the kids outside for a picnic ... no mess in the house . my kids have picnics everyday when the weather is good . you just need a big blanket ... kids and food and not being able to sit down will just be messy .

good luck it will be fun , have a glass of wine

bubblebathgirl

taurusgb wrote: »

Hello all

I am giving a surprise birthday tea for my mum on Saturday for about 24 people (ages from 2 to 75 :eek: ). This is taking place in my home, which is a comfortable size for 4 of us, but is going to need much creative thought on where to sit people and how they can eat comfortably.

Basically, it will mean food that is not too messy. Food that can be eaten from paper plates and with plastic cutlery.

I am VERY nervous about this - for some reason I have always been the family 'joke' when it comes to food - even though I can cook, I get teased about whether it will be edible or 'normal' (I've always been OS and most of my family favour pre-prepared junk) :mad: I try to tell myself that it is just their way of having a bit of fum at my expense but it has happened soooo often I can feel myself shrinking inside when I think about it (in short - it hurts! )

I have a few ideas for food, but would really welcome any new ideas from anyone out there for some unusual but easy dishes ....... I would like not to have to spend too much as we don't have a lot of money, and although our original plan was that myself and my sisters shared the cost, one of them is on benefits and has no money and the other is in a BIG sulk because I wouldn't be bullied into doing things her way:mad: :mad: :mad:

Thanks for any help you may be able to give - it will be much appreciated :beer:

Dont panic i like dora's plan of soup and stuff - I would maybe add chilli or curry with jackets .For the little ones maybe plate up a sarny ,fruit ,carrot sticks and crisps .
Dont be nervous they should all be grateful for having such a brill relative that is prepared to do this if they dont like it let them lump it .
Good luck let us know how you go on :T

belfastgirl23

I'd make a big big lasagne. Or a large pasta bake - Jamie Oliver's recipe is good. Cos it's italian people might not notice that it doesn't have meat in it. Sandwiches etc are good but hard to make in advance - both of these are night before type things so if it goes wrong you still have some time and it doesn't take a lot of faffing with the oven on the day. Also can be whacked in micro if people turn up late. Add a few salads and some fruit and hey presto.

I'd say do something that can all be prepped in advacnce and then you can relax and enjoy the party. And don't take any s*** from anyone - you're getting off your bum and doing it, good for you!

BTW on unusual dishes I made veggie parmigiana for a big group recently - if you get the aubergines in Lidl or somewhere similar it is cheaper. It is time consuming to prepare but looks very impressive. And can be done in advance

pusscat

Depends on what they all like (and how much work you want to do!) here are some suggestions off the top of my head....I am rushing off so excuse the spelling!

make a large pan of chilli/curry and a couple of bowls of rice - lay it out as a buffet with some salads and a few other options. Lasagne and mousakka are also nice options.

Goulash (veggie or meat) is always great - big pan and serve with slices of crusty baguette - easier to handle than rice on a disposable plate. It is even easier if you get disposable bowls....

do a whole batch of jacket pots and have a selection of fillings - if you fancy being a bit daring then go for some exotic ones like goulash, chilli, smoked salmon and sour cream , guacamole, salsa etc

Finger food, blinis (dead easy to make - google for a recipe) with small bits of smoked salmon and sour cream. Samosas, onion bhajees, small wraps cut into slices (make sure you wrap them tightly). Small pieces of warmed pitta bread or naan bread. Cous cous salads, quinoa and bulgar wheat with mixed veggies.

Do a large pan of cous cous and a large pan of veggies/meat in a tomato sauce - very moroccan, serve with a nice smooth red

If you really want to impress on the cheap I recommend.....

Huge pan of pasta (I use the little bows or tubes, can't remember the technical name at the mo!) - cook the pasta, drop some veggies into the water about a minute before it is cooked, mange tout, half cherry tomatoes, sugar snap peas, small pieces of courgette, etc . Finish cooking, drain the pasta and veggies, throw them back in the pan on a low heat and add a handful of smoked salmon which has been cut up roughly (or buy the cheap trimmings) and then stir in a pot of creme fraiche. Stir for 1 minute and then add a bit of black pepper and a few leaves of some fresh herbs and you have a fantastic meal.

