"Pasta and Salad Type Bar"

    I have shared all of the 'details' for 'The Hot Dog Bar' we had done for our son Benson's high school graduation party.
    Then I shared all about the " "Mexican Style" Bar" we did for Brandon's Open House.
    Next down my list of such buffets to share about, comes the "Pasta and Salad Type of Bar" we did for our son Brent's Open House. (Brent graduated in 2008). But instead of only having ingredients available which attendee's could build their own concoction from, we had cooked up pasta dishes and made pasta salads which they could pick and choose from (or have some of each if they so desired). So I've debated, do I wait to post this particular "bar" until after I have posted all of my recipes for it, or do I go ahead and post it and then later, after I have posted said recipes, go back to the "bar" posting and add links to the recipes?
    I debated it for awhile. Then I remembered this paragraph from the previously posted "bars".
    " Seeings how we will soon be entering the season of such open houses, I figured now was a good time to share the other such 'bars' we had done for our son's graduation open houses as well."
   Therefore I decided to go ahead and post about the bar. Many of you would be using your own recipes for the various dishes anyways. For those of you whom are interested in my recipes for them, keep checking back (or sign up to get our postings via email ;->). Within the next couple of weeks I shall be cooking up said recipes, so that I can have good pictures of the dishes to post with their recipes. o:-) Aw-w the sacrifices I make for my blog. ;-p!
   You are more than welcome to use this idea. For graduation open houses. Or parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with.

    Here is how things were lined up, down the length (two 6 or 8 (?) foot folding tables) of our:
                      "Pasta and Salad Type Bar"

