The Cook-ing Monster

I have 3 half finished blog posts, two started in New Zealand and one since I got home, but somehow, life has rushed on and I haven't finished them.

But today I was a total Cooking (not Cookie) Monster!  So I want to write about it.  At the end of April, Sihle will have his 21st birthday party - his birthday was at the beginning of March, but he wants the party at the end of April.  It's his party .....

Last year when he mentioned the menu, it sounded feasible - Butternut soup to start, Sarah's Roast Beef with blue cheese and peppercorns and Sarah's Roast Vegetables, and then ice cream and chocolate sauce to follow.  I don't think he mentioned numbers at that stage.  But then we discovered that he wanted 80 people!  Thats 20 more than Sarah had at her wedding!  Even with cutting it down to 65 people the menu looked too complicated for me to manage and too expensive to outsource.  particularly when there were additions, like a chicken dish, and then, after tasting red velvet cupcakes, these were added too.  And as I only have a tiny oven that fits a small baking tray only, I started to get a bit nervous - actually, hysterical!

So last weekend we sat down and looked at what was feasible - and Sihle isn't getting many of the dishes he really wanted, but he's getting a managable but classy menu for R30/head if I cook it all myself.

This is the menu:

• Butternut Soup with cocktail rolls (which I will buy)
• Chicken and Spinach plait in puff pastry
• Beef and Mushroom plait, flavoured with blue cheese and peppercorns
• Warm baby potato and bacon salad
• Mixed salad platter
• A dessert plate with Red Velvet cupcake, chocolate truffle and mini Kahlua Dom Pedro garnished with a chocolate coffee bean

So this is why I'm a Cooking Monster at the moment - firstly, trying out all the new ways of doing things, and then making and freezing the things we can make ahead.  So today I made about 10 litre of Butternut soup, which are now in 2 litre ziploc bags in the freeser.  I made 3 1/2 dozen red velvet cup cakes which are busy freezing so I can bag them and ice them just before the party.  Then I had to make a chocolate cake to crumble for the truffles - which are now made and sitting in the freezer - more to bag and then roll in cocoa just before the party.  And then in the middle, I decided to make Chinese Guava Jely with fruit from our trees - not my best - I used some jam setting stuff I bought at Foodpak, and it's like gelatine.

The oven, mixer, blender and dishwasher have gone all day!

I am in a cooking frenzy - mostly because there is a lot to do in the next month.  Nic, Ray and Emily will be here and I don't want to spend all my time in the kitchen when I could be playing babies.  Then there is Easter Sunday, when Emily is being baptised and we have invited the whole world to visit.  Lots more red velvet cupcakes, baguettes, cold meats and salads to make for that!  And then there is Laura's kitchen tea, with South African delights - milk tart, jeqe, koeksusters, magwinya (vetkoek), chicken nibbles (I won't do walkie talkies), etc.  So I really need to do what I can ahead of time.

It's been a good day and mostly successful (apart from the jam) - but there's still lots to do.  Oh well, more Cooking Monster Frenzy to come!