Food for Fifty

Grand Junction Pulled Pork Sliders

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This makes a lot of filling and sauce, but it is great to freeze and have on hand for drop-ins (or even dinner).

Ingredients:

  • 1 tsp fennel seeds
  • 1 tsp whole black peppercorns
  • ¼ c kosher salt plus more
  • ¼ c sugar
  • 7-8 lbs pork shoulder skinless with bone in (Boston butt or picnic)
  • ¼ c apple cider vinegar
  • ¼ c packed light brown sugar
  • 6 doz small slider buns
  • 1 lb butter
  • BBQ sauce – see below

Directions:

  1. Crush fennel and peppercorns.
  2. Add ¼ c salt and sugar.
  3. Rub over pork shoulder.
  4. Place in large glass baking dish, cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or preferably overnight.
  5. Preheat oven to 350°.
  6. Brush off spice rub and place pork in large foil lined roasting pan.
  7. Add 1 cup boiling water.
  8. Cover tightly with foil.
  9. Roast until meat is tender and falling off the bone – about 5 ½ hours with 195° internal temperature.
  10. Remove from oven.
  11. Discard foil on top.
  12. Increase oven to 500°.
  13. Stir ¼ c vinegar and brown sugar into the pan juices.
  14. Return pan to oven until meat is brown and juice starts to thicken.
  15. Watch so it does not burn! (about 12 minutes)
  16. Transfer the meat to a rimmed baking dish.
  17. Pour the juice into a small sauce pan.
  18. Bring juice to a boil and cook for about 10 minutes.
  19. Stir and spoon off the fat (discard).
  20. Pour sauce (there will be about ½ cup) over the pork.

Yield: 18 Cups

Great Barbecue Sauce

Ingredients:

  • ¼ c oil
  • ¼ c onion, chopped
  • ¼ c ketchup
  • ¾ c water
  • 1/3 c lemon or lime juice
  • 3 Tab sugar
  • 3 Tab Worcestershire sauce
  • 3 Tab Dijon mustard
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp pepper

Directions:

  1. Sauté onions in oil.
  2. Combine remaining ingredients and add to onions.
  3. Cover and simmer 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Yield: 2 ½ cups

To assemble:

  1. Split bun and open.
  2. Lightly butter the bottom half of the buns.
  3. Shred pork.
  4. Place 2T pulled pork on bun bottom.
  5. Add ½ Tab sauce.
  6. Cover with bun top.
  7. Secure with cocktail pick.
  8. Serve warm in chaffing dish.

Serves: 72 Pieces

Source: Pulled Pork – Bon Appétit, September 2012.  Great Barbecue Sauce – West of the Rockies – Junior Service League of Grand Junction

Dorothy’s Smokies Appetizer

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Don’t worry about the chafing dish,  these never make it out of the kitchen!   They would also be a  different and nice addition to a breakfast buffet.  (P.S. This is not Happy Dogs – they are happy because they have bourbon!)

Ingredients:

  • 1 pkg (Costco size – about 2 lbs)  cocktail smokies (80 smokie links)
  • 2 lb bacon (40 slices)
  • 1 c brown sugar

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven 350°
  2. Line 9×13 glass pan with foil.
  3. Cut package of bacon in half.
  4. Wrap 1/3 piece of bacon around each smokie.
  5. Skewer with toothpick to secure bacon.
  6. Place in glass pan.
  7. When all are in the pan, spread with brown sugar.
  8. Bake for one hour.
    Serve hot in chafing dish

Serves: 80 pieces

Source: Dorothy Neale, 2008 Jacobs Colorado Cookbook

Comments:  Serendipitous discovery – use 2 lb mini smokies and cut the bacon in 1/3.  Bite Size for the win!

Notes:  Bummer, Costco no longer has smokie links.  Grocery store – 14 oz, 1# bacon +3 slices, 1/2 c sugar = 34 pieces

Donna’s Sweet and Spicy Nuts

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These will disapear in a hurry!