~ Plates - a couple of tips here concerning the type and size of disposable plates to buy.
     - First, about the type.
       - Setting out plain ole paper plates is like asking for trouble. While they are less expensive than other varieties, they are also far more problem-matic!!! I'm not going to go into details, I KNOW you know what all I'm referring to.
       - We are not much fonder of styrofoam plates. Those things have such a tendency to crack. And way to often if you try to cut something on them, you unknowingly end up slicing all the way through the plate. Annoying!
       - Then there are the thin plastic plates. Avoid them! They too are very problem-matic!
       - Our disposable plate of choice, is actually the card board type of paper plate. They hold up better when being carried. They are less likely to be sliced through when your cutting. And they are still far more 'budget friendly' than some of the other available options.
     - Secondly, about the size. If space is available, they will fill it. Period. (Or at least 98% of the time they will!)
       - So, if you put out the large 14" plates, they will fill them. Even though half of the people in attendance will not eat that much food and thus end up throwing lots away.
       - And while you don't want to spend your money on providing food that's only going to end up in the trash bins, you don't want to look like a 'cheapo' either. So avoid the 7" plates. Those are good for the cake or dessert table, but not the main buffet.
      - Our preferred size is the 9" plate. It holds a good amount of food. And if when it's empty somebody (or somebodies) want more, they usually aren't afraid to go up for seconds. Some will even go for thirds.
~ Chicken Tetrazini. Pre-made. Pre-baked. Again heated through to be served. If you don't have access to the style of Chaffers like caterers use, you can often rent them. HOWEVER, a much more budget friendly option, is to borrow electric roasters from friends and use them to do the trick. Go HERE if you don't know what methodology I am referring to. (Use that method, only set the roaster on a low temp.)
~ Spaghetti. Mix your spaghetti sauce right in with your cooked spaghetti noodles. This to can be pre-made and then heated again to be served. Just make sure you don't cook your noodles one hundred percent through before mixing them with your sauce, or you'll end up with mushy ones. :-[   This too needs to be kept hot on your buffet.
~ Parmesan Cheese. It's up to you. You can use the green canned variety. Or, you can buy big bags of the real stuff at GFS or some similar place and serve it. You can either serve it by putting out a bowl of it with a large spoon in it, or pick up glass shaker jars for it. (I come across them all of the time at mission type stores!)
~ Alfredo Noodles. You can make your own yummy Alfredo sauce and mix it with mostly pre-cooked noodles, or you can buy a tasty bottle or jar of the sauce at the store and use it. This too needs to be kept hot on your buffet.
~ French Bread. Believe it or not, the most cost efficient way to provide this is not the make it yourself method. Go to Sam's Club and buy the big bags of two loafs for under $2.50 a package. Cut the loafs up into about 3" pieces and put them in a linen lined basket on your buffet.
    If you want, you can put butter next to it, but we didn't.
~ Bowls. Again, type and size rules apply. The only difference being that often it is okay to use the styrofoam bowls for tossed salads.
~ Lettuce. Unless it's really on sale, or you have grown your own, it's more cost effective (and time efficient) to go to GFS, Sam's Club, or some such place and buy the huge bags of it. HOWEVER, we recommend that you do not do so until the day before your going to use them! That's the best way to avoid having it go soggy on ya.
    For a good looking bowl of salad greens, we have been mixing two bags of plain shredded lettuce (NOT the kind with the shredded carrots, etc. in it) with one bag of 'spring mix' (it has spinach leafs, etc. in it).
~ Shredded Cheese. We bought the 5 pound bags of shredded cheddar.
~ Bacon Bits. We offered a bowl of 'Real Bacon Pieces' (TM) (they come in a bag) instead of the imitation bacon bits. Ever so much tastier! And not much of a price difference either.
~ Chopped Tomatoes. Go HERE for a tip about doing them up ahead of time.
~ Chopped Eggs. Two to three days ahead of time, hard boil, rinse twice with cold water and then let your eggs sit in cold water for 8 minutes. Use a paper towel to hold your eggs while you peel them. Place all of the peeled eggs on a tray or paper towel lined cookie sheet and set in your frig to cool for about twenty (20) minutes or so. Remove from fridge and chop eggs (some people use their food processors to do so, I just use a good knife). Store in an air tight container in your refrigerator, until about a half hour before serving time. WARNING - the smell that comes out when you open the container can be very strong! Thus you might want to walk outside to do so, and even stand out there holding the bowl for a couple of minutes, before putting it on the buffet.
~ Croutons. You will be amazed with how thrilled people get, when you serve the large sized, mixed type of breads croutons. So fun!
~ Ranch Dressing. This is the type of dressing that you will go through the most of, so go ahead and buy the big gallon jug of it. If there's any left over, you can put it in a smaller container in your fridge. You know you'll use it up. With chicken nuggets. On baked potatoes. Your kids will dip their pizza in it. Etc.
~ Thousand Island Dressing. While this type is far less popular, there will be somebody in attendance whom will be ever so thankful that you had it available.
~ Italian Dressing. Some people will take some of this, sprinkle the parmesan cheese on it, and then dip their french bread in the mixture. Others will only use it for their salads.
~ Red Dressing. My current favorite is Western(TM). It use to be Catalina(TM). Just please make it's a red dressing, not that orangie kind of stuff. Thank-you. ;-p
~ Cold Pasta Salads. We served three different kinds. One had crab in it. Another had small cheddar cubes. You can make your own or pick them up at a deli counter or GFS cooler.
~ Napkins.  NOT the store brand, literally fall apart after three uses, type. Goodness! Most cost effcetive and usage efficient, are the 'dinner style' ones at GFS.
~ Forks.   Also Knives if you expect lots of young children (their parents will want to cut the spaghetti and such noodles into teeny bits). Or, if you put butter next to the french bread.   
   Personally, I HATE plastic silverware, so I borrow the real kind from our church's kitchen. After the event, I either hand wash it, or put it in a plastic bag lined box to take home and run through our dishwasher, then return it. No harm done. (Make sure you get permission from the kitchen chair person ahead of time!)
~ Wet Wipes. Buy a big bulk box of individually wrapped ones and put them in a basket at the end of the buffet. Many a person will be glad you did!

   We offered Pink Lemonade,  Ice Tea and Water to drink ( in the large orange colored Igloo(R) coolers). We had black markers sitting next to the 9 oz. plastic cups so people could write their names on their cups. (<-- Bonus tip there)

    We didn't serve a dessert because Brent didn't want any. We did however set out baskets of two types of mints. The red and white stripped kind, and the little chocolate covered, individually wrapped kind. Both kinds went over well. Especially since some of the dishes were a bit garlicky. ;-p

    Go HERE for bonus tips about keeping cold foods cold, etc.

