Planning a Family Reunion - Food, Food, Food!

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Planning a family reunion involves putting a lot of details together into one complete package. It takes time to do it right, but the rewards are worth it. Planning what kinds of food will be available to attendees is a big part of the job of any reunion coordinator. Many families choose to have covered dish events, so the food responsibility doesn't fall on just one person. Other families have their events catered. One theme that is fairly common throughout family reunions is to serve food that is traditional in that particular family, or to use the old recipes of family members from the past. This makes the event more meaningful and memorable to all who attend.

If you're catering and want to use traditional family recipes at your reunion, you'll need to hand these recipes (or copies of them) over to the caterer. Otherwise, assigning single dishes to different attendees is a good idea. For example, if you all shared the same great-grandmother, making a buffet table full of her old recipes will enable you each to feel a special connection to your family's progenitor, while helping put the reunion together.

There are some kinds of food that seem to be present at family reunions, no matter what family is holding the event. Any kind of dessert based on Jello is popular. So are cold salads, such as the potato and macaroni varieties. Carrot salad is also a big player on the reunion scene. Someone inevitably brings a casserole of some kind, usually made with potato chips or saltine cracker crumbs. There are pies of all sorts, as well as hamburgers, hot dogs, and cold sodas. Ambitious family members may make seltzer-infused fruit punches, as well. More formal events might feature a turkey or ham as the centerpiece of the event.

The important thing to remember when planning a family reunion is to delegate the food. Most reunions have a minimum of 25 people present, so to expect anyone to cook a dozen or more dishes for that many people is unrealistic. By delegating, or catering, the event, everyone has a better time, and most importantly, everyone eats!