Ingredients:

  • 6 c unsalted nuts (almonds, cashews, macadamias, and/or pecans)
  • 6 Tab unsalted butter
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1 ½ tsp salt
  • ½ c brown sugar packed
  • ¼ c water
  • 1 Tab chili powder
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • ½ tsp ground black pepper
  • nonstick vegetable oil spray

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 300°.
  2. Spray large baking sheet with nonstick spray.
  3. Melt butter in large nonstick skillet over medium heat.
  4. Add cumin, cayenne, salt, brown sugar, water, chili powder oregano and pepper
  5. Stir until sugar dissolves, about 1 minute.
  6. Add all the nuts, stir until butter mixture coats nuts thickly, about 2 minutes.
  7. Spread mixture in single layer on prepared baking sheet.
  8. Bake until nuts are glazed and deep brown, stirring often, about 25 minutes.
  9. Cool nuts completely on sheet, stirring occasionally.
  10. Place in 2 or 3 bowls to serve.

Serves: 6 cups

Source: Donna Barasch found these in Gourmet May 1994

Comments: Can be made 1 week ahead and stored in airtight container at room temp.

Colorado Stuffed Potato Bites

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Tiny, bite sized goodness!

Ingredients:

  • 30 very small red potatoes
  • 1 lb cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 4 oz sour cream
  • ¼ lb butter
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 Tab chives, minced

Directions:

  1. Cook whole potatoes in boiling water until tender and then cool.
  2. Cut potatoes in half.
  3. Cut a small slice off the bottom so they will stand upright.
  4. Scoop out some of the flesh of each potato half with a melon baller or small spoon.
  5. Mix flesh with cheese, sour cream, butter, salt and pepper (to taste)
  6. Stir in chives.
  7. Spoon potato mixture into potato shells.
  8. Bake at 350° until heated through.
  9. Serve warm in chaffing dish.

Serves: 60 pieces

Source: Colorado Homes and Lifestyles

 

Colorado Cache Tomato Bisque

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If you have not tasted tomato soup with popcorn, you are in for a treat!

Ingredients:

  • 2 cans crushed tomatoes (15 oz each) with juice
  • 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 Tab butter
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 Tab brown sugar
  • 2 tsp basil, finely chopped or 1 tsp dried basil
  • 2 whole cloves
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • 1 pt light cream
  • 1 c sour cream
  • 1 pkg microwave popcorn (3 oz) – popped, buttered and salted

Directions:

  1. In a large pot sauté onion in butter until soft.
  2. Add to crushed tomatoes in a large pot.
  3. Place bay leaf and cloves in a tea ball and add to tomatoes.
  4. Add sugar, salt, pepper, basil.
  5. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes are thoroughly cooked, about 25 minutes.
  6. Remove tea ball with bay leaf and cloves.
  7. Transfer mixture to blender or food processor to purèe.
  8. Return to pan.
  9. Add cream and sour cream and heat thoroughly.
  10. Serve in soup terrine or crock pot.
  11. Serve with small punch cups and bowl of popcorn for topping.

Serves: 6 (small punch cups – 12)

Comment:  May be made the day before (except for cream) and refrigerated.

Source: Colorado Cache Cookbook, Junior League of Denver

Cataldo Mission Idaho Pizza Delight

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This can be a quite colorful addition to a table.  Even kids will eat vegetables if they think it is party food!

Ingredients:

  • 1 pkg refrigerated crescent rolls (8 oz)
  • 1 pkg cream cheese (8 oz) softened
  • ¼ tsp dill weed
  • ¼ c mayonnaise
  • ½ pkg ranch dressing mix (½ oz)
  • ½ c zucchini, chopped
  • 1 c tomatoes seeded and chopped
  • ½ c chopped green onion
  • ½ c cucumbers peeled and chopped
  • ½ c sliced black olives

Directions:

  1. Unroll crescent roll dough and press into a 9×13 pan, pressing the edges and perforations to seal.
  2. Bake at 375° for approximately 15 minutes until light brown
  3. Cool to room temperature.
  4. Combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, dill weed and salad dressing mix in a bowl.
  5. Mix well.
  6. Spread mixture over the cooled crust.
  7. Sprinkle with the chopped vegetables and olives.
  8. Press lightly into the cream cheese mixture.
  9. Chill.
  10. Cut 4 x 8 into squares approximately 2 x 1 ½ inch to serve.

Serves: 32 pieces

Source: Idaho à la cARTe A Gallery of Treasures, Traditions and Tastes from the Beaux Arts Sociétié

Comments: Vegetables can vary to include chopped broccoli, chopped red pepper, chopped green pepper, shredded carrots, and/or grated cheese.

