How to Throw a Mother’s Day Brunch
May 7, 2012
•Le Cordon Bleu
•San Francisco
• 0 Comments
How to Throw a Mother’s Day Brunch
The perfect Mother’s Day Brunch consists of three basic elements: Good family, Good Food and Good Fun.
Assuming you already have a good family (or you wouldn’t be considering a Mother’s Day Brunch) the only help you need is in organizing good food and fun. Even if you’re cooking skills could never compare to that of your mother’s, perhaps cooking for the family will inspire you to pursue your passion. You could begin looking at culinary schools in San Francisco! Culinary arts colleges are great for teaching you the basics whether you want to use them to explore a future in the culinary arts or for your own enjoyment.
The first thing you will want to do is get as many family members in on the brunch as possible. If your mother is up in years and has had numerous children and grandchildren then this brunch can focus on just one Mom, but include the others. A different kind of brunch would be to honor numerous related moms of similar ages. Either way, part of the fun will be in the food, so here is what you do.
Ask each family to bring a dish. But be sure to assign certain types of dishes. They don’t need to be graduates of culinary arts colleges to prepare a great addition to the meal! For instance, ask someone to bring a meat dish, another starchy dish, have a couple bring veggies, a couple should bring breads, a couple bringing desserts, and some bringing drinks. Do not tell them exactly WHAT to bring, just what KIND of dish non-specifically beyond what you tell them. This will add an element of surprise to your gathering and give everyone something to talk about for years to come. It is pot-luck with an element of direction. Ironic perhaps, but much fun and good eating.
Make lots of lemonade. This is part of the fun. No one really understands the connection between lemonade and fun; maybe it all began with early carnivals like the one at the Atlantic City Boardwalk, where it is claimed that lemonade had its beginning; or maybe it is the fact than lemons tend to make people pucker-up and make funny faces—so having lemonade requires having fresh lemons on hand. Who knows? But for some reason, every gathering is more fun with lemonade.
Make Lots of Tea. This is part of the fun. No one really understands the connection between tea and fun; maybe it all began with early colonists like the ones in Boston Harbor where it is said the first tea party was held. In any case, tea and lemonade would be a perfect combination. Make both.
Now, in addition to all the good food, family, and lemonade, you are going to entertain. It is always nice in such gatherings to have everyone bring one gift. There are numerous ways to do this and make it fun. About a week prior, every family unit or individual can draw a name from a hat with every mother invited in the hat. Then that is who they get a gift for. However, this has drawbacks if everyone lives some distance from each other.
So another fun way to distribute gifts is that everyone pick from the same catalog or website or set a price range. Then when every mother arrives, she draws a number. That number corresponds to the same number on a gift.
In addition, you are going to want to run a few party games. If you family is more into intellectual games, get a chalk-board and play a game of Pictionary®. There are scores of good party games that a host can offer to guests of such an event as a group Mother’s Day brunch. All one need to do is go online and do a search for “group party games” and be amazed at the results. Entertaining can be fun but also a bit stressful so just be sure to take a deep breath and relax. This could be a stepping stone for a new career and perhaps you will be looking at culinary schools in San Francisco before you know it!
Just remember, the best Mother's Day brunch is one that is fun.
This article is presented by California Culinary Academy. California Culinary Academy offers culinary arts and pâtisserie and baking training programs in San Francisco, California. To learn more about the class offerings, please visit Chefs.edu/San-Francisco for more information.
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