Another Year, Another Black Friday Party
So I was going to write up a nice summary of my Black Friday party so I could remember any lessons for next year, and then I realized I did that last year and totally failed to look at it while planning this party. So that's awkward. Here are a few short notes though that I may be able to remember.
The first major accomplishment here was that other than sliding appetizers into the toaster I didn't have to do any cooking once the guests arrived. This was admittedly helped by the presence of my immediate family, but I really got to relax and talk to people this year, and even hosting it myself probably wouldn't have made much of a difference because everything was working.
The second major accomplishment was that I didn't have much in the way of leftovers, beyond some ice cream. I did a much better job of planning, I guess.
Also,
1. 14 pounds of brisket can be demolished by 32 people. Actually, fewer than that since some guests were vegan or vegetarian or, in one case, not even a year old.
2. 1/2 a pound of chicken chorizo and 3 sheets of puff pastry makes about 50 chorizo puffs.
3. Ice cream is a pain in the butt since you have to move it in and out of the freezer. Of course, it's also the best thing ever.
My guests:
tigerlily_blue and Mom & Dad
EJ and Lydia
Paul
John & Carol & two kids
undertheivy99 and mysterg
Lisa & John
Michael & Shari
Ed & Mary
Colleen & Kevin
Jeff
Lily
John and Danita & Josh & John's mom whose name I should really remember
Toby & Maureen & child
Ruthie
gieves
The menu:
Brisket, 14 pounds
Pulled Pork, 2.75 pounds
Chorizo Puffs, 5 trays
Artichoke stuffed mushrooms, 2 trays
Baked Brie
Spiked Cider
Cheeses: Humboldt Fog, Prima Donna, Four-Year-Old Quebec
A new chili from the Moosewood cookbook I got for my birthday, 1 pot.
Sweet potato and black bean chili, 1 pot
Lots of Mitchell's ice cream, including an ice cream pie.
The first major accomplishment here was that other than sliding appetizers into the toaster I didn't have to do any cooking once the guests arrived. This was admittedly helped by the presence of my immediate family, but I really got to relax and talk to people this year, and even hosting it myself probably wouldn't have made much of a difference because everything was working.
The second major accomplishment was that I didn't have much in the way of leftovers, beyond some ice cream. I did a much better job of planning, I guess.
Also,
1. 14 pounds of brisket can be demolished by 32 people. Actually, fewer than that since some guests were vegan or vegetarian or, in one case, not even a year old.
2. 1/2 a pound of chicken chorizo and 3 sheets of puff pastry makes about 50 chorizo puffs.
3. Ice cream is a pain in the butt since you have to move it in and out of the freezer. Of course, it's also the best thing ever.
My guests:
tigerlily_blue and Mom & Dad
EJ and Lydia
Paul
John & Carol & two kids
undertheivy99 and mysterg
Lisa & John
Michael & Shari
Ed & Mary
Colleen & Kevin
Jeff
Lily
John and Danita & Josh & John's mom whose name I should really remember
Toby & Maureen & child
Ruthie
gieves
The menu:
Brisket, 14 pounds
Pulled Pork, 2.75 pounds
Chorizo Puffs, 5 trays
Artichoke stuffed mushrooms, 2 trays
Baked Brie
Spiked Cider
Cheeses: Humboldt Fog, Prima Donna, Four-Year-Old Quebec
A new chili from the Moosewood cookbook I got for my birthday, 1 pot.
Sweet potato and black bean chili, 1 pot
Lots of Mitchell's ice cream, including an ice cream pie.