Question:

Menu for surprise 25th wedding anniversary party?

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It will be for my parents and their friends and family. Very casual. Semi-small budget. I have a professional caterer on hand if necessary. The party will be approx. 30-45 people and indoors.

A friend suggested some of the following:

cheese ball & crackers, cocktail wienies, chips, pretzels, macaroni salad, potato salad,, meatballs....

It seems a little eclectic, does this all work together??

Oh and I will have a drink fountain, what kind of drink should I put in it?

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  1. ok...for the amount of people, take three pounds of store brand deli hame sliced not to thin, take cream cheese and spread evenly on hame and take one green onion and roll it all together. cut off the ugly ends and cut the rest into bite sizes finger food ideas are always a good ideas, i hope that this can help it is very cheap, it takes a little while to make so do it the night befor and cover and put in the fridge, in my experience, people beg me to bring the hame rolls to everyparty, but they come with a warning... they are very addictive. good luck.


  2. I'm a chef who has given 400+ dinner parties and, as this is a Special Occasion I would go for fewer selections plus all mentioned are served often. There's plenty of variety in the following menu and you can eliminate or substitute according to how many $'s you have.  (I, also, think punch bowls with one of them non-alcoholic instead of a drink fountain.) The most important thing to do is print out a schedule as you'll need all your equipment

    "stashed" in a friend's kitchen (or yours) plus most of the shopping must be done 2-3 days in advance with breads the same day as ....  

    See first link - the Wonderful Punch recipe is good (no need to freeze - place ice rings into bottom of bowls); to turn this into one which is alcoholic - no sugar, no gingerale -- use 1 qt. 7-Up & 2 bottles dry white wine.  This is my "use it all the time recipe".

    Meatballs in a sweet & sour sauce sound good.

    Curried chicken salad (can be prep'd 2 days in advance - buy 3 roasted chickens from supermarket & in recipe, (Link 2) add craisins & serve with assorted crackers - you'll need 4 qts. of this for, about, 1/2 c. per person. Do not add walnuts until just before serving or they'll become soft.

    Antipasto platter:  (draw a sketch of how you want to arrange these) - 8 jars marinated artichoke hearts, 8 jars roasted red peppers, 6 jars giardiniera (pickled vegetables), gherkins, thinly sliced: 2 lbs. each of 2 types of salami & 3 lbs. sliced ham (roll them up)  - 4 x 15oz ricotta cheese (drain ricotta, overnight in 'fridge, in a strainer over a bowl covered with  cling-film) - you can then form into a low mound on platters - top with minced flat-leaf parsley).  Baskets/bowls of sliced baguette.

    Link 3:  (mccormick)Tuna salad nicoise with green beans: instead of dry mustard substitute 1 tsp. Dijon & use tuna canned in oil - if there's a Trader Joe's or Whole Foods near you, and your budget permits, buy their haricots verts (green beans).  Eight times the recipe will do and this can be prep'd & refrigerated for 5-6 hours.  Order 4 doz. assorted dinner rolls to serve with this.

    There's enough choice for vegetarians and meat-eaters and most of the left-overs will be edible for a few days!

    I would leave the work of "cakes" to the caterer (chocolate pound cake with raspberries & whipped cream?) - for the cake order he may be able to get the punch bowls at a discount for you. I am SO hungry!

    Hope you have a great time - remember that the secret to giving a great dinner party is to plan ahead so most will be done and you can spend your time visiting with everyone without being tired.

  3. Put a non-alcoholic non-carbonated punch in the fountain. Carbonated beverages go flat fast in fountains, and if there isn't any alcohol in it, everyone will be able to enjoy it. You can have vodka, rum, and gin on hand as well as juices, if you want a bar. Another fun odea is to have a "float bar". Have a freezer or cooler full of icecream and sherbet, and an assortment of sodas, root beer, and inexpensive sparkling wines (think Arbor Mist and Boone's Farm). Place a scoop or 2 in a cup and add the pop or wine. Yummy!

    I think those food options are great together! They're all classic "party foods". It's all in the presentation, though. How about serving the macaroni salad and potato salad in shot glasses or martini glasses? You can get them here: http://www.orientaltrading.com/applicati...

    Maybe include some of their favorite foods as well, or something they ate on their first date, or a food served at their wedding reception.

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