These days, keeping it simple is easier said than done. Tune in to the Food Network or click through Pinterest and you’ll be instantly bombarded with picture-perfect, made-from-scratch food that seems s o easy to make. Finding drool-worthy recipes is easy. Narrowing them down is the hard part.
Around this time every year, caterer Mary Berg gets a panicked phone call — or three — from someone who needs help making a huge holiday party spread. “I call it over-committing,” says Berg, owner of Delish! Catering based in Olathe. “They say, ‘I wanted to do it all myself, but it’s down to the wire and I just can’t pull it together.’ ”It just requires a little planning, Berg says. Her idea of party food is a few appetizers anchored by an overflowing cheese tray. Berg selects hunks of cheddar, Swiss, goat and blue cheese, then surrounds them with roasted walnuts, dried tart cherries and apricots, crackers, and fruit that doesn’t require slicing. Think grapes or berries. Berg rounds out the festive spread with a warm dip — she likes spicing up spinach-artichoke with chipotle peppers — served with chips and vegetables, plus one or two made-from-scratch hors d’oeuvres.Lately, Berg is really into making bite-size stuffed potatoes. “I roast fingerling potatoes whole with olive oil, sea salt and cracked black pepper,” Berg says. “I scoop the center out and fill it with bacon, white cheddar and chives. Men and women love it.” The stuffed potatoes can be assembled ahead of time and baked right before the party. And because they taste great at room temperature, you don’t have to worry about transferring them from oven to table at the exact minute guests arrive.Sticking with room-temperature foods takes a lot of stress out of party planning, says Jenny Steffens Hobick, a former caterer who writes about easy entertaining on her blog, Everyday Occasions. “I don’t like to serve anything that needs to be hot, because I don’t like chafing (or warming) dishes on the table,” Steffens Hobick says. Plus, she says, it’s more fun to chat with guests than to get stuck in the kitchen waiting for stuffed mushrooms to brown up. If you really love, say, crab cakes fresh from the oven, Steffens Hobick recommends popping them in after guests arrive. Once they’re done, put the hot cakes on a pretty tray and just pass it around. “That makes it kind of special,” Steffens Hobick says.Just don’t try to do six or eight hors d’oeuvres like that. Both Berg and Steffens Hobick say there’s no shame in store-bought shortcuts.Berg adds kick to bagged kettle chips with a dusting of ancho chile powder. Then she piles them high in clear, square vases for a pretty presentation. Even baby carrots look special when they’re in a glass vase, Berg says.Steffens Hobick makes a caramelized onion tartlet with sheets of puff pastry from the grocery store freezer. She also buys frozen bite-size cream puffs and decorates them with a dollop of chocolate buttercream frosting. They’re cheap and easy, but always popular at parties, she says.Grab-and-go options like those are becoming easier to find in grocery stores.One of the first things you see when you walk into the Overland Park Whole Foods is a refrigerator full of hummus, vegetable platters and cheese cubes. The store recently started selling prepackaged cheese “flights” that cost $14.99 and come with a reusable wooden cutting board and three wedges of cheese: cheddar, brie and Port-Salut. You can also buy a baked brie kit for $11.99 that comes with dried sour cherries and Marcona almonds. All you have to do is pile the cherries and almonds on the brie and bake until the cheese is molten.If you’re willing to pay more, the store’s catering department will assemble an opulent antipasti platter and deliver it to your door. You can even have them arrange it on your own plate so that it looks like you did all the work. But don’t feel like you have to go overboard to impress guests, Berg says. Holiday parties are about savoring good company, not just good food.“Gather the flavors your friends and family love,” she says, “and just enjoy the moment.”
Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Tartlets
This four-ingredient tartlet is one of Jenny Steffens Hobick’s go-to entertaining recipes. It tastes great at room temperature, so you can make it ahead of time. And because puff pastry usually comes in two-packs, it’s easy to double for a large party.Makes 18 hors d’œuvres1 sheet of frozen puff pastry, thawed 2 tablespoons olive oil1 red onion, thinly sliced4 ounces goat cheesePreheat the oven to 425 degrees. Remove the frozen puff pastry from the freezer and let it set at room temperature for 20 to 40 minutes.Caramelize the onions with the olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes. Keep stirring until they start to turn brown, then remove from heat.Unfold the puff pastry sheet and place it on a lightly floured cutting board. Cut it along the folds into three long strips, then cut each strip into 5 or 6 smaller rectangles. Pile caramelized onions onto each piece, then top with chunks of goat cheese.Place the pastries on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Bake at 425 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes until the pastry puffs and browns at the edges. Serve warm or at room temperature. Per tart: 121 calories (67 percent from fat), 9 grams total fat (3 grams saturated), 7 milligrams cholesterol, 7 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams protein, 57 milligrams sodium, trace dietary fiber.Source: JennySteffens.Blogspot.com
Bacon-Manchego Dates
Assemble these rich, flavor-packed appetizers hours before the party, then pop them in the oven after everyone arrives. Serve hot on a pretty platter or rustic cutting board to wow guests.Makes 12 hors d’oeuvres12 dried dates, preferably Medjool2 ounces manchego cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes6 slices thin or medium thickness bacon, cut in half crosswisePreheat broiler. Make a slit in the side of each date and remove the pit. Place a piece of cheese in the cavity of each date and wrap with a piece of bacon.Arrange dates on a baking sheet and broil for 4 to 6 minutes. Turn dates and broil for another 4 minutes, until bacon is crisp and cooked through. Serve immediately.Per hors d’oeuvre: 44 calories (36 percent from fat), 2 grams total fat (1 gram saturated), 3 milligrams cholesterol, 6 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram protein, 60 milligrams sodium, 1 gram dietary fiber.Source: WholeFoodsMarket.com
Sparkling Cranberry Brie Bites
These bites require an extra step, but it’s worth it because they’re easy to assemble and so festive-looking. Makes 16 hors d’oeuvres2 cups fresh cranberries 1 cup good-quality maple syrup1 cup granulated sugar16 crackers8 ounces Brie cheeseCranberry chutney, relish or jamFresh mint, for garnishRinse cranberries and place in a medium bowl. Heat syrup in a small saucepan just until warm. Pour the syrup over cranberries when syrup is warm, not hot, or cranberries may pop. Cool, cover and let soak in the refrigerator overnight. Drain cranberries in a colander. Place sugar in a large bowl or baking dish. Add cranberries in 2 batches and roll around until lightly coated in sugar. Place on a baking sheet and dry for about an hour.Assemble crackers with one slice of brie, a light layer of cranberry chutney or relish, and 4 or 5 sugared cranberries. Garnish with fresh mint sprigs. Per bite: 95 calories (40 percent from fat), 4 grams total fat (3 grams saturated), 14 milligrams cholesterol, 11 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams protein, 130 milligrams sodium.Source: YummyMummyKitchen.com
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