Food/Beverage Ideas for Preference
 

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I have only one suggestion...please serve something sugar free in the beverage area! Diet pop, Crystle Light punch, something! If you've got a diabetic PNM, it makes her feel more comfortable. I hated having to refuse refreshments at parties, but when your options are regular coke and cake, you're backed into a corner. It makes us appear rude...some diabetics (like myself) are pretty upfront about their condition/reasons for not accepting, but some don't feel as comfortable.

Chocolate covered strawberries are fun, sugar cookies with icing in your sorority's colors, sparkling grape fruit juice for a drink with a strawberry in it is cute too...I think at Ole Miss they can only serve a drink during preference round now but I remember chocolate covered strawberries were very nice. Also you could do a chocolate mousse in a small glass or even tiramisu.

(sorry if I spelt anything wrong, my brain is about dead!)

The time of day is a factor. I LOVE the breakfast food idea.
Also, how long is your party, how much time do you give to the food/conversation portion and do you have china and silverware that you use or do you want to stick to finger foods? Budget is also a major decision maker.

In the sweet category, the traditional Chocolate dipped strawberry is always nice as long as the strawberries are small enough to eat in one bite. Brownies cut into an attractive shape with a cookie cutter and then dusted with powdered sugar are cute and usually fit into every budget.
If you have enough time you can begin with a cheese and fruit tray on each table and then right before the ceremony serve something sweet. I know petit fours are extremely popular, and are just the right size usually.

we didn't serve food during our pref. party last year (no frills), but i belive we served ice water and sparkling wine

Ok I feel really bad that that never occurred to me, as our philanthropy is focused on research for juvenile diabetes...but GREAT point. Thanks for posting it.

We usually have very small squares of three different kinds of cheescake, maybe two strawberries, and some other tea-like finger food. Some sororities on campus have alums that make a little cake or cookie with each PNM's name on it in icing.

I agree on making sure there's something that diabetic PNMs can enjoy - even if it's just water. During formal recruitment at the start of my junior year, I was talking to a PNM who offhandedly remarked that she was diabetic. We only had water and regular soda to offer (same as the other chapters), so she was drinking water. When I saw her name on the invite list for pref, I talked to the day chair and mentioned that we had a diabetic PNM. Diet Coke materialized. It must have worked - she joined AEPhi and became my little. :) I made sure there was diet soda at bid day as well.

As for food and drink, it's been a looooong time since I was an active, and I don't remember what we did for food, but we offered non-alcoholic sparkling cider, water, and soda to drink. Most people went for the cider.

i'll bet you served sparkling apple or grape juice. npc recruitment forbids alcoholic beverages.

we always served something we called ant hill pie,others call it oreo peppermint sandwich- you crush a large pkg. of oreos and sprinkle half of the crumbs in the bottom of a 13 x 9 pan. spread softened peppermint ice cream on top, sprinkle the top with the remaining crumbs and freeze. you can either slice and serve on a chilled glass plate or serve in an ice cream dish. it is delicious.
my family loves me to make this at christmas time-when we can get the peppermint ice cream.

We usually serve non-alcoholic sparkling beverages--apple cider, grape juice, apple juice. As for food, the year I went through recruitment, my chapter served little slices of cheesecake. This past formal recruitment, we served various flavors of mini creampuffs.

My chapter usually does several sparkling wines, lemonade, and water. We have a cheese&cracker tray, veggies&dip, mini-cheesecakes, and cupcakes. :)

I agree with having a diet option, but don't have that as your ONLY option. I have reactions to anything containing aspartame (NutraSweet) and back when I was going through recruitment we had beverages for second parties and preference. Anyway, at one house, they served flavored sparkling water in cute cups- well the sparkling water was sweetened with aspartame and I was fine at that party, but it hit me halfway through the party at the NEXT house and I ended up puking in their formal bathroom. Needless to say I was cut by that house (But not the house that poisoned me):rolleyes:

Anyway, for food we had a bowl-mold that looked like a rose and we would make the rose chocolate bowls and then fill them with mousse. I think we got the mold from a cake decorating store. (we had a Mom make them, so I don't know how hard they would be to make as a chapter).

Wow. How Awful. You poor thing!!! I get sick from Aspartame as well -- it gives me migraines. At least everything worked out with the "poisoners."

As for the food question, I think the cupcake idea is a great one. Especially if you made those mini-cupcakes--easy to eat and so very cute.

The year that I came through recruitment, my chapter served finger foods and pink lemonade. They bought deli rolls and made up fruit skewers and put some cheese on the plates. This year we actually had an oven so we served a version of beef wellington, some quiche (sp?) and a dip. For the dessert round, we had banana pudding in martini glasses, mini eclairs, and a fruit salad. It seemed to go over pretty well except for the fact that no one really knew how to eat the beef wellington. But it went well.

If the "finger food" being served contains meat, remember not all girls can eat it. Some might be vegans/veterinarians, too. Like me!