Help! Buffet menu ideas for an 18th birthday party please.......

[AxlRose]

I am doing the catering myself for around 70 people so I need some things which can be prepared in advance and frozen if possible. Sandwiches and filled rolls I will do on the day. I want to try and just do finger foods so I don't have to worry about cutlery. Will I need sweet things too or can I just do savoury? The venue doesn't have a kitchen so I can't have anything which needs last minute cooking/heating and everything will have to be transported in tupperware. I'll bulk out the food with dishes of crisps and nuts. There is a bar so I don't have to worry about drinks.

I don't know if I can manage this on my own....please tell me I can!

You can do it. :) 70 people eat a lot less than you think. Crudites and dips are a good standard... dips available in all supermarkets, ready-packed, often in 4's. You could buy or make a few big pizzas and cut them into small pieces. Chicken drumsticks can be roasted off at home and served cold. You'll probably need something sweet. Cupcakes and mini muffins are pretty popular at the moment... you can buy those ready-made. And I suppose there will be a birthday cake?

Thank you Cogito!

The pizza slices are a great idea....thanks.

Yes, I am planning on ordering a cake. I'd quite like to try and make one myself but I'm already feeling quite stressed so it would be quite nice not to have to think about it. The cake I'm looking at only serves 50 though.

If I was to do an assortment of cupcakes, how many do you think I would need? Enough for 2 each or is that a bit stingey? Eeeek....how long does it take to make 140 cupcakes? Can you freeze them once cooked before adding frosting? I think I'd better buy some more bun trays!

Cheat's tip for cupcakes:

Use Betty Crocker devil's food cake mix to make the cakes, his tastes delish and keeps far better than my own sponge.
The cakes will keep well for a few days in those re-sealable freezer bags (the ones where you press the seal together at the top) or in cake tins.
Ice them with butter cream the day before and they'll sit OK at room temperature till the party.
To transport them you will need cupcake boxes (holding up to 24 cakes)which you can order online

What about vegetable samosas, onion bhajis,satay sticks? Most supermarkets sell them and with the exception of the satays they should be suitable for any vegetarian guests you may be catering for.

I have frozen sponge cakes and cupcakes quite successfully. Just defrost thoroughly and then fill and ice as if they were fresh out of the oven.

I'll definitely give the cake mix a try, thank you. My sponge is ok but it does seem to go a bit dry quite quickly. Iill look up cupcake boxes in a minute too.

The samosas and bhajis are a great idea....hadn't though of them. A dish of mango chutney and I reckon they'd soon go!

Thanks guys...starting to feel less panic stricken!

Ham, cheese, sandwiches, samosas, chicken drumsticks, pizza, crudités, dips, bread rolls (crusty ones), quiche, pork pies cut into quarters, mini sausages (ones cooked yourself and allowed to go cold are nicer than cocktail ones from supermarket), boiled eggs, potato salad, crackers, doritoes, bread sticks, pickled onions sausage rolls.

Brownies, little jellies (bit of a faff, can get little pots from eBay), fruit platter, Although to be honest, at £3 I would consider buying half a dozen of these I am sure after all that food, and a couple of pints they will be fine, and at that price you really couldn't make them cheaper.

Thank you Geordieminx. I love the pork pie idea - very easy but ideal for hungry teenagers.

That link took me to some swirly whirly ice lollies....is that what you meant?

A cabbage covered in foil with cheese and pineapples on sticks. Can't go wrong with that.
What about mini yorkshire puddings with a bit of roast beef in them? I saw some tidgy puds (?) the last time I was in England.
French bread sliced into rings with some brie on.
Cheery toms and baby mozarella balls on cocktail sticks.

Ah no, not a swirly ice Lilly.

Asda do a party desert platter, think it's 50 pieces for £3, mini doughnuts, brownies and eclairs. All frozen but would probably only take an hour or 2 to defrost, and much easier and cheaper than messing around trying to make them!