Morning tea shout

I have a birthday coming up soon and need to take morning tea to work.I would like to do something different from the usual cakes and sausage rolls.Ideally it needs to be made the night before and doesn't require heating on the day.Any ideas (and recipes) would be much appreciated.Thanks.

how many people

I did a platter of subway sub rolls and sub cookies

Would be catering for about 25 - and some of those are very hungry young men!

You could do some nice ribbon sandwiches ( club sandwiches) savoury scones/muffins, mini quiche. Do you have anywhere at work where you can heat items at all?

The only heating option I have is a microwave unfortunately so would be best/easiest to have food that doesn't need to be warmed.

I just noticed that in your first post, sorry. The ones above I posted would be fine.

Knock them out with a platter of fresh fruit (grapes, strawberries and yoghurt covered raisins) , a salmon ball with crackers (cream cheese mixed with smoked salmon then rolled into a ball with plastic film and any fresh herb you have access to) and you'll be amazed how fasta bowl full of gummy snakes disappears ... or some other fun lolly as a treat! All in all costs about $30 for about 20 people. Good luck.

Take a sicky!LOL

If you are in Christchurch do milk SHAKES!

Big platter of pinwheel sammies. Easy to make with those long cut bread. Need about 2 loafs to make enough.Make mousetraps and cut into triangle quarters as these are nice wee morsels cold. Cold bread cases filled with ham and cream mushroom or ham cheese onion or if your feeling exotic some creamy seafood cases. These also taste yummy cold. Some ordinary sammies with maybe tomato ham egg or cheese (anything you like) also cut into quarter triangles, Chicken roles made with cut up chicken onion and mayanaise these look cool when rolled up and cut in half as they can sit on platter pointing up to make things look cool.
I put all this on a huge platter for savoury and then do smaller platter with buttered loaf maybe some bikkies and I make scrumptious choc truffles that men adore. These are just made from a packet of squiggle bikies with cream cheese vanilla whisk it all together or break it all up together and you can add raisins or anything ya wee heart loves. roll into balls and dip in choc white or brown. They look devine and taste even better. Throw all on platter with some fruit for a nice look.

You are booked for my birthday in September!

LOL
If you lived close I would gladly do it. I just love fiddling around and making food for these types of functions.

Use a savoury short pastry recipe - or purchase some - this rolls out and bakes and looks a little like flattened shortbread, though tastes different..

Roll out until about 3-4mm thick.. a little thicker than you would have pastry for a pie. Cut into small circles with a cookie cutter - the crinkle-edged ones look good.

Bake as per the recipe or packet instructions. Leave till completely cold and freeze until the day they're needed - or make a few days ahead and keep in an airtight container.

You can decorate them as you wish.. some of the following can be made in advance, then placed on the circles not long before being ready to serve:

* Mix some cream cheese and salmon or smoked salmon together, add chopped chives or a little chopped mint. Season to taste. Spread over the circles, top with a small piece of smoked salmon.

* A slice of avocado, a slice of tomato and some smoked salmon on top..

* Make some guacamole, and spread a thick layer over the circle, sprinkle with paprika and top with a small wedge of tomato.

* Use some cream cheese, seasoned to taste and a little lemon juice added, and spread on the circles. Top with some caviar.

* Spread a little hummus on the circles, then top with a thin layer of pesto.

* Place a slice of tomato on the circles, then top with pesto.

* Place a slice of cucumber on the circles, top with finely chopped mint mixed into some cream cheese, cottage cheese or hummus and season to your taste.

* Mix some finely chopped sundried tomato and some finely chopped mint into some cream, cottage cheese or hummus and spread on the circles.. top with a tiny piece of mint or parsley.

* Mix some chopped smoked salmon into some hummus - season to taste if needed, spread on the circles and decorate.

* Mix some sweet chilli sauce or some pickle, chutney or relish into cream cheese, cottage cheese or hummus, season if needed and spread on the circles and decorate.

* Mix some chopped gherkins into cream cheese, cottage cheese or hummus and season if needed, add smoked salmon if you want, spread on the circles and decorate.

* Other ingredients you could use:

* Salami, chopped or sliced in circles
* Olives - sliced or chopped
* Fresh herbs - parsley, mint, lemon balm, thyme, sage, etc..
* Grilled chopped crispy bacon
* Hard boiled eggs chopped through cream cheese, cottage cheese or hummus and seasoned.
* Slices of hard boiled egg.
* Mashed hardboiled eggs, a little mayonnaise added and seasoned to taste - add a little curry powder and some chopped parsley - the good ole savoury egg recipe adapted to top the circles.
* Thin slices of fresh tuna
* Whatever you fancy....

cold meats(salamis, hams, cocktails sausages ..etc..depends how flash your blokes are...?? - you could get some delish exotic slalamis) and cheese board with thick chunks/ wedges of speciality bread from Foodtown (or the like).Depending on the weather and it they are hot choc/ special coffee drinkers have a special coffees / hot chocs - with small bottles offlavouredsyrups selection for something different...they could help themselves ...depends on your budget too./

Bugga!You are way down in Invercargill!LOL

Hmmm not being funny but I did a work shout where I had the same thoughts as you of doing something different and did asparagus rolls,hot chips, a beautiful carrot cake with cream cheese icing and some other things I can't remember (this was about 6 years ago) and with working in a really blokey environment the buggers pretty much turned their noses up at it - usually people did sausage rolls and chips and mince savouries and I guess that is what they wanted then too - just a thought depending on your kind of team I guess

How about marinated and baked chicken drumsticks, cooked cold sausage slit lengthwise and stuffed with a nice relish, boiled and peeled eggs, chunks of cheese, a pot of chutney and some fresh buttered bread buns.

I took a plate to a function yesterday where no one takes sweets so I bought a $20 piece of Aussie sirloin on special, salted it, roasted it at 200 for just under 30 mins and left it to cool down in a covered container that allowed the steam to evaporate and then just thinly sliced it and put out with a pot of homemade chutney and some sourdough bread. It was very popular, along with the sausages and homemade brawn that someone else had provided.

jezabel.Pinwheel sammies are delicious and I love making them and have done so for years for various catering jobs, but suddenly we can not get the long cut bread. Apparently Q Bakers are not doing these any more. Where do you get your long cut from. I have started making these with two pieces of bread and sort of half rolling them, looks good, but more fiddly.

Hi marie,
do you have a New World supermarket there? or how about Couplands? you can order the long cut loaves from either place. I got mine ordered from our local NW but was rather brassed off when I went into countdown and seen them there for over $1.00 cheaper grrrrr. But most of the supermarkets will order them in for you or bakeries will especially cut loaves this way for you.
I do no that many Stores are now asking to order and not just putting on shelves as they are not sold so well as regular cut.
Hope that helps.
I can make 3 pinwheels out of one slice and that is with the crusts cut off. I usually roll mine a bit with a rolling pin before loading in the tasties.

Yum that all sounds a delicious and wise bet for men.
I used to love those cooked sausages with relish and spud in the split yum yum could buy those at school at our canteen which going back 35 years ago was pretty darn exotic lol.
Yes nice chicken nibbles that you get ready marinated are very good idea for guys.
Gosh i am hungry now . :-)

That's where my head is at.
I think I would have hot pies and buttered bread, tomato sauce. Arrange for someone to go pick up the pies from the bakery...
They won't graffiti on the loo walls after that feed.