Buffet breakfast ideas- for 100??

[Cardiganandcuppa]

Yep, ive got to do a Christmassy buffet breakfast for 100 people.

My ideas so far:
Christmas muffins
Crumpets shaped like Christmas trees
Cinnamon rolls with Christmassy fruit and spices.

Help??

Oh sorry, I just couldn't do anything like that! I'd have croissants, pain au chocolat, Greek yoghurt and berries and granola, pancakes (home-made) with maple syrup and that would be about it. Don't ruin your Christmas!

What?
Who are they?
Where is this happening?
Why 100??

Are you Mrs Claus??? Feeding the elves??

Agree with hollowtalk. Ordinary buffet breakfast. Add decorations to the table and voila !

We need detail...why are you doing this???!!!

Is it just you or have you got help? How are you going to have time to cut crumpets into Xmas trees and toast them for 100 people?!

Depending on the ages of the people (especially if there are children/teenagers) I might think about buying an electric waffle maker and making a load of batter for them to be able to cook themselves. Might save you slaving over a hot stove with pancakes.

Jeez, that's a lot of people to feed. Are they all eating at the same time? I like pp idea of a self service waffle area. A bit like a hotel self service buffet.

I would struggle with this, can you pre make and freeze the muffins and buy the crumpets? I would then offer pastries, nice orange juice etc.

How about bacon rolls?

line baking trays or cookie sheets and lay rashers on (streaky bacon is good because it tends to be in straight strips and you’ll fit more on) Twenty minutes exactly at 180C from cold and it will be done to perfection.

Serve with floury baps and croissants.

If you want you could do eggs the day before, put them in icy water when they’re done and store them in the fridge (still in water) and reheat in the morning.
These can also be done in the oven either in a big generously oiled roasting tin, and cut up into squares, or in a cake/muffin tin.

Oh and if you drizzle the bacon with just a touch of maple syrup then you really will be Mrs Claus

How will you toast such a large number of crumpets at the same time? I'd cross them out, stick to things that can be laid out beforehand.

Fruit bread ready sliced
White & brown bread
Platters of sliced cheese and ham
Bowls of hard boiled eggs
Jam, peanut butter
Bowls of fruit

What is your budget? What cooking facilities will you have?

Bagels with cream cheese and smoked salmon
Christmassy muffins
Fruit

Huge dish of Kedgeree

Maybe some oranges as it's Christmas

Yes, make it easy on yourself! Agree with granola, nuts, berries and Greek Yoghurt. You could make your own granola and add spices to make it Christmassy if you're very keen. Panettone, croissants or pain au choc and some Buck's Fizz and it's Christmas!

Cocktail sausages or pigs in blankets done in the oven as a nod to Christmas dinner? Several toasters, selection of bread, lots of butter, marmalade, Marmite, jam etc?

I would do:

• Muffins (but pre made ones - I would not be making from scratch on Christmas morning for that amount - lay out on platters the night before cling wrapped)
• Bagels (with platters of various accompaniments for people to put together themselves, eg smoked salmon, bacon and get those mini packets of jam, butter and cream cheese - can put packets out the night before, apart from cream cheese)
• Pan au chocolate and croissants (this is what I would do most of - lay out on platters the night before cling wrapped, unless of course you want them warm)
• Clementines (lay out on platters the night before)
• Granola with jugs of milk and bowls of yogurt (set jugs and bowls out the night before)
• Orange juice (set jugs out the night before)
• Cafetieres of coffee (set cafetieres out the night before)

By doing the above you're mostly assembling rather than cooking which will be much faster for that number of people and any food that does need to be hot will be hot. Laying most of it out in advance will help too and then you're literally just putting things into jugs/bowls, warming some bagels and cooking some bacon.

Pigs in blankets
Pancakes with a Christmassy compote (apples, sultanas, cinnamon)
Prunes rolled in bacon
Mini Cranberry muffins
Miini mince pies with champagne cream
Mini gingerbread men
Cookies decorated like baubles
Mini toasted sandwiches with Wensleydale with cranberries cheese
Small mason jars of overnight oats with christmassy flavours
Sliced oranges in caramel syrup
Jugs of Mimosas
Irish flavored coffee
Hot chocolate with whipped cream

Decorate the table and serve a regular breakfast buffet - juice, muesli ingredients in bowls (dried and fresh), selection of bread. Bacon, ham cheese. For 100, a tall order if you are baking yourself. If you are baking, savoury breakfast cake (easier than individual muffins etc).

Google recipes for strata - they're like savoury breakfast bread pudding, you can make them with bacon and sweetcorn, or spinach and emmenthal, or roasted veg and feta, anything that works in a quiche but they're much easier to make in advance and freeze, then warm up and slice in squares. Smitten Kitchen has some good recipes.

Agree with the pastries, muffins, yoghurt and granola. Urns for coffee and tea.

If you do smoked salmon for 100 you'll go broke!!

The most important thing is to make sure you don’t need to be in the kitchen for much during eating as that will cause a bottleneck. What catering kit do you have to keep things warm once cooked? A kedgeree and porridge are both great and give a Dickensian feel. Scrambled egg can also take a warm and lets you do the the classic smoked salmon (add a few flakes of edible gold/silver).

Go as continental as you can if you want Christmas shapes as it can be done earlier - you can cutter shape sliced cheeses, hams, sliced sausages etc very easily and then fan out for presentation. Avoid trying to do individual shapes on pastries, 100+ will drive you mad, go larger (like a cinnamon social in the shape of a giant candy cane) and arrange/stack standard shape items like your muffins in a tree shape. Frozen croissants/pain au chocolate in Christmassy baskets/tea towels. A large bread in the shape of a Christmas wreath.

If you don’t have any warming kit and want to offer something cooked I’d get a pancake maker that people can use themselves for pancakes and fried eggs (Swan Come Dine with Me was a good one at around £30 and makes 6 at a time), this alongside the bread/cheese/meats above and fruit platter with plain and fruit yogurts (if you find yourself with extra time/helpers kiwi fruit, strawberries and star fruit arranges into a good Christmas tree) should do you. If you have kids coming then American cereal comes in Christmas versions and shapes.

Put a toaster and kettle out with all the spreads and tea stuff so you don’t have to deal with anything other than milk/water refills. Some fizz for grown ups and hot chocolate (look up Christmas ‘Peeps’ marshmallows) for the kids always nice too.

Who are you cooking for? Where? What’s the budget? Do you have a massive fridge/freezer to store stuff you prep in advance? Any dietary constraints? Would the budget stretch to a few cheap toasters to put out for people to toast their own bread and crumpets?

Also want to know how this unlikely situation has arisen. How can you fit and cook for 100 people?

Just buy 100 selection boxes and let them go nuts...

@PotteringAlong has a cracking idea.

Bircher muesli type affair with dried cranberries, toasted hazelnuts and fresh orange segments.

Although Primoestate’s spread sounds idyllic, I would secretly prefer Potteringalong’s version maybe with some pigs in blankets for a savoury twist. And to complete the sophistication a glass of Buck’s Fizz 😁

Smitten Kitchen is great for brunch ideas for a crowd - she has lots of clever ideas around baked eggs, eg with mushrooms and spinach, and baked French toast. The baked eggs one is really good - you can prep the vegetable base in advance and then just crack the eggs on top and bake on the day.

Sounds amazing but potentially stressful! Have you got any helpers?