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Post by lola on Jun 26, 2010 14:19:22 GMT
Joanne, we were at a resort on Indian Point west of Branson. It was perfect for that kind of mixed age reunion (i.e. comfort for the old folks and softies, cheap camping across the road): 4 bedroom, 4 bath houses closely grouped with decor I call Ozarks Fancy, pools and hot tub, boat and fishing dock, general store.
After I left, people went to attractions like Silver Dollar City. Some went to Circus Montage, one show I'd pay to see, not being the Elvis or Beatles tribute type. Sometimes my brother drives down to concerts in Branson that sound good to me, like Norman Blake. I have a coworker who loves Elvis and only recently admitted that he might really be dead; she and her husband moved to the Branson area so they could be near shows and fishing country, and she continues to telework. They seem to love it there.
Bixa, my brother's slaw wasn't the crowd pleasing sweet and creamy kind. I think the quantity drove down quality in that one case. I only had half a beer, being too busy flipping eggplant and then talking, but did think gratefully of my APAIS backup team.
In two years Kansas, and then South Dakota in four. They were already planning.
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Post by auntieannie on Jun 26, 2010 14:46:34 GMT
glad it was enjoyable despite the rain!
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 30, 2010 21:35:03 GMT
Lola, it sounds as though your family could give lessons in successful family reunions. It all sounds wonderful and I'm sure your brother has learned a valuable slaw lesson besides.
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Post by lola on Jun 22, 2012 13:11:41 GMT
My grandfather's brother and his wife had four boys and a girl, and when the children had married, had their own children, and scattered around the country, they began every other year reunions. My own father was an only child, and we got dealt in during the 80's when they met at the ancestral home stomping grounds near where we were still based.
The cousins are reuniting next week at a Salvation Army camp in Wichita, hosted this time by the KS branch of the family. Bunks in an 8-bunk room, $7/night; bring your own sheets and towels. Cooking facilities for 250.
The MO branch, specifically my two brothers and I, will be taking on Monday night's dinner for estimated 90 people. David normally takes the lead in this sort of thing, but he's in the middle of a tough reelection campaign among other things. Last week he commited to bringing 5 gallons of creole style fish bisque, which I know will be delicious. We're the main cooks in our respective marriages.
Previously I'd thought we'd do something like Mexican-inspired tacos or fajita wraps, but don't want to fight against the more subtle bisque. We veered towards Mediterranean/Greco inspired chicken/veg wraps and a couscous salad that could please the vegetarians who might even be vegan by now.
Joe has been all over the task, visiting his local Costco bulk discount grocery store, pricing 36-ct. packs of tortillas and such. He'll do bulk shopping and I'm sure be a willing prep cook. A couple of days ago he emailed us a photo of one shopping trip's purchases: huge cans of corn, green beans, sliced black olives, diced tomatoes, fruit salad. What looks like a 2# jar of minced garlic.
I found this adorable but daunting. Our parents were liberal in many ways when we were children, but would have drawn the line at canned green beans. And a #10 can of tomato puree? We'll donate what we don't need, so it'll be fine. Thrifty types would pour it all into a pot and call it soup.
This feels like one of those TV chef shows where they get certain ingredients and must devise something delicious.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2012 17:38:19 GMT
I would love to have the challenge of a really big meal. Back during the special operations of my café days, I was in charge for 2 of the 4 events and I had great success because I was able to be both "exotic" but also understand the limitations of most of the French in terms of spices and dubious items, so I was very careful and made sure that everything was identifiable.
With smaller group meals (maximum 10 people), I have managed some pretty good Asian inspired items, but these were geared for people who I knew liked spices, and if they came accompanied by anybody who did not, tough luck!
The internet is a truly fantastic resource when you are looking for something original.
I have not invited anybody other than extremely close friends to dinner since 2005 due to the changed circumstances of my life, but now that things are changing again, I am looking forward to starting a new sequence of invitations.
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Post by lola on Jun 22, 2012 18:32:27 GMT
May we be watching our mailboxes?
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Post by lola on Jun 22, 2012 18:39:04 GMT
Wait. I thought the French were comfortable with unidentifiable food.
