Bite Size Party

I recently purchased a cookbook, Bite Size: Elegant Recipes for Entertaining by Francois Payard, and it was my inspiration for this party. I also included recipes from Amuse-Bouche: Little Bites Of Delight Before the Meal Begins, and Hors d'Oeuvre at Home with The Culinary Institute of America. Here's the spread....

I LOVE the idea of bite-size prepared bites!  I just think it looks so refined.  Doesn’t everyone want to do this at least once in a while?  Don’t get me wrong it was A LOT of work but the end was totally worth it.  Would I do it for every party?  Probably not…but my girlfriends are the best and they deserve it :)

As usual with these parties I tried all new recipes.  Some worked, and some need slight adjustments for next time.  Some will definitely be made again, others…not likely.  But hey that’s what trying new recipes is all about!

First up, Roquefort Mousse with Port Gelee, Walnuts & Pears.  This was one of those recipes that I had to improvise on the presentation.  The port gelee called for gelatin (which some of you may know is not vegetarian) and three of my guests are vegetarians so I decided to try an alternative.  I did some research and I couldn’t find agar agar (and didn’t leave myself enough time to order online) so I tried arrowroot.  Well, you can’t really see it in the photo but the gelee did not gel and I ended up with a separated port wine liquid.  It tasted OK so I continued on.  The mousse just sank into the liquid so I decided to precariously perch a small spoon on top of the glass and I piped the mousse on the spoon.  A pear and walnut garnish finish it off.  I learned I’m not a huge fan of Roquefort cheese but the combination of flavors was good. 

Next up…Sesame “Tofu” with Sour Cherry Topping.  I wasn’t sure what this dish would taste like.  A cracker with black and white sesame seeds, a round of sesame “tofu” and chopped cherry topping.  I love my Chinese spoons and I think this was the perfect appetizer for them.  Each of the components was made ahead and the finished bite was easily put together at the last minute.  The crackers were easy to make and I would make them again.  The “tofu” surprised me and was a smooth texture with a hint of sesame flavor.  The cherries had red wine.  I liked this little bite, the flavors worked really well together I just wish it had a little stronger flavor, everything was very subtle.

Next, was the hit of the party…Crispy Polenta with Pesto and Parmesan.  The recipe called for making each component from scratch but I pre-purchased all of these items and it was fantastic.  Small rounds of polenta fried in olive oil until crispy, a spoonful of pesto and a shave of parmesan.   Who knew something so simple would be so tasty?!  The hardest part was frying the polenta, oil spattered everywhere.  The basil had a little too much olive oil and it soaked through the polenta but they still tasted good.  One of my guest suggested when buying pesto, pour off the oil that separates on the top of the jar before you stir it up.  Good tip, thanks Erika!  That would totally help for next time!  I fancied these up by using a flower cookie cutter to cut the pesto.

Another popular dish was the Carrot Soup with Ginger.  Isn’t that a pretty color?  Not your typical carrot soup, the puree was strained so it was very light and the ginger really brightened up the flavor.  When guests ask for the recipe I know they really mean it when they say something tastes good.  It’s always hard to tell if people are just being nice.  Honestly, these are not my personal original recipes so I don’t mind if people say they don’t like something, but I can tell by how many leftovers and recipe requests :)

Next, Shrimp with Apricot-Ancho Barbeque Sauce, another easy recipe.  The barbeque sauce was made one day ahead and brushed on the shrimp right after broiling.  I thought the sauce was OK and I would make it again.  Would I put it on shrimp? I don’t think so.  Honestly this was probably my least favorite dish of the night, so that’s really all I have to say about it.   

Finally, Mushroom Ragout with Gorgonzola Cream.  This dish was quite tasty and one I will likely make again.  I think the topping would actually pair well with a steak.  Crostini with shitaki mushrooms, heavy cream, and gorgonzola cheese. The garnish is a fried spinach leaf.  Be careful when frying these they spatter like crazy!  After they are fried they turn translucent and look pretty cool.

For munchies I made roasted chickpeas and puff pastry sticks.  The chickpeas are a great snack and all the comments I read on the recipe said to double it, I’m glad I did.  I used canned chickpeas, rinsed and dried them, then coated them with a little olive oil, salt and pepper.  Roasted for about an hour then sprinkled with smoked paprika.  The puff pastry sticks were made with parmesan cheese, half with smoked paprika and half with crushed red pepper.  Anything with puff pastry is always good. 

