Are you hosting this summer's weekend family reunion? If so, one of the major components of the planning will be all the meals that will be eaten. Here are some ideas that will help you to plan delicious and memorable meals.
Cover The Basics First - Before you do anything else, find out if anybody in your group has a food allergy or special needs. For example, if you now have a granddaughter with peanut allergies, you'll have to be super careful not to include a single item that might cause cross-contamination. If somebody else in the family has discovered that he or she is diabetic, you'll want to provide some delicious sugar-free treats along with the regular ones you are planning to serve.
Contact The Professionals - For a large group, you'll be well served to make arrangements for food delivery. Not only is food delivery convenient, it is also affordable.
- Think of the amount of dairy products you'll go through. Your refrigerator probably won't be able to hold all of them. Arrange for the delivery of things like milk, yogurt, eggs and ice cream. If you'll tell the dairy company how many adults and how many children will be attending your reunion, the right amount will be delivered.
- Imagine the amount of ice you'll use. Unless you want to keep going up to the corner store, you can also order the delivery of ice. Besides ice for drinking glasses, you can even order shaved ice for snow cones and specialty drinks. You'll be a hero!
- Bread will probably be served at every meal. Think of muffins for breakfast, specialty breads for sandwiches at lunch, fancy rolls for dinner, and cookies for snacking. Having them all delivered means that you'll have fresh bakery items when you need them. When you are ordering large quantities of baked items, a bread supplier like Klosterman Baking Company can deliver them right to your front door.
Make Meals Easy - Unless you want to spend your entire family reunion time in the kitchen, simplify your meals.
- Have a breakfast bar. Besides muffins, serve croissants with different spreads. Butter, hazelnut spread, and jellies are all good choices. Set out different types of fruit, juices, and hot beverages that people can serve themselves. If somebody wants a hot meal, have little individual oatmeal packets and disposable bowls available.
- Copy the popular sandwich restaurants. Along with the specialty breads, serve things like deli meats, assorted sliced cheeses, tuna chicken salad, ham salad and sliced veggies so guests can build their own sandwiches or salads. Cookies for dessert would be awesome. Some in your group may be going in different directions. If so, offer lunch bags for them to take with them.
- Keep the dinner meal simple, too. For example, frozen lasagnas that can be baked at the last minute and served with hot crusty French bread would be a perfect dinner. Crock pot meals served with rolls would be good, too.
Keep a notebook handy so that you can make notes as you're planning your family reunion meals. That way, when you have a new idea for a meal, you can write it down and you won't forget it.
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