Cooking for 150/ Bar Mitzvah

[ralemany]

Hi everyone! I need some advice. My son is having his Bar Mitzvah in May and we are doing the cooing ourselves with help from friends and family. I want to keep it simple so this is what Im thinking: Buffet style, we will roast 6 20lb turkeys, two kinds of salad, Ceasar and regular salad, rolls/ breads, grilled veggies over pasta, bagel and lox table with spreads and hummus tabouli etc. We will serve wine and beer, make your own Shirley temples for the kids and for dessert a cake and make yourown Sundays. What do people think? I need help with amounts of food. How much do I need for 125-150 people?
Thanks
Rachel

 

[GB]

Welcome to the site and Mazel Tov!

I have never cooked for a large number of people before so I can't help you with amounts, but there are many others here who have. I am sure they will be along soon to give you some great advice. I think you have some good things on the menu. Something for everyone.

 

[CharlieD]

My 150 people event is tonight, I'll see how much was eaten and tell you then how much I cooked.
In the mean time Mazal Tov!

 

[CharlieD]

P.S. What time of the day are you making the event? Lunc, brunch, diner?
What day of the week? Is it going to be kidush or latter on in the day? Where in the synagogue or home? All of this things will make the diffrence in how much of what to make or to buy.

 

[CharlieD]

Okay, are you still interested in help. Have some more info. Let me know.

 

[Claire]

Rachel and CharlieD, help! If you have the time in between all that work, would you go to the thread I started entitled "Easter"? I mentioned that my week is full with plans for both Passover and Easter (very culturally diverse group of friends) and a question was asked that I'm not sure I gave the correct answer to. I don't know how to change the title line to include Passover, but I'd like the questions answered by someone who knows what they're talking about, and I'm just extrapolating based on what I remember from a meal a few years ago!

By the way, the meal sounds wonderful just as it is. The most I've ever cooked for was 45 or so, and I always cheat by going a bit potluck.

 

[ralemany]

re:help

Charlie, I definetly still need help! The Bar Mitzvah is in the afternoon and not strictly kosher. We are having it at the lodge at a girl scout camp and as time gets nearer I am starting to stress more! All help would be gratefully appreciated!
Rachel

 

[CharlieD]

Rachel, you know, Claire is right. You do have very good plan already. As far as food amounts goes your 6 turkeys should be just fine. The salad is hard to tell, depends on the crowd, but I’d go wit about a cup of salad for a person. If you having 2 salads figure out ½ a cup of each per person.
Do not stress out, you do have a good plan. Just make sure to cook and carve the turkey at least a week or even 2 ahead of time. Set it then in foil bake pan and freeze. And then defrost a day ahead and reheat right before the event.
Noodles, I’d say two 5lb bags (Sam’s club has wide egg noodles) should be more than enough, there are all other things you’re making, so you do not need a lot of it. You do want to prepare salad fresh.
As far as lox goes, I’d say 1 pound of lox should be enough, for at least 12 people. Are you having cream cheese with it? If yes I hope it’s fake, but then people will not eat a lot of it because it is pretty nasty stuff.

As the matter of fact, I would skip the lox all together, the spreads are fine but lox might be overkill.

 

[ralemany]

Thanks

I wasn't planning on reheating the turkey, just serving it cold for sandwichs etc. Canm I still cook ahead and slice or should I plan on cooking on the Thursday prior. I do have time and people who are helping so I just want to be expediant. As for the Lox, I must bow to family pressure and have it. The reception is 3 hours long so Im not to worried about spoilage for the cream cheese. Thanks for your advice...can I cook the noodles ahead and then reheat them in an oven?
Rachel

 

[Swann]

ralemany... Have you considered buying boneless, rolled turkey breasts?Or just turkey breasts. I know it is more expensive but much easier to carve and serve esp. when you are planning it for sandwiches. You can buy frozen mixed veggies with pasta in them that just need defrosting and about a 2 min cook, add a nice dressing and the salad is made.
Noodles can be partically cooked, cooled and reheated in boiling water to finish cooking. Works quite well. Of course you will need a large pot and a deep sink so the kitchen appliances/equipment is a must.

 

[CharlieD]

Yes, if turkey is for sandwiches, I would look into the breast. Even if you have to bake it your self, it is still better part of meat for the sandwich. You can still cook ahead and slice it, but just make sure that it is say about room temp or a bit less when served. You don’t want it to be too cold.
Noodles. I think if you make with some sort of spaghetti sauce, then you can reheat in the oven. Boiling second time doesn’t make sense because it takes only 5-7 minutes to cook them completely, but boiling a lot of water takes time.
As far as lox goes, I was not concern about spoilage of cream cheese, I was trying to maintain at least a visibility of some adherence to kashrut, it is Bar Mitzvah after all. You do not want to give a wrong message to the kid, not on the day like that.

Good Luck.