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USA themed buffet - advice please!
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Victoria Sponge
21-05-2013
USA themed party food

On Saturday night my friend and I are hosting a surprise leaving (but hopefully coming back) party for our American neighbours. We are expecting around 20 guests.

We'd like to do a USA themed buffet. The sweet stuff is easy (cupcakes, doughnuts, cookies) but we are not sure about the savouries.

Any ideas?
kirstiemcnabb
21-05-2013
Did this recently for one of my employees who is American, got advice when I was out in the US for the Austin GP last year.

Platter of deli meats and cheese
Dips
Chicken nuggets and buffalo wings
Ribs, different varieties, best was was brown sugar and bourbon glazed ribs
Oreos
Peanut butter & jelly sandwiches
BLT sandwiches
Jell-0 is a must in all kinds
Apple pies
Head over to http://www.kraftrecipes.com and look at all the recipes there.
Victoria Sponge
21-05-2013
Thanks Kirstie, I especially like the idea of ribs and wings, and they'd be fine served cold too. And now I'm getting ideas for peanut butter and jello and apple pie cupcakes...
Jambo_c
21-05-2013
If you're wanting some hot stuff too I'd be tempted to do Mac and cheese, fried green tomatoes, some kind of shrimp, cornbread etc. You could even make a big Jambalaya and let people help themselves.
PPhilster
21-05-2013
Originally Posted by Victoria Sponge:
“USA themed party food

On Saturday night my friend and I are hosting a surprise leaving (but hopefully coming back) party for our American neighbours. We are expecting around 20 guests.

We'd like to do a USA themed buffet. The sweet stuff is easy (cupcakes, doughnuts, cookies) but we are not sure about the savouries.

Any ideas?”

As an American my advice would be to simply serve something that everyone likes. Trying to impress someone from another country by trying to replicate their food is also rarely successful.
epicurian
21-05-2013
Where are your friends from, Victoria?
Victoria Sponge
21-05-2013
Originally Posted by epicurian:
“Where are your friends from, Victoria?”

Colorado
Victoria Sponge
21-05-2013
Originally Posted by PPhilster:
“As an American my advice would be to simply serve something that everyone likes. Trying to impress someone from another country by trying to replicate their food is also rarely successful.”

My friends are not as stuck up as you. It's not about 'trying to impress' - we are a bunch if easygoing 30-somethings into lots of yummy food and drinking. They wouldn't look down their noses at us because we haven't got the food spot-on - we know how to make food taste good regardless. We just thought it'd be fun to have a theme.
Lainiomonkio
21-05-2013
Ooooh! Trashy diner food!! I LOVE it.

I agree with previous posters - chicken wings and ribs is a must! If the weather is nice you could BBQ - my brother put together some crazy concoctions of burgers with original glazed Krispy Kremes as the buns with oodles of sliced cheese and lots of bacon. Or you could do a version of a Philly Cheese Steak with soft submarine rolls, kale, frying steak and Primula cheese. You could also do pizza - just make sure it's fully loaded! Fried chicken, hot dogs (with frankfurters, not sausages!) and pimp them up with chilli, pulled pork buns and slow cooked beef brisket?

If you don't want to go as extravagant as that, you could have pastrami sandwiches with lots of gherkins and thousand island dressing as sauce.

Potato skins perhaps with lots of sour cream? Or sweet potato wedges?

Mac and cheese is a great idea as you can prepare it in advance and just heat it up and people can help themselves. How about pumpkin pie or key lime pie? Do Ocado deliver to you? Look on their website, they have a massive American section so you could get lots of authentic stuff from there.
stud u like
21-05-2013
Colorado has lovely peaches. Maybe a peach cheesecake or cobbler?

Pulled pork was on the menu when I was in Colorado.

Scrambled egg and scallions were also popular.

I also liked Philly sandwiches.
Yeah_Jackie
21-05-2013
I'd either have a surf and turf kind of buffet or a Thanksgiving type dinner in amuse-bouche style with everything that would be part of the real deal just served in small quantities.

I'd be more for the table decor / music / entertainment than worrying about authenticity of recipes.

Cocktails!!
Chowder served in bread rolls / loaves.

