Budget breakfast ideas for 80 - oatmeal in crockpot?

[MomtoGKC]

Hi,

My friend and I volunteered to run a teacher appreciation breakfast at school next week. We will have to feed about 80 people and it will be a buffet style so the teachers can come in when they have a chance.

We are planning on going to Costco to get mini muffins, bagels, cream cheese, fruit, etc. I would like to add something hot and was thinking about using the crock pot so whatever we have will stay warm for the 2 hours it is there. Have you ever made oatmeal in a crock pot? Does it get gummy or does it stay fresh?

Any other ideas hot or cold?

Thank you!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

I have seen oatmeal prepared this way at many hotel breakfasts. It doesn't seem to affect the texture.

Perhaps bring a toaster or two?

 

[akcire]

I'd make a bunch of egg casseroles and open them one at a time to keep the others warm.

 

[kymom99]

There are a lot of good crock pot breakfast recipes floating around out there. Try googling it and see what you come up with.

 

[wiigirl]

I'd make a bunch of egg casseroles and open them one at a time to keep the others warm.

Thats a pretty good idea!

 

[MomtoGKC]

Great idea about the toasters- even if they have one in the teacher's lounge it would be a lot faster for them if we have extras. I've never made egg casserole but my friend has a recipe I think she makes the night before- that would be a big help. I just don't know if it will be a pain to make enough for so many people!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

There are a number of baked french toast recipes which are pretty good as well, especially if you add some wild blueberries! Here's an example:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/french-toast-bread-pudding-recipe.html

 

[TwoMisfits]

For another hot option
- Homemade sausage gravy in the crockpot with biscuits on the side
- Cheesy hashbrown casserole in the crockpot - http://www.mommyskitchen.net/2011/11/crock-pot-hash-brown-casserole-great.html
Some cold options
- Precooked bacon slices, Canadian bacon or ham, and cheddar slices for the bagels or for solo (in case some teachers don't do carbs)
- Hardboiled salted eggs (same as above)
- Smoked salmon for the bagels (not cheap, but a wow item)

 

[clh2]

Do you know anyone who has a Nesco roaster? That is like having a mini-portable oven! That would work for any egg bake casseroles or for a "really big" pan of oatmeal. Mine is 18 quarts - definitely bigger than the average crock pot.

Have fun!

 

[kleubanks]

Start them at home as they take longer. Add some fruit...apples or bananas...no much or gooeyness!

 

[TLuvsD]

I love my roaster...and I have used it as a giant crockpot and as a warming drawer. Make sure you try the casserole dishes in the roaster before you start, just to see how they will fit (if you are not cooking in the roaster). If someone has a microwave to heat things, that would help, too.

 

[Kitzka]

Look into making a ham and cheese strata or a few of them. It's one of my go to items for Christmas breakfast when we have 20 or so

Good luck!

 

[Lisa71]

We did a huge brunch shower for my BFF and her second baby. Baby was a big surprise at 40 and very celebrated. We did crust less broccoli quiches warmed in warming trays and they were a huge hit.

 

[Mrs.Malone]

Hi,

My friend and I volunteered to run a teacher appreciation breakfast at school next week. We will have to feed about 80 people and it will be a buffet style so the teachers can come in when they have a chance.

We are planning on going to Costco to get mini muffins, bagels, cream cheese, fruit, etc. I would like to add something hot and was thinking about using the crock pot so whatever we have will stay warm for the 2 hours it is there. Have you ever made oatmeal in a crock pot? Does it get gummy or does it stay fresh?

Any other ideas hot or cold?

Thank you!

We did a school staff breakfast with all the things you mentioned plus a crockpot of mini wieners (in sauce made of grape jelly and chili sauce) and a crockpot of steel cut oats. Only one or two people touched the oatmeal. It was good and we had nice toppings like brown sugar and walnuts for it, but it couldn't compete with the other goodies. Every last mini wiener was eaten. Unfortunately the mini wieners are much pricier than oats.

 

[Lisa71]

We have made the mini wieners or meatballs in that sauce since I was a kid...so yummy!

 

[POOHsie]

The egg casseroles of all varieties, hash brown casseroles, quiches and French toast casseroles are good suggestions as well as the mini-wieners with the cocktail sauce. They can be made the day before and warmed before serving. Not so sure about the Oatmeal. I had hotel oatmeal once from a hot pot of some sort, and it was thick and gummy. It was yuck. I don't associate hot cereal with adults attending a function.

Be sure to have a few toasters, butter and a few jams. I don't like untoasted bagels, and I don't care for cream cheese. Some of your guests will probably think this way, too. Maybe have some whole wheat bread for toasting.

 

[MSSANDRA]

We frequently do breakfast at our church and serve about a 100. We have done the breakfast casseroles and they are not hard at all. We do about 4 large ones but have plenty of other things too and we serve them ourselves to control portion sizes. We have also done a big pot of grits (sort of like the oatmeal of the south). We have also done sausage biscuits. We bake canned biscuits and fix the small patties of sausage. They do not have to be hot hot and keep well. We have also done pancakes. That would mean a griddle and someone to man it but not hard and can be sorta special if you add all sorts of toppings.
For the other things, we have done the things mentioned plus mini doughnuts, coffee cake, cheese toast, french toast sticks, toast and jelly etc.

We always have two different juices, milk and coffee. Sometimes we do chocolate milk too. We have kids too, but many adults drink it too.

 

[kymom99]

Just thought of this. If you have GFS where you are, they have a frozen breakfast casserole which is a sausage, potatoes, cheese type thing. You could get a couple of those and heat them at home then put them in those warmer carrier things or maybe see if you can use the ovens at the school.