Party Food Question..

You could still do hotdogs...just boil a whole big pan of them. Macaroni and cheese is also a good choice since kids love it.

I would suggest a big crock-pot with sloppy joes and a pot of hotdogs on the stove! Serve with fresh fruit (cheap this time of year!), beans, and chips. Add lemonade and you're done!

BBQ Pulled Pork recipe

Ingredients
1 (2 pound) pork tenderloin (use pork butt roast, much cheaper and more tender)
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle root beer
1 (18 ounce) bottle your favorite barbecue sauce
8 hamburger buns, split and lightly toasted

Directions
1.Place the pork tenderloin in a slow cooker; pour the root beer over the meat. Cover and cook on low until well cooked and the pork shreds easily, 6 to 7 hours. Note: the actual length of time may vary according to individual slow cooker. Drain well. Stir in barbecue sauce. Serve over hamburger buns.

I've doubled the size of the pork and it still cooks in about the same length of time.

Make BBQ pulled beef in your crock pot! Yummy! On buns and a tossed salad or potato salad & watermelon?

I was going to say spaghetti too =D It's cheap, and you can prepare it ahead of time, so that you aren't stuck in the kitchen when the guests arrive.

I liked the crock pot idea too though - that sounds yummy and is more of a BBQ style item.

Good luck & Happy Birthday to your son!

the 9th is a GREAT day to have a party!!! That's my son's 9th birthday!!!

man - sorry about the BBQ broken....that was gonna be my suggestion...

spaghetti - cheap and can feed a ton of people - kids love it too!!! salad and garlic bread too!!!

I SO know that feeling - seems like when the kids birthday's roll around - something goes wrong!!! :) That's okay- you can still throw the party on a budget!!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

My daughters 6 year old party is coming up in a few weeks too and I'm tired of slaving over the BBQ, so this year I'm picking up $5 pizzas (8 slices - which can be cut in half again for little guys) from Little Caesars. I also saw a sign that Dominoes is trying to compete with $4.99 Large Pizzas (carry out only). My son once went to a party where they cooked frozen corn dogs in the oven and the kids loved that!

For my 4 year old's party last summer we did grill but could have done the same menu in the broiler - we did a big bowl of fruit salad, veggies with yogurt dip, a brown rice salad (an Emeril Lagasse recipe from his Real & Rustic book, you could probably find it online) or you could do a pasta salad with lots of veggies instead, grilled (you would do broiled) veggies (zucchini, peppers, eggplant), mini burgers on dinner rolls (really stretches the beef and enables people to try a greater variety of foods). I did a big cobbler (nectarine, but would have used whatever was ripe and cheapest at the time of summer) and (of course) birthday cake. Margaritas for the adults, water for all and milk for the kids.

Other than the milk, this is the identical menu I have done for an adults only pool party. I don't see any reason the kids shouldn't eat the same food and who wants to do two menus? I try to do a meal that does not require utensils (except for dessert) since it makes it less messy and that way you don't really have to have enough seating (which we don't).

We shop for parties at Costco. I think we bought 5 lbs of beef, 1 large bag of dinner rolls, a bag of broccoli (we buy that anyway), green peppers (ditto), a watermelon, grapes, nectarines and carrots.

This recipe is so easy and inexpensive for feeding a crowd!
Mexican Vermicelli (Serves 4)

1/2 Pkg Vermicelli, cut in half
1- 16 oz Jar Mild Chunky Salsa
2 Cups Cooked Chicken, cubed (about 2 chicken breasts)
1 Tbsp Cilantro, chopped
1 Cup Mexican Cheese Blend, shredded

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook vermicelli according to package directions.
3. Drain and rinse noodles under cold water and place in a large bowl.
4. Add salsa, chicken, cilantro, and 3/4 cup of cheese to the noodles and toss to combine.
5. Place noodle mixture into a greased 8 x 8 baking dish and top with the remaining 1/4 cup of cheese.
6. Bake for 30 minutes uncovered.
7. Cool and serve.
from www.weelicious.com

hot dogs on stove like the other moms have said
buy potato salad, macaroni salad
carrot/celery sticks w/ranch
flavored chips, tortilla chips w/salsa
7-layer bean dip
brownie bites
pig in a blanket?

I make sloppy joe rollups for my daycare kids and the adults in the family like them as well.

big flour tortillas
ground hamburger with Manwich sauce added to it
shredded cheddar cheese

Put a "row" of sloppy joe mix along the edge of the tortilla. Sprinkle cheddar cheese on top and across the rest of the tortilla. Roll up. Put inside baggie overnight to allow the tortilla to soften slightly. When you are ready for them, zap them in the microwave until heated through. I usually cut them in half or fourths and serve.

Hint: The cheese across the rest of the tortilla sort of "glues" the rolls together for little hands. These freeze super well and make for a quick, easy dinner!

lots of good ideas and YES, you still can do burgers and dogs with just your stove.

I don't think tacos, spaghetti (unless it small pasta), sloppy joe's or pulled pork are very 4 year old/KID friendly, they are yummy and OK for the adults, (I would go for the pulled pork for grown-ups--if you can afford) but the little ones will be a MESS.

If you want to keep the same menu for all and slightly enhance the adult menu, just make chili dogs and chili burgers for the adults and regular dogs and burgers w/cheese for the kids. Of course chip and dips for all.

Blessings....

What about a sandwich bar? I've done a "Subway" type bar with meats, cheeses, veggies, and spreads to PB&J. Add the salads, veggie platters, and chips (?) and you're good to go . The nice thing is that prep can happen days before (arranging meats, etc.). The veggies seem to go a LONG way, so don't feel like you have to spend a fortune on them. The adults love it as much as the kids. Happy Birthday to your little one! :)

Tacos are super easy to do..... ground beef and the basic taco mix, put out the shredded lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, soft tortillas and hard shells, cheese dip, chips, and you're good to go!

Let everyone make their own tacos, put out some spicier sauce if someone wants it, they can add it.

Have you ever made a 7 layer dip? I am pretty sure it is a California thing, being as how it is totally a Mexican inspired dip.
You get black olives, green onions, refried beans, guacamole (if you like it), sour cream, salsa/ tomatoes, and cheese and just layer it up. Serve with Tostada chips or something similar.

Also, for the adults mostly probably, have you ever made a tapenade? I kind of made this up one evening when my in laws were visiting last minute. A can of black olives, a couple jars of sun dried tomatoes, almost a can of green olives, and a couple cloves of garlic. Finely finely chop them all up and mix together (put more or less of whatever to your taste). Serve on top of a french roll that is topped with mozarella cheese straight out of the oven. It is so good and so cheap to make.

One of the best birthday party meals we ever made was lasagna. We did two because it was a big crowd. One with meat and one with spinach. And then a pot of spaghetti with sauce, basic salad with two dressing choices and some crusty bread. It was inexpensive, filling and we weren't slaving over the stove or grill while the party was in full swing.

I'm doing a party for 14 - it cost $25 for
a large watermelon
a large bag of seedless grapes
a dozen eggs (deviled eggs)
a jar of pickles
cucumber
1lb bag of carrots
asian noodles (add some carrots, cucumber, and red pepper)
hot dog and hamber rolls
dip (for veggies) (the price of dip was the same for the price of sour cream)
2 large cans baked beans
red pepper
2 boxes of crackers (I have some cheese at home)

All I need now is a package of hot dogs and sausage patties.

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You could always cook the hot dogs on the stove, keep them warm by putting them in a crock pot.

Pasta in inexpensive. Either serve hot, or make a cold pasta salad.

Potatoe salad isn't very expensive to make.