As I said earlier this was a lot of work but it was also a lot of fun to put together and execute.  One of my guests even said the spread looked like it belonged in a magazine!  Thanks Susan, I really appreciate that.

So that’s my bite size party.  I hope I’ve inspired you to try one of your own.  With a little planning and preparation you can do it!

Chocolate Tasting Party

I recently hosted a chocolate tasting party. It was a great time and a perfect get together to get rid of the winter blahs.  I based my party and menu from a book called Tasting Club by Dina Cheney.  This book is full of information and a great guide for hosting tasting parties including:  wine, chocolate, cheese, honey, tea, extra virgin olive oil, cured meats, balsamic vinegar, apples, and beer.

Our menu…

Appetizers

Croutes with Blue Cheese, Toasted Walnuts

and Port Wine Reduction

Manchego and Drunken Goat Cheese

with Quince Paste and Sea Salt Crackers

Dates Stuffed with Gorgonzola, Bacon and Chives

Opera Primo Muscato

Chocolate Tasting

Green and Black's Organic White Chocolate

Godiva Milk Chocolate

Green and Black's Organic Milk Chocolate

Ghirardelli Intense Dark Evening Dream

World Classics - Chocolate Obsession

Green and Black's Organic Dark Chocolate

Green and Black's Organic Dark Chocolate

Lindt Excellence A Touch of Sea Salt

Lindt Excellence Chili

Afterwards

Mini Dark Chocolate Cones w/Creme de Menthe Filling

Chocolate Covered Bacon w/Almonds

Chocolate Covered Espresso Beans

And for a finale...

Angelic Hot Chocolate!

A few of my guests brought dessert wines and we sampled them with our chocolates as well. We used baguette slices and clementines to cleanse our palates between tastings. I must say I never thought I would say this but "Wow, that was a lot of chocolate!"

A few random thoughts...

I'm glad we started with non-chocolate appetizers.  The strong flavors were a great prelude to the chocolate.

Nine chocolates were probably a little too much.  Because I didn't want to limit to just milk or just dark I chose the whole spectrum, from white to dark.  Next time I would focus on only milk, only dark, or something like only Swiss chocolate, and

probably limit to 6 chocolates. 

Directions on how to do a proper tasting and a place to record your notes is essential.  It really is amazing the differences you can notice in chocolate if you really pay attention.  For example, many of the chocolates tasted different if you let them melt on your tongue versus chewing them. 

The wrong pairing of wine with chocolate can be really bad.  Some of the wine and chocolate pairings were not so good.  The raspberry wine was OK with most of the chocolates, but definitely better with the dark chocolates.

Chocolate covered bacon...you either like it or you don't.  It goes along with the whole sweet and salty thing but it IS different.  I don't know if it would be my first choice but I'm glad I tried it.

Overall it was a great night...you can't go wrong with good friends and chocolate!

Bonus Day Dessert Table

I was very happy with how my first dessert table turned out.  It was for a “Bonus Day” celebration at work, that’s why the money theme.    A co-worker made the money tree and I though she did an awesome job!  Here is what the overall table looked like…

The table included…

Fresh Fruit Skewers

Chocolate Covered Pretzels

Strawberry Pillows

Baklava

German Chocolate Cupcakes

Banana Cream Parfaits 

 

Coming up….My First Dessert Bar

I have been seeing lots of wonderful photos of dessert bars lately. They seem to be growing in popularity, for weddings, birthday parties, and other theme parties.

Here are two blogs that show some great ideas and amazing work…

sweet designs by Amy Atlas

Sweet Tooth {dessert meets design}

So when I was asked to prepare something for an upcoming celebration at work the first thing that came to mind was DESSERT BAR!

First I had to figure out how many items to make. After some searching I decided on 5 different desserts, three pieces per person. There will be about 50 people, so 150 pieces total.  Each piece will be an individual serving size.

The only thing I can’t decide on is where to have the chocolate. I’m trying to decide between a cupcake and a parfait. One will be fruit and the other chocolate.

