Have a Trail Mix Buffet

trail mix buffet

A trail mix buffet is a fun option for your western or rustic themed reunion or party.  If your occasion is more formal you can dress up your buffet with glass apothecary jars for a fancier look which lends itself to fancier parties such as wedding receptions or anniversary celebrations. A trail mix buffet is also a fun treat idea for a movie themed or kid themed party.

For our family reunion of 100 guests we used large tin foil pans to put the many treat options in but using  a variety of glass jars, tin buckets, and baskets are great for holding all the delicious goodies  your guests can choose from. .

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Serving guests is a breeze and everyone fills their own containers (paper sacks, sandwich bags, party treat bags,  boxes or paper ice cream cups) with their favorite treats.

You can use healthy ingredients for your buffet featuring raisins, nuts and seeds or a kids favorite buffet using cereals, M & M’s and gummy bears.  Use your imagination when selecting treats for your buffet.

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Here’s a list of possible options for your buffet:
nuts- almonds, peanuts, pecans, cashews etc.
pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds
cereal such as Cheerios, Trix, Chex, Fruit Loops or Captain Crunch etc.
chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, vanilla or peanut butter chips etc.
candy-  M&M’s, candy corn, gummy worms, milk duds, sour patch kids etc.
granola
marshmallows
coconut, banana chips
pretzels, goldfish crackers
raisins, Craisins, chopped dates, yogurt raisins
Popcorn makes a great filler.

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Make signs for ingredients your guests may not recognize. Custom labels, mini chalkboards and cardboard tents designed to  support your theme will do the job. Print off the following food tents for your trail mix buffet. western food tent

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Provide serving scoops such as ice cream scoops, oversized spoons or measuring cups- you’ll need one for each treat in your buffet.  Smallish scoops help control serving size to assure that there is enough if each treat for all your guests.

Eats Are On The Way

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If you’ve hosted a party, shower or other gathering you know how difficult it can be to pull yourself away from the festivities in order to prepare the refreshments.  This simple game is the perfect solution! 

Just give your guests a copy of the game below and a pencil.  Tell them to solve the puzzle by answering the questions correctly.  As they get to work on the puzzle you sneak into the kitchen to prepare the refreshments.

The simple solution to the puzzle is, “eats are on the way”.  It doesn’t take much time to solve but it does distract for a few minutes and when they read the answer to the puzzle they’ll be content to wait until you return with the  “eats”.

eats

How Much Do I Need to Feed 100?

Feeding 100 or more family or friends?  Here’s what you’ll need.

Basic guidelines-adjust as needed

Feeding 100:

Applesauce
2 gallons

Baked beans
5 gallons

Bread
10 loaves

Butter
3 pounds

Cakes
8-10

Chicken
40 pounds

Cold Meats
25 lbs. 4 oz per serving

Cheese Slices
20 lbs. 3 oz per serving

Casseroles or equivalent
10-12 – 9×13

Coffee (for 100 cups)
1 to 1½ pounds

Ham
40 pounds

Hamburger
30 pounds

Hot Dogs
25 pounds

Ice Cream
4 gallons

Jello (3 1/2 oz packets)
17 packages

Milk
6 Gallons

Pancake mix
13 lbs. to serve 100

Pies
18

Potatoes
35 pounds

Salad dressing
3 quarts

Soup
5 gallons

Potato Salad
12 quarts

Potato chips
6 lb.

String beans
3 gallons

Turkey
70 pounds

Tortilla chips
8 lb..

Vegetable salad
20 qt.

A wonderful website that will help you convert your recipes is

http://www.fruitfromwashington.com/Recipes/scale/recipeconversions.php

Just enter your ingredients and the amount of people you want to serve. It makes adapting old family favorites much easier.

Meatball Hoagies

400 small, frozen meatballs
100 sub sandwich rolls
3 C. olive oil
9 large onions, peeled and sliced thin
3 green bell peppers, cored, seeded and chopped, optional
3 lb. mushrooms, sliced, optional
7 jars (each about 32 oz.) chunky-style spaghetti sauce
3 lb. shredded mozzarella cheese

Heat the meatballs according to pack age directions. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large sauté pan or Dutch oven. Sauté green peppers, onions, mushrooms until just tender. In a separate pan, heat spaghetti sauce.

