How to Create a Do it Yourself Wedding Reception Meal

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Step 1

Planning:
You need to know how many people will attend! This is the first and most important decision you will make. If you only have 12 relatives attending, an intimate spaghetti dinner will suffice. If you are feeding 50, try the barbeque route. When the guest list hits 75-100 we have a reception! I do not recommend a do-it-yourself for receptions larger than 100! The service set up alone will cost more than just having a nice catered event.
Step 2

Menu preparation:
Consider the season! This will add to the occasion and reduce cost!
Christmas ham will be half price the day after Christmas! Turkeys will be cheap after Thanksgiving! If you're on a budget consider these options.
A do-it-yourself menu should always be a serve yourself gathering.
First Course: A selection of Appetizers to begin the celebration:
One large tray per 100 people.
One hot appetizer (Try sweet and sour meatballs. Buy meatballs from your local Italian deli, place in a sauce of grape jelly and chili sauce. Keep warm in a crock pot. Meatballs freeze well, so just make the sauce the day before.)
One cold appetizer (make pastry cups from 3 oz cream cheese, 1 cup flour and 1 stick of butter. Mix dough, chill until firm. Make balls the size of a large marble. Press into small muffin tins with finger to line cup like a tart. Bake at 350 for 10 minute or until lightly brown. Let cool in tray before removing. These freeze well and are delicious with all kinds of fillings. Try pudding, chicken salad, or a quiche-like filling.
Have a small assortment of cheese, crackers and fruit on each table. This should be served while the wedding party is being photographed so the guests don't get restless. Also serve a Non-alcoholic beverage at this time. A nice punch can be made in minutes by the most amateur chef. Hawaiian Punch, Sprite and Sherbet. Serving punch cuts out the need for a bartender and keeps your guest sober until their stomachs have a bit of food in them.
Step 3

Main Reception line:
Two choices of Meat: Ham and Turkey, or Fried Chicken bought from Wal-Mart or Publix (in the South!) You can order large amounts, pick it up and it's ready to serve. A ham can be cooked the day before and served at room temperature for the wedding. As an extra flair, ask an favorite uncle to carve the ham while guests fill their plates. Turkey breasts placed in a crock pot the night before will be done by the morning. Place 1 liter of vegetable stock, a stock of celery and a small onion in the crock-pot for a delicious and moist turkey. Let cool and slice on an angle.
You can choose to make up deli trays also. Buy 1 pound of meat per person, and tell them at the deli you are rolling the meat for a platter. They will know what thickness to give you. Roll the meat on one platter and have a selection of sliced cheeses on another platter. Do not serve cheese as an appetizer if you go this route. Give you guests a nice assortment of breads; this is not the place to scrimp, and a tray of condiments, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles and olives.
Step 4

Two choices of Salads:
For Ham or fried chicken I would choose Potato Salad and Coleslaw. Do NOT buy these from the supermarket deli as everyone hates them. Potato Salad is easy to make: A 10 pound bag of potatoes for each 20 people served! Make these in 20 pound batches. Peel, wash and dice potatoes to about the size of a Quarter diameter. Don't make the potatoes too small and keep the size consistent so they cook evenly. When the potatoes start to boil add a little salt. Boil until tender, but not mushy. About 20 minutes. Chop 1 cup celery, 1 cup onions, add jar (med) sweet relish, chop 6 hard boiled eggs and mustard and mayo (1/4 cup mustard to 1 cup mayo ratio!) until moist. I use spicy mustard to add kick!
Coleslaw is equally simple. Shred 1 cabbage, add 2 shredded carrots, mix dressing 1/4 cup vinegar, 1/2 sugar, 1 cup mayo. Stir together! 1 large head of cabbage per 20 guests. Use the large disposable aluminum pans for your salads with parsley and lettuce decorating the sides. Both Salads can be made two days in advance.
Step 5

Vegetables:
With Ham, Turkey or Chicken a great favorite is Baked Mac and Cheese. This is easy easy easy to make and unless you go wild with the cheese it is very cheap too. One large aluminum tray per 20 people. This goes quickly, so make plenty.
3 cups of elbow macaroni cook in boiling salted water until tender, drain. Set aside while you make cheese sauce. Melt 6 tablespoons butter, blend in 6 tablespoons flour, Add 4 cups of milk. Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until thick. Add teaspoon salt, teaspoon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard and 4 cups of shredded cheese (I use sharp cheddar and Colby) Stir until cheese melts. Mix sauce with macaroni and pour into your pan. You can stop here and place dish in fridge to bake the next day. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until bubbly and brown. Servings 16.

