I don't have time just this minute....but I'll come back with some numbers for you....

All I can say is, "bless your heart." It is hard enough to entertain without having a moving target on the number who will attend.

I would also bake some pasta dishes such as a spaghetti casserole in your largest roasting pan with 3 pounds of spaghetti as the base quantity. That can be made the day ahead and refrigerated until you put it in the oven to heat.

I would probably prepare a full menu for the people that were invited and maybe a few extra. As backup I would buy frozen hamburger patties and not thaw them until I saw the need. You could make (or buy) hamburger buns and even if they are not used they could be frozen, or just tossed if you don't use frozen bread. Have the other hamburger items washed and ready to prepare. Chips could be held unopened until needed.

Make a marinated dish with onions, peppers, corn, beans, tomatoes, etc. It can be kept cold and will keep many days for your family to use, if you don't need it at the party.

Make lots of potato salad.

You will probably be a curiousity since your background is different from theirs, so you will probably draw a crowd. LOL Good luck.

First of all, decide on the maximum number of people you will prepare for....and figure that if any more come...tough!
Just for conversation let's say 50 people. A potato dish...salad ot scalloped potatoes or something like that, it would take about 7 1/2 pounds of potatoes for5 0 servings. If you make pasta instead it will take 3 pounds of pasta for a side dish....and 6 or 7 pounds of pasta for a main dish.
Meat....figure 5 servings to a pound if you are mixing it into a dish like pasta, or 3 servings to a pound if you are slicing meat to put on a plate.
I have done oven fried chicken for a mob...and I figured,w ith bone, a breast yielded 4 pieces, a leg was one piece and a thigh another....and I figured 1 1/2 pieces per person....and came out just about right.
You are Americans ( I think) so do things the "American way"..
How about a meal of goulash...also called American chop sui. I am sure recipes will come forward, but it's essentially pasta...elbow is preferred with canned tomatoes, onions, peppers seasonings, meat, usually browned hamburger and cheese....a salad that's marinated so it will hold....can make it ahead and dre4ss just before....and some sort of bread....and a sheet cake.
Munchies could be things like nuts, or chips, dips...hummus, or cheesey dips or spreads...I don't know what's availablew ehre you are.
The casseroles could be made ahead, refrigerated and then baked....the salad...made ahead and dressed just before dinner.
It's very hard to recommend when we don't know what you can buy nor how much refrigerator space you have.
As for the cake....there are lots of sheet cake recipes out there....you could make 3 and have lots left....and soem to freeze.
Good luck with this....it's an ambitious undertaking!
Linda C

Thank you all for your input this far. I hope to know the number a little better in about a week. We talked to one friend who will bring lots of people and he understood the need for us to know some number from him, so he promised to get back to us.
I will have papaya, pineapple and plantains, available in large quantities, so I was thinking of maybe some fruit salad with some really delicious something on top? Recipes?
Pasta baked dish sounds great. I will look into that.
We will have BBQ facilities, so I was think maybe something on the stick, but I am still very set on doing the smoked chicken and fish as the main meat thing, so maybe going little over board and making things too complicated adding the stick things or hamburgers (neither of us is big hamburger eaters anyway).
So for crowd of 50 I need how many chickens? They nice size ones here are usually about 4 lb. a piece. Not everyone likes fish, but most will probably want to try it at least, so I probably need to make sure that I have about 50 smallish fish smoked as well?
Neither one of us likes sheet cake. Usually I make cheese cake for my DH birthday. Not sure I can do that for 50 people tho.
My current oven fits a pan of 9X13, How many of those pans of cake would I need to make?
I will make some ceviche and have chips for snacks. Hard to believe, but the stores do not carry decent salsa here. I guess they do not eat their chips with salsa. On one party they made this delicious dip with pepper and vinegar and sugar that was on top of cream cheese. Very yummy.
Again, I am just going on and on.
Thanks for all the input this far, I hope this keeps coming, as I need lots of hand holding this time around LOL

For 50...with lots of sides. One chicken yields 10 pieces...if you consider a wing as a piece.....and you should figure 1 1/2 pieces per person...
For 50 people you will need 75 "pieces" of chicken...or 8 chickens.
Cheese cake will be expensive for 50 people...I recommend sheet cake....with cream cheese frosting! LOL! You will need 4 to 5 9 by 13 pans....depending on how thicjk your cake is.
Make carrot cake in a 9 by 13....and top with cream cheese frosting.

