What can I make in advance for my wedding?

[Butterpie]

OK, wedding is very much on a budget, but I have an almost empty freezer and a massive range oven at my disposal, and just less than three months.

Any ideas? Food will be a buffet, somewhere between 75 and 250 guests, including children, venue is a theatre, if we have a theme I suppose it is kind of arty/crafty/theatrical/slightly hippy/unusual. I'm from Lancashire, he is from Newcastle, wedding is in Gateshead.

The whole thing will be over a full afternoon and evening, although I suppose we could put things in the theatres ice cream freezer if need be.

Tbh if it's on a budget I would cut the btw 75-250 guestlist in half and hire caters
better to have someone sort out the food than you worrying yourself sick over it and hiring a huge theatre with hundreds of people you'll only get to say hello too
make life easier for yourself

We managed £500 for a buffet serving about 100, I think it is likely to be at the lower end of that guestlist but our friends never know what they are doing in advance so who knows....we have just kind of done an open invite to everyone who knows us, if it is looking like we will struggle, i'm sure someone will rustle up a hotpot or something.

Theatre was free, ILs run the wardrobe and the bar as volunteers I might donate my dress to wardrobe afterwards to say thanks. My mum gave me the £100 for the dress, my dad is paying the £120 for the legal fees and we are saving for the £100 for a mates band and PA. I'm arriving on the bus, DP is getting a lift off his mum. Disco will be my laptop and open mic through mates pa in one room and cd players in the others. So the buffet really is the most expensive thing, but I like making food and want to do some myself

Can I freeze cake? What can I grow between now and then in pots?

I didn't realise it was so close!

you could make lots of lasagne or chilli type dishes and freeze them. Sponge Cake freezes if it is wrapped at least double in clingfilm and then in an airtight container (to stop 'freezer burn')

does that help?

Ace. Can I start making them 3 months in advance?

Ooh, I live in Gateshead! Saltwell park theatre (just being nosey!)? You can definitely freeze cake, esp fruit cake, homemade bread and freeze that? Stuff like lasagna, curry, stew etc - if you buy some of the foil trays from poundland you can freeze it without using up all your dishes! Make your own sausage rolls using ready made puff pastry and sausage meat, prawn things? Good luck!

Cross post, sorry! Should be able to grow salad stuff in 3 months-lettuce should come up if you get small plants not seeds

sounds a fab wedding!

I think the lasagne/chilli route is a good idea

I think you can freeze cake but maybe you could call in a favour from family/friends to make one?

Do you have a Costco nearby, and do you meet the membership requirements?

If so, get everything from there. It is easy peasy and the quality is fab.

We did a very similar type of wedding...and we asked our guests to bring a picnic for lunch, and then for the eve we paid for a hog roast and bought some lovely chunks of local cheese. The hog was £400, and the cheese £100.

I think it will be more difficult to make pudding in advance, unless it is ice cream..

For our wedding lots of people asked if they could help with anything, and so we asked plenty of people to bring a pudding/cake. If you don't know how many people are coming, it can be helpful if people arrive with something to share.

You need Delia's chocolate torte and fruit platters for dessert. The torte freezes beautifully. You could just serve with rasps/strawberries and pouring cream.

You could freeze lots of cooked chicken and do lots of coronation chicken (you can whip up the sauce in a few minutes). Could you do several whole salmons and platters of cold ham? Could lots of friends bring salads?

Sounds fabulous!

Pottering- yes!

Picnic is a v good idea, given that the venue is next to an incredibly lovely park.

I wanted a jacobs join/potluck thing, but Dp is convinced we'll end up with a load of rubbish and everyone bringing the same thing. I think I am going to ask him again. I have friends who cook brilliantly, and the people with no taste who bring rubbish will probably just eat rubbish other people with no taste have brought :D (I speak as a woman who made a lovely massive bowl of roasted veg cous cous for a family BBQ last week and caught her Dad in the act of nearly throwing it all in the bin because apparently nobody likes vegetables )

Ooh, does roasted veg freeze?

Then is very beautiful! We looked at getting married in saltwell towers (sorry, this means nothing to the rest of you!) and anything you do will be fab, because it is lovely and it's your wedding day!

Not sure about roasted veg but give it a go - do some, freeze and defrost. If it's rubbish don't do more.

What about gammon joints

(off to have bath but will probably spend it coming up with wedding food!)

I wonder if the theatre has an oven? I'm thinking, we set out the buffet (with some homemade extras) and provide paper bags, everyone troops to the park (it is literally across a small road to an award winning park) and has picnics (I envisage a few people wanting to hang around the theatre).

Then, back to the theatre for the ceremony (which is a whole other thread-no idea what to do there either!), mates band is going to play for our first dance (a cover of underneath your clothes by shakira) then a gig, and then serve up a hot meal of stuff made in advance by us and our friends and heated up in the oven that I hope the theatre has, then open mic in one room and cd players/laptops in the others, drinking, dancing and cavorting. Maybe with nibbles, if any food is left.

Does that sound ok?

The band isn't serving the food, just read it and that's what it sounds like. Whoever isn't doing anything will be serving up the food.