Feeding a family reunion

A person can know she’s reached true adulthood by several measures: having a child, buying her own house, or organizing a family reunion.

Despite having accomplished the first two things, I have yet to experience the third. I’m more of a family reunion apprentice. The last time my family planned a gathering, I nagged my siblings via e-mail to pick a date, while my parents made all the decisions about the venue and menu. The time before that, I just cooked the pasta salad and sloppy joes.

Still, I’ve been to enough of these gatherings now to know some of the important points. The main one: more than any other family event, the reunion is all about the group. It’s not like a wedding, anniversary, or birthday, where one or two people are the stars and can plan the event to suit themselves.

Therefore, a reunion’s overall emphasis is usually on traditions rather than trends. But that doesn’t mean the food and the setting have to be the same old thing, especially if the same old thing means the same people keep doing all the work. Keep the basics, incorporate a few new details and everyone’s happy.

Pullman resident Kristine Zakarison’s family has regular reunions. As a vegetarian, she is quite used to the fine art of balancing her personal preferences with the group’s.

“Food planning has been tough at our reunions, as some of my Montana relatives just can’t believe that some vegetarians really don’t eat even chicken. No red meat is their idea of vegetarianism.”

Still, family recipes are a common thread for the Zakarisons and a main feature at their reunions. Last year, they even created a family cookbook, combining their history with favorite recipes.

“What strikes me about our family reunions is the interesting combination of food. Someone always wants to create a Norwegian favorite, along with recipes passed down through the Zak generations and current favorites,” Zakarison said. “Of course, I’m glad that we don’t go all the way back to Norway, since part of our family’s history is that when they left, they were so poor, they were making soup out the bark of the trees – a true story.”

The Zakarison reunions are potluck, but that is not the only option for family reunion food. Potlucks won’t work well if many far-flung relatives will be attending who won’t have access to a kitchen. In this case, consider having the event catered, either by a professional caterer at the site of your choosing or by booking the party room of a restaurant or buffet accustomed to handling large groups.

Guests can go through the restaurant buffet, or order from a limited group menu. Simply discuss and confirm your arrangements with the restaurant manager several months in advance. Then, no one in the family has to cook, clean up, or do dishes afterward.

Take this a bit further, and you’ve got another popular option for reunions that last the weekend: Rent an entire resort that can cater multiple meals for the group on site.

Pullman residents Bill Blair and Jenni Light are taking that route this summer. They are helping Light’s father plan an upcoming family reunion, and neither Jenni nor her father has forgotten one Light- Longenecker family reunion at a campground a few years ago, where just a couple of relatives did most of the cooking for over 40 people in an R.V.

“Since then we’ve had our reunions catered, so one or two people don’t have to do all the work. It’s so worth it,” Light said. “It’s also nice when the cooking can be done right on site, so this year my dad is thinking we’re probably going to have it at N-Sid-Sen (a United Church of Christ camp on the east side of Lake Coeur d’Alene).”

If you’re lucky enough to have a backyard suitable for entertaining and you relish the prospect of cooking for a crowd, by all means, volunteer as host. If needed, rent lawn chairs, a lawn tent, and even big containers to keep lemonade cold and coffee hot.

The easiest menu for backyard gatherings will include something grilled, along with the usual summer picnic food. There are reasons barbecue and salads are traditional: They will feed a huge number of people inexpensively, most can be made ahead or easily purchased from a deli or pit barbecue caterer, and they’re kid pleasers, too.

Online help is plentiful for family reunion planners. Better Homes and Gardens magazine has a special section of its Web site devoted just to family reunions. Here are a couple of suggested recipes from that site, plus a family rhubarb cake recipe that travels well.

Pulled Chicken Sandwiches

2-pound roasted chicken

1 medium onion, cut into 1/4-inch slices

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/3 cup cider vinegar or white wine vinegar

1/2 cup tomato sauce

3 to 4 tablespoons seeded and finely chopped fresh red and/or green serrano chile peppers

2 tablespoons snipped fresh thyme

2 tablespoons molasses

2 tablespoons water

1/2 teaspoon salt

6 kaiser rolls or hamburger buns, split

Bread-and-butter pickle slices or sweet pickle slices

Cut the meat from the chicken, discarding skin and bones. Use 2 forks or your fingers to pull meat into shreds.

In a large skillet cook onion in hot oil over medium heat about 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally to separate slices into rings. Add vinegar. Cook and stir for 1 minute more.

Stir in tomato sauce, serrano peppers, thyme, molasses, water, and salt. Bring to boiling. Add the chicken; stirring gently to coat. Heat through. Serve on split rolls with pickle slices.

For easier preparation, purchase chicken pre-roasted from the store.

Note: Hot peppers contain oils that can burn eyes, lips, and sensitive skin, so wear plastic gloves while preparing them. Be sure to wash your hands thoroughly afterward.

Yield: 6 sandwiches

Approximate nutrition per serving (omitting pickles): 305 calories, 8 grams fat (2 grams saturated, 24 percent fat calories), 26 grams protein, 31 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams dietary fiber, 67 milligrams cholesterol, 627 milligrams sodium.

Vinaigrette Slaw

3 tablespoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons salad oil

1/2 teaspoon celery or caraway seeds (optional)

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

4 cups shredded green and/or red cabbage

1 cup shredded carrots (2 medium)

1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions (2)

For vinaigrette, in a screw-top jar combine vinegar, sugar, oil, caraway seeds (if desired), mustard, salt, and pepper. Cover and shake well. In a large bowl combine cabbage, carrots, and green onions. Pour vinaigrette over cabbage mixture. Toss lightly to coat. Cover and chill 2 to 24 hours.

For easier salad: use 5 cups packaged coleslaw mix for the cabbage and carrots.

Yield: 6 side-dish servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: 82 calories, 5 grams fat (less than one gram saturated, 49 percent fat calories), 1 gram protein, 10 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams dietary fiber, no cholesterol, 115 milligrams sodium.

Elsie Spurling’s Rhubarb Cake

One of the Zakarison’s family recipes is for rhubarb cake. My family has a rhubarb cake recipe, too, which my mother-in-law gave to me on a recipe card in her own handwriting. She took this cake to many a family gathering and on camping trips. I’ve included her recipe exactly as written; “shortening” can mean butter or margarine.

2 cups or more cut up rhubarb

2 cups sugar, divided

1/2 cup shortening

1 egg

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix rhubarb with 1/2 cup sugar. Cream shortening and 1 1/2 cups sugar, add egg. Sift dry ingredients and add to creamed mix alternately with buttermilk. Add vanilla and rhubarb. Bake at 350 degrees in a greased and floured 9-by-13-inch pan, approximately 50 minutes.

Yield: 12 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: 205 calories, 10 grams fat (2.5 grams saturated, 42 percent fat calories), 4 grams protein, 26 grams carbohydrate, 1 gram dietary fiber, 24 milligrams cholesterol, 82 milligrams sodium.