Party Time!

2009 has been a big year at the Furber house for parties. Birthday parties, end of the year parties, study parties, sleepovers. You name it, we've hosted it this year.

As a result, we've perfected the art of having everything on hand we might need to host a party at a moment's notice with little impact to the Furber house and its decor. For those Suburban Zen readers hoping to benefit from our experience in this area, here's our top ten list of things to stock in your pantry so you can be those parents who can put a party together in a flash:

1. 3-4 paper tablecloths from your local grocery store. Great for covering the largest surface in your house (for us it's the kitchen table), as that's usually the center point of any party.
2. Plastic plates, glasses, napkins and flatware. I always have my flatware ready in a basket like this filled with Libbey pint glasses so it's ready to go when I need it:
   
   Baskets can be found on Etsy, and my favorite source for Libbey pint glasses is FSW.com.
   
3. A card table and chairs. Doesn't have to be cute, just foldable so it's easy to store when you're not partying.
4. Extra chairs that are easy to store when party is over. We like the Tolix French Bistro Chairs because they look cute when you need them, and stack up out of the way when you don't.
5. The ingredients for your favorite cookie recipe. my favorite is Guittard Chocolate Chip Cookies.
6. A big box of microwave popcorn
7. A stash of prizes and favors. I cruise Target's dollar aisle regularly and stock up on fun pencils, socks, band-aids, post-its and other silly things kids like and store them up like a squirrel in winter
8. A stash of art supplies: pipe cleaners, google eyes, pom poms, markers, glue sticks. You'd be surprised how excited a group of 14 year old girls can get about a box of pipe cleaners.
9. A Bingo game. Surprisingly fun for all ages, and a good time filler. We got ours at Restoration Hardware several years ago, and it's filled many a lull in our parties.
10. A Dust Buster. So when one of your guests makes a little mess, you can quickly clean up and get back to the party.

We have eight little six year old girls visiting this afternoon for Katie's birthday party, and with a quick trip to the grocery store and a little staging, we'll be ready to go. Party is planned for 2-3:30, and by 4 Furbers hope to be cleaned up, relaxing and de-briefing on Katie's favorite parts of the day.

Just Like a Restaurant, but without the Waiters

I've been hearing some complaints from moms like myself lately about the durability of the plates and glasses in their kitchen. For them, and everyone else who has high traffic in the kitchen, I have some helpful advice: pretend your kitchen is a restaurant and stock it accordingly.

Restaurants typically use porcelain or stoneware plates because they don't chip or break easily, and they can survive millions of trips through the dishwasher. Don't confuse porcelain with china -- I'm talking heavy, thick porcelain plates. I think the best source for really durable white plates is Williams Sonoma.
They have Buffalo China, American made dinnerware still used in many restaurants:

And Apilco, a beautiful and heavy french porcelain that's perfect for a busy kitchen:

For their glassware, restaurants typically use pressed glass because of it's durability. Blown glass, even the heavy mexican variety looks pretty, but is prone to breaking and chipping. My favorite glass is the restaurant pint jar:

They're big, they're hard to break, and they stack in your cupboard. At AbestKitchen you can get two dozen of them for $46, so you can even break a few.

Probably the most angst inducing item in the family kitchen's cupboard is the wine glass. Even a working mom likes to have a glass of wine once in a while. However, if the thought of exposing your stemware to wagging tails, flailing arms and the occasional flying soccer ball raises your blood pressure, then Schott Zweisel is the glass for you.

It's virtually unbreakable. This video shows some of the tests that the company performs on the glassware to ensure durability -- nothing compared to what goes on in my house, but it's a start.

I've personally whacked a Schott Zweisel bordeaux glass on the edge of my office desk to conduct my own product quality test, and was unable to break it. Perfect.

My husband and I have had the same two dozen white porcelain dinner plates in our cupboard since we were married 17 years ago, and haven't broken a single one. Those regular Suburban Zen readers who are familiar with what goes on in the Furber house will find that shocking.

I can't say the same for my wine glasses, but that's a post for another day. And maybe another blog.

There is a Method to my Madness

In spite of all evidence to the contrary, there is a system of organization that holds the Furber house together, and it's about to be put to the ultimate test. We're looking forward to the arrival of eleven relatives for Thanksgiving. During the week of November 23rd, the occupancy of my house will range anywhere from 0 to 16 people, depending on time and day. This is the week when all of the various organizational and space saving tricks that I employ all year round come together to pay off big. For example:

My giant 120" kitchen table is too big for my family of five most of the year, but will be just the right size for the extended family.

Those Tolix french stacking chairs that I bought on sale in June will now come off the back porch, and sit around my table for the week so there's always room for everyone at the table.


