Q: How do I figure out how much food to make for a brunch? I am having about 20 people over for an informal brunch buffet, and planning: Fritatta squares, Faith's lemon sticky buns, cheddar-leek muffins, fruit salad, and orange juice/mimosas.
I was thinking to have one muffin and one sticky bun per person, plus 20% or so more to be sure there's enough, but is that overkill or insufficient? I don't want to run out and also don't want to end up with a house full of leftover baked goods. I was also thinking about making mini-sized sticky buns since people might not indulge in a whole one. I expect people to come and go over a three-hour window. Any advice would be welcome — thanks!
Sent by Nadia
Editor: Nadia, wow, we're flattered you're doing such a menu of Kitchn recipes! Best of luck — we love all of those recipes a lot.
A few thoughts on your planning. Yes, the amounts you have listed out sound good to us. (20% over is a catering rule of thumb.)
But it is also important to know your crowd. Are you inviting a lot of people who just nibble and leave half a muffin on their plate? Or will it be a crowd of hungry men who plow through half a tray of rolls on their own? Do take that into consideration — quantities eaten will vary from crowd to crowd.
Readers, do you have any advice for Nadia?
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buffets people always eat more - so it depends on your budget. if you can afford for them to fill up on fruit salad and eggs, then do less carbs, but I think people overeat at buffets and will take more carb items than you expect. if you do mini-buns and muffins i'd plan 2/person. you can always give away the rest.
Go for the minis! It will seem like less food, so people will eat more of it.
if you make full sized sticky buns, I'd cut a few in half so people know that's ok to do. Sometimes when people come over and they don't want a whole one, they'll take a whole, will just nibble on half and then throw the other half out, such a waste! or they wont try it at all in which case you're stuck with a bunch. It might disrupt the beautiful food arrangement a tid bit, but it'll create a much more efficiently eaten buffet. Have Fun!
If people are coming and going (as in an open house), you'll need more food so that the buffet looks fresh at the end. Otherwise, it's fine. It's heavy on carbohydrates; how about adding a green salad too? I love the idea of the small sticky buns.
Mmmmm, may I come, too?
I made Faith's lemon sticky buns for a thanksgiving weekend brunch. People all said they were too full to eat a thing, yet all the sticky buns disappeared (maybe 1.5 large ones each). I agree with @caliH - cutting in half (or even quarters) is also good. Little ones will be more work, but its a great idea.
I like to have a few to go or reusable containers handy, and send guests home with the leftovers, so I don't end up with a freezer packed with cookies I don't need to eat!
Always make more than you think you'll need. Better to have too much and have to freeze or send leftovers home with guests than not enough.
I like to keep a quiche, pan of rolls or batch of muffins (or all of the above) in the freezer to reheat if needed.
Worst case, you'll have some pretty great breakfasts of leftovers in the following week.