Should I do a German chocolate cupcake and a banana cream parfait?

Or a lemon raspberry cupcake and a chocolate peanut butter parfait?

A chocolate peanut butter cupcake and a raspberry tiramisu?

You get the idea….decisions, decisions….

The next 7 days are going to be a busy because this event is the same day as I am hosting a Chocolate Tasting Party for my girlfriends. Stay tuned for the details on that event.  That reminds me...I think I need to make some lists of things to do!



Cookie Exchange 2010 – The Menu

Another successful cookie exchange!

Here is the menu I planned…

Salami Crisps with Sour Cream and Basil

5 Layer Mediterranean Dip

Asiago Cheese Puffs

Cherry Tomatoes with Olive Tapenade

Louisiana Crab Dip with Crudites

Stuffed Mushrooms

Spiced Fig Marmalade & Blue Cheese

As always, I did my best to have a variety of flavors, colors, temperatures and textures.  The Salami Crisps are a recipe from Giada De Laurentiis.  These can be done ahead of time and they do take a little longer to cook than the recipe states.  Be sure to line your baking sheets with parchment or foil to make clean up easier.  Also be sure to get a quality salami.

This 5 layer dip is a much healthier alternative to traditional layered taco dips and is a nice change of pace.  I found this recipe at Athenos.com.  Basically it’s hummus, feta cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers and olives.  I used plain hummus but you could change it up and use a flavored version.  I used kalamata olives, but if you are not a fan any black olive will do.  And it keep it healthy I served it with multi grain chips.

I love tapenade and instead of doing a crostini with tapenade like I usually do I decided to use cherry tomatoes as the base.  I was short on time so I purchased already made olive tapenade from my local grocery store.  While these were tasty, I think you need to really like the kick that olive tapenade has because the tomatoes do not tone down the flavor like bread does. 

I found this crab dip recipe while I was researching menus for a Mardi Gras party.  I decided to try it again.  Typical cream cheese/sour cream dip recipe.  Honestly, this didn’t taste as well as I remembered it.  But I do think the presentation in the fancy glass bowl looked nice.

I also made some basic stuffed mushrooms but I forgot to take a photo.  Sorry.

 

The fig marmalade was from one of my cookbooks, The Menu by Davis Laris and Dean Brettschneider.  The book has 15 five-course menus.  This is the first recipe I have tried from the book and was quite pleased with it.  The blue cheese complimented the figs nicely and I think the whole grain crostini were a good choice.

While the fig crostini was good I think the hit of the night (besides the cookies of course!) was the Asiago Cheese Puffs.  A mixture of asiago cheese, mayo, onion, thyme and a dash of cayenne on lightly toasted white bread rounds.  I prefer these hot but they can also be served at room temperature.  Check out www.finedinings.com for some more easy gourmet recipes and menus.  The site is pretty ad heavy but the author includes photos of every recipe and you’ll be sure to find something to inspire you. 

And there you have it.  Next up…the cookies!

Chinese New Year

This past Tuesday was Fat Tuesday but we celebrated Chinese New Year!  The Year of the Tiger started on February 14th.  Here are some of the menu items we enjoyed...

Perfect Potstickers - A recipe from Alton Brown.  These are a tasty little purse filled with pork, scallions, red pepper and seasonings.  They can be intimidating but are really very easy to make and cook.  Once you make the filling, set out about 10 won ton wrappers and spoon the filling on the center of each one.  Then you can quickly work through the line brushing the edges of one wrapper, folding and sealing.   Cooking is even easier... heat a skillet (nonstick works best), add a small bit of oil, allow to brown for a few minutes, then add a small amount of chicken broth or water and cover for a few minutes.  They are best when served immediately and dipped in soy sauce.  They look a little funny but are very good.  BTW - I made these the day before, reheated with the same cooking technique and they turned out fine.

Hot Crab Rangoon Dip with Won Ton Chips  - A recipe from Sandra Lee. How can you go wrong with 16oz of cream cheese?  Easy to prepare ahead.  I caught this one just in time, forgot to set a timer and almost left it under the broiler too long!  I think the highlight of this dip is the won ton chips.  They were so easy to make, I just cut the stack of wrappers in half and fried them in bunches for about 10 seconds.  I don't have a fryer so I use my electric fondue pot for frying.  It does an excellent job of keeping the oil at the correct temperature.