Another classic is Sweet Potato Casserole
4-16 oz cans yams (drained), 2 cups sugar, 2 teaspoon vanilla, 4 eggs (beaten), 1 stick of butter melted. Combine with mixer and pour into dish. Topping: 2/3 cup butter, 2/3 cup flour, 2 cups brown sugar, 1 cup pecans, chopped. Mix sugar and flour together first, cut in butter stir in pecans and crumble over potato mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Can be made 24 hours ahead and baked the next day.
For a super easy vegetable, put fresh green beans in a crock pot with vegetable stock, onion, and a bit of ham. Cook all night! One crock pot feed 20 people.
Step 6

After your menu is planned, take each recipe and break it down into a grocery list. Print this list up on the computer so that you can clearly read everything on the list. Sort the list by departments mentally map your favorite supermarket so that you will be efficient. Mark each purchase off as you go.
Make a list of purchases the week before the wedding, the day before the wedding and anything that must be purchased that day. Like ice if you are short on storage.
Print your menu and place it on the fridge to check back to throughout your cooking sessions.
Step 7

Condiments and details!
Always make your bread selections the finest. There is nothing worse than spending hours preparing a meal and having bad bread. So make this an area that you do not scrimp on. Do not try to give people a hot bread; there isn't time or space for that. A nice assortment of hard rolls from the local bakery is fine. Sometimes they will make a nice tray for you without charging extra. Ask!
The little touches are the things that people remember. Use good quality plates. If you have the money in the budget you can rent linens, and all the table settings. Rental supply stores have the added benefit of being able to match your wedding colors. Place salt, pepper, and butter on all tables. Keep an area dedicated for drinks, whether it is alcoholic or not is up to you. Big tubs full of ice are great for beer and wine coolers. On a budget, buy a six pack every week until the wedding. You do not have to supply your guests with an open bar if you cannot afford it. If they are your guests they know your financial situation. Place an arrangement of flowers on each table with candles if you can afford it; otherwise only decorate the main table. A single flower on each table is charming. Always have small party favors for your guest whether they are bags of mints, or a more personal selections.
Use your friends and relatives to bring this party off. Chose people that follow directions and are dependable. If you don't have anyone like this call the local college and they will supply you with the names of a couple students looking to pick up some money. There are always a few pre-teen girls in every family that love to help out at a wedding. Make sure you thank them with a special token. They can help serve, keep beverages filled, and report to someone in charge on the status of the buffet line.
While you may do the cooking and planning, make sure you are not the person serving and taking care of guests. This is your day!
Step 8

The Most Important Part! The CAKE!
You do not have to buy a wedding cake. They are expensive and actually don't always taste great. The best wedding cake I ever saw was actually three different cheese cakes made by the sister of the bride. The largest cake had the bride and groom decoration on top. There were two smaller cakes, one with strawberries and the other blueberries. The sister was very honored to have made the cakes. Cheese cake is easy to make if this is your choice. They also store well in the fridge for several days if you can keep people out of them.
I've also seen people make tiers of cupcakes. These were very nice and the icing reflected the bride’s colors.
To make your own cake there are all kinds of cake pans available at any Wal-Mart in America. I know that many people who make wedding cakes for a living use box cake mixes as the base, and store bought icing. They add extracts to enhance the flavors or fillings to add moisture. Big chain supermarkets will allow you to buy a tub of icing. The problem with making your own cake is transporting it. A cake disaster is hard to fix. Decide on what is more important to you, stress-free, or money well spent.
Planning and creating your own wedding reception is not hard when you are prepared. Think the event through to each minor detail and your reception will go off without a hitch!

Comments

KCout said

on 7/9/2007 Thanks! How exciting! K

on 7/9/2007 Congrats on having this article be picked as the winner for the "Top Written Requested How to Article!" Check out the forums and see which other winners we have this week. Check it out at:

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-Rich