Dinner at the reception is easily going to be one of your top expenses. If your serious about a $500 budget, and you go with the guidelines in the book, you've been allotted $220. So is this even possible? Of course it is! Again, it's highly recommended that you keep your guest list small, ideally fifty people or less but if there's absolutely positively no way to shrink your list and you've got around 100 people confirmed for your big day, these recipes may help. Keep in mind, we're looking for a good solid meal, maybe not the fanciest food your guests have ever been served, but good decent meals that can be made easily and on budget. Enjoy!Up first, a good old fashioned Minnesota hot dish. I love it!
Ham & Broccoli Hot Dish
Serves 100
4 boxes chopped frozen broccoli
4 med. onions, chopped
6 c. raw rice
4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 lg. (51 oz.) cans cream of chicken soup
2 lg. (51 oz.) cans cream of celery soup
3 c. milk
5 lbs. cooked ham, diced
5 lbs. shredded American or Cheddar cheese
Cook broccoli slightly. Saute onions in 1 cup butter.
Cook rice according to directions.
Mix together Worcestershire sauce, soups, and milk.
Add ham and cheese to soup mixture. Mix together.
Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hours. 100 servings.
Serves 100
4 boxes chopped frozen broccoli
4 med. onions, chopped
6 c. raw rice
4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 lg. (51 oz.) cans cream of chicken soup
2 lg. (51 oz.) cans cream of celery soup
3 c. milk
5 lbs. cooked ham, diced
5 lbs. shredded American or Cheddar cheese
Cook broccoli slightly. Saute onions in 1 cup butter.
Cook rice according to directions.
Mix together Worcestershire sauce, soups, and milk.
Add ham and cheese to soup mixture. Mix together.
Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hours. 100 servings.
Actually, this goes for the Italian dishes too. Better just cover the bride's dress with a shower curtain and let her dive into the food.Cathy's Easy Baked Chicken
Serves 250
Very easy- big flavor and moist too.
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200 lbs cut-up chicken
63 standard sized pkgs dry onion soup mix
16 lbs apricot jam
25 qts low calorie Russian salad dressing
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Sprinkle onion soup mix in bottom of pan.Put chicken skin-side-down. Spread with jam,and pour dressing over it. Bake at 350° for 2 hours; turn chicken and bake another hour.
Cathy's Easy Baked Chicken.
LASAGNA FOR 100
6 (48 oz.) jars spaghetti sauce 10 lb. Mozzarella cheese
6 lb. lasagna noodles
2 doz. eggs
1 (0.5 oz.) jar parsley
9 (24 oz.) cartons cottage cheese
6 lb. ground beef
4 lb. mild Italian sausages, remove casings and crumble
1 large container Parmesan cheese
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Brown ground beef and Italian sausage together. Mix with spaghetti sauce; set aside. Mix cottage cheese, parsley, Parmesan cheese and eggs; set aside. Grate Mozzarella cheese and cook noodles (al-dente). Use long shallow pans, layer noodles, cottage cheese mixture, meat sauce and Mozzarella
cheese in that order. Make a second layer and top with third layer of noodles. Spoon sauce over top and bake, covered with foil for about 1 hour at 350 degrees. Remove from oven about 1/2 hour or 45 minutes before slicing and serving.
Beef Stew
Serves 100
How about beef stew? I think this is perfect for a autumn or winter party. Big bowls of stew with dinner rolls, homemade applesauce, salad, and apple cider or cocoa.25 lbs. cubed beef
6 qts. water
2 oz. salt1 tbsp. pepper
4 lbs. potatoes, cubed
4 lbs. carrots, cubed
2 lbs. onions, diced
3 lbs. celery, chopped
10 oz. flour
2 1/2 c. water
2 pkgs. brown gravy
2 pkgs. onion soup
1 lg. pkg. frozen peas (add last)
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Brown beef cubes. Add water, salt and pepper. Cook 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Add all vegetables and cook until tender, 1 hour. Combine brown gravy mix, onion soup mix. Add more seasoning if you wish. Combine flour and water until smooth paste. Stir into broth, more if needed. Add frozen peas last and cook only until tender.Makes 2 large electric roasters.
And for those who have really overdone it on the guest list (say, 500 people? Yikes!) and have very limited funds available for their wedding reception- go with a meal that has been proven to work for generations: Spaghetti. It is filling, it serves lots of people for very little money, it's easy to make, and it's delicious! With $220 and 500 people, you don't have a lot of options, why not do a spaghetti dinner and make it really good? Add the simple salad, garlic bread, and wine. Wedding cake for dessert and your set.
Spaghetti for 500
80 lb. spaghetti 5 lb. onions
6 cans tomato puree (10 lb.)
3 Tbsp. dry mustard
135 lb. hamburger
salt to taste
6 cans tomato paste (10 lb.)
1 c. brown sugar
Garlic and spices to taste
Make up in batches, cook ahead of time.
Remember, even if your meal is cheap, the presentation can be beautiful. This makes the meal look fancier and your event feel more formal. So do not go with paper plates or plastic forks! Borrow dishes from anyone willing to lend them and make your meal special!
Like meatloaf? Try these meatloaf muffins. Maybe the name seems gross but they look delicious. Rename them French Beef Fromage and see if that helps. Click here for the recipe.
Other quick ideas:
The Simple Salad
Head of iceberg lettuce
Bunch of green onions
Shredded carrots
Sliced cucumbers
Mix together, adjust the quantities depending on the number of guests. Serve with bottles of Italian or Ranch dressing.What about drinks? Wine or beer can be bought on sale weeks before and stored in coolers behind the bar or under a table. Here's a great recipe for punch.
PUNCH FOR 100 PEOPLE 2 lg. cans pineapple juice
2 (12 oz.) + 1 (6 oz.) cans lemonade
1 (12 oz.) can lime juice
3 (12 oz.) cans orange juice
2 half gallons ginger ale
4 qts. charge water
2 half gallons Sprite
Chill well and mix together.
These ideas are great, check out more at this website.
Have an idea for a great recipe that will feed a large amount of people cheap? Share it here! Let's all help each other out.
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