Thai Marinated Cucumber Salad - a recipe from Williams-Sonoma.  I was quite worried about this dish!  When I made the dressing the night before the heated rice vinegar smelled SO strong!  The next day it still smelled strong but it didn't taste nearly as strong as it smelled.  This was actually a nice refreshing dish.  Would be good for summertime.  I couldn't find a red jalapeno or chile anywhere so I used some red pepper for color and added two dried/crushed Thai chilies to the dressing.  Not sure what makes this Thai marinated? 

A few store bought items to round out my part of the menu - Fried rice and Vegetable egg rolls.

My guests brought steamed rolls filled with chicken, vegetable lo mien, Buddha's Delight, and sake. 

And for dessert, Tapioca with Coconut Cream, Ginger Almond sugar cookies (both recipes from my Williams-Sonoma Asian cookbook) and green tea cookies (from a guest).  Wow, tapioca takes a long time to cook!  But with brown sugar syrup and coconut cream added it was worth it.  And doesn't it look pretty?  This was a hit, light and refreshing, another great recipe for summertime.  Sorry I can't post the recipes here due to copyrights.

A takeaway gift for each of my guests was a small coin purse made from asian style fabric in which I hid some fun fortunes. 

Good food, good friends, good times! 

Happy Year of the Tiger!

New Year's Eve 8 Course Dinner

Last night Doug and I attended a friend's New Year's Eve party at which they serve an 8 course meal.  This was our third year attending.  There are two guys (Jamie and Fletch) who plan and cook, and they have a group of friends who help them serve the meal. It started out at Jamie's house but has grown so much in size (and mess I'm sure) that they started renting a hall last year.  This year there were about 75 guests. They do charge a small fee per person, which is totally worth it and as usual, the meal was excellent. Here’s what we had….

1st course: Appetizer plate with shrimp scampi, prosciutto wrapped cantaloupe and a pot sticker
2nd course: Creamy tomato basil soup
3rd course: Tribecca salad
4th course: Stuffed shells with a pesto and tomato sauce
5th course: Seafood – lobster tail, mussel, clam and crawfish
6th course: Cherry-cranberry sorbet
7th course: Prime rib, baked potato and green beans
8th course: Red wine poached pears stuffed with mascarpone cheese

There was live music and a DJ for dancing after dinner, and a champagne toast at midnight.

I am always inspired after this party. One of these days I will serve an 8 course meal. The only problem is figuring out how to prepare and serve it AND be able to sit with my guests and enjoy it.

Happy New Year Everyone!

Cookie Exchange Party!

Well, the cookie exchange was a hit and I want to say THANK YOU to all of my friends for making this cookie exchange such a great time! Everything went smoothly and of course it being the first one, we learned a few things in the process.

None of us are very festive dressers! A few holiday sweaters and Santa hats but that was really the extent of it. Not ONE pair of flashing earrings, how disappointing! We did however have a winner for the Most Festive Dress and she took home a chocolate topiary tree. Congratulations Linda!

Eight cookies don’t sound like a lot but when you are faced with a full plate of cookies it sure looks like a lot! Needless to say most of us didn’t have a problem at least tasting each of the cookies. Wow, what would happen if we had more people? The Best Cookie winner, Azita and her Orange Cranberry Walnut Biscotti, took home a cute snowman cookie jar to put all her delicious biscotti in! Congratulations Azita!

Most everyone packaged up their cookies in small containers for each person to take home. I think with a small group of 8 like we had, this actually worked out pretty well. We had holiday boxes, containers, and bags. Even if they don’t admit it, I know creating the presentation is half the fun! Each person also received a collection of all the cookie recipes to take home.

The menu turned out very tasty. We had a pretty good spread! My pre-planning worked out perfectly…finished plating the last appetizer at 5:59pm! (I’ll post the recipes separately.)

I will definitely try to have a cookie exchange every year! I enjoyed the time relaxing and socializing with friends and of course it was great to make one type of cookie and walk away with eight different kinds! I even heard talk of collecting cookie recipes to try for next year!

Cookie exchange in three days!

