Need Cinco de Mayo Suggestions

[SusanMac]

For a big group you should get a pinata. They're not just for kids, adults get a kick out of them, too. You should be able to find one at a party store.

You could also limbo. It's not officially Mexican, but when you're drinking margaritas no one will notice.

Sangria is something different and fun to make.

Also, queso dip and stuffed jalapenos are a must.

And for music, I recommend the Gypsy Kings. They're very upbeat and fun. You'll feel like you're at a party in Cabo!

Have fun! I love Cinco de Mayo!

[sk8ingmom]

Two of my favorite CL casserole are Mexican:
Chicken Enchilada Casserole (CL 10/96 pg. 114) & Chiles Rellenos Casserole (CL 4/97 pg. 116).

OOHHH and also Eggplant Burritos (7/96 pg. 125) I adapted these by using canned enchilada sauce instead of the tomato sauce the recipe calls for...my family likes a little kick. Let me know if you need any of these recipes - I'm not sure if they are in the database or not.

[Rae]

I found a recipe for spiced pecans (similar to a praline) on a Cinco de Mayo website. I made these for a work party last year and everyone loved them. The recipe called for sugar, cinnamon and maybe some other spices. I know that CL printed a very similar recipe recently, but I haven't tried their version yet. (Maybe for Cinco de Mayo this year!) Anyway, they were very good, easy and could be made ahead (which is always nice for something to take to work).

[BeckyM]

Thanks for the ideas, everyone! We had been talking about a pinata, so I'm glad to see someone else thinks that's a good idea. We were wondering if people would enjoy it or not.

Regrettably, since we're doing this AT work on work time, we won't be able to serve margaritas or sangria. But maybe we could do MOCK margaritas. Would we just make them the same way and just not add alcohol? Or should we add something in place of the alcohol?

I also think I remember seeing a CL recipe at one point for a Margarita Pie or something like that. I'll have to look for that.

Thanks too for the Gypsy Kings recommendation. I'll have to look for some of their music. We had also talked about limbo, but we weren't sure whether or not that was a Mexican activity.

We'll be cooking for about 50 people, but we are thinking we'll only cook some of the dishes and ask people to bring something for pot luck. I'm imagining others will bring things like chips & salsa, so I want to provide something more exciting, like the Chicken & Cheese Enchiladas. I also want to be able to give people ideas of what to bring, so keep the suggestions coming.

What do you all think about doing the steak & chicken fajitas from last June or July CL? We do have a couple grills at work, so we could cook them okay, I'm just wondering if they're "authentic" mexican or if they're more of a Tex-Mex, americanized thing.

Thanks so much, you're all a huge help!

Becky http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

[BethH]

Cinco de Mayo is my birthday!!! I like to celebrate with guacamole and margaritas (or sangria)!!! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/tongue.gif http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/tongue.gif http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/tongue.gif

[This message has been edited by BethH (edited 04-12-2001).]

[aggie94]

Just so you know, in case you have trouble finding it, Gipsy Kings is spelled with an "i."

[Vanessa]

Hi. I emailed you directly but just read the party is At your office so this is the menu at the Ortega website. www.ortega.com (http://www.ortega.com)
click under menus then cinco de mayo (menu list)...Enjoy

Cinco De Mayo Fiesta

Get into the spirit of spring with an informal Cinco de May (fifth of May) celebration. Guacamole, hearty tacos and burritos and rich chocolate cake served for dessert enhance the festivities.

Ortega Green Chile Guacamole
Original Ortega Taco Recipe
Turkey Tacos
Mexican Rice
Ortega Refried Beans
Cinnamon Chocolate Cake
Sparkling Fruit Punch

[foodiedelite]

You must work in a fun office! Several years ago at my office, we had a cater bring in appetizer trays of tacos, chimi's, chips/salsa and we served regular margaritas. For the "mock" ones just eliminate the alcohol. The taste variance is very subtle. We hired mariachi's to perform
the entertainment. The party was a hit.

Some ideas not using a cater:
Have coworkers supplement your main entrees with a taco salad bar. Each bring a large quanity of one salad bar item. Also have a large salsa bar--many versions.

For table decor: use serapes (unsure of spelling) those large Mexican blankets as the tablecloth. Use large pinata's and brightly colored tissue flowers on your tables as centerpieces. Sombrero's also work nicely.

For your pinata--are you going to have an actual pinata break? If so, enclose in the pinata prizes the adults would like--rather than candy.


For a margarita pie dessert I remember a recipe I used years ago that involved taking vanilla ice cream, adding lime-aid and a little tequila and triple sec. Freezing in a graham cracker crust. Garnished with whipped cream and lime slices. It was extremely simple, but don't know if you'll have freezer space at the office for 6+ pies.

Hope this helps. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[sneezles]

Just so you know that if you make "virgin" margaritas, don't freeze them or it will be very hard to serve. It's the alcohol that keeps them slushy. You could do batches in a blender though.

We have a fund raiser for our Volunteer Fire Dept. It's a "hot" tamale party. We found some cheap sombreros and use little Mexican flags in empty Corona bottles filled with colored sand as table decorations.

[BeckyM]

Hi All! I'm hoping some of you can help me out here. We're trying to have more fun activities at work, so we've been having parties for various holidays/events. We were thinking it would be fun to do something for Cinco de Mayo, but none of us planning this have a Mexican background or much knowledge of what one would do to celebrate Cinco de Mayo.

So, I'm looking for suggestions for food (CL Recipes would be ideal, but others would help too), games, music, what to wear, etc. We want to make this as authentic as possible, to be a celebration of Mexican culture as well as just something fun.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Becky

[MelissaAS]

I see an opportunity for one more pitch for my favorite all-time CL recipe: Chicken and Cheese Enchiladas from 1999. Everybody loves them- I like them better than restaurant enchiladas. Way better.

[BeckyM]

MelissaAS,

Are those the enchiladas with the green taco sauce over the top? If so, I LOVE those! What a great suggestion! THANKS!!!!

Still looking for more ideas! We have a group of about 50 people, so we'll want a big variety of things for people to eat & do!

[MelissaAS]

They sure are- and they're great. I would definitely do margaritas too and maybe Sangria? I've never made it but love it when someone else does!

[kwormann]

I believe CL did an article a couple of years back specifically on CInco de Mayo recipes...Id look in the article archive or email them!

Kim

[Vanessa]

Kim also in march 2000 they featured Living la vida sabrosa with mexican recipes

[BeckyM]

Thanks for everyone's help! We finally had our (late) Cinco de Mayo celebration today. We ended up having a taco bar catered, and I baked some "Mexican Brownies" which were not Cooking Light, but I got the recipe from a different thread on this bulletin board. They were great, though VERY rich!

For activities, we played some mariachi music that we checked out from the local library. People seemed to really enjoy that. We also had a pinata with assorted candy, and everyone had a great time watching others swing at it an miss. It took a while to break it, but people were laughing the whole time. We also played "Spanish Pictionary", where the teams had to guess the Spanish word for whatever was being drawn.

Overall, people seemed to really enjoy themselves, and it was a nice break from the routine. Thanks again for all the suggestions!

Becky http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif