Skip to main content

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

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Hospitality for the Rest of Us: Long Distance

People are moving more and more. When I was a youngster, it was a rare instance for a friend to move away. Now it's me that moves away. We've moved a lot, especially when we first got married. It was something like five addresses and three states in the first four years of our marriage. We've slowed down a bit. In the midst of all that moving, we've made some friends along the way. I try to keep an open line in case of times of grief and celebration. One of the best tools I've found for keeping in touch with loved ones far away is Facebook. As much time as I could spend doing other things instead of checking it, it's the best thing I've found. It allows me to communicate with others, without having to call. I know calling is amazing, hearing people's voices, but for introverts, there are no body language clues for us to pick up on that help make our conversations easier. It's also why we prefer to video chat :-) Back to Facebook, some etiquette.

Stories from the Kitchen: Taste and See

I celebrated my birthday last weekend. It was wonderful and the leftovers left me with a question or two. Find out what they are and how I'm currently answering them in this week's podcast. Stories from the Kitchen Season 2, Episode 2: Taste and See Notes from the episode: Taste and See by Margaret Feinberg Dad’s New York Cheesecake (from the back of a Philidelphia Cream Cheese package) 1 ⅞ cups graham cracker crumbs ¼ to ½ cup butter, melted 1 cup sugar, divided 2 lbs cream cheese (4 packs) 2 large eggs (lightly beaten) 1 tsp vanilla 2 tbsp cornstarch 1 cup sour cream Preheat oven to 450F Mix well graham crackers, 2 tbsp sugar, and enough butter that the mixture holds together. Reserve 2 tbsp for garnish. Press mixture onto bottom and sides of a greased 9-inch springform pan. Chill in the freezer while preparing the filling. Mix cream cheese and sugar until smooth and light. Beat in eggs, vanilla, and cornstarch until just blended. S

Tasty Tuesday: Roasted Broccoli

I ran across this recipe on Pinterest the other day that was labeled " The Best Broccoli Of Your Life. " I normally either steam our broccoli in the microwave or saute it with olive oil and red pepper flakes on the stove top. I decided this would be something to try. I did the salt, pepper and olive oil part of the recipe. I didn't have the majority of the other ingredients. In fact, all I had was a little bit of Parmesan  It was wonderful. Not the best broccoli of my life, but honestly, it was pretty close. And if I had the lemon juice and all that jazz, it may very well be the best. What have you been eating lately?