As a topping for your fruit salad, I would highly recommend the Vanilla Yogurt Sauce recipe from cooks.com. It's always fantastic and I've tried it with a wide variety of fruits. Easy to make and can also be made ahead.

Vanilla Yogurt Sauce

Thanks Linda. Carrot cake sounds promising. My DH loves it, and I tolerate it fine. The cream cheese frosting should be really good as well and the vanilla sauce on fruit should not really fight the carrot cake, does it?
and Thanks a Lot for doing some math for me, Linda :)

I've always figured 8 pieces per chicken, because the back doesn't yield much and wings are a pretty chintzy serving. I cut 2 legs, 2 thighs, 4 breast pieces plus the wings.

I agree, a pasta dish is relatively inexpensive and can really stretch, plus you can make it in advance.

I also think the yogurt would be a good topping for the fruit, I make parfaits of fruit with plain yogurt mixed with some honey and a sprinkle of granola just because I like some crunch. Some cookies crumbled up and sprinkled on top would work too, gingersnaps or sugar cookies would be nice.

So you will smoke whole fish? Or filets? If they are whole fish, and small, I guess you'd want one per person, but if you use filets, I'd say 4 or 5 servings per pound.
Will your smoker be big enough to do all the chicken and fish at once, or will you need to smoke it in shifts? Are you planning to serve the chicken hot or cold, if the smoker isn't big enough to do everything?

You'll have to make one 9x13 cake at a time? I usually figure one cake serves 20, so you'd need three just to give everyone a single slice.

Bread? I think your chicken/fish, a fruit salad, the potato salad, perhaps a pasta dish, and cake will be a nicely diverse menu and bread is easy, cheap and will stretch everything a bit.

You'll do great, I'm sure of it. I've made Christmas dinner for 40 every year for a long time, and it's not really any harder to cook for 40 than it is for 10, as soon as you get your quantities figured out and storage for everything that you make ahead.

Happy birthday to your DH!

Annie

I would stick with just the smoked meats. Depending on how you plan to serve them, they could actually be done several days ahead and just heated on the day of the party. Sticks are cute.........for four.....PITA for 50!! JMO!

If you can cook the meat ahead of time, make salads and cake the day before, you'll actually be able to enjoy your guests without spending the whole time in the kitchen.

If you have the refrigerator room, have extra veggies trimmed and prepped and some dips or hummus. You don't have to bring them out unless it looks like you're running short! You could also bake a few cookies and tuck back just in case.

If people will be showing up at all different times, you'll want to be able to refresh things anyway (i.e. you don't want chicken sitting out for 5 hours).

Just a thought......maybe you set out the munchies first, then in an hour or so, the main salads and meats, later the cakes. It's possible you don't need 50 servings of everything!

Mostly, remember that this isn't their only/last meal and the party should be enjoyable, not a chore.
I find it far easier to prep a few great dishes than a bunch of different ones. No one expects a restaurant selection.

Deanna

Thank you Annie and Deanna

I will be trying out smoking several different kind of small whole fish to see which one tastes the best made this way. Most fish available here is new to us, so lots of experimenting and learning.

I will be smoking a day or two ahead. So most likely we will be eating it cold. I personally love cold smoked chicken and fish.

Yep, cakes will be baked one at the time. I have very small oven here, which does not get as hot as my old one. We have the thermometer that tells the temps, but still things take longer to cook and it does not brown they way my electric did. It is propane range/oven.

just a reminder, bananas and plantain are not interchangeable,
for a large crowd buffet, cut up chicken so it can be "handled" without having to sit and cut it up
if you would like to serve salsa, make your own salsa, tomatoes, onions, cilantro, chili pepper, lime or lemon juice, throw some green tops from scallions for a Christmas red and green look,
if your barbeque is large you can warm pasta casserole / coals on one end not under casserole/ this will hold casserole for late comers. smoked small fish is delicious with just a little salt and pepper, have lime or lemon wedges available, (keep it simple)
,potato salad keep it cold over ice tray (make 2-3 trays) and bring one at a time as it runs out,potato salad mayonaise and warm weather in central america
and finally, just think about us here in north america "freezing" its hot soup and stew for us lol