    When I went through our pictures from this graduation open house, the only good picture I found of the food, was one of one of our nieces holding her plate of food. I didn't have prior permission to use her picture, therefore I had Benson take this picture to use for link-ups.

    Like I said, You are more than welcome to use this idea yourself. For graduation open houses. Or parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with. However, if you do, we'd really like to hear what you and others thought about yours!!!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
  I 'plan' on linking this particular posting up to:
~ "Foodie Wednesday('s)", hosted by Bibi, at 'Daily Organized Chaos' (there is nothing wrong with living with chaos as long as it's organized)  (http://www.dailyorganizedchaos.com) 
~ "Whatever Goes Wednesday('s), hosted by Michelle, at 'Someday Crafts' (http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/)
~ "Recipe Swap Thursday('s)", hosted by Alison, at 'Prairie Story' (http://www.prairiestory.com/) 
~ "Full Plate Thursday('s), hosted by Miz Helen, at 'Miz Helen's Country Cottage' (http://mizhelenscountrycottage.blogspot.com/)
~ "Sweet Tooth Friday('s)", hosted by Alli, at 'Alli 'n Son' (Parenting and Life with a side of Chocolate) (http://alli-n-son.com/) 
~ "Foodie Friday('s)", are hosted by "Gollum" (aka: Michael), at 'Designs by Gollum' (http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/)

and then next week, linking up to:
~ "Melt in Your Mouth Monday('s)", hosted by Jane Doiron, at 'Make Ahead Meals For Busy Moms .. and other delicious recipes!' (http://www.makeaheadmealsforbusymoms.com)
~ "Making Your Home Sing Monday('s)", are hosted by Nan, at 'Mom's the Word (I love to hear)' (http://momstheword--livingforhim.blogspot.com/).
~ "Homemaker Mondays ... Yours, Mine & Ours", are hosted by Jen, at '11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven' (http://rtheyallyours.blogspot.com/).
~ "Market Yourself Monday", are hosted by Sumo, at 'Sumo's Sweet Stuff' (http://sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com/)
~ "Delectable Tuesday('s)", hosted by Stephani, at 'Home Sweet Farm' (http://www.ourjourneytoasimplerlife.blogspot.com/)
~ "Tuesday's Tasty Tidbits", hosted by Susan, at 'Permanent Posies - Creative Chaos' (http://permanentposies.com/) 
~ "Tempt My Tummy Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Lisa, at 'Blessed with Grace' (http://blessedwithgrace.blogspot.com).
~ "Tuesdays at the Table", are hosted by Cole, at 'All The Small Stuff' (http://allthesmallstuff-cole.blogspot.com/).
~ "Kitchen Tip Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Tammy, at 'Tammy's Recipes' (http://www.tammysrecipes.com/).
~ "Tasty Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Jennifer, at "Balancing Beauty and Bedlam" (http://www.beautyandbedlam.com/)

" "Mexican Style" Bar"

    The other day I shared all of the 'details' for 'The Hot Dog Bar' we had done for our son Benson's high school graduation party.
    Seeings how we will soon be entering the season of such open houses, I figured now was a good time to share the other such 'bars' we had done for our son's graduation open houses as well.
    So today I am posting about the 'bar' we did for Brandon's. (Brandon is going to turn 24 this coming Sunday. Wow!  Brandon, I am ever so thankful God blessed us with you!!!)
   
    Mexican style food has become quite a booming business here in America. Notice that I said Mexican "style". Most of what we Americans consume under the title of 'Mexican', is far from authentic Mexican food. But consume it we do. In several popular ways.
    Lots of people had begun serving tacos for their open houses around the time Brandon graduated (2007). Us, being us, wanted to take it a step further. Seeings how we were still getting frequent ravings over our "Hot Dog Bar", we got to wondering if maybe we shouldn't come up with some sort of a " "Mexican Style" Bar".
    So we did. And it too got high reviews. People enjoyed the fact that they could create what they wanted out of the ingredients we had provided. Some, it turned out, knew that they liked certain dishes, but didn't have a clue as to what all of the ingredients in it actually were. Some even went so far as to write them down, so they could make it for themselves at home. ;-]

    We had typed the following out on our computer and then run off copies of it. Those we then inserted into page protectors, which we hung numerous copies of from twine over the buffet. We had also laid a protected page of it on each of the eating tables.
    You are more than welcome to do the same. For graduation open houses. Or parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with.

