When we lived in California every year we would have a Dessert Party. It is a fun party where everyone gets together and eats some great desserts. The basic idea of the party is that you invite a group of friends who make their favorite or best dessert. They bring it to the party and when they arrive their dessert is given a number, this way everything should remain anonymous. Guests are given ballots and vote by the number of the dessert. Awards and prizes are given at the end of the party.
Be creative and find some cute invitations or create your own using some great scrapbook paper and a computer. Be sure to include the following Dessert Contest Rules so the guests have some idea of the party theme.
DESSERT CONTEST RULES
- One dessert entry per person. (Please only homemade desserts, store bought desserts will be disqualified and eaten immediately!!)
- Entries will be given a number as you arrive. This number will identify your dessert.
- All entries will be judged by the guests.
- Guests will taste each dessert and then judge on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the best!
- Guests will judge each dessert in the following categories: taste and presentation.
- The following prizes will be awarded:
- Grand Prize Winner
- Best Presentation
- Best Tasting
- Honorable Mention
- Please bring a copy of your recipe if you would like to share with the other guests!
These rules are just a guideline; please feel free to come up with your own dessert party rules. But, try to keep them as simple as possible because your guests want to enjoy the party and not a complicated ballot! A simple voting process will also limit the time you spend away from your guests to count the votes and determining the winners will take a shorter time.
Set up a specific area to display the desserts, such as: a large table or kitchen counter. Keep all the desserts in one area and label each dessert with a number as the guests arrive. Keep track of the guest’s dessert and corresponding number. Be sure to provide plates, bowls and utensils on the table for the guests to use. Set up a separate area to provide drinks, such as: water, soda, punch or alcoholic beverages. There will be very little preparation time involved in setting up this party and you will be able to enjoy the desserts with your guests.
Have fun and maybe it can become an annual event!
So, we did this about every other year until we moved to the Midwest. It was always a lot of fun, but the last one we had in California we decided to have a “Food Party” with categories for appetizers, main course dishes and desserts. We also had rules that no one could bring store bought items in, but someone always snuck something in!!
We tried a number of different methods of scoring from paper ballots with various categories to marbles. The marbles worked the best since all we had to do was count the marbles to find the “Grand Prize winner” and the other prizes were awarded at the discretion of the hosts. If anyone can think of a better way for the voting process I would love to hear your suggestions!
I had forgotten about the marble process of voting, that was probably the easiest way to determine the winner. Guests are given a certain amount of marbles and use them for the entries they like and enjoy, guests can use one or all their marbles for entries, the entry with the most marbles wins the Grand Prize!! A simple and easy process!!