I am hosting a casual holiday brunch for about 30 people.?

Question

I am looking for foods I can prepare in advance and just heat up on the day of. I'd like to be able to mingle with my guests instead of spending the whole time dealing with food. I'm planning to set up a buffet table so guests can help themselves and eat casually as they mingle with one another. I'm not a very talented cook, so the simpler, the better!

Answer 1

egg/potato casserole, baked french toast, danishes, pasteries, bagels muffins, ham, sausage, bacon.

Answer 2

you could have a sort of raffle/auction of cheap things for the kids. The kids each bring in a non-perishable item and their name goes in to a draw for some sort of prize.. Have one for the adults, too, and have the prize be something like a gift basket. You can normally pick up a cheap, but nice little gift basket from K-mart or Costco for under 20 dollars, and people love receiving them because they look attractive as well. What me and my family did was we made a small crown and anchor machine (which is similar to a roulette wheel-simple to make. Email me for instructions) and we just bought some dollar store candies. If you have this at the brunch and offer it to the kids, (or maybe a little later for the adults) it gets more and more exciting. Another fun thing to do is offer music and karaoke. I don't know if this is a family event or just a social event, but most parties should- I know I love singing at parties!! Hope everything works out for you!

Answer 3

-Shrimp Cocktail - just buy the cooked stuff in market, open a jar of "Ken's" Cocktail Sauce (awesome) & arrange attractively.
-Olives, cheese, crackers, proscute
-Brushetta - get a baguette, slice up & toast w/ red onion, tomato, basil & olive oil (Romano cheese). 5 min to heat up - buy mixture or make day before.
-Regular Salad
-Fruit Salad
-Muffins
-Bagels w/ fixings



I don't know if this is cheating but in the frozen food section in my market there is this brand called "On the Go Bistro" and it has fabulous appetizers/finger foods that you just heat up for 15-20 min @ 400 degrees.

Portabello Mushroom bites - surrounded w/ a puff pastry
Toasted Portabello Mushroom Ravioli - (it's breaded use w/ dipping sauce)
Brie in Phyllo Pastry
Spinach & Cheese Puffs
Chees & Onion Puffs

Also Sam's Club or Costco or Smart n' Final - they have other frozen things for parties that are good - like coconut shrimp and other things. Can pop in oven and it's easy.

Answer 4

Fruit salad with whipped cream on the side, danish and other pastries, quiche, and crackers with a small piece of cheese and a strawberry on top. Also, for some recipes, you can prepare it the night before and bake it the next day (your guests will enjoy the smells of baking without having to lose you!) like a potato casserole. For more ideas go to the link below:

Answer 5

Cheese Breakfast Casserole

layered slices of french bread (enough to fit a 9x13 dish)
1 pkg of muenster cheese (layer slices on top of bread slices)
6 eggs
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups of half and half

Place bread slices in a 9 x 13-inch buttered baking dish.
Mix all of the ingredients together and pour the egg mixture over the bread. Cover with foil and refrigerate it 6 hours to overnight.

Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degree, uncovered for 45 minutes to one hour.

Champagne, such as Veuve Cliquot Ponsardin or another sparking wine that combines both Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes is a wonderful pairing with this casserole; elegant and festive too!

Answer 6

scramabled eggs with cheese, french toast or pancakes, sausage links and patties, chocolate covered strawberries, gravy (for biscuits and gravy; frozen biscuits don't take long to heat up the day of). Have champagne and OJ to drink. And some apple cider.

Answer 7

You can fried some finger foods like spring roll, famosa, sotong ball etc and you can make some jelly too..

Answer 8

savory crepes , honey roasted ham , clafuti (eggs flour milk )

Answer 9

Lox and bagel! My fave.