Cooking for a crowd

In my little corner of the Midwest, spring is the time for larger-than-average parties in celebration of events like graduation, Confirmation, and First Holy Communion. I have friends from other regions of the country who have never heard of a graduation party, but around here it's the custom to celebrate with an open house of 200+ people. Quite often they're pretty casual affairs, sometimes with a bit of a potluck nature, but no matter what the menu, the big question is how much food to prepare.

A local grocery store would love to cater these events and recently printed an ad of what they have to offer. I thought the details would be useful as a starting point to plan food for future events and I hope you think so too.

BBQ Party Pack (Serves 20-25)

• 5 lb. pulled pork
• 2-3 lbs. baked beans
• 24 count tray corn bread (or 2 dozen corn bread muffins)
• 2 dozen bakery buns
• 6 lb. Cole slaw

Chili Dog Party Pack (Serves 20-25)

• 48 hot dogs
• 6 packs (8 count) hot dog buns
• 6 lbs. potato salad or Cole slaw
• two 32 oz. kraut
• two 22 oz. cans chili
• pickle spears
• two boxes of potato chips
• 3 lbs. diced onions
• 32 ounces shredded Cheddar

Taco Fiesta (Serves 25-30)

• 8 lb. cooked taco meat
• 3 lb. shredded lettuce
• 3 lb. diced tomatoes
• 32 oz. shredded Cheddar
• two (20 count) packs of tortillas

Chicken Wings Party Pack (serves 20-25)

• 4 lbs. (approximately 50) Buffalo wings
• 4 lbs. BBQ wings
• Rance or Blue Cheese dressing
• 1 lb. celery sticks
• 6 lbs. Cole slaw or potato salad
• two boxes potato chips
• pickle spears