       First, I am going to give you a listing of what the page looked like. Then I will list out all of the various ingredients needed. Yup, the list is a rather long one. But when totaled up, it's not all that expensive after all {so many of the ingredients are used in multiple dishes). I will also list what else we offered to eat.
 

                "Build Your Own "Mexican Style" Entree' ":
                     (aka: "Mexican Style" Bar)

[we had listed the name of the dish on the left hand side of the page, then it's ingredients underneath. In a wider column on the right hand side of the page, we had written out instructions on how to assemble the ingredients. I don't know how to do that in a posting. So I'm listing the ingredients and then the paragraph underneath them is the assembly instructions.  Feel free to make your own pages which ever way you prefer.]

   Wet Burrito:
~ soft shell
~ refried beans
~ meat
~ chopped onions
~ shredded cheese
~ shredded lettuce
~ chopped tomatoes
~ enchilada sauce
~ cheese sauce
~ sour cream

    Take a soft shell and on one side of it, place a spoonful of the beans and the meat. Add smaller amounts of onions, shredded cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes. Cover with small scoop of enchilada sauce. Roll tightly together, folding in sides. Place fold side down on your plate. Top with a large ladle of cheese sauce and a scoop of sour cream.

   Beef Enchilada:
~ soft shell
~ meat
~ chopped onion
~ shredded cheese
~ cheese sauce
~ enchilada sauce

Variations:
~ top with black olives
~ top with sour cream

   In a soft shell, place a spoonful of meat, small spoonful of chopped onions and a spoonful of the shredded cheese. Tightly roll up shell and place seam side down on your plate. Top with scoop of cheese sauce and small scoop of enchilada sauce. On top of those toppings, pick one of the variations listed.

   Taco Salad:
~ meat
~ shredded cheese
~ tortilla cheese
~ shredded lettuce
~ chopped tomatoes
~ red salad dressing

   On your plate, place a spoonful of the meat and shredded cheese. Take a handful of the tortilla chips and lightly crush them on top (of the mixture, not just the top of the chips :-b). top with lettuce and tomatoes. Mix it all together and then top with a ladle of red salad dressing.

   Taco's:
~ soft shell
~ meat
~ shredded cheese
~ chopped tomatoes
~ shredded lettuce
~ taco sauce

Variations:
~ also add chopped onions
~ also top with sour cream

   Take your shell. Add a spoonful of the meat. Top with cheese, tomatoes and lettuce. (also add the onions if you want to). Top with sauce. (then add the sour cream is you'd like to).

   Deluxe Chips and Cheese:
~ nacho chips
~ meat
~ cheese sauce
~ chopped tomatoes
~ chopped onions
~ black olives
~ sour cream

   Place nacho (yes, your) chips (;-p) on your plate. Top with a spoonful of meat and then a ladle of the cheese sauce. Top that with tomatoes, onions, black olives and sour cream.

   Chips and Dips:
~ Nacho chips with:
   ~ cheese sauce
   ~ Pico de Gallo' dip
   ~ Bean dip
   ~ Salsa
   ~ Build your own dip:
      ~ a spoon of refried beans
      ~ a spoon of sour cream
      ~ a spoon of meat
      ~ a spoon of cheese
      ~ top that with tomatoes, onions, olives, ...

