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NMG
08-16-2006, 06:03 AM
Ok - I know this is a little early to plan my DD's 3rd birthday party (we are having it Sat Sept 30th), but it makes it a lot easier for me to do this early and get it out of the way. Ok - appy's are being prepared by family except for 1. Here's the menu...........

Appy's
Vietnamese Shrimp with dipping sauce (grilled - F&W)
the rest provided by family

Main Menu

Blue Cheese Burgers
Ingredients
Blue Cheese Sauce
1 cup crumbled Maytag blue cheese
2 cups mayonnaise
3 medium shallots, chopped fine
1 cup Sutter Home Zinfandel
2 tablespoons Better Than Bouillon Beef Base
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco Pepper Sauce
3 pounds ground sirloin
1 teaspoon salt
Scant 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
6 seeded hamburger rolls
6 ounces mesclun salad greens, rinsed and dried
Directions
Make sauce by combining crumbled blue cheese with mayonnaise. Set aside.
In a grill with a cover, prepare a medium-hot fire for direct-heat cooking.
Place a nonreactive 9- or 10-inch sauté pan on the grill. Add the chopped shallots and wine. Cook and swirl gently until syrupy. Add beef base, Worcestershire sauce, and pepper sauce. Stir together and set aside. Let cool. When cool, mix with the ground sirloin. Add the salt and ground pepper.
Form six 1/2-pound patties and place on grill until nicely browned, about 5 minutes. Turn over and grill another 5 minutes, or until just done throughout but juicy.
Just a couple of minutes before the patties are done, halve rolls and lightly brown on grill, placing cut sides down.
Place patties on bottom halves of rolls, adding a generous dollop of blue cheese sauce on top of each one and a sprinkling of greens. Top with roll tops.
Makes 6 burgers
Christopher Kirigin, New York, New York

Drive-In burgers
Ingredients
Special Sauce
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
4 gherkin pickles, finely diced
1 bunch scallions (green onions), chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco Pepper Sauce
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Burgers
3 pounds freshly ground Angus beef chuck
2 teaspoons kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large sweet onion, such as Vidalia, sliced into 1/4-inch rounds
Olive oil
Vegetable oil for brushing grill rack
6 1/4-inch-thick sharp Cheddar cheese slices
6 Kaiser rolls, split
3 tablespoons softened butter
6 Boston lettuce leaves
1 large ripe Beefsteak tomato, sliced
Directions
1. To prepare the Special Sauce, combine all ingredients in a medium bowl. Cover and keep chilled until serving time.
2. In a grill, prepare a hot fire for direct-heat cooking.
3. For the burgers, in a large bowl, combine beef with salt, handling meat as gently as possible. Form 6 four-inch diameter patties. Sprinkle both sides of patties with pepper.
4. Brush both sides of onion slices with olive oil. Place slices on the hot grill. Cook, turning occasionally with tongs, until softened and golden brown all over. Remove to a platter.
5. Rub grill rack with oil. Place burger patties on grill. Cook 4 minutes; flip patties with a spatula. Cook 4 more minutes for medium-rare, or to desired doneness. During the last few minutes of cooking, place a slice of cheese over each patty. Cover the grill and cook until cheese melts. Remove to a platter.
6. Place rolls on the grill until toasted lightly. Spread each half with some butter.
7. To assemble each burger, place a lettuce leaf on each roll bottom, followed by a tomato slice, a patty, a large pinch of onions, a generous tablespoon of sauce, and roll top. Take a big bite and enjoy!
Makes 6 burgers
Karen Tedesco, Webster Groves, Missouri

Whole grilled BBQ chicken (own rub/Clems BBQ sauce) or Beer Can Chicken-CL

Homemade Mac'n'Cheese - own recipe
German Potato Salad-grammas recipe
Spring Mix and Veggie Salad with choice of dressings
Black Bean and Corn Salad-FC

Dessert

Banana Split Pie
Banana Split Pie

1 frozen deep dish pie shell
1 ¼ c. vanilla icecream, softened
½ c. chocolate fudge sauce
3 bananas, sliced
1 ¼ c. chocolate icecream, softened
2 ½ c. strawberry icecream
Whipped cream
Maraschino cherries

Bake pie shell according to directions and let cool completely. Cover bottom of pie shell with vanilla icecream. Place fudge sauce in resealable bag and snip off corner. Drizzle half of fudge sauce over icecream and top with half of the bananas. Freeze for 15 mins.
Layer chocolate icecream on top of bananas; repeat layers of fudge and bananas and freeze pie 15 mins more.
Place scoops of strawberry icecream around edge and middle of pie. Put whip cream in pastry bag fitted with star tip and pipe dollops of cream between strawberry scoops. Top each slice of pie with the Maraschino cherries. Enjoy!!!

