Happy Holidays from TheKitchn! I wanted to share some pictures from my Christmas party and see how your celebrations are coming along too.
A two pound hunk of English Stilton with Port and Pepper Walnuts were waiting as guests arrived. Then we started up with some passed appetizers ...
There I am prepping the Bloody Mary Shrimp Shots, using frozen shrimp from Trader Joe's along with vodka, thin sliced celery, chives, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, horseradish, and the secret ingredient ketchup.
These appetizer spoons and the wooden serving tray are from CB2.
The Three Cheese Mini Macaroni and Cheese appetizers from Food and Wine magazine were a huge hit. I found I had to let these get a bit dark to stick together. The non-stick mini-muffin pan was a big plus here.
We turned my desk into a bar and were sure to have everything ready before the party started so guests could serve themselves. I warmed everyone up with a Ginger Cosmo punch and some mulled cider.
My kitchen is small, but that keeps everything in reach.
Can you believe the brussels sprouts were the hit of the party? I made Brussels Sprouts with Chestnuts from Gourmet. I was nervous about serving six pounds of an unpopular vegetable, but people asked for seconds and thirds!
Here's the Christmas Estouffade of Beef. I braised the meat a few days the party, sliced it cold and then warmed it up just before dinner. I served the meat with mashed potatoes and a green salad, but didn't have time to make the Celery Root Remoulade.
There was and chocolate bread pudding from the Joy of Cooking recipe for dessert, along with chocolate coins.
My cat and the guests loved the flowers from Root Stock and Quade in Park Slope. I was worried that the hyacinths might be too strong smelling for a party in a small space, but it was fine.
Happy Holidays! Take notes on what you're cooking and shoot plenty of food pictures. We want to hear all about it.
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Everything looks great and delicious! I bought some fresh brussels sprouts at the farmers' market this morning to serve at Tuesday's dinner, but I wasn't sure how I'd prepare them--your dish looks intriguing, and I may give it a go! I really adore your kitchen tiles, too. Thank you for sharing your photos!
My little SAS party (Soups and Sweets for December) last weekend went well, though I fell way behind while working on my yule log. I was going to plate the soups, but since guests didn't arrive all at once, and I was beat after an all-nighter, I just served them off the stovetop! The yule log was for this month's Daring Bakers challenge, and it's posted on my blog. Tonight, one of my friends is hosting her annual Winter Festival of Pie, and I plan to take a lot of photos of that and post them, too!
Looks like the food was a smashing success! As a brussel sprout lover I'm happy to hear that your guests wanted more.
Why wasn't I invited? ;-) Was everything served buffet style? Do you have a recipe for the Ginger Cosmo punch? I'm having a [Chinese] New Year's Eve party (my husband is leaving for a trip to China the following week) and that might be a good addition to the menu.