    Now for the list of all of the various ingredients needed: 
~ soft shells. Yes, some people prefer hard shells. But you deal with breakage issues, etc. with those. So we stuck to only offering the soft shells. [To keep them somewhat warm and thus more pliable, we had 'stacked them out' in rows (laying them out one on top of the other, but leaving a 1/4 inch of each one showing) on pieces of parchment paper. We then stacked several of those on top of one another in one of the warmers we had borrowed from the caterer. It would also work just fine to layer them in a sprayed electric roaster, put about 1/2 inch of water in the roaster base before putting in the liner, and then only setting the roaster on the lowest temp. available.]
[We recommend using the 8" shells, and planning on two (2) per expected person in attendance]
~ refried beans. Your best bargain comes by buying the bags of dried ones at some place such as GFS, add the moisture to them according to package directions, and then heating and serving them in a SPRAYED crock-pot.
~ meat. The economical way we chose to make enough of this, was to buy up big packages of clearance sticker ground beef ahead of time and immediately upon arrival home, stick it in our freezer. Then the Wed. before the open house, I chopped up lots of onions, and browned up all of the meat and onions. (I did larger batches at a time by using my large electric skillet). Once the meat was done, I added the taco seasoning (which I had bought in the bulk size spice containers at GFS) and the directed amounts of water. You can store your somewhat cooled cooked meat, in large (sprayed) Tupperware (R) containers.
[we recommend planning on 1/2 cup of meat per expected person in attendance.]
~ chopped onions. If your not a fan of chopping large quantities of onions yourself, GFS does sell packages of already chopped ones in one of their coolers.
~ shredded cheese. We bought the 5 pound bags of shredded cheddar.
~ shredded lettuce. Unless lettuce is really on sale, buy the bags of shredded lettuce. HOWEVER, we recommend that you do not do so until the day before your going to use them! That's the best way to avoid having it go soggy on ya.
~ chopped tomatoes. GFS also carries containers of chopped tomatoes in their coolers, for those of you who don't want to spend time chopping lots of them yourself. We HIGHLY recommend that you do NOT try chopping them via your food processor. Talk about runny! A bonus tip here --> you can chop tomatoes a day or two ahead and still have them serve-able, via chopping them to your desired size, placing them in a PLASTIC (NOT metal !!!) strainer, placing the strainer some what in a large bowl, and then wrapping all of it tightly in plastic wrap before refrigerating.
~ enchilada sauce. (This is a much better bargain when bought in the larger sized jar at GFS, Sam's Club, or some such place!)
~ cheese sauce. (This is also easier on the budget when bought in the larger size can!) Or, you can make your own using one of the Velveeta (R) recipes out there.
~ sour cream. (Rule of thumb - often the larger the container, the less price per ounce.)
~ black olives. (ditto)
~ red salad dressing. Some say that the preferred bottled dressing for taco salad is Catalina (TM). However, if you can't find that in more of a bulk size container, then just go with a dark red dressing.
~ tortilla chips. Best price is found by the case at GFS.
~ taco sauce. remember the rule of thumb.
~ Pico de Gallo' dip. If you don't make your own, you can find this in most deli sections, as well as at GFS, Sam's Club, etc.. (Make sure you attach a note to your serving bowl of it, as to whether it is the mild or the extra spicy version).
~ Bean dip. Make it or buy it, your choice.
~ Salsa. MUCH more cost efficient in the large jugs!!! (Make sure you attach a note to your serving bowl of it, as to whether it is the mild or the extra spicy version).

    And now for the list of what else we offered:
~ Tang, Pink Lemonade and Water to drink (in the large orange colored Igloo(R) coolers) 
~ Brandon's favorite kind of cake.

   (go see the Bonus Tips listed at the bottom of 'The Hot Dog Bar' posting).

    Like I said, You are more than welcome to use this idea yourself. For graduation open houses. Or parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with. However, if you do, we'd really like to hear what you and others thought about yours!!!

   While I was unable to find a good picture of our food buffet when looking through our saved pictures, I did find this picture of three of "our" daughters, which made me smile a-l-l the way through!!! :-> !!!

           Hey Jeannie, have you shared your thrilling news with these 'sisters' yet?  ;-]

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
  I 'plan' on linking this particular posting up to:
~ "Foodie Wednesday('s)", hosted by Bibi, at 'Daily Organized Chaos' (there is nothing wrong with living with chaos as long as it's organized)  (http://www.dailyorganizedchaos.com) 
~ "Whatever Goes Wednesday('s), hosted by Michelle, at 'Someday Crafts' (http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/)
~ "Recipe Swap Thursday('s)", hosted by Alison, at 'Prairie Story' (http://www.prairiestory.com/) 
~ "Full Plate Thursday('s), hosted by Miz Helen, at 'Miz Helen's Country Cottage' (http://mizhelenscountrycottage.blogspot.com/)
~ "Sweet Tooth Friday('s)", hosted by Alli, at 'Alli 'n Son' (Parenting and Life with a side of Chocolate) (http://alli-n-son.com/) 
~ "Foodie Friday('s)", are hosted by "Gollum" (aka: Michael), at 'Designs by Gollum' (http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/)

