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I'm not sure how to interpret this question. When I read it, I thought it was foods in regard to your own family's ethnicity so I was going to say lefse and krumkake because we have Norweigan and Swedish heritage and these are staples on our holiday table.
If this is just a debate of what's best for a gathering then I don't think there's any right answer. I guess I don't know anyone that doesn't like some sort of pizza and you can usually get enough variety to satisfy even the pickiest as long as they will eat crust, sauce and cheese.
Me too, jmcahacker. Every Christmas we'd have a Norwegian feast for our family guests. It was and still is a big deal because even though we live in a place with a lot of Norwegian-Americans there is scarcely any place you can find a meal and all the cookies and desserts any other time of year.
Hah. Other than the lutefisk I don't know why anyone wouldn't enjoy the treats and a good ham soup with potato dumplings and sour cream -kumla.
If they all live here in America they are probably Americans so what's wrong with a good old American cookout Hamburger?Hot dogs? Steak? Barbecue. Add picnic type sides of salads and good ole Apple pie or Strawberry shortcake for desert. That seems pretty Ethnic for Americans or even guests of America who want to experience good ole fashioned American Ethnic cookout.
That's what I was thinking as well. If you want to up it a little bit, you can do steak, shrimp, baked potato and a nice green salad. No recipe needed and all on the BBQ except of course the salad. It's all very easy with no special spices or ingredients.
I'm not sure how to interpret this question. When I read it, I thought it was foods in regard to your own family's ethnicity so I was going to say lefse and krumkake because we have Norweigan and Swedish heritage and these are staples on our holiday table.
If this is just a debate of what's best for a gathering then I don't think there's any right answer. I guess I don't know anyone that doesn't like some sort of pizza and you can usually get enough variety to satisfy even the pickiest as long as they will eat crust, sauce and cheese.
I wondered the same thing. The "for family gatherings" bit made me think it referred to, a family might go for what reflects their ethnicity (especially if they're 1st-2nd generation in a country, or of an ethnicity that is more likely to keep some of their ethnic traditions). Otherwise I'm not sure why such a gathering would have a "theme" of a certain ethnicity's food? Let alone one you'd call "go-to" as if they never do anything else. (Unless it's a matter of, every single person in the family just looooves Ethiopian and can all agree that that's all they want to eat, or they're gathering for a specifically ethnic {or, pseudo- "ethnic") holiday like St. Patrick's Day or Cinco de Mayo.)
So many choices, so few chances to get together: I think for us, as a family, a good bbq with everyone bringing their favorite side is the answer. It can be burgers on the grill or a wonderful brisket smoked for hours. This of course is more for spring and summer get togethers. Next on our list would be Italian, followed by a fun "make your own" taco night. Even though I am a true lover of Chinese food, I don't think I would serve it at a family event. Indian, etc, never at a family gathering, too many people are not lovers of mid eastern foods.
When DH's relatives from the Netherlands visited I made them a Minnesota themed meal - turkey, wild rice, pasta salad with little pastas shaped like the state of MN, blueberry and strawberry pies.
Guess you couldn't exactly call that ethnic but rather regional. But I thought it was a good way to introduce them to some of our foods and fun.
I vacation in the Yucatan peninsula and sometimes I treat people to a Mayan foods meal. My family always looks forward to what new recipes I have brought home.
When I was a kid the whole family went to Amendola's catering hall on Westchester Square in the Bronx. Amendola's is gone now but the memory of their Clams Oreganata lives on.
As an adult I was introduced to the excellent foods of China Town Manhattan. A group of us found a restaurant on one of the side streets in China Town that had a meal called the banquet. It was a sampling of several Chinese-American dishes served family style.
While I can't speak for the Chinese community, I can say that many Italians wouldn't really recognize some of what we call Italian food.
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