The Christmas decorations are up, my lists are made, and this weekend will be busy with grocery shopping, house cleaning, cooking, and of course…baking cookies! One last thing I do at least a few days before the party is prepare all of the non-food items that I can. I can make sure I have everything I need and that nothing is broken. This is a huge timesaver the day of the party, I can just cook and plate!

Platters/serving dishes - I have gone through all of my platters and decided which ones will work best for each menu item. They are all washed and ready.

Tablecloths/Napkins - I have ironed my tablecloths; I think I’ll use paper dinner napkins. People seem more comfortable with paper; whenever I put out fabric napkins its like no one wants to actually use them.

Glasses - I have my wine glasses out and polished, can’t have spots on my wine glasses. Charms for stemmed wine glasses are a great way for guest to keep track of their glasses. Luckily, I received some Christmas charms a few years ago as a gift! I also have mugs ready for hot apple cider.

Silverware – No silverware or serving utensils required for this menu as its all prepared finger foods. But if I was using them I’d make sure I had enough settings and that they were, of course, polished and shiny!

Centerpieces and table decorations are out. This is one area that I like to fuss with, so doing this in advance allows me enough time to get it just right.


I'm pretty comfortable with everything that needs to be done this weekend, but it WILL be a busy weekend!

Cookie Exchange Menu

I love decorating for the holidays! Still working on getting my Christmas decorations up for the party next week, but I do have my menu, grocery list and TO DO list done.

Here's the menu I've decided on:

Caesar Salad Spears - Caesar salad made into finger food by serving on endive spears. Easy, elegant and can be made quickly at the last minute.

Hummus Stuffed Portobello Caps - Hummus, cream cheese and bell pepper stuffing. Can be prepared ahead and baked right before the party.

Sausage Stuffed Peppadews - Sausage, rice, olive tapenade and cheese stuffing. Can be stuffed the day before, refrigerated overnight and baked right before the party.

Spinach Phyllo Triangles - A version of family recipe for Spinach Pie but made into little stuffed triangles of phyllo dough. Can be made a day ahead and served at room temperature.

Gorgonzola and Caramelized Onion Appetizer - Baguettes topped with caramelized onion and gorgonzola cheese. The onions can be made a day ahead and reheated before assembly.

Tomato Tartlet - Roasted cherry tomatoes and ricotta cheese spread on puff pastry. Puff pastry and tomatoes can be prepared ahead and kept at room temperature up to 8 hours.

Potato Cakes - Baked mini potato cakes with sour cream and chives. (These are last on my list. I always have one item that can be left out if I take on too much, but these are simple so they probably make it.)

I think this will be a good mix of flavors, temperatures, colors, shapes and textures. It's all finger foods, so no silverware required. These are a little more time consuming as they are all pre-assembled bites (I think that looks more fancy) but with time to prepare on Sunday, I should have enough time to assemble on Monday. I'm adjusting the recipes to allow for 2-3 pieces of each recipe per person. Plus we'll have cookies for tasting.

The only thing I haven't decided on is drinks. Hot cider or milk seems like an obvious choice, but I'll probably also have some wine and coffee/tea.

Don't worry, I'll be sure to post recipes, photos and comments!

Planning to Execute a Party Menu

One thing I forgot to mention previously is try to avoid going overboard! Anyone who has been to one of my parties knows that I can do very well! But I AM trying to reduce the amount of food that I make and choose items that will make a statement rather than having lots of stuff that just gets lost in the mix. I enjoy trying new recipes and usually get lucky finding many good ones, but I also want to make sure I have some old favorites just in case one of the new ones is a flop.

Another point...be flexible! My December issue of Food & Wine arrived a few days ago. While flipping through I noted a few recipes that I think I might like to add to my Cookie Exchange menu...Caesar Salad Spears, Artichoke and Fontina Pizza, Sausage Stuffed Peppadews and Tomato Tartlets. So what I will do is print out all my recipes, figure out what the best combinations are and narrow down the list.

Once I have decided on the menu items, I work on planning the details. Please note that I love to organize, and you don't have to go to this level of planning, but I'm sharing what works for me. These details help me get my head around everything that needs to be done in the days leading up to my party. I am definitely a list person. And I love crossing that last item off my list right before my first guest shows up!

