During the holidays, you’re more than merely busy. Between your normal life and the additional social and family obligations this time of year, you’re time-starved! Sure, you’re used to multitasking. But during the holidays, you’re hyper-tasking. Of course, you want to make sure the season truly is magical for your family. Because of that, despite the utter craziness of your schedule, you’re still trying to make sure this very special season is the best ever! How can you do it? We have the solution: An appetizer party.
Is it your turn to host the big Christmas Eve bash? Consider a sumptuous spread of hors d’oeuvres instead of the traditional sit-down meal. Having your co-workers over for your yearly holiday gathering? Try a strolling meal of hearty appetizers. Trying to figure out how to have the holidays with all of your families — “his,” “yours” and “ours”? Invite everyone over at once for a grand appetizer buffet. This type of party is a great choice for your busy holiday entertaining schedule!
Why? Hosting an appetizer party gives you a chance to serve a wide variety of different foods with relative ease. It gives your guests (and you) the chance to mingle while eating, and an array of small plates can be a
welcome change from the many big meals common during the holiday season. Of course, putting together an all-appetizer feast is a little different from planning a traditional sit-down dinner, and it comes with its own challenges. Read on for the eight things to keep in mind when you’re planning an all-appetizer party of your own.
Steps to the Perfect Party
1 Creativity
Be creative in your food choices! One of the wonderful aspects of serving an assortment of small plates at your gathering is that you can present a wide variety of choices and flavors to your guests. Offer a few tried-and-true standbys, but try a couple of new recipes as well — experiment with new ingredients and tastes. One of your new recipes might eventually become an old favorite.
2 Variety
It’s important to serve the right mix of foods. Offer a combination of hot and cold, hearty and light, rich and simple choices. For the best assortment, offer selections including meat or poultry, seafood, vegetables or fruit, and cheese. Make sure you have some vegetarian options and try to include a couple of health-conscious choices as well. For a small party of eight to 10, you’ll want to have at least four different kinds of appetizers; for a larger party — up to 40 people — serve a minimum of six kinds.
3 Temperature
A balance of hot and cold selections works well for two reasons: It provides your guests with more variety (see tip two), and it enables you to more easily stagger serving times by setting out cold items while your hot items are warming in the oven. You won’t have to have everything ready at the same time.
4 Visual Impact
Think about the visual impact of the hors d’oeuvres you are serving. Use platters of different heights, sizes and styles, and think about adding flowers or votive candles to your table. Most important, consider the effects of time on your food selections. Avoid items that will turn brown, wilt or get soggy before the end of the evening.
5 Party-Friendliness
When you’re putting your appetizer menu together, consider whether your party is formal or casual, how many guests you will be serving, and the setting of your soiree. Since most of your guests will be “strolling” and eating while standing, limit your offerings to items that can be easily eaten by hand in one or two bites. Messy, drippy choices will be difficult for partygoers to eat, and hard on your carpeting as well.
6 Set-Up
Set up your party so it flows naturally. Consider how you are placing the food — are you passing trays, putting out a buffet table or combining different serving methods? Think about setting food up at different stations around the room —a platter or two each in different places will keep people from all gathering in one congested spot.
7 Quantity
Exactly how much you decide to serve will depend on the time of day and style of party you are planning, but there are a few guidelines you can follow:
• If you are planning on appetizers being the main course at a party at lunch or dinner time, plan on 14 to 16 pieces per guest.
• For an early evening party (one that does not take place at a normal mealtime), provide 10 to 12 pieces per person.
•If you’re just serving the appetizers during cocktail hour before a main meal, you’ll need around 4 to 5 pieces per guest.
8 Get Help!
If you don’t want to do it all yourself, let Big Y help you! Your neighbor-hood Big Y® World Class Market® offers a spectacular array of hot and cold appetizers, perfect for your next party. We offer fresh vegetable and fruit trays, succulent chicken wings, artfully arranged, fresh sushi — and everything in between.
| Cutout Cookies - Make It From Scratch | View Recipe |
| Cutout Cookies - Make It Simple | View Recipe |
| Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake - Make It From Scratch | View Recipe |
| Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake - Make It Simple | View Recipe |
| Spice Cake - Make It From Scratch | View Recipe |
| Spice Cake - Make It Simple | View Recipe |
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Visit Big Y’s Patisserie for a delectable selection of fresh-baked seasonal sweets!
