Hosting a party for 50

So there I was, bone tired and my brain not firing on all cylinders, that's what Lyme disease will do for you.  And I knew that not only did we have a house guest but also an open house coming up.  I wanted to have it catered, but it appeared that every time someone was going to give me a name, it fell through.  I turned to our grocery store, which was a viable option, but it's so hard to pay thirty dollars for dip you know you can make for 5!  And then it happened, pies went on a BOGO sale.  I sent Joel to the store to stock up.  He bought 10 pies!!  According to Martha in one of her early entertaining books, 10 pies is all you need for a party of 50.  We were set.  But then the week of, shrimp went on sale, so I went and bought six pounds of 26-30 count.  After three hours of baking the day before and a half hour of boiling water the day of, we were set for our party.  Joel was gracious enough to throw in some homemade salsa and a cream cheese dip.  But here's how I knew we could get away with such a simple menu...Joel made eggnog.  It is the star of the show every time, so if you serve it at your party, I would suggest that you not try and out do it, because your talent will be lost on its creamy goodness.

Eggnog a la Joel

2 eggs, well beaten (Davidson's brand is pasteurized)
14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 quart whole milk
nutmeg
1/2 pint whipping cream, whipped

Combine first 5 ingredients, then fold in whipped cream and dust with nutmeg.



We quadrupled the recipe and which meant that we used an entire gallon of milk and a quart of whipping cream.  Because the cream gets folded in and stays whipped in the fridge, he mixes up the first five ingredients and stores them separately and then folds in the cream right in the serving bowl. 

Email me if you have any questions