Cooking for a Crowd

Earlier this month friends of our got married in Sonoma. As a wedding gift to them we offered to cater the rehearsal dinner picnic/bbq. Whew, cooking food for 60 people in a small apartment kitchen & then transporting it an hour away was quite the task. I have to say that all & all though we were happy with the results and everyone there seemed to enjoy the food.

The two things that went over best were the the New Potato salad with Shallots and Basil and the Wheat Berry Salad. Matt found the recipe for the potato salad on Apartment Therapy - The Kitchen. I have to say this is probably one of the best potato salads I've ever had, the dressing is amazing with the tartness of the sour cream & the sweetness of the honey, the basil really adds a favor that surprises people too. The recipe also increased well for a crowd, we made 30 pounds of it. I'll be making this one again. If you never visited Apartment Therapy - The Kitchen, you should, its got some great recipes.

The wheat berry salad was based on one I had at the De Young Museum in San Francisco. It also worked well for a crowd since nothing had to be chopped too small and the only thing that had to be cooked was the wheat berries.

Wheat Berry Salad

Serves 4

1 Cup Uncooked Wheat Berries
1 English cucumber
2 Cups Cherry Tomatoes
1 Medium Red Onion
1 Cup Crumbled Feta
Arugala or Spinach
Your Favorite Vinegarette

Soak the wheat berries overnight. The next day simmer them for about 1.5 hours or until they are el dente. Allow to cool.

Slice the cucumber into 1/4 rounds. Cut the onion into thin slices. Mix the onion cucumber and tomatoes with the wheat berries. Dress with the vinegarette. Serve on a bed of greens and sprinkle the feta on top.

At the De Young this also had beets in it which I thought was fantastic & will add for when we make it just for us but felt for the party not everyone might like beets.