Does the word ‘birthday party’ or when hubby says let’s have some friends ‘over for a BBQ’ sound alarm bells in your head that immediately leads to the 100’s of thoughts about – what will I serve, how do I know if I will have enough food, what will the kids eat, how long should the party last and the list goes??? I know it does in mine.
Last weekend was my second sons second birthday where we catered for 10 adults and 4 children at our house. Usually we have up to 20 adults so it was nice to have a smaller gathering. As there were more adults I tend to cater for the adults food wise as the children are used to eating what we have and I don’t like to fill them up on all the crazy party food as I am then left with two unsettled boys after the party.
I’m going to share with you a few tricks to make catering at home stress free, mess free and not have you run off your feet for days before the actual event.
1. Determine the number of people attending – this will then help you establish how much food you are going to need.
The week of the party Lamb Loin Chops were on special for $9.99 kg normally over $15.00kg. I bought 2kg which gave me 20 chops enough for 2 each. We also cooked sausages for the children. On the morning before the party I simply marinated these in a mix of dijon mustard, crushed garlic and rosemary. Hubby then cooked these on the BBQ and they only too 15 minutes to cook.
7. Decide on the drinks – BYO alcohol is always preferable as this can blow the budget big time. I always provide soft drink, water and cordial for the children. Have an esky in the party area so guests can help them selves and a pile of plastic disposable cups close by.
8. The CAKE normally I would go all out and carve a cake into a shape, but this year time was against with work. So I decided I would focus on making a scrummy cake (I would normally use a packet cake for shaping).
I decided on a RED VELVET CAKE (as the recipe was featured in the Woolworths catalogue that week) with a White Chocolate Cream Cheese frosting and rolled in 100’s and 1000’s and topped off with mini mm’s.
9. Have your phone or camera on hand so you don’t miss out on capturing memories, you can also ask some to film the cake cutting while someone else takes photos so you have both.
10. Use Disposable Servingware I know it is not good for the environment but it eliminates washing (less water usage which is good for the environment) and saves you time (more time for the important things).
Last month I reviewed a range of disposable servingware from Surreyhouse – click here to view – these came in so handy on the day and I used them for the lamb chops, caesar salad and chicken wings.
11. Clean As You Go – after everyone has finished eating grab a large garbage bag and pile all the rubbish in there and then.
If you have a dishwasher use and load the items in as they come back to the kitchen.
12. Accept help from family and friends if they are willing to offer there help on the day to tidy up or wrap up leftovers take the opportunity while it’s there.
13. Make Lists this well help keep you on track and also control any feelings that you will never get it all done, when it’s out of your head you can think clearer.
14. Party Games, we didn’t play any games I have always found that they all seem to have a lot more fun exploring the toys with other children. I made a bag up with all the usual party toys for them to have any everyone was happy.
Everyone’s idea of a perfect party is different, a party is open to many interpretations. FOr some you may like to focus more on party food for the children and less on the adults. Go with whatever works for your circumstances, this is just a guide to how I like to plan my parties.
The main thing that all parties should have in common is that EVERYONE HAS FUN!!!
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