Bonfire night party food - WWYD?

[PoppyCoc]

Having a firework display, bonfire and sparklers.

For food I was thinking mini jackets, big pot of chilli, beans, sour cream and cheese.
Hot dogs.

But the logistics of this is worrying me, when should I serve the food?
When should I cook the sausages for the hot dogs?
What should I serve the chilli/beans in and how do I keep them warm?
Should I wrap the potatoes in foil and let people help themselves?

First time I've done a party like this so any advice appreciated

bump

Depends on how many it is for.

The food sounds lovely but is a lot of hassle if it is for a crowd.

Personally I would stick to soup and spuds.

The soup can go in some kind of disposable cup and you can add a dollop of butter to the cut spud and wrap in foil.

Voila minimum washing up.

Not sure of exact numbers but roughly about 10 - 20 people.

Then I would do the above, then you can have the soup simmering and the jackets wrapped in a low oven and people can help themselves.

Other wise you ae likely to get stressed asking people whether or not they are readly for a hot dog/bowl of chilli and end up missing all the fun!

Alternatively you could have the chilli/beans simmering on a very low heat, jackets in the oven, stack of plates, and again get people to help themselves.

That sounds like a good idea wherewolf, thanks

We're having our third sucessive bonfire party, expecting about 50-60 people as last year.
We normally do a fish curry, chicken meatball chilli and vegetable chilli, so all tastes are catered for. I do the chicken, DH the curry and my friend does the veggie option.
We do pizzas and sausages for the children and cheesy baked potatoes that are very yummy.
Keep lids on pots as long as possible so they keep warm, and foil on the potatoes/sausages.
I serve the food with a friend normally to get it all done and out of the way asap. so I can enjoy the night.
Need some parkin, treacle toffee, funsize chocolate as well, last year we made chocolate apples which was a good activity for the children.
Use paper plates that are then burnt on the fire, not very green but not much rubbish left at the end of the night.

So do you lay it all out buffet style sugarplum?

What sort of pots do you use for the chilli?

dh thinks letting it all simmer may be the best idea

Make the chilli in the morning in the slowcooker then just leave it on low, let people help themselves

We lay it all out in our cellars which are large but aren't done, so no worries with muddy shoes.
Have cloths over the washing machine and dryer and another table. We normally light bonfire at 6pm and then I start getting food downstairs, rope in some friends to help.
Serve chilli in pans used to cook them, keep lids on and it all stays quite warm for the 30 mins or so it takes to get everyone served. Or could decant food into smaller pans and leave one on hob.
Also have one of those burner thingys that we use for the fish curry as that needs to be very hot to be nice.
We have normal sausages but if you use hotdog sausages I would keep them in the pan of water till you serve them, use kitchen roll to mop water off.
I do not leave the food unattended while it is hot, so that everyone can get it asap but also for safety reasons.
Hope you have fun, and remember it will probably rain but it won't matter!!

Sounds like a great night sugarplum!

I love the idea of cooking the chilli in the slow cooker, would solve all my problems!

Can you make bonfiree toffee the day before?

sugarplumfairy, I am deeply impressed, my meagre efforts show me to be the lazy slattern that I obviously am.

Can I come to your house this year?

Thanks WWTWTW - DD2 has gone to school with her invites this morning, she's inviting half the class!! I'm sure whatever you do your friends will be very appreciative as it means they don't have to do it.
We don't entertain very often, maybe 4 times a year. But like to do it well when we do.
We do ask people to bring their own alcohol, if they want some, and to bring one firework, this helps to keep the costs down, and we end up with a good display.