Gastronomic maths the recipe for a good party
WHILE most of Wellington slept in this morning, staff at Government House rose at dawn to prepare 250 kilograms of strawberries, 200kg of gelato and 3000 oysters for their biggest garden party in living memory.
Three thousand people will be treated to tea, bubbly and canapes under marquees on Government House lawn this afternoon at its annual Waitangi Day commemoration, the Bledisloe Reception. The New Zealand Army Band will entertain a crowd containing diplomats, investiture honours recipients, community groups, and GovernorGeneral Sir Jerry Mateparae.
This year for the first time, 1750 people won places at the party through a ballot run on Facebook, making the guest list larger than it was in 2002, when the Queen attended.
Preparations for the reception began in October, and had reached fever pitch in the kitchen yesterday, head chef Simon Peacock said.
‘‘It seems crazy. It takes months and months of organisation, and it’s over in two hours.’’
Thousands of eggs would be transformed with military precision today into the yearly crowd favourite, mini egg sandwiches.
‘‘I think I’d have a riot on my hands if I didn’t serve those,’’ Peacock said.
‘‘Each egg is lovingly cooked and peeled and checked over for any One shell could ruin everything.’’
Peacock had calculated each sandwich contained an egg and a half, and a party guest would eat an average threequarters of a sandwich in two hours. ‘‘We call it sandwich maths.’’ Great drifts of strawberries were always a hit with the crowds, and Peacock hoped a shellfish theme this year would go down well, especially 3000 Clevedon Coast oysters on the half shell.
For those who had never visited Government House, seeing the mansion and lawn after a long walk up the driveway was pretty special, event organiser and
shell. principal attendant Marion Wortley said. ‘‘It’s a great entrance. They go ‘wow’. It’s quite spectacular.’’
Wortley had attended garden parties at Buckingham Palace and Holyrood in Britain, and said the Bledisloe Reception introduced a relaxed Kiwi flavour to a formal event.
‘‘On the day it all goes fantastically well. The staff enjoy it too. It’s a nostalgia sort of thing. It’s a touch of the old world, a garden party.’’ Go to dompost.co.nz to see video of the preparations.