Lasagna Menu for 60th birthday party

12 years ago

We're planning a 60th birthday party at our house. Most of us (16 family members) haven't seen each other for several years or more, so this will also be like a family reunion. Guests will start arriving at noon-1:00 pm and dinner will be served around 6:00 pm, so I want to keep them satisfied in the afternoon but not too full for dinner. Some of the guests are VERY casual, no-frills people who like the good ol' traditional recipes, and a couple are more adventurous but also like the traditional tried-and-true favorites. I would like to include simple but delicious foods/ingredients that appeal to everyone without a lot of preparation that day. Below is the menu I'm planning.

DINNER(about 6pm):

* My own homemade Lasagna (a family favorite). I plan to make the sauce on Friday, assemble the lasagna on Saturday, and bake it on Sunday.

* garlic bread

* a nice salad with an assortment of toppings and dressings

DESSERT: Chocolate birthday cake and ice cream.

APPETIZERS: Since everyone will begin arriving between noon and 1:00, they'll need to be satisfied but not too full for dinner. Therefore, I'd like to serve the appetizers as courses throughout the afternoon rather all at once, starting with the heavier ones first and tapering off to lighter apps in the later afternoon. I kinda like appetizers served to me that way; I wonder what's coming next. They include:

* Alton Brown's Onion Dip from Scratch served with dipping chips and chunks of veggies including red/green/yellow bell peppers, baby carrots, celery, zucchini, cherry tomatoes, etc.

* Parmesan Walnut Salad in Endive Leaves

* Some antipasto favorites including olives, pepperoncini peppers, pickled carrots, Provolone + ??? cheese w/ crackers, red/green grapes and almonds.

BEVERAGES:

* BYO favorite wine/beverage (we will provide a little wine but aren't big drinkers)

* Hot cider in the crock pot (the weather will be cool w/ a chance of rain)

* Good Earth ice tea(???? may be too cool for that)

* Coffee

* Hot chocolate for the kiddos

If it's nice outside we'll be in the patio and could play lawn games. If it rains (there's a chance), we'll be inside.

Anyone have any comments or suggestions for improvement?

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Comments (5)

lindac
12 years ago
I would expect the first to arrive will be needing lunch. Iw ould include some things like perhaps chicken wings, perhaps a cheese board with some pepperoni or cappiacola or proscuitto and cocktail rye....maybe pickeled herring in sour cream....and then work on to the veggies and dip sort of thing.
lpinkmountain
12 years ago
Jenn this is one of my all time favorite dinner party menus. Being vegetarian, I offer roasted eggplant dip, hummus or spinach dip with toasted pita wedges. This is always a big hit with everyone. The great thing is, you can buy all of these dips at a decent grocery store with a good deli. The eggplant dip often goes by the baba ganouj or baba ganoush moniker. I make my own because it is dead easy, just grill or roast a peeled large eggplant with a good coating of olive oil, add a small jar of roasted red peppers, and some salt and pepper to taste and give this all a good whirl in the food processor. Add a small splash of balsamic vinegar or lemon juice to keep it fresh longer. If you think it still needs some zip you can add any of the following: tahini, mayonaise, cumin, oregano or aleppo peper. Of course for 60 you might need a COUPLE of large eggplants, lol!
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sushipup1
12 years ago
Iced tea is always in season. Would there be any soda drinkers there? And bottled water is handy, especially if you have hours of greeting and gathering for an all-day event.
blizlady
12 years ago
I agree with Lindac that for those that arrive at noon or a little earlier, something somewhat substantial should be served, especially if alcoholic beverages will also be served during the day. Would you consider an earlier dinner such as between 4:30 and 5:00 if people are arriving by noon? 6:00 is perfectly fine if there is a lite lunch for early arrivals such as cold cuts, ham, and cheese platters with small dinner rolls. If you are short of time to put something like that together, most large grocery deli departments can put together some nice sandwich trays relatively inexpensively.
jenn
Original Author
12 years ago
Thank you so much for your suggestions.

We're planning for dinner at around 6:00 because one of the couples won't arrive until around 5:30 and we want to wait for them. We haven't nailed down the exact arrival time because we still don't know when the guest of honor's family is arriving that morning!

Lindac and lpinkmountain: The roasted eggplant dip sounds delicious to me, but Hubby intensely dislikes eggplant, and I know he wouldn't like pickled herring. He likes hummus though! I also considered shrimp cocktail.

Does anyone see any problems with making the lasagna sauce on Friday, assembling the lasagna on Saturday, and baking it on Sunday?

Lasagna Menu for 60th birthday party

Comments (5)

lindac

lpinkmountain

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Lasagna Menu for 60th birthday party

Comments (5)

lindac

lpinkmountain

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blizlady

jennOriginal Author

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jenn
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