Entertaining Ideas
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Dessert Party/Cocktail Party- Need Help with menu
I am hosting a dessert party on Christmas eve for a group of about 16 family members and a few friends. I have never hosted such a party and wanted to try something a little different. For the life of me, I cant seem to stick with a menu and i need to nail it before next week. My group is so varied, so it makes it hard trying to please everyone without still seemingly spending a fortune. I am also considering a few light appetizers to bring down some of the sugar high... I also need wine pairings. Here's where I am so far- wdyt?
Desserts:
- Mini Red Velvet Cupcakes
- Turtle Brownie Bites
- Italian Rum Cake
- Cheesecake Bites
- Strawberry Shortcake
- Fruit Kabobs
Appetizers:
- Veggie Crudites
- Blue Crab Dip
- Mini Crab Cakes
- Pulled Beef BBQ Sliders
- Mini Deli Sandwhich Swirls
- Chicken Wing Dings
Too Much- not good- add? Subtract?
Thanks for the advice...
Re: Dessert Party/Cocktail Party- Need Help with menu
What time is the party? If it's late, like a dessert party (8:00), I wouldn't do apps. A lot of people on here will say you need real food, but if people are coming for dessert, you don't need anything but dessert (and drinks!)
I wouldn't worry too much about wine pairings. I've found that people like what they like, without regard to how well it goes with the food. So perhaps have a red, a sweet white and a drier white. I had great luck with the wine guy at Trader Joe's for my dessert & drinks party. We just set our liquor out with some sodas and juices for mixers, and had beer. I didn't do coffee since it was a cocktail party.
Maybe just have some cheese and nuts to balance the sweetness and call it a day. It is dessert, after all.
I think your menu sounds good. The turtle brownie bites sound so yummy!
Unlike the last poster, I think it's nice to have appetizers and desserts. The first time we hosted a cocktail & dessert party, it was way too much sweetness. I found that a mix of sweet & savory works much better.Your apps do seem to be pretty heavy apps, maybe substitute one of the meat items (chicken wings, sandwich swirls or sliders) with something lighter? A favorite at our parties is baked brie in puff pastry and it's super easy to make.
As for wine, I wouldn't worry about matching the wine with the food. Most people are not that wine savvy to know the difference. I find that people are more drawn to white wines in the summer because of their lighter taste and colder temperature, and more drawn to red wines in the winter. We always go through a lot more red wine at winter parties. I would get a couple of varieties of red, as well as a white in case someone doesn't like red wine. You might also consider a champagne? Champagne is festive and always goes over well at holiday parties.
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I agree with the previous post that Champagne or something bubbly would be fabulous at a dessert party!
I would go nuts for the Strawberry Shortcake if I came to your party. It's my favorite and you never get it in the winter. Were you able to find good strawberries this time of year?
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If it's a dessert party and the invitations say that and people are expecting it, I think you can cut back on the apps. That pulled beef seems like a mess and a hassle - I'd skip it. I'd take the wings away too because I could just imagine that sauce on my couch and yes I am that uptight lol. I like the mini sandwich swirls, the mini crab cakes...is the crab dip to go with the veggies? I think one crab thing is enough, so maybe choose. I like veggies & dip.
A great poster here who went to culinary school or some such :P says to always have one fruit, one nut, one chocolate (and maybe something else?) on the dessert tray. You don't have a nut dessert (unless you want to count the ones drowned in chocolate and caramel in the turtles lol). Strawberry shortcake's out of season, so I'd remove it. I have a recipe for jam thumbprint cookies if you'd like it instead.
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I'd leave out the pulled pork sliders and chicken wing dings. I'd also do eithe rthe blue crab dip or mini crab cakes...I'd probably do the mini crab cakes and another kind of dip (baked spinach and artichoke?). Since people are expecting desserts and cocktails, no need to go overboard with apps although I do agree you need them to calm the sugar high!
Also, notody seems to ever eat the veggie crudites at my parties or others I attend!
Pioneer Woman has an amazing recipe for stuffed mushroom apps. They're great, you should look at those, they'd be a nice addition. = )