I look at each recipe and determine the number of servings it makes. Do I need to half, double or triple it? I will mark it right on the recipe in bold so I remember when I’m making my grocery list. Next I make a grocery list. I make a long list including every item and then add the quantities before each item as I go through the recipes. I usually do this by hand and group by the layout of my store. Then I go through my kitchen and cross off what I have and write out a new clean list to take shopping. Depending on the ingredients and how many days ahead I will start cooking, I may buy all the dry goods/staples pretty far in advance and then make a shorter list of fresh ingredients I need to pick up at the last minute. More than once I’ve purchased fresh items that didn’t stay fresh long enough (raspberries do this to me all the time!)

Another thing I do ahead is read thoroughly through each recipe. I highlight the items or step in each recipe that can be or need to be made ahead of the party. Then I can tell at a glance how much I can do ahead and how much is left for the day of the party.

After that I make a timeline of items that need to be completed the day of the party. Complete with cooking or estimated prep times. This may sound a little “crazy” (read OCD) to some people. But when I get home from work at 4pm and people are arriving at 6pm I need to know what I am doing next. Plus I’ll know if I left myself enough time to get everything done.
Next I fill in the middle; I make a less detailed list of everything that needs to be done between now and the day of the party. I can then work at getting a few things done each night, leading up to the party. So I don’t overload myself, I actually include house cleaning items on this list too.

Now I have a complete picture of EVERYTHING I need to do for my party!

One of the last things I do is make sure I have any specialty cooking pans I’ll need, and enough serving utensils, platters, glasses, etc. for the number of people attending. Then I shop to fill in any gaps! Always a fun part of the process, although my closets are becoming quite full of entertaining and cake items!

Creating a Party Menu Part 2

Once I have answered the questions I posted earlier, I move onto more detailed planning of my menu...

I spend some time looking through my cookbooks, magazines (Living, Bon Appetit, Food & Wine, Every Day Food) and browsing websites like FoodNetwork.com, finedinings.com, epicurious.com and foodandwine.com looking for recipe ideas. I also have an extensive list of bookmarked recipes that I have saved while browsing. Usually one or two recipes will stand out and drive the rest of the menu. I almost always have a list of more recipes than I can serve so I gather them up and use the following points to narrow down the items.

I like to make sure I have hot, cold and room temperature items. This gives variety for the guests as well as ease of preparation for me. The cold and room temp appetizers can usually be made ahead, and warm items can either be made at the last minute or kept warm in a buffet server or crockpot. I received a buffet server a few years ago for Christmas and that was one of the best gifts to make entertaining easier! It does an excellent job of keeping the food warm without drying it out. (Not sure how well it would work for crispy or fried items.)

Another thing I look out for is variety of color and texture. Sure I can add color with serving platters but who wants to end up with a plate of all white foods, or any other color for that matter! Remember we eat with our eyes first. I also don't want to serve foods that all have the texture of baby food, or crunchy potato chips.

It's also a good idea to have a mix of "light" and "heavy" dishes. I don't want everyone to feel like they have to roll out the door, but I also want to make sure everyone has enough. I like to mix in few healthy items too. Entertaining doesn't have to mean only high calorie foods, I think mixing a few indulgent foods with healthy items is the way to go.

Variety is another thing to watch out for. It seems like repeating flavors occur sometimes when I'm gathering recipes. Do I want 3 different recipes with gorgonzola cheese? Not really. If I do use the same flavor twice I try to make sure it is in two different ways, for example savory and sweet, or with different flavor combinations. Sometimes having a major flavor in one item and the same flavor in a minor way in another item helps tie things together.

I also make sure I have vegetarian options, for my vegetarian friends.

For the cookie exchange, we will have plenty of sweets, so I'm sticking to primarily savory items. And I'll want to make sure we have enough substance. Here's what I'm thinking so far...

Cheese Fondue
Meatballs
Mini Quiches
Hummus
Spinach Phyllo Triangles
Gorgonzola/Onion Appetizer or Portobellas w/Corn Salsa

Now I'll start looking for specific recipes for each of these...

Creating a Party Menu Part 1

How do I decide on a menu for a party? After having some crazy, running around at the last minute menus I've learned a few lessons. Hopefully I can share some "tips" to help you put together your next menu.