My refrigerator will be filled with cleaned and chopped fruit and vegetables so everyone can help themselves throughout the week. (See post "I Love My Fridge" May 2008)

There's plenty of room for everyone (or nearly everyone) to crash. (See post "Welcome to Casa de los Furbers. Checkout is at Noon." August 2008)

We have lots of tiny bars of soap and tiny bottles of shampoo that we've collected. Perfect for guests. (See post "I Bought My House for the Bathtub." June 2008.)

I can find anything in my linen closet at a moment's notice. (See post "A Linen Closet Expose" May 2008)

I invested last year in Pottery Barn's Caterer's Box dessert plates and wine glasses, which will be put to good use as we blow through three meals worth of dishes each day. That will save us from the temptation of using paper plates and plastic glasses at every meal.


The foundation of my house is mostly white, so when everyone leaves, all I need is some hot water and bottle of bleach to get it all spotless again. (See post "Life in the White House" June 2008)

I expect the week of Thanksgiving to be fun and happy, with very little stress related to the care and keeping of the house. I still wish I had that cement floor with the drain in the middle, though. (See post "Get the Hose!" June 2008)

Five Boys or 50 Boys. Same Thing

I've always prided myself in having a house that goes back together very quickly after a party. My husband and I have a place for everything, and very easy care surfaces and materials in all the rooms. We usually can clean up in about 20 minutes after all our guests leave, even the 13 and under set.

However, we threw a party last night that presented new and interesting cleanup challenges -- some that we're still scratching our heads over. I took five 11 year old boys to the Giants game, then brought them back to the house for a movie and a sleepover. They were all very well behaved, but I can't help but wonder:

What they were doing when they got chocolate on the wall in the hallway
Why every ball in our garage is now on the roof
What they needed all those towels for
What that is on the rug in the family room and how it got there
Really, five boys and not one of them can hit the toilet?

The party was fun, and the boys had a great time, so we don't mind the little extra elbow grease to get the house back in order. However, for our next party, we'll have to play a little better defense. I'm thinking:

Sleeping in tents outside (the boys, not me)
Serving food that's not quite so delicious -- alfalfa sprouts and lima beans maybe
Giving each boy one towel and a box of clorox wipes instead of a goodie bag
Awarding a prize to the neatest kid -- probably a car

Cupcakes for 40

Slightly off my usual topic of interior design for people with kids, but the subject of baking for a small army is very topical at the Furber house lately, as I have three kids with birthdays all clumped together. Andie turned 13 on August 9th, Jack turns 11 on Thursday, and Katie turns five in early November (and between Jack and Katie, I usually make about a million eyeball cupcakes for Halloween).

Those who have nothing to prove usually send store bought treats to school. Because I am a working mother, I succumb to the pressure (mostly self-imposed) and bake from scratch all the treats that the kids take to their classrooms on their birthdays. That means I make about 140 cupcakes between September and November. I have a recipe that I love from the Alice Waters cookbook "Simple Food" that is easy, fast, stores great and makes about 30 cupcakes from a single batch. I thought I'd share it today for those working mothers like me who need a little help.

Alice Water’s Chocolate Cake

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 cups cake flour
2 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
6 tbsp. cocoa powder
8 tbsp. (1 stick) butter, softened
2 ½ cups brown sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
3 eggs, at room temperature
½ cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 ¼ cups boiling water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Butter a 9-inch cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. Butter the paper and dust the pan with flour or cocoa, shaking out the excess.

Put the chocolate into a heat-proof bowl. Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water (The water should not touch the bowl. Turn off the heat. Stir the chocolate from time to time until completely melted and smooth. Remove the bowl from over the pan.

Sift together cake flour, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder.

In a large bowl or a stand mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add brown sugar and vanilla and beat (cream) until light and fluffy. Beat eggs into mixture one at a time.

When egg are fully incorporated, stir in the melted chocolate. Add half the dry ingredients to this mixture and combine. Then stir in buttermilk. Stir in the rest of the dry ingredients.

Gradually pour in 1 ¼ cups boiling water, mixing just until incorporated.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Place the pan on a wire rack and allow cake to cool completely.

Run knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the cake. Remove the cake from the pan and peel off the parchment paper. If not using the same day, store the fully cooled cake in the pan, tightly covered.

Variations:
For a sheet pan, prepared a half-sheet pan as above. Pour in batter, smooth the top and bake for about 20 minutes.
Or, bake in two 9-inch cake pans for a two-layer cake.
For 24 individual cupcakes, bake for about 30 minutes.

I find the recipe makes 30 perfect sized cupcakes, and I sneak in whole wheat flour in place of the white flour the recipe calls for -- in a chocolate cake, no one notices.

There's a batch in my freezer right now, waiting for their big debut in Jack's class on Thursday.