All-holiday party recipe ideas please!

18 years ago

Hello all,

I have been a member here for years, but haven't been in this forum in ages. But I know this is just the place I need to be! I have a 17 yr old cousin who went to Germany with the foreign exchange program at his school. He left us last Sept and is returning home this coming Fri!!! Later this month, we will be having a giant welcome home party at a local park. We decided to make it an "all-holiday" party, celebrating all of the holidays (including his June b-day) he missed with us while he was away.

So far we are having a big ham and a turkey and now need sides, desserts, snacks, etc. Can any of you think of cool things to make that would be from any of the major holidays....Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving, St Pats, Valentines....etc??? My brain is usually pretty creative, but all I can come up with is Christmas shaped cookies, hard-boiled colored eggs, or maybe a pumpkin-related dessert. After that I draw a blank! Any ideas would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!!

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Comments (8)

teresa_nc7
18 years ago
You could have a big platter of fresh sliced cantaloupe and watermelon, heart-shaped cookies, sweet potato casserole or candied yams, cranberry congealed salad and of course, a birthday cake.

This pineapple casserole is delicious with ham:

Pineapple Cheese Casserole
Yields: 12 servings

"Pineapple chunks baked with Cheddar cheese, and topped with a buttery cracker crust."

3 (15 ounce) cans pineapple chunks
2 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
8 tablespoons pineapple juice
8 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
30 buttery round crackers, crushed (Ritz crackers)
1/2 cup butter, sliced

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl combine pineapple chunks, cheese, pineapple juice, flour and sugar. Spoon into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Top with crushed crackers and butter slices.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes.
magothyrivergirl
18 years ago
For St Patrick's Day: Serve w/ rye cocktail bread

COOKS.COM RECIPE SEARCH ENGINE

RUEBEN CASSEROLE
Printed from COOKS.COM

1 (12 oz.) can corned beef (or cook and use 3-3 1/2 lb. corned beef)
1 qt. (2 sm. cans) sauerkraut, drained
2 c. shredded Swiss cheese
1 c. salad dressing (Hellmann's or Miracle Whip)
1/2 c. 1000 Island Dressing
2 tbsp. melted butter
1/2 c. bread crumbs

