A question of quantity...and sanity
Ok this sounds crazy to me but I'm going to ask anyway. My sister is getting married next fall and for the reception is asking that people not bring gifts but instead bring a dish to share. She really wants it to be a "down home family affair" They are planning on providing turkey, ham and a pasta dish for sure and beverages. She is inviting about 200 and I was considering offering to bring the bread. (That's the crazy part there.) I fully expect it is more than I can handle but if you could tell me how much bread would be needed I could look at it more rationally. ( I know it would be easier to just buy it but she she's trying to make everything so handmade and homespun I thought I could try.) I am good at basic bread, nothing fancy. I was thinking some nice herb breads in rustic rounds or a basic loaf pan. I appreciate any advice. i have never baked bread in large quantities before.
Shannon
(good grief just typing that makes me feel crazy)
Pan Rolls. Easy, delicious, fast, loved by all.
20 pans should do it.
LOL!
The easy thing to do would be to make up eight or nine 12x16 sheet pans of focaccia bread. It's fairly quick ,uncomplicated, has herbs and cheese and most folks tend to like it. Keep in mind that you don't have to have enough to actually feed all 200 people because some folks don't eat bread (believe or not!) and others won't feel like eating bread. If you want to hedge your estimation you could make a few loaves of whatever you like to make and put a couple out at a time alongside the focaccia . Below is a link to a recipe posted earlier on TFL.
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/18987/italian-peasant-bread-or-fast-focaccia
Franko
I am really good with flatbreads but with the extra shaping I feel they take me longer but I didn't even consider foccacia! What a great plan. I love it already and I can fit more in an oven! Bonus! If I did that and some regular loaves and some rolls I could maybe do it.
Thanks for the ideas :)
Shannon
Hi Shannon,
Glad you liked the idea and hope everything goes stress free for you. Catering for large groups can get a little nuts if you try to bite off too much.
Thanks and all the best,
Franko
How is she handling it? Wanting a few people to provide for 200 or every couple to bring something to share? If it's everyone bring something to share, you being one loaf or one tray of rolls.
Another option would be to figure out how much bread you want to make, then make batches and freeze them as you bake them. When you have enough, and it's wedding feed time, thaw & serve.
As for quantities, it's only a rough guideline, but the old U.S. Army's recipe for rye bread (PDF) shows 15 lbs/7 kg of bread offering 200 slices (around 1 1/4 oz/34 g per slice), which allegedly is enough for 100 people. You may want to be more liberal or conservative, considering how "bread hungry" your crowd will be. I'd be curious to hear from anyone with restaurant/commercial kitchen experience re: planning figures in such cases.
I've only ever baked individual pizzas for ~ 30, so I admire your courage :) Let us know how it goes!