and then next week, linking up to:
~ "Melt in Your Mouth Monday('s)", hosted by Jane Doiron, at 'Make Ahead Meals For Busy Moms .. and other delicious recipes!' (http://www.makeaheadmealsforbusymoms.com)
~ "Making Your Home Sing Monday('s)", are hosted by Nan, at 'Mom's the Word (I love to hear)' (http://momstheword--livingforhim.blogspot.com/).
~ "Homemaker Mondays ... Yours, Mine & Ours", are hosted by Jen, at '11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven' (http://rtheyallyours.blogspot.com/).
~ "Market Yourself Monday", are hosted by Sumo, at 'Sumo's Sweet Stuff' (http://sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com/)
~ "Delectable Tuesday('s)", hosted by Stephani, at 'Home Sweet Farm' (http://www.ourjourneytoasimplerlife.blogspot.com/)
~ "Tuesday's Tasty Tidbits", hosted by Susan, at 'Permanent Posies - Creative Chaos' (http://permanentposies.com/) 
~ "Tempt My Tummy Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Lisa, at 'Blessed with Grace' (http://blessedwithgrace.blogspot.com).
~ "Tuesdays at the Table", are hosted by Cole, at 'All The Small Stuff' (http://allthesmallstuff-cole.blogspot.com/).
~ "Kitchen Tip Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Tammy, at 'Tammy's Recipes' (http://www.tammysrecipes.com/).
~ "Tasty Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Jennifer, at "Balancing Beauty and Bedlam" (http://www.beautyandbedlam.com/)

Hot Dog Bar -

    Lately, the 'All American Hot Dog' seems to be making quite a come back. But not necessarily in what some think of as being the A-Typical way to eat them; in a bun with ketchup, mustard, and perhaps some relish on top. Those are now considered oh so boring, and rightfully so.
     A different long liked way of eating them, is via the Chili Dog style. A bun enclosed hot dog, topped with a thick chili sauce, sometimes some ketchup, and chopped onions. But lately, even this variety has been getting dressed up a bit.
    Several times recently, I have seen a TV promotion ad by Sonic's (R) for their four different styles of specialty hot dogs.
    There is a Sonic's near us. There is also Yesterdog (R), which Brian and his dorm friends were frequent visitors too, late on weekend nights. Many around here claim, 'you havn't lived till you've had a 'Yesterdog(R)' '.
    Another well known local spot for (especially chili) dogs, is 'The Corner Bar' in Rockford, MI. They even have a carry out window so that anybody whom 'wouldn't be caught dead entering a bar', can still be patrons of their dogs.
   
    Like I mentioned, I'd recently been seeing the newest commercials that Sonic's is running.Then I got my blogging friend Michelle's (from Big Black Dog (TM) ) posting titled, 'Chili Dogs with Home made Potato Chips - Diner Style!'. And I had also gotten an invitation to a high schoolers Sr. open house. All of those things combined to get me thinking about the 'Hot Dog Bar' we had done for our son Benson's open house.
    Benson graduated back in 2003, and yet  to this day, we still get compliments on that hot dog bar. Therefore, between all of the above mentioned things and that fact, I thought I should share the details of "The Hot Dog Bar" with all of you.
    The inspiration for the bar, had come out of a several page featured article, in the Better Homes And Gardens(TM) magazine, May 1992 edition. I still have one page of it. The top corner reads, "FOOD by Lisa Holderness". The Article was titled "America's Top Dog's - Six regional favorites".
    We took that article, and added one more dog to it - "The Ao-Wa-Kiyan'. Camp Ao-Wa-Kiya is a youth camp that we were a part of for m-a-n-y years, and it has it's own version of a specialty dog. (;-p)
         
    We had typed the following out on our computer and then run off copies of it. Those we then inserted into page protectors, which we hung numerous copies of from twine over the buffet. We had also laid a protected page of it on each of the eating tables.
    You are more than welcome to do the same. For graduation open houses. Or summer parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with.

     First, I am going to give you a listing of what the page looked like. Then I will list out all of the various ingredients needed. Yup, the list is a rather long one. But when totaled up, it's not all that expensive after all. I will also list what else we offered to eat.

