For a truly exciting and attractive buffet, enlist the use of colour to make it unique. Forget the white tablecloth, which will only get something spilled on it early in the evening and look messy, and choose instead several opened colourful paper napkins with which to decorate your table, or if you prefer cloth, use brightly-coloured linens. Burn tall red tapers in your candleholders and select a tall and graceful table centre which features bright shades of red, green, orange and yellow.
Bring out your brightest serving bowls and platters, making a trip to the store to purchase a few if you don’t have enough. And plan your menu so your entrees include tomatoes, broccoli, peppers and corn to serve alongside cheeses, devilled eggs, and a raw veggie tray. Brightly-coloured wicker baskets to hold buns and some other foods give you an opportunity to add fun shades and shapes as well. Your dessert selections offer another opportunity to be creative with colour and appeal.
The buffet meal has been popular since the 1800s when busy cooks and hostesses realized that it was not always necessary or desirable to sit their guests formally around the table. Putting a selection of food on the sideboard – which gives us the French word buffet - was not only easier to serve, but also allowed people to help themselves and bring it back to the table as they pleased, setting a leisurely pace for the occasion. For parties of more than 20 people, it’s actually easier for everyone to serve themselves than to pass serving bowls around for a big group.
Here’s an easy but colourful recipe for your next buffet featuring cherry tomatoes. In a small bowl mix the marinade:
¼ cup olive oil
1½ tbsp red wine vinegar
2/3 cup chopped fresh basil
1 clove garlic
½ tsp sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
Combine 2 pints of cherry tomatoes, single basil leaves, and 1 pound of bite-sized fresh mozzarella in another bowl, add marinade and mix gently. Cover and refrigerate about one hour, then mount on six-inch skewers.
Try this bright pasta salad :
2 cups rotini pasta, uncooked
2 cups small fresh broccoli florets
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
¼ cup sliced black olives
¼ cup low-calorie Italian dressing
¼ cup Parmesan light grated eheese
Cook pasta as directed, adding broccoli to the boiling water for the last 2 min. Drain and place in medium bowl. Add remaining ingredients, mixing lightly, then refrigerate for several hours.
Meat balls, roast vegetables, and rice side dishes are other good buffet dishes. For desserts, consider trifles, cheesecake, cookies, and carrot cake. Many can be made ahead of time, freeing you up for less preparation on the day of your event.
Be sure to consider safety when serving your buffet. Use chafing dishes or slow cookers to keep your hot food at 135 F or higher and cold food needs to stay at 41 F or lower with the help of dishes embedded in bowls of ice cubes.
Serving your meal buffet-style will encourage your guests to mix and mingle. Treated to an attractive display of delicious foods while meeting new friends and renewing acquaintances, they will remember their evening at your place for a long time to come!
