I have 20+ children and adults at Christmas time. Since they come early and stay all day, I need make ahead ideas. I have a standard menu but I get tired of it. Any new ideas? My standard menu is NOT low sodium in any way shape or form. Since I am the cook I don't eat much of it anyway. Ham - simple to fix, no complications at the last minute Potato cheese casserole - can make ahead and cook at the last minute Cole slaw or tossed salad or brocolli salad Corn with butter (all kids seem to like corn) Ice cream cake from the store
Fruit Salad Vegetable Salad Roasted or grilled peppers Roasted or grilled vegetable kebobs Grilled fruit Raw vegetables with dip
Honey Garlic Chicken Wings 2 pounds chicken wings or drumettes Sauce: 3 Tablespoons brown sugar 1 tsp dry mustard 1 tsp paprika 1 tsp chili powder 1 tsp salt ( I omit) ½ tsp pepper ¼ cup water 3 Tablespoons honey 3 Tablespoons ketchup 2 Tablespoons butter or margarine 2 Tablespoons vinegar 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce 1 small onion, minced 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 Tablespoon lemon juice Combine sauce ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil, remove from heat. If using wings, cut the tips off. Dip chicken in sauce and lay flat side down in a large roasting pan so that you have only one layer of chicken. Cover with remaining sauce. Bake at 375 degrees F for 45 minutes, uncovered, basting often. Turn wings over and bake until tops are well browned, approximately another 20 minutes. This can be frozen. Thaw and then reheat in a slow oven when you want to serve them.
Ready-made, frozen meatballs thawed out and put in a crockpot with bottled BBQ sauce....keep it warm, add a bit of water if needed to thin sauce.... Relish tray with celery sticks stuffed with that flavored cheese in a jar!!! Assortment of store-bought loaf cakes, sliced on a plate... Costco pies Okie green beans: Fry a pound of bacon and chop it up. Save the grease. Pour a bunch of cans of green beans into a large pot, add bacon and bacon grease and cook til beans are snotty. This is a real family favorite!!! Deviled eggs Salad in a kit from Costco...they have several varieties and they include dressing! Jello salads: Seafoam Salad and Cranberry Rasperry Jello Mold - I always make these ahead of time....let me know if you want recipes... How am I doing?
Okay, this is not health conscious cuisine in any way ... or even holiday cuisine, but I always resort to BBQ beef. One day in advance, I cut a pot roast in quarters and put it in the pressure cooker, add a few cups of water, a seasoning called Herbamare, (but you can put sea salt, pepper,celery salt, garlic powder, onion powder, just whatever seasonings you like.) I let that steam for 20 minutes. It will be fall-apart juicy. If not done enough, I put it back in for another 15 or 20 minutes. OR I heat it up directly in the pan, adding a little oil if necessary, until done. For a 4 lb. roast, I add 1 can of tomato soup, a dash of lemon juice, a pinch of dry mustard, some ketchup to taste, a little brown sugar to cut the sourness, and BBQ sauce to taste. As I stir the ingredients in, I kind of shred the meat. I keep this in the frig overnight, which marinates the meat. On the day of the party, I transfer the contents of the pan into a crock pot and heat it on high. Then I turn down to low and have it simmer during the party. I put a serving platter of asst. sliced rolls next to the crock pot with various cheese slices, pickles, onion slices, butter, whatever my guests would like. I know it's not easy the day before, but it is easy enough on the day of the party. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This is a nice self-serve appetizer: I marinate steaks and boneless, skinless chicken the night before. The day of, I fry them up with my favorite seasonings - always garlic, onion & peppers - and cut them into thin little cubes. I make a pan of lightly stir-fried veggies such as peppers, zucchini, broccoli, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, carrot coins ...just whatever I think my guests would like. I toss the whole mess together in a big serving dish, tossing with a little alfredo sauce or melted cheese or butter ... you decide. I put a container of toothpicks out, and then the guests can serve themselves little shish kabobs; skewering whatever they'd like on their toothpicks. The guys go for the meat; the women go for the veggies.
Just found this on allrecipes.com ... sounds pretty good & simple. I'm gonna try it for Thanksgiving. "Brookville Hotel Cream-Style Corn (I customized it to 16 servings.) 3-1/4 (16 ounce) pkgs frozen whole kernel corn, thawed 1 cup heavy cream 1-1/4 tsp salt 1 tablespoon white sugar 1 tablespoon + 1 tsp cornstarch Combine corn, cream & salt in large stockpot or Dutch oven. Stir together the sugar & cornstarch to prevent lumps, then stir them into the corn. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low & simmer until thick, about 20 minutes. The longer it cooks, the thicker it will be. The site also had some creamed corn recipes for the crockpot, but I'm gonna use mine for stuffing & I only have one.
click on this and then scroll down for the recipes: http://www.50plusfriends.com/cookbook/cookcrowd/index-5a.html