                    America's Top Dogs
                     Seven regional favorites

Make your own favorite style specialty hot dog:

NEW YORK - The Coney Island red-hot is New York City's traditional hot dog. Nathan's Famous of New York, the nation's first hot dog chain, started selling red hots in 1916 on Coney Island. Now New York has approximately 3000 licensed hot dog vendors.
   For this unpretentious frank, top a grilled all beef hot dog with sauerkraut and mustard and serve in a plain bun.

CHICAGO - The Chicago-style dog was a product of the Depression. For a mere 5 cents, street vendors sold all-beef hot dogs nestled in a steamed poppy seed bun.
    But it was the amount of savory toppings that made this dog famous -- yellow mustard, pickle relish, chopped onions, tomato wedges, dill pickles (a spear or sliced), zesty sport peppers (small hot green peppers), and a shake of celery salt.
    To order one of these delightful dogs as Chicago folks do, specify "make me one with everything", "drag it through the garden", or "I'll take one with a salad on the bun". (But at this open house, you'll have to make it for yourself.  ;-p)

NEW ENGLAND - Bostonians, known for their baked beans, even spoon (baked) beans on top of their hot dogs. These New-Englad style dogs make great picnic food.

MIDWESTERN - The Midwest takes credit for the franchisee, a boiled hot dog stuffed with cheese and wrapped with bacon. To make our own franchisee dog, cook a strip of bacon till just cooked through but not crisp. Cut a long slit in the hot dog and stuff it with cheddar or American cheese. Wrap bacon around the hot dog and attach with a wooden toothpick. Broil till cheese melts and bacon is slightly crisp.

KANSAS CITY - Kansas City hot dog lovers claim the Reuben dog as their creation. Modeled after the Reuben sandwich, their dog is topped with sauerkraut and melted Swiss Cheese, all on a - same seed bun. If desired, spread a little Thousand Island dressing on the bun too.

SOUTHWESTERN - South westerns, partial to zesty flavors, ladle chili (with or without beans) a top their hot dogs and finish them off with a sprinkle of onions. Also known as Chili Dogs or Coney Dogs.

Ao-Wa-Kiyan - Every Wed. campers and staff canoe over to the big lake, where dinner is then served on the beach. To make the ever so infamous "Ao-Wa-Kiyan dog", spoon some of the available baked beans on to your hot dog. Add ketchup, mustard and relish. Take some of the available potato chips, squish them in one hand, and then add them on top of the other hot dog toppings. The key ingredient - sand, will be blown in by the wind. (although here, you will have to add it yourself from our available bowl full. ;-p) 


   Now for the list of all of the various ingredients needed:

- Hot Dog Buns  -while different styled dogs called for different types of buns, we only bought and thus offered the basic type.
- Hot Dogs  (we like to use the 1/4 pound style, which we buy in big packages at GFS.) We had had Brent cooking them on our grill right outside the door by the beginning of the buffet. Thanks yet again Brent ;-) (we recommend planning 1 1/2 hot dogs per expected person in attendance.)

   (I couldn't quickly find a picture of our buffet, so I just took a picture of what dogs we currently have in the freezer. Had to have a picture for link-ups ;-p)
- Sauerkraut  (the 5 gallon jug of it in GFS's cooler gets us the best raves.) We sprinkled it with a little brown sugar and had it cooking in a (sprayed!) large crock-pot.
- Chopped Onions  - rather finely chopped - not chucked! (If your not a fan of chopping a lot of onions, GFS offers them already chopped, by the bag full)
- Tomatoes - wedged. (slice in half, slice those halves in half, slice those halves of a half in half...)
- Dill Pickles - either wedged or sliced (we went with the wedged, because lots of people like them on the side whether or not they actually put them on their dog. (These are a much better bargain bought in the huge jars at GFS, Sam's Club, or some such place!)
- "Zesty Sport Peppers" is what the above list calls for, but we offered Banana Peppers and Jalapenos. And both were hits! (These are also easier on the budget when bought in the larger size jars!)
- Celery Salt - I just took my bottle of it from home.
- Baked Beans - Make them up the way you prefer them and make plenty, because lots of people will eat them along with their hot dogs rather than on their hot dogs. (Use a sprayed crock-pot for these.)
- Cheddar Cheese - We had a big bowl of shredded cheddar available. And no, we did not offer the use of the broiler like the 'Midwestern' calls for. People survived ;-p.
- Bacon - We offered a bowl of 'Real Bacon Pieces' (TM) (they come in a bag) instead of actual bacon strips. (Much more budget friendly that way!)
- Shredded Swiss Cheese - We had a small bowl of it available. (The Kansas City style says to melt it on. Again, the people survived with out that option being available to them. ;-p)
- Thousand Island Dressing - A regular sized bottle of the dressing is sufficient.
- Chili - We like to use the Chef Mate (TM) brand available in the big cans at GFS. (Heat in a SPRAYED crock-pot).
- Potato Chips - Have lots of these (also a better bargain bought in bulk sized packages!) because far more will be eaten off of the dogs than on them!
- Sand - a small bowl of it will suffice o;-p. It's mainly for the chuckle effect.
- Ketchup, Mustard and Sweet Pickle Relish. Have more than one of each available!

