Recipe(tried): grad party fiesta style

Had an open house for son's graduation a week ago.
It turned out GREAT!!

First because of all the parties in the neighborhood we ended up on a friday night -- before actual graduation. That was wonderful too -- I was a bit learly of it and the turn out but so many people commented that they liked it on Friday -- AND I timed it so that some of the retired and out of town people could come early and stay till 8 or so then go home in still daylight. We started at 4 pm. Then local people liked coming in after work and relaxing through the evening with friends. Stews friends were able to come from college as well -- so fridsay works in case anyone wonders in the future.

Funny the post I read just below this about a taco bar ... We did mexican food! another thing that was very different form the traditional.

You can not believe the positive comments on that choice. I did way more then a taco bar though -- although that might have been enough. The choice was not because we have any mexican blood it is cuz stew's junk food of choice is taco bell! And having lived in San Deigo for so long we did have mexican food influance. Plus i have a neighbor with Polish roots and she does her open houses with a polich food flair and that always seemed nice to me, so ethnic can be a good choice!

Our menu:
Taco shells (gorden food service $7 for like 200!)

Fresh flour tortillas from Don Pablos (10 dozen, 2 bucks a dozen)

Taco meat (7 lb meat made with taco meat seasoning from gordens)

1 pan Steak Fajitas (I made up recipe and used GF grill to grill veges and Steak, I can post if wanted)

1 pan Chicken Fajitas

Shredded Pork for carnitas (Large loin roast cooked all night in crock pot with lemon juice)

2 pans Enchilada cassarole (made up recipe)

"The fixings" sounds hard but I found large cans of much of it and didn't feel bad at all using the canned stuff and no one noticed! sour cream, canned diced tomatoes, sliced black olives, pre-made guacamole from sams, diced oninons(I did dice my own), Shredded lettuce from gordons, mexican cheese blend, snipped cilantro, limes lots of limes cut in 1/4 or 1/8's

Taco salad -- BIG hit! Shredded lettuce, crushed fritos, large package of grape tomatoes cut in 1/2 or 1/4's, taco meat, Catalina dressing

Canned refried beans baked with cheese

nighbor made me mexican rice sorry no recipe for that, but I did see packages from uncle bens

vege tray -- sams club

fruit tray & some small pastry from sams

Cake from costco

corona beer with limes, pictures of margaritas, diet soda, regular soda & water lots of water.

Set up:
In our dining room .... I had one table with hot stuff -- I think I had 6 hot chaffers with 1/2 size pans in them
and then a cold table I used 2 chaffers with ice and 1/3 size pans then had the bowls of olives, cilanto stuff that needed have ICE on that table too.

For beverage we used 3 rubbermade totes filled with beverage and loaded them with ice and 1 cooler and had a small fridge withthe maragritas in it -- I put those in front of a counter (on towles for condensation) and on the counter I put out the glasses and some 2 leiters

In the backyard instead of a tent we gathered up unbrella tables (12) and spread them out on the lwan and deck -- I tied the backyard together with the same outdoor table cloths bought for only $5 each a bit more then paper but so much nicer!! I also added a string of unbrella lights to a table, we also lit the fire pit at dusk.
I had nighbors dissappointed that I did not get their table and chairs!! The next day the chairs all went to a different party and eventually their way home again! GREAT nighborhood!

We had 75-100 guests

We had lots of taco shells left and i dozen flour torillas

We had lots of pork left -- I think people
thought it was chicken and it was the last thing on the hot table.

I did the salad up 2 times (big punch bowl size)and only a smidge was leftover

of the other things we had just the right amount left to freeze some for another day. 2 large bags of shredded lettuce was just right by the way

okay my ideas are out there -- take what you want ask what you want I'm glad to share ....
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