Put 4 meatballs in each roll, then drizzle with spaghetti sauce and sprinkle with cheese.

Makes 100 sandwiches.

Ham Salad Sandwiches

4 lb. Fully cooked ham or ring bologna, coarsely ground
3 C. Chopped sweet pickles
2 C. Mayonnaise or salad dressing
1 jar (2 oz.) Diced pimentos, drained
100 slices Bread
Lettuce leaves, optional

Combine ham, pickles, mayonnaise and pimentos; mix well. Spoon 1/4 cup onto 50 slices of bread; top with lettuce if desired and remaining bread.

Yield: 50 servings. Double for 100.

Wagon Wheel Spaghetti

1 qt. onions, diced or 1/4 cup dried onions
9 1/2 lbs. ground turkey
1 gal plus 2 quarts canned diced tomatoes
2 tsp. dried oregano leaf
2 tsp. dried thyme leaf
2 tbsp. dried basil leaf
1 tbsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. granulated garlic
5 1/4 lbs. wagon wheel pasta
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Sauté onions and turkey until no signs of pink remain. Drain fat and return to heat.

Add diced tomatoes, oregano, thyme, basil, salt, pepper and garlic to turkey mixture and simmer, covered, for one hour over low heat, stirring occasionally.

Cook pasta in boiling water until tender-firm, about 8 minutes. Drain.

Add drained, cooked pasta and parmesan to turkey mixture and blend. Heat to 165°F. Portion using a No. 6 scoop, (2/3 cup).

Yield: 100 servings

Lemonade Salad or Dessert

20 pkg. (3 ounces each) lemon gelatin
24 c. boiling water
4 cans (12 ounces) frozen lemonade concentrate
4 cartons (12 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed.

Dissolve gelatin in boiling water; stir in lemonade until dissolved. Chill until partially set. Fold in whipped topping. Pour into 4 13-in. x 9-in. pan (2) Chill until firm.

Serves 100

Macaroni Salad for 100

6 lb. fully cooked ham, cubed
6 lb. macaroni, cooked & drained and rinsed under cold water and drained
3 lb. shredded cheddar cheese
2 bags, frozen peas, thawed, 20 ounces each
2 bunches celery, chopped (12 cups)
2 lg. onions, chopped (2 1/2 cups)
2 cans pitted sliced ripe olives, drained

Dressing

2 qt. mayonnaise
1 bottle western or french salad dressing
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup light cream
1 1/2 tsp. onion salt
1 1/2 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper

Combine first 7 ingredients. Combine all dressing ingredients; pour over the ham mixture and toss well to coat. Refrigerate.

Potato Salad for 100

30 lbs. potatoes
4 c. chopped onions
7 1/2 c. chopped celery
30 hard boiled eggs

Dressing:

6 tbsp. salt or to taste
2 tbsp. pepper
2 qts. mayonnaise
2 qts. Miracle Whip

Cook potatoes until tender. Cool. Peel and cut up. Add onions, celery, and eggs. Mix dressing ingredients together and stir into potato mixture.

Refrigerate overnight to let flavors blend.

Coleslaw for 100

6 heads of cabbage
5 cups shredded carrots
1 head purple cabbage – chopped

Shred cabbage and carrots and store in refrigerator until ready to serve. Add purple cabbage when you add the dressing.

Dressing:

1 gallon mayonnaise
2 packages ranch dressing mix
1/4 cup vinegar
Sugar and salt to taste

Mix together, put on cabbage just before serving.

If dressing is too thick add just a little milk.

You can also add green peppers finely chopped if you like.

Marshmallow Peanut Butter Fudge Bars

4-1/2 cups unsalted butter, melted, cooled to room temperature

9 packages devils food cake mix
6-3/4 cups creamy peanut butter, warm
2-1/4 lbs. large marshmallows, quartered

Preheat oven to 350°F. Combine butter and dry cake mixes in a bowl until crumbly. Reserve 7 lbs. of mixture. Pat remaining crumb mixture into 9 ungreased 9×13 inch pans or equivalent. Combine peanut butter and marshmallows in a bowl. Spread evenly over crumb mixture in the pans.

(If space and bowls are a problem, you can mix each cake mix separately)

Crumble reserved cake mixture over top and bake 20 minutes.

Let cool before cutting into bars.