Gumbo for a Crowd

If you’ve read the latest issue of my newsletter, you already know that gumbo on Christmas Eve is a long-standing tradition in our family. This year we invited 40-something people to my not-so-big house! The menu is very simple—gumbo, rice, rolls, potato salad (sounds crazy, but this is what we like with our gumbo), a couple of appetizers and desserts, and we end the evening with homemade eggnog (with or without bourbon).

Usually, I make gumbo without a specific recipe in mind. A big ol’ pot should be enough, right? Not exactly! Past experience has taught me that when so many guests are invited, I need to be somewhat concerned about how many servings I’ll actually need. It’s not a good thing to run out of gumbo before everyone has had a chance to get their first serving. Yes... this has happened before.

A reasonable person would assume one cup of gumbo per person would be sufficient. These person obviously does not know MY family and friends! I now know that my adult guests will have an average of 1.5 servings each. Children are a little more difficult to predict, but I allow for a half cup per kid. Having determined these amounts, I decided to make a little over 2.5 gallons of gumbo and 30 cups of cooked rice.

Here are some of the recipes for my Christmas Eve Menu. Enjoy!

Gumbo for a Crowd
Potato Salad
Sweet Potato Pie
Homemade Eggnog