Cake from Spectacular Cakes - Yellow cake, chocolate buttercream frosting, pink fondant with royal icing butterflies and painted ballerina fairies


Am I missing anything???? Should I have a fruit platter with dipping sauce???? I will be making the burger (aside from toppings/sauces) the weekend before. The macaroni and cheese will be prepared the day before and then baked day of. The ice cream pie will be prepared a day or 2 before as will the yellow cake (I will make the cake Thurs, freeze and then decorate Fri). Any suggestions????

TIA :D

SueK
08-16-2006, 06:10 AM
Okay, I apologize on being the first reply and already hijacking the thread, but your Clem's BBQ Sauce comment caught my eye. I love Clem's, and live just a few miles from the one in State College. Does the one in Pgh actually sell their sauce bottled? Or did you get their recipe? Just curious.....

NMG
08-16-2006, 06:57 AM
Okay, I apologize on being the first reply and already hijacking the thread, but your Clem's BBQ Sauce comment caught my eye. I love Clem's, and live just a few miles from the one in State College. Does the one in Pgh actually sell their sauce bottled? Or did you get their recipe? Just curious.....

OMG - isn't it one of the best BBQ sauces!!!! My friend was out that way on business and brought me back a huge mason jar full of sauce - and as far as I know, that's how they sell it there. I wish I had the recipe for it and have searched on the internet, but they don't have a website (at least not one I could find) and don't know how else I can get the recipe. If you come across it, please let me know!!!
BTW - doesn't the one out by State College sell there sauce bottled????

MISSINDI
08-16-2006, 07:09 AM
I'm assuming no vegetarians attending, yes?

Depending on what your guests are bringing in the way of appetizers, I might think about adding something finger-foodish for the kids attending ... maybe a crudite platter with dip, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches cut in fun shapes, or something along those lines.

Menu looks great, especially the Blue Cheese Burgers. :)

NMG
08-16-2006, 08:01 AM
I'm assuming no vegetarians attending, yes?

Depending on what your guests are bringing in the way of appetizers, I might think about adding something finger-foodish for the kids attending ... maybe a crudite platter with dip, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches cut in fun shapes, or something along those lines.

Menu looks great, especially the Blue Cheese Burgers. :)

I LOVE the idea of fun shaped PB&J sandwich's!! I forgot to tell you guys to that DD wants burgers and mac'n'cheese, so I will be making regular burgers too w/o wine and other ingredients :p I feel silly asking you this question, but whats a crudite platter???? Would it be something like veggies, fruit and cheese cut up with there own dips (ranch dressing, mustard, marshmellow fluff)???? Instead of the BBQ chicken, maybe I should do baked chicken fingers with dipping sauces???? That goes well with the mac'n'cheese and german potato salad - I could even do a plain breaded chicken fingers and some as Giada's parm chicken fingers - I love it! Thanks for the finger food suggestion!!!

MISSINDI
08-16-2006, 08:22 AM
Yes, crudite platter is cut up veggies with dip. I have a 4-year-old, and know he'd like the finger food as well. He's fine sitting down at a table eating a meal, but at a party, when they're more on the go and running around, finger food is big. :D

NMG
08-17-2006, 07:14 AM
bumping.............

kabs
08-17-2006, 07:54 AM
Hi Natalie! :)

Your menu sounds awesome! I make CL's Toffee Dip with Apples and everyone always loves it. I thought that might be a nice addition to your menu since it's kid-friendly and finger food. Also, apples will really be in season by the time you have your party at the end of September!

Here's the link:

Toffee Dip with Apples (http://food.cookinglight.com/cooking/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=225418)

Kim

NMG
08-17-2006, 08:34 AM
Hi Kim!!!! YUM - that Toffee dip sounds great!!! Thanks so much :D I think I'll be trying this out before DD's b-day ;)

Canice
08-17-2006, 09:52 AM
What a fun, all-American menu! Looks great.
If I were there (can I go? My birthday's on the 26th) I would love to see mixed fresh fruit. Toffee dip with apples would defeat the purpose of fresh fruit for me, but I appreciate that it's a kid's party...not really mine. :( ;)

NMG
08-17-2006, 10:32 AM
What a fun, all-American menu! Looks great.
If I were there (can I go? My birthday's on the 26th) I would love to see mixed fresh fruit. Toffee dip with apples would defeat the purpose of fresh fruit for me, but I appreciate that it's a kid's party...not really mine. :( ;)

Thanks and sure - come on over!!!!! I do LOVE fresh fruit and do plan on doing different fruits cut up with choices of dipping sauces - I think I will be going with the toffee sauce for apples and pears and then I'll do a low-fat cream cheese/marshmallow fluff dip for grapes, pineapple and orange segments. I'm hoping to find some nice looking berries, but its really doubtful that time of year...........