For a busy holiday party, I find it easier to serve an appetizer or cheese board while everyone is waiting for the dinner hour. When guests arrive, it is very easy to have many types of cheese, nuts, dried fruit, condiments, crusty and multi-seeded bread ready to go. Guests can serve themselves while they enjoy…
Category: holiday party
Cherry Pistachio Shortbread cookies
Every Christmas I like to try at least one new cookie recipe, and this year I found a recipe in Yankee Magazine which was especially delicious. My cookie tray looked quite festive with the red and green colors that this cookie contains. I did chill the dough overnight and baked them the next day. Here…
Snowman Chocolate Bark
From another food blogger (theDecoratedCookie.com) comes this great idea for snowman chocolate bark. The directions were very easy to follow. And, the result is very cute. Just perfect for the winter season, especially for children of all ages. Very few ingredients are needed. To make the bark, I used these ingredients: 16 ounces of Ghirardelli…
Thanksgiving turkey tray
For an afternoon holiday appetizer tray, I found this cute idea on Pinterest. If you haven’t found Pinterest yet, I highly recommend the website as a great way to find ideas for just about anything. I have tried many great recipes on the site, and have saved more than 11,000 pins so far into various…
Valentine brownie
Chocolate desserts have to be the ultimate choice for Valentine’s Day. Sometimes making a favorite recipe in a special serving dish can make the dessert seem extra special. I have found over the years that I prefer to make my own Valentine’s Dinner. I control the ingredients and the timing of the meal. I can…
Appetizer shells
For years I have used Athens Mini Fillo Shells for many different types of appetizers, both sweet and savory. Recently, I realized that I could save some money by making my own shells from the company’s phyllo dough which is packaged in sheets. By using this product, I was able to make a very large…
Baby–it will be cold outside
One of the newest trends in entertaining has been the beverage bar. It has evolved from the classic tea service, to a coffee bar, and now encompasses hot chocolate or other warm drinks for the winter season. Even though our Michigan winter temperatures have not been as cold as past years, I decided to get…
Fall Rice Krispie treats
School is back in session. Labor Day is past, and it is time to celebrate with the ever popular Rice Krispie Treats. I have made a couple of different versions of these over the years, and this one seems to be my favorite now. I used Fall sprinkles to decorate the treats this week. And,…
stars and stripes
July 4th is just around the corner. Here is a cute way to celebrate with a fruit platter for your guests. Take the time to find a small star cookie cutter and make some watermelon stars for the platter. It is fun and easy to do and even the children or grandchildren can help with…
French pressed coffee and Lofthouse cookies
Although I have never tried the Lofthouse cookies at the grocery, I seem to pass by the table of them every time I visit the store. They seem to be such a popular cookie. I happened to find the recipe for them on centercutcook.com , along with the best frosting recipe for cookies around. This…
Easy Holiday Petit Fours
Years ago I found this recipe for easy petit fours. This is a “go-to” recipe that can be made for just about any holiday. It uses the standard frozen pound cake, which is thawed overnight in the refrigerator. Then, after cubed, the pound cake squares are glazed with a typical confectioners’ sugar mixture. During the…
Almond hot chocolate
Winter is still here in Michigan during the first week of March. Since we have had numerous cups of hot chocolate this winter, it was time to change it up and try a flavored hot chocolate recipe. Here is my own blend for almond hot chocolate which was derived by reading many recipes and adapting…