I'm sure you know what amuse-bouche is LOL
epicurian
21-05-2013
Originally Posted by Victoria Sponge:
“Colorado ”

Then I vote for chile verde.

Clam chowder served in hollowed out sourdough rounds is one of the things I miss from home, but I think that might be more of a San Fran/Seattle thing.
Victoria Sponge
21-05-2013
Originally Posted by Yeah_Jackie:
“I'd either have a surf and turf kind of buffet or a Thanksgiving type dinner in amuse-bouche style with everything that would be part of the real deal just served in small quantities.

I'd be more for the table decor / music / entertainment than worrying about authenticity of recipes.

Cocktails!!
Chowder served in bread rolls / loaves.

I'm sure you know what amuse-bouche is LOL”

No! I had to Google! It seems to be...hors d'erves?
And yes we are having cocktails! Mojitos especially mmmmmmm
Yeah_Jackie
21-05-2013
Well it is and it isn't.

It's a shame you haven't heard of it actually because it would really play to your strengths of presentation.

Basically you have many courses and accompaniments, many more than you'd have for a usual sit down meal. The point is that they are all served in MUCH smaller portions (hors d'oeuvres size) than normal but you get to try loads of things to "amuse the mouth" without getting over full.

For example, rather than have a bowl of soup, you'd serve a soup in maybe something like an espresso cup.

You might then have a pallate cleanser like a very small prosecco jelly or something like that and then perhaps a fish course of 1 scallop, lovely dressing on maybe lamb's lettuce - very few then perhaps another pallate cleanser and then a meat course - maybe one or two slives of pork tenderloin or a slice of chateaubriand on a small bed of mash with a jus and maybe a couple of French beans and so on...

It's a little fiddly but it's very impressive to do at home and much of it you can prepare beforehand as long as you plan the menu properly.

I'm not explaining it very well but I hope you get the idea.

Lots of things in very small portions but enough courses / delicious things that you know you have had an amazing a filling meal.

This might explain it better than I ever could
Yeah_Jackie
21-05-2013
It's also approaching Independance Day so that might be worth considering.

ID Menu Ideas

(Alternatively you could do Best of British)
Victoria Sponge
21-05-2013
Ok the amuse bouche is like mini sizes of main courses...ok that's not a good explanation either but I get it now. I like the idea of Thanksgiving amuse bouche.

And Epicurian, that chilli verde sounds delicious!

Lots of nice ideas here - pulled pork, mac cheese, that Philly thing...

I want to do mini hamburgers which will be easy. I also want to do mini hotdogs but I'm not if mini hot dog rolls/ finger rolls exist. I'm going to look though.
Yeah_Jackie
21-05-2013
M&S do finger rolls which are about 2 bite size.

Alternatively cut the ends off and use the ends for some individual B&B puddings or similar (if there is a USA equivalent) Not necessarily to serve at your gathering.
Victoria Sponge
21-05-2013
Perfecto! I live next door to M&S. Thanks so much for your help Jackie. And everyone x
Yeah_Jackie
21-05-2013
I just thought, quite wasteful but it would be quite fun to make Rachel from Friends trifle. You remember the one with minced beef?
degsyhufc
21-05-2013
If you like spicy stuff you could do jalepeno poppers.
bigc127
21-05-2013
You could do some sliders. Mini burgers, different dressings/cheeses
epicurian
21-05-2013
Originally Posted by Yeah_Jackie:
“It's also approaching Independance Day so that might be worth considering.

ID Menu Ideas

(Alternatively you could do Best of British)”

Love that link, and once again I'm disappointed I don't like lamb.

Maybe one day.
Darcy_
21-05-2013
Sliders, corn dogs, pumpkin pie, warm biscuits and butter, southern fried chicken, sweet potato mash.
epicurian
21-05-2013
Originally Posted by Darcy_:
“Sliders, corn dogs, pumpkin pie, warm biscuits and butter, southern fried chicken, sweet potato mash.”

I've posted this before, but since you mentioned it, and degsy has his sausage thread... http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2011/11...n-dogs-recipe/
degsyhufc
21-05-2013
Originally Posted by epicurian:
“I've posted this before, but since you mentioned it, and degsy has his sausage thread... http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2011/11...n-dogs-recipe/”

I might give that one a try myself
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