Place sauerkraut and crumbled beef in 9 x 13 inch glass pan. Mix dressings together and pour over top. Place shredded Swiss cheese on top of dressing. Melt butter and mix with bread crumbs and sprinkle over top of mixture. Bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. This can be made ahead and refrigerated.
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The idea sounds cute...but here is another thought that would be cute too. In the movie (one of my favorites!) Dorothy had to click her heals 3 times and say "There's no place like home." Instead of putting the heart, clock etc..., at the top of the sign put 3 sets of "ruby slippers" as if they were "clicking" then on the next line put "There's no place like home..." and on the third line put "For The Holidays" with gifts on either side. Whatever way you do it will be cute I'm sure. Have fun!
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F2BH - you are so right, it is a special culture unto its own ;-) I'm still trying to fit in 2 yrs later - I am from the other side of town! Thanks everyone, lots of great suggestions here. I will call Ducky Bobs and see if they have anything available at this point. Can't hurt to get an idea of the cost for the chair cover's rental and centerpieces. I'm going to have to wait until I can go over there to see what the club offers for centerpieces and everything else before I decide on that stuff. teacats - Emerald City????? Holy cow, I don't EVEN want to think about how much they would be - I'm sure Pres. would choke on the cost, but he would be the type to appreciate them, LOL! And I'll bet he's never heard of them - I'm telling you, Arlington might as well be another planet no matter how close it is to Dallas. I was right and the keyboardist is booked already. In desperation, I texted a friend who works at corporate for a local TexMex Restaurant chain and she's getting me some referrals from their event planner. I also asked the CC to recommend someone. Honestly, keyboardists are perfect for this party (very little if any vocals and more background than show), and hopefully I can find a good one at this late date! We did a White Elephant 2 yrs ago and it was a lot of fun and we will do that again this year. There are very few lags in convo, most of us who work there know how to yak, LOL! But after y'alls opinions, I think I'll leave the table size alone and use what we have in the past. It's really just the decs Pres. is talking about. Again, he'd just prefer to be at home than in a banquet room, even if it is at his home-away-from-home country club (sorry, Jen, somethings just aren't negotiable ;-) Actually, this party is best done in this space. I probably should have put this order-of-events in my OP: -Mix n Mingle/HH -Buffet, sit-down dinner. -Pres. speaks briefly, then recognizes and thanks each employee giving them Christmas cards ;-) -He then reads off raffle numbers and gives out Gift Cards to the winners. -Then we do the White Elephant This takes 4-ish hours, so it's from 6-10p. I'll follow up when I know more, thanks again!
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I also agree that a 5-7 timeframe would need heavier foods as it would be around suppertime and some/many would not have eaten their evening meal before that time. So, possibilities? Gougeres, cheese straws, cheese thumbprints filled with hot pepper jelly, hot cheese and artichoke dip, spinach dip, Teresa's cheeseball or pimento cheese suggestion. A bit heavier would be sweet potato biscuits with a sliver of honey/glazed ham, rye puffs filled with cream cheese and corned beef, like a Rueben, small dinner rolls or croissants with chicken, turkey, chicken salad, ham, thin slices of roast beef. Desserts could be Christmas cookies, of course, or fudge, some "bark", which is fast and easy, truffles or peanut butter balls, bundt cake, mini cupcakes, brownies, pecan pie bars. I think bars would be faster and more efficient than something like rolled out sugar cookies or frosted and decorated types, so you could have a good assortment with less time spent. Refrigerator type cookies are good too, the kind you make ahead of time and then freeze or refrigerator, then slice and bake fresh when they are needed. You could even serve a crockpot of some type of soup or chili, if you are adventurous, with cups and spoons instead of bowls, so people could eat standing up or walking about. Have fun, it sounds like a very nice idea. Annie
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lisacdm
18 years ago
What a great idea - I'll have to steal a few recipes (my daughter leaves for Italy in September for a year).
Are there any foods that he missed? Maybe you could work them into the holiday theme (heart shaped pizza or rice crispie treats w/ orange and black sprinkles). Are there any special family dishes for instance Aunt Arlene's potato salad or Uncle Jim's BBQ?
Have fun
Lisa
lindac
18 years ago
I'd start with pumpkin soup ( use canned pumpkin this time of the year) and go on to roast turkey with perhaps yorkshire pudding, devilled eggs, fresh ( or frozen) peas and lots of desserts! Cherry pie, christmas cookies, green pistachio ice cream and perhaps a fruit cake!
Oh and don't forget Irish soda bread! And maybe a birthday sheet cake with his name on it.
Linda
littleredhen
Original Author
18 years ago
First, thanks to all of you wonderful people for your input!! I knew this was the place to come for help and ideas! I really love the idea about stuff he missed. I know for sure he didn't eat pizza in Germany....it was mostly weird stuff! Maybe I could see if a pizza joint could make a heart-shaped pizza! As far as I know, my mom ordered a giant sheet cake with all of the holidays represented on it somehow, and I think his b-day may be involved in that cake or as a separate one. Keep the ideas coming if you got any....I'm sharing them with my family. Thanks again!!
moosemac
18 years ago
Keeping in mind it's summer and hot outside:

Christmas - Ice Cream Buche De Noel (Chocolate ice cream softened and spread over a jelly roll cake then rolled and frozen. Cut off 1/3 of the rolled cake on an angle and put against side of cake to form a branch. Decorate with chocolate shards for bark and some marzipan mushrooms.)

Easter - Colored Deviled Eggs or make mini "eggs" (large green seedless grapes rolled in gorgazola then in dyed finely chopped nuts.)

4th of July - Red, White & Blue Cake or cheesecake i.e. any white cake decorated in a flage pattern with strawberries & blueberries. Or a baby potato salad with fresh peas (I use a vinegrette style dressing and sometimes add fresh grilled salmon.)

Thanksgiving - Cranberry Salsa or Cold Pumpkin Soup
donnar57
18 years ago
Here's something that someone could bring if they don't cook: a big tub of HALLOWEEN CANDY!!! And if someone could find some Peeps - no matter what shape -

DonnaR/CA
littleredhen
Original Author
18 years ago
Hello again,

I went to one of our favorite local pizza places and they are going to make me two large heart-shaped pizzas (thanks lisacdm!). I like the idea of Halloween candy, but I'd have to be picky and not buy things like Hersheys minis, since we'll be out in the heat. And man would I love to get some peeps. I saw where you can buy them online but they are rather pricey. There was a recipe at Martha S, but it involves boiling sugar water and using a thermometer. I have never done anything like that and am a bit aprehensive about it. A co-worker of mine suggested making sugar cookies (either home made or the slice and bake) but use cookie cutters from all holidays. I may attempt that. Thanks again!

All-holiday party recipe ideas please!

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teresa_nc7

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All-holiday party recipe ideas please!

Comments (8)

teresa_nc7

magothyrivergirl

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littleredhenOriginal Author

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