Friday night sheva brochos help

Chayalle

Fri, Jan 12 2024, 1:09 pm

amother Honey wrote:

Would you mind sharing your salad recipes? They sound delicious.

Baby Bella Salad

Wash carton of baby bellas well. Place in (disposable) pan, drizzle with olive oil (or any oil), salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Cover with foil, roast in 350 oven for about 40 minutes till soft.

Greens (I use romaine lettuce)
Thin sliced persian cucumber (or kirbies, scrubbed and unpeeled)
Grape tomatoes
Honey roasted almonds
Roasted portabellas on top (I sometimes slice or half bigger ones)

Dressing:
1/4 cup oil
1/8 cup sugar
1/8 cup vinegar
1/8 cup soy sauce
squirt of mustard
1 clove crushed garlic (I use frozen)

Drizzle dressing over salad

Quinoa Salad with Pesto dressing

1 large sweet potato, cubed
2 zucchini, cubed
Lay sweet potato and zucchini on separate baking sheets. Drizzle well with oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Roast at 450 – zucchini for 15 minutes and sweet potato for 30 minutes – both should be soft. (I just roast at whatever temperature works for me based on whatever else I'm making, till done.)

16 oz greens (I've used either Romaine, Spinach, or Kale, or a mixture. I don't measure amount)
¾ cup quinoa, cooked (I do in my rice maker, or in the oven)
½ red onion, finely diced
¼ lb. green beans, lightly steamed (can be done in oven) and chopped
½ cup grape tomatoes
3 Tbsp. sunflower seeds

Dressing:
1 tbsp mustard
1 tsp honey
½ cup olive oil
½ cup fresh basil, chopped (I use 3 cubes frozen)
1 clove garlic (I use frozen)
1 tsp salt

Chayalle

Fri, Jan 12 2024, 2:05 pm

amother OP wrote:

55-70? I don't have a final number.

That's really too few servicing people for that many guests.

Will you have other family members that can be enlisted to help with serving?

As an example, we do a homemade Sheva Brachos for relatives, but there are usually at least 4 or 5 of us (or more) with some doing the plating and some taking the finished plates and actually serving them. Usually a couple of sisters-in-law in the kitchen filling the plates (one person per dish going on the plate), with nieces and nephews pitching in to actually deliver the plates.

amother

Trillium

Fri, Jan 12 2024, 2:07 pm

I don't think you should use candles as a centerpiece on Shabbos - too muktza for me... What if you move something and they get knocked over?

I prefer low centerpieces so you can see the people across from you. Also, make sure it isn't too large. I hate it when there's no room on the table.

amother

Amaranthus

Fri, Jan 12 2024, 2:41 pm

amother OP wrote:

I would say about half the people have dietary restrictions.
Question about playing: let's say I have a waitress working with me. We're only 2 people, wouldn't plating take too long?. I don't love the idea of some people having food and others waiting. How do you navigate that?

Thanks for the salmon recipe ideas. I was thinking of doing sides.

You can use any recipe for sides. Just adjust the cooking for longer till it looks ready.

amother

Fri, Jan 12 2024, 2:56 pm

Chayalle wrote:

From a caterer I used: 50 people require 3 waiters, 75 require 4 waiters, 100 guests require 5 waiters, etc..

and these are experienced waiters.

These are for plated meals. For platters it would be fewer. I am sure some people will get up to help but I don't know how many will.
I don't have room in my kitchen for so many servers.

amother

Oxfordblue

Sat, Jan 13 2024, 12:43 pm

I prefer platters, there's less wasted that way. I would try and see if you can ask specific people before that they can help serve. Having more people that you can rely on, makes a big difference. It's the clearing the table between courses, and getting the food out for everyone fast enough.
We had small low flower arrangements as centerpieces. I didn't want anything that would obscure people's views, and also take up too much space on the tables.
I made small rolls for everyone, and had more than enough for people to take a second. It's much easier for everyone to be able to wash and make hamotzi themselves rather than wait. And it goes faster than waiting for challah to be cut and given out.
I personally like friday night as it's much simpler than a weekday night meal. It doesn't have to be as fancy, and you can get away with being traditional with the food.
We had 2 or 3 salads out on the table, along with dips, and the fish course (salmon and/or gefilte fish). So once we'd made kiddush and people washed, they could start eating and I didn't have to start putting things out.
The soup took the longest as it had to be individually served, whilst everything else was plattered.
Main course was shnitzel, sliced meat, with mini apple kugels in pretty muffin cups, potatoes and green beans.
Dessert was mini mousse cups (which had been made long in advance and frozen).

Tbh the part that really took the longest was the clean up. And sorting out all the leftover food.

amother

Bergamot

Sat, Jan 13 2024, 5:43 pm

Chayalle wrote:

You will need more help serving (as Chayalle said) . Either family members, or I am sure you can find neighbors with older Teens that can help. (It might cost but that's part of it).
When we made a Shabbat 7 Bracha we had about 30 pple and we had waiters in their teens.

amother

Whitewash

Sun, Jan 14 2024, 12:15 am

Plated - pesto salmon on top of red cabbage salad - this could be plated in advance, the colors look very pretty
Dips on the table - chumus, Tehina, Matbucha, babaganush ( made with Tehina instead of Mayo), tapanad

For the main I like to serve buffet or family platters

Chuck roast
String beans with garlic confit
Roasted mushrooms
Stewed zucchini in tomato sauce
Rice with vermicelli noodles

Dessert-
Upside down peach (frozen) tart with a scoop of icecream

Baked cinnamon apples for those with restrictions

amother

DarkPurple

Sun, Jan 14 2024, 2:20 pm

I bought 6-8 tall white orchid plants at Trader Joes for about $15-19 each. They looked beautiful on the tables and didn't block view or conversation. Later, we gave them to people who hosted or helped. I rented silver and white tablecloths (you could get them from a Gemach). Used silver and white plates and silver napkins. The room looked beautiful and also very Shabbos like. If you would prefer more color, you could get colored orchids and use colorful napkins and a white or silver cloth. At every place, I put a little assortment of pareve candies that fit into a personalized silver box. You could get a sticker printed with their initials and put it on the box. I used Sugar fina champagne bubbles, but not sure they make them anymore. Here are small boxes that you could fill with anything https://www.amazon.com/Okllen-.....15f75

You could make stickers on Zazzle or use one of the frum sites.

amother

DarkCyan

Sun, Jan 14 2024, 4:07 pm

amother OP wrote:

Healthy needs to be gluten, soy and all sugar/sweetener free. I was planning to keep one salad, one main, the vegetable and one grain healthy. I would love to make salmon qualify too but I don't have a good recipe for that.

Do the kugels come out pretty in muffin tins? The individual small pans are costly.

I am not making a sweet table. It's sit down and dessert will be plated with fruit and nuts on the table. Actually no nuts, there are nut allergies too.

The night before is at a fleishig restaurant.

Oh one more question what can I make in advance? And What can be frozen?

I make salmon with pepper, salt and canned french cut green beans and cherry tomatoes and (optional slivered almonds,) drizzled with olive oil baked uncovered @ 350. It looks really pretty and its always a hit.

amother

Navyblue

Mon, Jan 15 2024, 2:28 pm

amother Hyacinth wrote:

Asking again....do most skip the soup at a friday night simcha? I can imagine it being hard to serve. Most post just talk about fish course and main, no soup. Is it implied?

I don't think there is hard and fast rule. I've been to Friday night simchas both with and without soup.