Trial Runs

When you are planning to bake or cook for a special occasion, public function, donation, or company, you should always do a trial run of all the dishes you plan to make. You should plan well in advance, and know exactly what you are serving, how you will make it, what you can do in advance, how you will reheat food, serve it, etc. When baking food for functions or to give to other people, never make a recipe that you have not made before, tasted, and are confident in making. If you do want to try a new recipe, make sure it is something you will be able to sample and have time to redo if necessary. For example, do not choose a bundt cake recipe because it is really obvious when you have cut a slice out of it to sample! A few crumbs from the pan is not enough to adequately rate a baked good.

My mother has recently tested out a few recipes that she plans on serving to company. I am also preparing for this event, but I'm using mostly tried and true recipes I have made numerous times before. With rial runs, my mother can get immediate feedback from family members who are not afraid to be honest, and tweak the recipe based on this criticism. It also allows her to make any necessary ingredient or quantity changes. Making the recipe in advance also forces you to go through all of the motions, and this way when you make it for others, you will feel more confident in your actions, and will be able to anticipate possible drawbacks. When you test a recipe that does not turn out perfectly, you should do another test with the changes you made, to ensure these changes really do solve the problem, unless the changes are very minor. If you want to try a more elaborate dish to impress company, it is especially important to do a test run, since you may not be familiar with the process or ingredients. Trial runs will take a lot of stress off your shoulders, will ensure you are not set for failure, and enable you to sample some yummy treats! Bottom line is: never serve a dish to company that you have not tried and approved before!