First I ask myself a series of questions...

Is there a theme? Maybe a regional theme... Italian, French, Mexican. A food theme...chocolate, cheese, apple. A holiday theme... Chinese New Year's, Mardi Gras, Halloween. Or anything else you can think of...Springtime Tea Party, No Cook Menu, Super Bowl Party, Carnival Food. Food Network shows typically choose a theme menu for each episode, if you need some ideas. I am currently planning my cookie exchange menu.

How many people will be attending? Will it be a small group of girlfriends? One or two couples invited over for dinner? A party for everyone we know. Or somehere in between? My cookie exchange should have 8-10 people attending.

What courses do I need? Appetizers only? Heartier snack foods? Full course dinner? Desserts only? I will be doing an appetizer buffet. We will also be tasting our cookies before the swap so I won't need any sweets.

How will the food be served? Will it be buffet style? Sit down dinner? Or just grazing while hanging out? Will people have to hold drinks and plates of food at the same time? Do I want to plate each course before serving? Are there last minute items that will need to be cooked and served immediately? I prefer to do as much as possible before the party. Although my kitchen is part of an open floor plan, I want to attend my party and not be cooking/plating during the whole thing. Due to my limited size dining table, I usually do a buffet style spread on my kitchen island.

Finger food or silverware required? Seated at a table is pretty much the only way to serve items requiring cutting with a fork and knife. Items like soup are also best served while seated. Finger food is the easiest. People can put items on a plate and mingle, or stand and graze at the buffet. You can also put "food stations" around the room to prevent a traffic jam at a single buffet. Finger food also helps reduce clean up. No silverware to wash!

How much time do I have to prepare before the day of the party? Can I go grocery shopping well in advance, or do I need to buy lots of fresh ingredients right before the party? Can I make menu items a day or two before? For example, foods like dips usually taste better made the day before instead of at the last minute. Will I have time to cook days before or will I be cleaning my house and decorating? Monday is a great day for my cookie exchange. I can do all my baking and cooking/prep over the weekend.

How much time will I have to prepare the day of the party? Will I be having people over right after work during the week or will I have all day Saturday to cook? Saturday parties allow more last minute cooking but I still try to serve items I can finish before the party and not have to cook during the party. For after work parties I try to choose items I can cook the day before, or prep all the ingredients and cook quickly at the last minute.

Will others be bringing anything? Do I need to prepare the entire menu or will others be bringing dishes. If I am preparing the entire menu I have to choose some quick and easy items, but if others are bringing dishes as well I can choose a few more time intensive items.

Next time I'll talk about choosing recipes.

My first cookie exchange!

I’ve decided to organize a cookie exchange this year!

I've never been to one but I’ve seen some great ideas especially on http://robinsweb.com/cookies/index.html and the photos look like a lot of fun, so why not?! I sent out an email to some good friends to see if they were even interested, the responses came back so positive that I can’t wait! We’ve picked the date of Monday December 7. It should be easier for everyone to bake their cookies over the weekend. I’ll keep you posted with all of my ideas along the way.

I have already sent out a "Save the Date" email to everyone. Working on the complete invite. There are lots of different types of exchanges. I've decided to have everyone bring 7 dozen cookies and the goal will be to have 12 people attend. We'll taste one dozen of the cookies and everyone will be able to take home 1/2 dozen each of 12 different types of cookies! If we don't have 12 people attend, each person will just get more of fewer types of cookies.

Now, which rules should I include? Some rules I DO know I want to do is no duplicate recipes, and no basic chocolate chip cookies. One rule I've seen is no bar cookies, but I seen nothing wrong with that. I think that rule would be for all serious bakers attending. But as far as I'm concerned, this is for fun and shouldn't be stressful for people to attend. I even have a complete non-baker who has agreed to take on the task! (I'll have to keep an eye out for an easy recipe to share with her.)

Planning to have a few prizes. One for the best cookie and one for the most festive holiday outfit. I'll have to think of something creative for these.

Next will be to decide on a menu for snacks to have while we socialize and taste the delicious cookies! And decide what I am going to bake myself!

Oh my, I almost forgot I'll have to have all my holiday decorations up too!

Looks like I'll be busy for the next few weeks but this should be fun!