Topic
Help! Need party food ideas!
So I'm throwing myself a birthday party in a couple of weeks and now I'm panicking. I've never thrown a party like this before. I want it to be awesome. So I come to you, my friends.. xD
There are about 10-12 guests attending. Party starts at around 6PM and lasts til whenever people want to leave. Mostly guys are attending, 5 ladies and the rest guys.
I was thinking maybe mostly finger foods but I don't know.
HELP ME please!! Martha Stewart's recipes all intimidate me and every other party food site I investigate tends to be more Kiddy than adult and all the adult sites I go to tend to be like Martha Stewart.
If you guys can just point in a direction, I would be so totally grateful
Replies
- Try epicurious.com. (you do not need to sign up even if they nag you). Along the right edge is a green headed box entitled "Recipes and Menus. " Pick "Holidays & Celebrations." A lot of the listings would be appropriate for an adult birthday party (cocktail party, graduation, mothers day, etc). Menus and recipies and some party ideas. Good luck!
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Kiddy party food is much better than adult party food :D
Much less fancy and easier and more fun to put together too!
For my friends 40th, we did a kids party for him and he loved it!
Food was -
Mini sausages on cocktail sticks
Cubes of cheese and pineapple on cocktail sticks and stuck all around a pineapple.
Lots of crisps (chips for those that call them that).
Sausage rolls
Scotch Eggs (quartered and served)
Sandwiches cut into triangles - we did 4 types Egg Mayo, Cheese, Ham and Tuna Mayo)
Ice Cream
Jelly (jello)
Chocolate chip cookies (the giant ones with smarties in them)
Bunnies on the lawn - Green jello with upside down tinned pear halves placed strategically around the 'lawn' of jello. Almonds for ears and raisins for eyes, and strawberry licorice tails.
Bowls of candy left around the table - M&M's, Smarties, Skittles, anything that looked bright, colourful and like a rainbow puked in the bowl really xD
Then I made him a Devil's food cake with chocolate frosting and smarties all over the top of it.
We served adult beverages as well as the standard kids party juices and fizzy stuff.
Then we played pass the parcel and put naughty 'adult themed' things in the parcel and his birthday present was in the middle of the parcel :D
We put together party bags for everyone with miniature bottles of alcohol, mini candy bars and stuff in them, so everyone got more merriment to take home with them.
Also we did the whole party hat thing and got a Buzz Lightyear tablecloth, and Toy Story paper plates and napkins, just to add to the colourful chaos!
By the end of it, everyone was all happy and hyped up on a combination of sugar, alcohol and more sugar. Good times :D -
One of my favorite (and most popular) hors d'oeuvres (why is that so hard to spell) is figs stuffed with goat cheese and carmelized onions. Pretty easy, too. Fresh figs are tough to find and who wants to pit them, so you can use dried figs -- just dry them over night. Then slice and caramelize an onion (I use vidalia, but anything other than red is fine) and toss it into a food processor (or blender, whatever) with a log of chevre. Slice the figs in half, and stuff each with a teaspoon of the onion/cheese mix. If you want to get fancy, you can drizzle them with balsamic syrup. So good.
Olives, pickles, and cheese with crackers or bread is always an easy way to go, too.
Another hit are tea sandwiches. Get a loaf of that tiny cocktail bread that you can usually find near the deli (I like pumperknickle). Whip up some cream cheese with seasoning of your choice (it's really good with Cajun Foreplay), add some thinly sliced cucumber to the sandwich and MMM. Savory and crunch and delicious.
Since it's fall (yay! unless you're on the other hemisphere, in which case, my bad!), might I recommend mulled cider? Easiest if you have a crockpot, just set it on low an hour or two before the party, fill with cider, a dash of OJ, and a coffee filter packed with nutmeg, peppercorns, cloves, and cinnamon and then stapled shut. Serve with a bottle of rum, bourbon, or brandy next to it so guests can spike at will. And, of course, cookies. What's a party without cookies? If you go the cider route, ginger snaps or oatmeal cookies would go really well with it.
..now I'm hungry. -
Man.. you guys are awesome.
I'm hungry now too. Lol.
Don't worry bout the cookies.... or the cakes.. or other sweet things. I love doing the sweet stuff. It's the other stuff that I can't do. and Cheese and cracker trays can be so passe (but so delicious nonetheless)
Sheepppyyyy... and Ebil.. you have such awesome ideas. I'm going to steal a few of them.
And Kookaburra, that website was awesome.. I have more delicious recipes to try. Now I'm not as overwhelmed but starving. -
Honestly, don't overspend.
go to www.allrecipes.com ; and put in any key ingredients you have (there's an ingredient search).
It's awesome if you have too many cucumbers or beets irl. It will give you probably a list of 200 recipes that have been rated by people who have tried them. Many are quite simple to prepare and pretty awesome! It's also free and the Recipes are printable. -
Hi Tene! I've done lots of entertaining over the years. Here's a few tips I've learned along the way:
* Select a menu that is simple and easy to prepare ahead of time. A complicated menu with lots of last minute details will tie you to the kitchen when you should be mingling with your guests.
* Upbeat background music, a selection of adult beverages and munchies help create a festive mood.
* Create lists and a timeline. Use the morning for preparing dishes. Use afternoon for setting up. Do shopping the day before.
Have fun! and Happy Birthday! - Also serve in a crock pot smoked sausage (mini or cut them into chunks) with BBQ sauce (your choice) with toothpicks to spear them or make meatballs (homemade or pre pack) with BBQ with small pre made buns (brioche or club) you can also make crab dip in a crockpot (pretty easy take 3 lbs cream cheese with 1 1/2 lbs sour cream melt slowly together in crock pot set on high then when easily blended add 1 cup each shredded cheddar and shredded moz. 2 lbs crab meat (any kind) with 2 oz or old bay seafood seasoning (or anyother J.O. or Emeril's) a splash of white wine if desired) set on low and serve with crackers...toast points or just chunks of toasted bread I work as a cook IRL so these are fairly easy to make but look and tast Wonderful...good luck ....
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For parties where the guys outnumber the ladies (most of the parties I host lol) I tend to have a lot of dip-and-chips types of snacks. Some of the most popular things have been dips that involve tortillas or fritos, either a good warmed nacho/cheddar cheese type, taco, or bean and cheese type. The most popular ones I made were a taco dip (seven-layer types are usually good, but they can be simpler and just as delicious), a crab/cheese dip, and an artichoke dip. There wasn't a shred left of any of these in the end. The taco dip is best served with tortilla chips, and the others work good with bagel chips, bread, or solid crackers (like triscuits).
If you do a cheese wedge tray, look into possibly adding meats (like pepperoni, etc) too. For some reason, guys really appreciate the extra meat (unless you have a lot of vegetarians).
If you need a more main course-like food, I've also had great success in having a cold cut platter, as well. With rolled up turkey, ham, and roast beef, and of course cheese (usually deli american and cheddar), and all the fixins (lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles). Crocking chili is also very popular, and easy on you. Just have some shredded cheese and crackers to go with!
I +1 Sheepy's idea of mulled cider. I make that at almost all fall and winter parties, and have never had a drop left over.
Lastly, if you get desperate for time, check into local grocery stores, delicatessins, and even fast food places (like Chick-fil-a). These places offer catering (at a cost, of course) but if you don't have time, they can be a life saver! -
Oohh. Loving the ideas.
I want to eat everything that you're suggesting.
Thank you guys for all the help. It means a lot to me. Everything is easy enough to make and easy to get to if I cant make it.
I cant wait to try out all these ideas!