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Karen 04/17/10 |
having a graduation party for approx 100 people, the menu i am preparing is boneless bbq chicken and baked ziti along with some salads which i am okay with. i am starting to panic here and need to know how much chicken and ziti i should be making.. thanks for your help Karen Slimmer |
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ellen 04/18/10 |
You need about 37-40 pounds raw boneless skinless chicken for 100, and since it is a graduation party (younger adult guests) I would go high on the ziti- about 12 pounds dry |
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Cindy 04/21/10 |
Your site is wonderful! I'm planning a brunch open house for my daughter's graduation. We're inviting between 150-200. Is it safe to plan food for 150? I've spent a lot of time scanning the menu planning you have provided and looking through previous posts and I have come up with the following menu. I was wondering if you would please look it over and see if I'm on target, or out in left field. I've never done anything like this before!
Breakfast casserole - 12 9x13s Belgian Waffles - enough for 100 bacon - 27lbs.
9x5 quick breads yielding 24 smaller slices - 6
4 lbs. butter individual yogurts 2 cases (18 per)
fruit platters:
virgin mimosa punch - 16 gal.
dessert: I'm still tossing around the idea of serving just one choice of smoothie. I thought I would have my younger daughter and her friend host the station, and put them in punch cups, but I'm worried about the time and extra expense. THANK YOU SO MUCH. Your input would be invaluable! Cindy |
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ellen 04/21/10 |
Not bad for the first pass! You do need to have enough food backup so that if everyone comes you are not running out. Here are some things to consider (things I would do): Add a starch-free egg dish (a chafing dish of scrambled, maybe with diced tomatoes and green chilis in) There is a package of spiral ham pieces that makes great breakfast ham. 15-20 pounds would be great with this menu. Because it is breakfast fruit, basically, consider half the number of watermelons and instead add berries, mango or papaya chunks, kiwi, etc, for color and variety. 300 mini muffins are plenty with the other breads You need cream cheese and preserves for the bagels, 2 tablespoons each per bagel Add honey and make enough strawberry topping for all the waffles, or add a second fruit topping You need enough cake to make a small piece for each person- at least a full sheet Hope this helps. |
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Cindy 04/21/10 |
It's tremendously helpful! I'm beginning to feel a little less stressed. Now I have a logistical question for you. Since it is an Open House, I have no way of knowing how to time the casseroles so that they will be hot, but not dried out. We're having it at our church, which has a large commercial fridge and two ovens; however the ovens are standard sized. I don't think I could get more than 1 half pan from a chafing dish in the oven at a time.
The party is from 10:00 til 2:00. I was thinking about having 2 9x13s come out of the oven at 10:00, then 2 more at 10:30, 2 more at 11:00, 2 more at 11:30, 1 at 12:00, 1 at 12:30, 1 at 1:00, and 1 at 1:30. I have no idea how to keep them warm. Can the pans slip into chafing dishes? Will they get dried out since I can't stir them? I also have a large roaster, and access to several more, but I don't really know if the casseroles would dry out if they are sitting for 4 hours. That's why I didn't think I could use your recipe for 100. The irony is that I chose to do breakfast casseroles because I thought they would be easy... (sigh) Anyway, if you could give me some advice about this, I'll try to leave you alone! With much gratitude, Cindy |
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ellen 04/22/10 |
You need to tell me the times you plan and whether it is after an event (church, etc) or free-standing. You may want to make the egg casseroles 10 quarts at a time That is 4-5 9x13's) directly in the cookwells of the roasters. See the egg FAQ section in the recipebox,, the recipe for scrambled eggs that hold, for some help on holding egg dishes. You could also do these as big crustless quiches/ impossible pies with a slight modification of the recipe and serve at warm room temp. |
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Cindy 04/22/10 |
It's from 10:00 til 2:00 on a Sat., so it's a free-standing event. I have no way of knowing whether I will have a crowd at 10:00, or evenly spaced out throughout the party, etc. Cindy |
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ellen 04/22/10 |
I would expect 1/4 by 11, 1/2 more by 12, the rest trickling in. Do please look at the impossible pies; they are fine served an hour or two after baking, unlike the casseroles, which really need to be hot. |
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Cindy 04/23/10 |
Thanks so much. I'm definitely considering the impossible pies. You've been so helpful and I really appreciate it! Cindy |