The family reunion menu can be dumbed down significantly since there will be many who'd think of exotic food as say swiss cheese on a cheeseburger.
I'm going to try a tsatsiki sauce since my cucumber plants should be providing plenty by then.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 22, 2012 18:46:42 GMT
The French are comfortable with food that "the rest of you" cannot identify. They are less comfortable with food that they cannot identify themselves.
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Post by lola on Jul 5, 2012 22:39:19 GMT
My brother, his wife, and our mother ended up dropping out at the last minute, influenced partly by forecasts of 106 - 108F (42.2C) and forest/wild fires in the general area, concern about their horses, etc. But that left us minus 5 gal creole fish bisque, the huge carrot cake and several batches of cookies they'd promised.
So we fed ~75 with grilled Middle Eastern chicken, tzatziki sauce, grilled bell peppers and onions, chopped lettuce, flatbread, and on the side couscous and corn salad with a subtle curry dressing thanks to Martha Stewart online. Hummus, pita chips, guacamole etc. Peanut butter and jelly, tortilla chips and salsa for the timid.
I used the 6# can of pineapple chunks to make an immense upside down cake. Cake mix x8 boxes, 2 doz eggs, the drained juice substituted for some of the water. The pan was around 36" square. It turned out nicely. I'd never baked such a huge cake, or used a convection oven, so testing for doneness was tricky.
We had a great kitchen, set up to feed 250. Convection and regular ovens. Six burner gas range. COunter space, pans, steam table, walk in cooler and freezer.
Also we lucked out by having the South Dakota branch volunteer to help in any way but financial, and they were great. Three of them are recent or current military, and they all did what it took with a minimum of fuss. The little girls helped with cleanup, and my husband served food and mopped the floor afterwards.
Some people piled the chicken on and so there wasn't enough for seconds. It was a big success. Probably 68 of us had never tasted couscous before, and several people wanted the recipes.
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Post by bjd on Jul 6, 2012 11:51:46 GMT
People asking for recipes is always a good sign. Glad to hear it all went well, lola.
We are having a family reunion at the end of July but, fortunately, the only thing I have to organize is our getting there -- which is becoming more and more complicated. But the food is going to be catered and has been ordered by rather boring French relatives of my husband's, so I don't expect anything exotic.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 6, 2012 13:27:38 GMT
That was a lot of cooking. The funniest part for me is the mention of peanut butter & jelly "for the timid" -- only the bravest French people would try to eat that. Even if they have travelled to the U.S., one does not encounter that "dish" outside of a private home or in a school lunch bag, neither of which is too common for a short time visitor. And if they have travelled extensively, they know that "peanut paste" is used in Senegalese and Indonesian cooking, but mixing it with jelly would perplex them immensely. I think that my brother still takes peanut butter & jelly sandwiches to work from time to time.
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Post by lola on Jul 6, 2012 16:12:51 GMT
I had peanut butter and lettuce sandwich the second night of reunion instead of the meatloaf. It's not half bad. Our reunions last a week, so catering isn't really an option. Pretty wide range of financial situations, too, which is one reason why I dread that our turn will be in four years.
Must have: comfort for the old or spoiled low cost for the young or laid off early enough in summer to avoid oppressive heat late enough that school will be out in any possible school district my adorable old cousin Harry also requested, only half kidding, that the area be cleared of whippoorwills.
I'd love to hear about your family reunion, bjd.
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Post by bjd on Jul 6, 2012 19:17:48 GMT
The main reason is to celebrate the 90th birthday of an uncle but then some cousins decided that it would be a good opportunity for more people to get together. The old generation is dying off and the youngest one is scattered in different countries, so there probably won't be many more. And not everyone is really interested in going to family get-togethers.
If there is anything exciting about it, Lola, I'll write about it in August.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 6, 2012 19:25:14 GMT
You can never have too much potato salad, expecially if it has lots of chopped celery in it. A great deal of cayenne pepper must be sneaked in, because the mayonnaise will hide the spices until about two thirds of the way through.
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Post by Don Cuevas on Jul 7, 2012 0:01:24 GMT
At our family reunion, a few years ago, in northern CA, we had 3, maybe 4 versions of potato salad to suit various tastes. Our volunteer prep cook on that shift did this out of love.
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