Boise Chicken Bites

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This reminds me of some of the chicken dishes at the many Asian fast food places.  It is tasty!

Ingredients:

Sauce:

  • 1 can apricots (13 oz)
  • 1 piece ginger (½ inch) peeled and shredded (A micro-plane makes this easy)
  • 1 Tab soy sauce
  • 2 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 Tab cold water
  • 1 green onion thinly sliced

Chicken:

  • 3 lbs chicken tenders
  • 4 Tab butter
  • 2 Tab vegetable oil
  • tooth picks

Directions:

Sauce:

  1. Drain the apricots, reserving the syrup.
  2. Combine 1/4 c syrup with the ginger and apricots in a food processor and blend until smooth.
  3. Combine apricot purèe with soy sauce in a sauce pan.
  4. Mix cornstarch and water.
  5. Add to sauce pan.
  6. Cook until thickened, stirring constantly. (If too thick, thin with reserve juice)

Chicken:

  1. Rinse and pat dry.
  2. Cut chicken tender into 4 – 5 pieces – approximately ¾ inch cubes.
  3. Sauté in butter and oil for 5 minutes until golden brown.
  4. Place warm chicken in chaffing dish
  5. Pour sauce over chicken and mix to coat
  6. Sprinkle with green onion and serve with toothpicks

Serves: 100-120Pieces

Source: Idaho à la cARTe A Gallery of Treasures, Traditions and Tastes Beaux Arts Société

 

Chocolate Raspberry Terrine

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OMG!  Chocolate like you have never eaten!  But you might want to cut the recipe – it makes enough for a ship load of people.

Ingredients:

  • 9 lbs chocolate, chopped coarsely
  • 32 oz heavy whipping cream (36%)
  • 2 lbs butter, unsalted
  • 8 oz raspberry sauce, plate scraper (a cooking term for that raspberry syrup that decorates the plate.)
  • 2 pts fresh raspberries
  • 2 c whipping cream
  • 2 Tab confectionery sugar
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

  1. In a double boiler heat the chocolate, butter, heavy cream and half the raspberry sauce until smooth and the chocolate has melted completely.
  2. Line loaf pans with plastic wrap and fill each one half way, evenly distribute the fresh raspberries.
  3. Fill the loaf pans the rest of the way.
  4. Wrap the plastic over the top.
  5. Place in freezer until one hour before service.
  6. Whip cream with vanilla until foamy, gradually add confectionery sugar, beating until soft peaks form.
  7. Cut loaf into slices.
  8. Place on plate that has been squiggled with the raspberry syrup.
  9. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream and raspberries.

Serves:  Makes 8 Terrines

Source: Executive Chef, American Cruise Lines

Notes:  On the ship, these were made in a 8 inch spring free pan, cut into wedges. Two wedges were place on the plate with points crossed, a dollop of whipped cream and two raspberries on the side.  Lovely!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Meatballs in a Cabernet Sauce

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In this recipe, the meatballs actually are just the carriers for the sauce.  The sauce brings out the fruit in the wine and is balanced by the bouillon and tomato to pair will with the meat.  The wine can be substituted to pair well with many styles of food needing a red wine.

Ingredients:

  • 1 3/4 cup Cabernet Sauvignon
  • 1 can (16 ounces)tomato sauce (use a good quality sauce; it makes a big difference!)
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 3 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 – 3 teaspoons beef bouillon
  • 1 – 2 teaspoons honey
  • 1 teaspoon corn syrup
  • 3 loves crushed garlic
  • 1 – 2 teaspoons oregano (dried)
  • pinch of salt to taste

Instructions:

1. In a saucepan, combine all ingredients and bring to a boil over medium high heart while stirring.
2. Reduce heat and simmer, with occasional stirring, until desired thickness.  Be patient to allow the sauce to thicken.
3. Adjust the sweetness with honey or brown sugar and tartness with lemon juice.
4. Pour the sauce into a crock-pot filled with Italian style meatballs (store bought works well!) and keep hot.  Yummy!

Note:  Due to operator error, we used Marinara sauce instead of tomato sauce – delish!

Note 2:  Margie says “Reduce the wine first, then add the Marinara.  You don’t have to watch it as carefully.  Wine does not burn and tomato does.”

Source:  Orange County Wine Society February Mini Tasting 2006 – Nick Stavros’s winning recipe