[...and cue to theme music from "Mission Impossible"] Doo-doo, doo-do,

M

marilynfl

Moderator
....doo-doo, doo-do, doo-doo, doo-do, doo-doo, doo-doo....

Daa-daa-daa-daaaaa, daa-daa-daa-daaaaa, da-da....

Okay, enough of that....

Team, here is your mission should you decide to accept it:

Prepare Christmas Meal for Homeless Shelter (Dec 20)

Conditions:

**Feed 100 homeless women and children.

**Use boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs.

**Other ingredients must be easy to obtain and not be expensive.

**Finished chicken will stay in warming trays, so recipe must take that into consideration.

**Kitchen is available from noon until dinner served at 5:00. Other dishes will be prepared.

**Coordinator has 15 non-professional, not-very experienced volunteers to assist.

They are already making a casserole dish as the alternative option and would like a starch that goes with both dishes. They used a parmesan orzo last year and it went over well.

Last year they made parchment-wrapped fish fillets.

Good luck, team. This post will self-distruct in 5 seconds.

Or maybe not.

 
Very T&T for crowds REC Kristine's Wonderful Pilaf

Marilyn, I've used this rec in one form or another many times for groups up to 100 people. It always goes over well and holds very well. Easy to make too.

KRISTINE'S WONDERFUL PILAF (serves 6)

8 T butter
1/2 C slivered almonds
1 chopped medium onion
4 chopped garlic cloves
1/2 lb dry angel hair pasta, broken into 2" pieces
1 C dry white rice
2 cans (29 oz.) chicken broth
2 T chopped fresh basil or 1 T dry basil
1 T dry thyme
1 T pepper
Melt butter in large pan. Sauté almonds, onion, garlic and dry pasta until brown. Add rice and sauté 5 minutes more. Add rest of ingredients, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Turn off heat and let rest for 20 minutes. Reheat if neccessary.

 
I've done the Crockpot Cassoulet in the oven for large crowds

because of the moisture it holds very well. Kids love it, adults love it. Just add chicken broth in lieu of wine and add extra when preparing in oven. Holds well in hot boxes. And you can serve with some roasted potatoes as the starch. The added plus is the beans are there for another side.

 
This Oven Barbecue Chicken to serve 100 sounds easy and tasty.

Oven Barbecued Chicken
Serves 100

50 lb Chicken, cut-up
1 1/2 qt onions, finely Chopped
16 oz Butter or margarine, Melted
1 qt Vinegar
3 qt Water
2 c Worcestershire sauce
3 qt Ketchup
3/4 c Prepared mustard
3 c Brown sugar
6 tb Salt
1 ts Black pepper

Step 1: Wash chicken thoroughly under cold running water. Drain well.
Place in containers, cover; set aside for use in Step 7.
Step 2: Sauté onions in 8 oz (1 cup) butter or margarine until tender.
Step 3: Add vinegar, water, Worcestershire sauce, catsup, mustard,
brown sugar, salt, and pepper to sautéed onions.
Step 4: Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
Step 5: Reduce heat; simmer 10 minutes or until well blended.
Step 6: Stir in remaining butter or margarine.
Step 7: Pour sauce over chicken; cover; refrigerate 2 hours to
marinade.
Step 8: Drain chicken; reserve marinade for use in Step 10.
Step 9: Place chicken, skin side up, on lightly greased pans.
Step 10: Bake 1 1/2 hours or until chicken is tender; baste with
marinade 2 or 3 times during baking period. (Note: Chicken should be
cooked for at least 20 minutes after final basting.)

http://www.angelfire.com/bc/incredible/xH10bbqchickn.html

 
Marilyn, I would stay away from stuffed chicken if you can

Usually you need skin-on chicken breasts to stuff and they are tedious. The other way is to roll up the breast with stuff inside then you need toothpicks or another way of making sure the stuff doesn't unstuff itself. I haven't seen the broccoli and cheese rec you mention but if you have inexperienced help, it seems that something really easy is the way to go. I will search my recipes and see what I come up with.

 
I agree. Earlier this year I helped my SIL do stuffed chicken breasts for 75 people. Verrry

labor intensive. I'd go with a simpler preparation given your volunteers' levels of experience.

 
If teriyaki is of interest, here's my suggestion for the simplest approach...

I'd use Yoshida's Original Gourmet Sauce (the original version is the best, in my opinion)...see the link. It's very tasty. You can marinate the chicken briefly and then bake the chicken right in the marinade. It's easy to find in a large bottle at Sam's Club or Costco and reasonably priced.

I rarely ever use bottled sauces or canned items anymore but this one remains a favorite "cheat".

You could pair it with rice....CathyZ's recipe above for Kristine's Wonderful Pilaf would be great, and maybe green beans, or carrot coins, or another vegetable that would appeal to both adults and kids.

http://www.mryoshidas.com/

 
That's to bad. I think this dish is perfect for your event. Some people can't

see past ingredients, I think, which is a shame. This is beyond stupidly simple and thighs would be a great candidate for it. We have some really good boxed orange juice here in Fl. and I wouldn't hesitate to use it. I think you and Larry should do a taste test. ;0) It might not be for some children but I know some who would love it.

 
UPDATE: Just got off the phone with the coordinator:

She now has 80 volunteers! Forty will be helping prepare the food and 40 will be serving and then making individual ice cream sundaes.

She would like a "stuffed" chicken recipe (either breast or thigh) as she needs something to keep these folks working, rather than just baking the chicken. I asked about the toothpick issue (safety, adding, removing) and she's okay with that.

I asked about pounding the breasts flat and she's okay with that too.

The "other dish" is a "chopped steak with brown meat gravy"--rather than a casserole as I thought.

She also decided to make the same parmesan orzo starch since she knows already that goes over well.

 
REC Chicken in Cream Sauce with Cheddar Cheese

Here is an easy-sounding rec that would hold well and be tasty- an added bonus is that it would be easy to eat- no cutting needed.

Chicken in Cream Sauce with Cheddar Cheese
adapted from Yvonne Young Tarr
serves 8

5 lb boneless, skinless chicken, cut into large cubes
salt & pepper to taste
5 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
1 c Half & Half
1 tsp dried oregano
2 egg yolks (I'd use 'Egg Starts' or another liquid egg product for a big quantity)
1/2 c grated sharp cheddar
1/2 c dry bread crumbs

Pat chicken cubes dry, sprinkle with salt & pepper. Heat the butter in a large skillet and gently saute the chicken over low heat, turning once, for about 8 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a large casserole.

Add the flour to the butter in the skillet, stirring well to loosen all particles. Add the Half & Half and whisk and cook until it thickens. Remove the cream sauce from the heat and set aside to cool a bit. Add the oregano.

Preheat oven to 350. Beat the egg yolks lightly and stir them into the slightly cooled cream sauce (if sauce is too warm, drizzle a bit into the egg yolks while whisking then pour all back into the sauce). Carefully pour the cream sauce over the chicken. Combine the cheddar with the bread crumbs and sprinkle the mix over the chicken. Bake in a preheated oven for 15-20 minutes.

My note: because you will need to hold this in chafers I would count on using more Half & Half or even some milk to thin out the sauce some.

 
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