party food ideas

Canada
July 7, 2007 9:28pm CST
hello! i am planning my bf's b-day party (he's turning 30) and i plan on making the food myself. we are not sure as to how many people we will invite. does anyone have any suggestions for a fare that is easy to make, affordable and yummy? thanks!
1 person likes this
5 responses
• United States
8 Jul 07
I can help you, but I need some more information. Indoor or outdoor? Any allergies or dislikes?
• Canada
8 Jul 07
we are not sure about the venue yet but most likely it will be indoors. small space. so i am hoping that the food will be easy to eat. and i was hoping to serve cold finger food. lots of variety of course. i may have one or two vegetarians in the group.
• United States
9 Jul 07
O.k here is what I envision, tell me if you like it or not and I can get you recipes for anything. On one platter you can alternate these, put them on a bed of leaf lettuce for display. Chicken salad sandwiches cut into triangles Tuna salad sandwiches cut into triangles Crab salad sandwiches cut into triangles. Second platter serve on a bed of kale for display Ham biscuits Turkey biscuits Roast beef biscuits Third platter serve on bed of lettuce Baby carrots Cherry tomatoes Brocolli Asparagus Cauliflower Radishes In the middle put a veggie dip Fourth platter Cheese platter- use different types of cheese cubed Fruit platter actually use a whole watermelon that has the watermelon meat scooped out. Use a melon baller and scoop out all the watermelon meat into balls and set aside. Use the melon baller to make balls of the following fruit: Cantaloupe Honeydew melon Then chop up the following fruit: Apples Pineapple Grapes(don't chop) Strawberries Blueberries(don't chop) Mix all with the watermelon balls and put into the empty watermelon. Sounds good?
• Canada
9 Jul 07
hi! omg thanks! really great ideas. i copied and pasted it into notepad so that i can use it as a reference!
@angelicEmu (1311)
8 Jul 07
You could buy a load of pizza bases, a jar or two of tomato pasta sauce, some cheese, and a load of different toppings, and have everyone make their own personalised pizzas! Easy, quick, and everyone's happy!! For other foods, you could do dips and crisps (chips if you're American), with chopped carrot/celery etc, for the health-conscious, jacket potatoes (they could use the pizza toppings to fill these, and/or tuna mayo, cheese, hot baked beans, or chilli), and for desserts/sweet stuff, little fairy cakes, jelly & ice-cream, bowls of candy/chocolates, and of course, the obligatory birthday cake! This is all really easy to make/prep in advance, and can be as cheap as you like, depending on the brands you buy! Hope this helps :-)
9 Jul 07
I'm glad you liked the idea, even if it wasn't of much use for your upcoming party! All the best, and I hope it goes really well :-)
• Canada
8 Jul 07
hello thanks for responding! u made me hungry with all that food talk! the pizza is a good idea. the only prob is the oven. i think i can fit 2 at once but if its going to be a big crowd it may not work. i may use it for one of my smaller dinners though! really great suggestion. thanks!
1 person likes this
@patgalca (18355)
• Orangeville, Ontario
8 Jul 07
If you are talking about an outdoor summer party, you can do a barbecue - burgers, dogs, chicken filets - and have salads with that. When I had my husband's 40th birthday party I served chili, lasagna and salad plus hors d'oevres and an ice cream cake.
• United States
8 Jul 07
Sounds like my kind of party. I agree!! (If he likes that kind of food, he'd probably be very happy!)
• Canada
8 Jul 07
yummy! sounds filling. might work if we decide to keep it small. the thing is our place is small so we cant seat everyone if we invite a medium size crowd (table wise) so we were thinking of just serving finger food (lots:-)) the ice cream cake sounds yummy! i want one now!
@HighReed1 (1126)
• United States
8 Jul 07
If you are grilling outside I would suggest stuffed anaheim peppers as a side dish. Anaheim peppers look like real big light green jalapenos in the produce section of the store. Take the pepper and make a slit on the top side of the pepper. It will be the side opposite the side the pepper lays easily on. Clean out the seeds and rinse. Stuff with shredded cheese. We use monterey jack in ours. Put them on the grill when everything else is almost done. Grill until they are slightly charred and the cheese is melted. They have very little bite when done this way. Hope this helps. :)
• Canada
8 Jul 07
sounds good! if only i had a grill :-) it may work if we have the party at my parent's house. thanks for the tip!
@HighReed1 (1126)
• United States
13 Jul 07
You can also broil them in the oven. Then you can make them at either place.
@tuffy999 (794)
• Philippines
16 Jul 07
i suggest you make spaghetti (for long life) baked chicken and prepare cold cuts for appetizer, garden salad and for dessert fruit salad.