Here is a site that lists customs for various countries - I linked to Mexico because you did not specify which country in Central America you are in. I've only been to Guatemala and Belize, which are extremely different, although Guatemala is fairly similar to Mexico. In Latin America it is considered rude to arrive on time for a dinner party, and guests should not arrive until 30 minutes after the invitation time. I'm sure you're aware of this by now. As for the number of guests to expect - I would ask a local friend for an estimate, based on your responses. BTW, in Sweden (according to the site I linked), guests are expected to be very punctual, and if guests arrive early, they must wait in their card until it is the exact time. Italians always arrive late, from my experience, by as much as two hours.

I think it would be best to have as much in reserve to pull out at the last minute when you see you have too many guests. I did that at my Italian party, and people seemed to be entertained by what happened to be coming out of the kitchen during the course of the party. I think you should stage it so that new things are continually being offered to the guests. Try to get volunteers to help you, and make sure that they arrive early - not an hour late like the ones I had.

Lars

Here is a link that might be useful: Various country etiquette guides

You've gotten a lot of great advice thus far. I really like the idea of the cold, smoked chicken and fish.

The only thing I can add...
When we have our annual party that has somewhere between 100-150 people (yes, that big of a swing) coming and going all day, the best way for me to handle the variable guest count, is the way I prep side salads. I cut up all the veggies and put them in separate bags, and keep the cooked pasta separate and the dressing separate (but prepared) as well. Then I just mix up large batches as needed once or twice dring the party. That way, the buffet continuously looks fresh and if I have leftovers (which I always do because I have an irrational fear that people won't have enough to eat!), I can use the ingredients in other ways, so there is very little if any waste.

We have a massive Halloween party every year and have had from 50 to 80 people. One dish I always make for the party is a Brazilian Black Bean stew, because I can make it hours ahead and then just simmer it on low or in a crockpot. Or I can make it a day (or two) ahead and simply reheat it before serving. Also given that it is Central America I would think that beans would be almost expected. I'll post my recipe in a subsequent message, although I'm sure that you'll likely have to make a few substitutions of local ingredients.

Thank you all for great advice and support.
We got our beast, so I can finally start playing/practicing the smoking. I got two kinds of fish and chicken to try out.
Although it is not pretty, YET, will work on pretty after we get all the kinks worked out, I am excited about this adventure.

{{!gwi}}

All recipes, ideas and simple encouragement is highly appreciated. :)

FEIJOADA - BRAZILIAN BLACK BEAN STEW

Serves 12 or so as a main dish 20 or so as a side dish If you cannot find the linguica, you can use chorizo or even smoked sausage. Also the recipe usually calls for dried black beans, but then it calls for soaking them for hours and cooking in a pressure cooker.

1.5 lbs pork (cubed)
1 lb linguica (cubed)(Porteguese smoked sausage)
6 oz thick bacon (chopped)
3 oz Armour dried beef (chopped fine)
3 tbsp cooking oil
3 medium onions (chopped)
2 Tbsp minced garlic
5 15oz can Kunar's brand Southwestern Black Beans
1 15oz can Kunar's brand Refried Black Beans w/ lime
1/2 6oz can of chipotle chiles in abodo sauce (optional)
3 cups water

In large pot over medium heat cook bacon until its browned and most of the fat has cooked out, add pork and onion, and cook until the pork is completely cooked, stirring frequently. Add the sausage and the garlic and cook and stir for another 5 minutes.
Add the 5 cans of beans, the dried beef, the chopped chipotle chiles, and the water and bring to a low boil and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the can of refried black beans and stir it in well.
It can either be served immediately or be put into a crockpot on low to keep warm for later.
Serve with white rice and drink a caipirinha with it.

