Tag holiday party

Parties That Cook’s Corporate Holiday Party Round Up: Early November

I know it’s been a while since we’ve taken a peek at our corporate events. Time to get back to the grind, and have some fun reminiscing about holiday cooking parties! We’re going to pick up right about where we left off: Early November. We had quite the start, with 26 corporate team building events in the first couple of weeks. Seems like Christmas came early this year!

On November 2nd, Indiana University‘s Kelley School of Business opted to host a Small Plates event in the San Francisco venue, Cookhouse. Indiana University host, Christine Z., is no stranger to Parties That Cook events – she’s hosted three over the past three years! Why does Christine keep coming back? “Great customer service and they’re easy to work with.” Sounds good to me! She noted that she thought this event was successful because of the laid back atmosphere (no wonder they keep picking Sumptuous Small Plates events!).

A couple of days later, on November 4th, Broadcom host Melissa D. wanted to push her team out of their comfort zone, and give them something they wouldn’t be used to. With a Cupcake Wars baking competition, boy did she accomplish her goals! Lead Chef Carolyn reported that though the 32 men in this group were a little hesitant at first, it didn’t take long for them to get into it. She added that they had a lot of fun and got very creative. And from the photos (some pictured here), you would think these were professional bakers! It can’t get any better than a perfect score on our post-event survey!

That same day, a group from the Hewlett Foundation participated in a Chef’s Table group cooking event. Host Christine T. explains, “I had never done a cooking class with a group before this, so I was a little nervous about how it would work – turned out great! It was lots of fun, food was great. I’d say it was definitely a success!” She knew she wanted to host a hands-on cooking event, and went with Parties That Cook after seeing our reviews. She added that “The food was so good! Maybe too good… We were completely stuffed by the end!” Still, I must say thanks for taking that leap of faith, Christine! I’m glad we delivered “A positive experience, from beginning to end.”

The third and final event of the day was held in a gorgeous private home with Align Technology, Inc. Host Tina B. opted for a Chef’s Table after deciding that Parties That Cook had the “best of what [she] saw both in terms of referrals and online menus.” After the event, she commented that the event “was very successful. We had a lot of fun and the team was great. The chef was perfect.” Nicely done, Scott! It’s great to hear that we live up to expectations!

Rounding out this blog post, we have a Chicago Kitchen Challenge event for Pepsi Co. Host Linda B. actually found us by searching the internet for “team building events“! LOVE IT. According to all-star Lead Chef Heidi, “Clients loved it! The host, Linda, must’ve said a dozen times, ‘this is awesome’. She was happy with the party from the moment that they arrived, and all the guests were thrilled at the end of the night.” Linda herself echoed the report, saying, “The night was great everything exceeded our expectations. Heidi and the team were awesome leaders. The event was successful because of their leadership but also because we all came to have fun.” Fantastic!

If you would like to see your event featured in a Parties That Cook blog, let us know! We’d be delighted to whip up something about your event for your company newsletter or team email!

Happy Holidays!

Parties That Cook’s Go-To Holiday Party Dessert: Pumpkin Roulade with Ginger-Cream Cheese Frosting

Halloween weekend is almost here. Get ready for parties, costumes, candy and more parties! Whether you’re hosting, or just attending, you’re going to need some sweet reinforcements. We’re arming you with a great go-to recipe that’s sure to please through the entire holiday season! (We’re talkin’ Halloween, Thanksgiving AND Christmas!) See this recipe in action at our Thanksgiving Boot Camp: Desserts cooking class!

Looking for something a little more… savory? Check out our upcoming Thanksgiving Boot Camp: Appetizer and Entree classes, starting as early as this Tuesday, November 1st! The same great appetizer menus (including Mini Apple, Roquefort and Caramelized Onion Pies with Honey – YUM) will be featured in Chicago, San Francisco and Seattle.

Mini Pumpkin Roulade Filled with Ginger and Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe
This recipe can also be found in our Dessert Recipe Library!

Ingredients
Cake:
1 1/2 cups AP flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon kosher salt
5 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 cup powdered sugar for dusting cakes

Ginger and Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar, plus 1 cup more for sifting on top of roulade
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 Tablespoon ginger juice, from about a 2 inch piece of ginger
2 cups heavy cream

Prepare Pan:
Nonstick baking spray
Parchment paper
AP flour for dusting
2 13×18 inch half sheet pans

Methods/Steps
Prepare Pans: Spray the sheet pans heavily with nonstick spray. Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit into the bottom only of the sheet pans. Spray paper with the nonstick spray and dust the entire pan well with flour. Tap out the excess flour and set aside.

Preheat oven to 3750ºF.

Mix Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt.

Make Batter: Crack the eggs into another bowl and add the sugar. Using a hand or stand mixer, whip the eggs and sugar on medium high speed for at least 3 minutes or until thick, light yellow and almost double in volume. Turn the mixer to low and add the pumpkin. Mix well to combine. Add the flour and mix gently, just until incorporated. Do not over mix or cake will be tough. Use a rubber spatula to finish mixing the bottom of the batter.

Bake Cake: Divide batter among the sheet pans (about 4 cups of batter per pan) Using an offset spatula, gently spread the batter, evenly, into the pans. Bake cake for 10-12 minutes.

Prepare Rolling Surface: While cakes are baking, place a piece of parchment paper (same size or slightly bigger than cake) onto a cutting board or work surface (one piece of parchment is needed per pan of cake). Generously dust the parchment with powdered sugar.

Roll Cake: This step must be done while the cake is still warm. Remove cake from oven and loosen the edges of cakes with a knife or bench scraper. Immediately invert the cakes onto the sugared parchment. Gently peel off the layer of parchment paper baked onto the cake and cut the cake in half down the middle. While the cake is still warm, generously dust the top with powdered sugar. Gently roll the cake and parchment into a long tube. Place the cake roll seam side down onto a work surface and let cool, about 10 minutes.

Make Frosting: Using a hand mixer, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt until the cream cheese is light and fluffy.

Add Cream: Slowly start to add the cream while beating (If added to fast you may get lumps). Whip until cream is thick, doubled in volume and holds stiff peaks.

Frost Cakes: Gently unroll cakes. Divide frosting (about 1 cup frosting per roll) and frost evenly over cake. Gently re-roll the cake without the parchment this time. Again, dust top with powdered sugar to hide any cracks.

Cut Cake: Trim the edges if necessary. Cut the rolls into 12 pieces each. Place the pieces into cupcake liners and serve.

Serves/Makes
Makes about 48 large pieces

Recipe created by Parties That Cook® | www.PartiesThatCook.com