Serve with a chilled white wine (Aldi do a great wine selection, they have a really nice Chablis Premier Cru at about £8 at the moment if you fancy splashing out and impressing...) to make a full meal provide some crusty bread and some fresh salad - rocket, and a few other sharp leaves and you have a banquet in about 20 minutes!

For 24 adults I would use about 2.5kgs pasta, about 2 kilos of veggies and say 4 medium pots of creme fraiche. should not cost you any more than £12ish I would say. Add in a few baguettes and a couple of lettuces/greenery and you get to about £15. Add in the salmon (buy the trimmings, Sainsburys do them because you are going to cut them up anyway!) and you have dinner for 24 at way less than £1 a head!

This is really good with a really cold pinot grigio (again Aldi have a nice one at a few pounds a bottle!) make sure you cook the pasta 'al dente' and keep the veggies only just cooked. Do a trial run for the family to see how much creme fraiche you will need, and make sure you drain the pasta really well (I mean really really well!) before you put it back in the pan, otherwise you will end up with a runny, watery creme fraiche sauce!

If you pile it all into a huge serving bowl (or two!) and sprinkle a load of fresh dill or something on top it looks really special. The salmon makes if feel expensive and it looks as though it took far more effort than it did!

I am geting hungry just thinking of ideas! If you want to give me any more details about what your family like etc I will see what I can come up with......


Puss

xx

mariejader

just a point if you are having paper plates and plastic knives and forks, I would suggest that you prepare food that won't be to hard to cut or eat with plastic, I am sure we all have nightmares of food flying off plates at party's.

dannahaz

What a lovely thing to do, especially as your sisters aren't being very helpful!

A buffet is the easiest thing, so people can help themselves, you can amke a variety of things to suit everyone, and you can prepare a lot in advance. All of the foods above can easily be incorporated into a buffet, including the soup, chilli, baked potatoes etc.

Rolls might be easier than sarnies, and you can easily let people make their own. Just provide the rolls, the butter (or whatever), and a choice of fillings. Have the first dozen or so ready split open to help the production line move along, and cut others open as you see the pile being used. This means you can freeze any that are left over and this will reduce wasteage.

Jacket potatoes are an excellent idea, easy to eat with a fork and you can do lots in the oven in one go. A couple of different fillings will see people very happy. I would probably go for somehing like a bowl of chilli. some cheese, some sour cream, and maybe some baked beans.

Sausage rolls and/or sausages on sticks go down well, and again you can prepare them in advance with minimal effort. These can be made a day or two in advance and stored in airtight containers.

A couple of big bags of crisps, and then for a healthier choice some carrot, cucumber, other veg cut into sticks. Mayve some grapes if your budget can stretch that far - cut the bunch with scissors into little bunches of 5 or 6 grapes.

The pasta mentioned in the previous post would make a marvellous centrepiece. (And you can use any leftovers cold in a salad!).

And a good homemade dessert or desserts.

Good luck!

thriftlady_2

This is what I suggested my mum do for my dad's 70th last month (she didn't- she got it all from Waitrose and M&S and it was underwhelming to say the least)

Lots of crusty loaves - hm would be fantastic, start now and fill the freezer
a whole wheel of cheese ( a locally made one would be fab) - may be a bit expensive but the rest shouldn't be
Some jars of chutney and pickles
huge bowl of apples - not very seasonal but easy
An enormous homemade fruitcake

Keep It Simple

Pink.

Hi taurusgb,

Some of the suggestions on these older threads might give you some more ideas:

Buffet Ideas

Christening Buffet ideas?

Help ! Planning small buffet birthday party for 17, NEVER done anything like this ? !


Pink

Mappygirl

I had a do couple of months ago and got 2 ready to roast joints of meat (like the ones they advertise @ Iceland) and got some part baked bread. It was easy to do and everyone seemed to really enjoy it! Plus the house smelled lovely!

Good luck and try not to stress, I'm sure it'll be lovely x

Fivenations

Could your sisters not help by bringing along something? You could buy the ingredients for the one on nbenefits and ask the other to bring whatever she wants, just specify if you want sweet or savoury. It will all help.

A group of 22 of us regularly eat together and it's a doddle as we all chip in with something - being together is why we do it - the food, lovely though it may be, is secondary.