Thank you for the recipe, Bob :)

Here are the first results of the Beast:

Smoked Chicken

{{!gwi}}

I pre-salted one for few hours until the smoker was ready and the pre-salted one was way superior. So for the party I will make sure the pre-salt for overnight.

and the smoked fish:

{{!gwi}}

DH said that it was little bit dry side, so we will need to smoke a little less time. I preferred the Corvina, he preferred the other one, so I guess we can do 50/50 for the party. Price wise they were the same $1.00 a pound fresh from the sea :)

Oh my, those chickens are just beautiful! Elery says he likes a website called deejayssmokepit.com, there is some really good information there for "beginners". Yeah, I still consider myself a beginner, I just stick stuff in and hope, LOL.

Annie

Nice!

Thank you Annie for the website. I will check it out. I am real beginner and will have lot to learn :)

So the D-day is tomorrow. By current count we are expecting about 30 people. Yesterday I smoked 5 large chickens and 32 corvinas (fish). Today I will bake the cakes and prep all the salad stuff, so for tomorrow I have only assembly and set-up to do.
Thanks for everyone for your advice and just support. It has been very helpful. I also had good discussion with my DH and all this has helped me be much more relaxed about the whole thing.
Wish me luck.

Oh yeah, you know I do, and I'll be thinking of you while I'm baking Christmas cookies with The Princess and Bruvver tomorrow.

Happy Birthday to your DH, everything is going to be perfect and the food will be delicious, I'm sure of it.

Annie

So beautiful! $1 a pound straight from the sea!? Color me jealous!!

I hope your prep has gone well and you're having a good time as well as hosting this party. I look forward to hearing the details of how it went. The chickens and fish sure look great! As long as you're not in Panama the weather looks good today/this evening!

Happy Birthday to your DH!

again, thank you everyone. All the suggestions worked out great. We had plenty of food. As I did not mix up everything, the leftovers will be more manageable.
Everything was good, expect I cooked the cake little long and it was dry side but it seemed to have been hit independent.
It ended up much longer evening than I anticipated, everyone stayed well into the dark and last people left after 10 pm. So from that I assume everyone had good time as well.
Luckily weather cooperated as well, no rain at all the last 4 days. Now my hands and back hurt from all the prep work and running around yesterday, so next couple of days I at least "plan" to take it easy.
We have been invited to Xmas even party and asked to bring fruit cake. I have never made one, and if I recall correctly, these are quit dry as well. Anyway, after brief rest, I will be hunting for perfect fruit cake recipe.

Congratulations!! Sounds like a wonderful party. A very ambitious undertaking, but it seems like you were up for the challenge. I do hope you get to take it easy for a few days.

Got any pictures??

How many people came?

No photos, I was afraid of that tho, because when people started coming, I just did not have time to take them and I am then one in the family with the camera.
We probably had somewhere between 20 - 30 people. They were not there all at the same time. Over the cause of 8 hours, and again I was just too busy dealing with it all to count. Some people showed up with more people than I that new of, but that was to be expected. Few people did not show up at all, although they had said they come, but that was to be expected as well :)

I knew it would be great fun and that you'd be a perfect hostess. The cake must have been good, or they wouldn't have asked you to bring cake to the Christmas party.

Grandma always told me that I had to bake fruit cake at Thanksgiving because it got liberally soaked with blackberry brandy, so my recipe won't do you any good, it's too late, LOL.

I know we had a thread about fruitcakes, though, with some really good sounding recipes. I haven't made this one, but I copied it on purpose because it didn't have any candied fruit in it, I don't care for candied fruit like the supermarket has, those icky little dried bits. If I were ambitious I'd make my own candied fruit, but I'm not THAT obsessed with it, LOL. Anyway, dried cranberries, maraschino, dates, that sounds better. I'd probably skip the Irish Whisky and sub orange juice, but another alcohol would probably be OK too.

Annie

Thanks Annie :)

I am starting to rethink the fruit cake idea. I have almost always either banana bread or pineapple bread and offer it when someone comes over. For birthday party I made carrot cake that had some pineapple in it as well. So their request might have been more in line what I have made before. There are going to be kids at the party and I want to make sure they can enjoy the cake as well, so no alcohol in the recipe.
Still pondering...