    And now for the list of what else we offered to eat:
- Sweet Pickles - some people like dill pickles, some like sweet. (Also best bargain is via the BIG jars of them)
- Potato Salad
- Deviled Eggs (a couple of friends and I had lots of laughs while making up several Tupperware (R) Pie Takers (R) full [put a paper towel in the bottom of the container first!] )
- Tang, Ice Tea and Water to drink ( in the large orange colored Igloo(R) coolers)
- Benson's favorite kind of cake.

A  Couple of Bonus Tips Here -
- Use a power strip for all of the crock pots, and then put duct tape over the extension cord running to the out let.
- If your buffet is going to be open longer than an hour in length, place your bowls of cheeses, chopped onions, pickles, potato salad and deviled eggs, inside larger bowls containing ice. (Borrow every body you knows large metal bowls for this.)
- Ice lasts much longer if you include some large ice chunks you made (like out of Tupperware's(R) hamburger press).  In the coolers of beverages, we use 1/2 gallon plastic milk jugs, which we have run through the dish washer and allowed to completely dry before filling 3/4ths of the way full with water and allowing several days to freeze solid. Make sure the jugs have a lid on them of they will dilute your drinks - and nobody likes diluted water. o;-p)

    Like I said, "You are more than welcome to do the same. For graduation open houses. Or summer parties. Or any other reason/occasion you come up with."  However, if you do, we'd really like to hear what you and others thought about yours!!!
   And for the record, we found that the pages listing the different types of regional hot dogs, made for great conversations basis between people whom did not previously know one another, but were attending the same open house!! :-D

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 
  I 'plan' on linking this particular posting up to:

~ "Whatever Goes Wednesday('s), hosted by Michelle, at 'Someday Crafts'
(http://somedaycrafts.blogspot.com/)
~ "Full Plate Thursday('s), hosted by Miz Helen, at 'Miz Helen's Country Cottage' (http://mizhelenscountrycottage.blogspot.com/)
~ "(Foodie Friday's)", are hosted by "Gollum" (aka: Michael), at 'Designs by Gollum' (http://designsbygollum.blogspot.com/)

and then next week, linking up to:
~ "Making Your Home Sing Monday('s)", are hosted by Nan, at 'Mom's the Word (I love to hear)' (http://momstheword--livingforhim.blogspot.com/).
~ "Homemaker Mondays ... Yours, Mine & Ours", are hosted by Jen, at '11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven' (http://rtheyallyours.blogspot.com/).
~ "Market Yourself Monday", are hosted by Sumo, at 'Sumo's Sweet Stuff' (http://sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com/)
~ "Tempt My Tummy Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Lisa, at 'Blessed with Grace' (http://blessedwithgrace.blogspot.com).
~ "Tuesdays at the Table", are hosted by Cole, at 'All The Small Stuff' (http://allthesmallstuff-cole.blogspot.com/).
~ "Kitchen Tip Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Tammy, at 'Tammy's Recipes' (http://www.tammysrecipes.com/).
~ "Tasty Tuesday('s)", are hosted by Jennifer, at "Balancing Beauty and Bedlam" (http://www.beautyandbedlam.com/)