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Dessert And Champagne, Anyone? How To Host A Simple Holiday Party
Simple Solutions Diva’s Tips For
A Simple Holiday Party:
For easy invitations, try using the website Evite.com, where you can customize one of their great designs and import email addresses to send out invites electronically! Good for you AND the environment!
A Champagne Bar is easy to do! Offer a variety of add-ins for your champagne, like cranberry, peach, pomegranate juices, strawberries and pomegranate seeds. For Champagne, I served Jaume Serra Cristalino Brut, recommended by the wine expert at World Market. With a price point under $7.00, I was a bit wary. I was extremely surprised by how wonderful the champagne tasted! It was rated by Wine & Spirits Magazine as the Value Brand Of The Year for 2013 (3rd year in a row!).
Desserts are so simple! Use a combination of store-bought and homemade desserts. Items on my dessert table included:
- A tasting plate of flavored dark chocolates – Chipotle Chili, Pomegranate and Strawberries & Champagne.
- Ginger Crisp cookies and Chocolate Lace cookies from World Market.
- Two beautifully decorated mini cakes from Publix Supermarket.
- Store-bought Chocolate Truffles
- Homemade Coconut Macaroons – Wonderfully easy recipe from JoansFoodWanderings Blog.
- Homemade Peppermint Bark – Here is my recipe for peppermint bark.
- Store-bought Chocolate Truffles
- Homemade Candied Pecans – This recipe was so simple! I made them in the crockpot! You can find the recipe Here!
- A Cheese Plate featuring Manchego, Triple Cream Brie, and Boursin Cheese.
- A Fruit Plate
- The big hit on the dessert table was the Toasted S’mores Bar, from the website by South Florida Chef, Ron Lock.
Have a wonderful holiday!
Simple Flatbread Appetizer Done Four Ways
Flatbread is a great way to create a variety of easy appetizers! I used Stonefire Naan flatbreads from my supermarket to create these four appetizers; feel free to go crazy and make your own flatbread! I try to assemble all my ingredients prior to starting, then just go down the “assembly line” to make the variety of flatbreads!
Note: All amounts noted below in each recipe are variable, depending on your taste and the amount you plan to make! Each flatbread recipe makes approximately 16 appetizer-sized pieces.
General Preparation:
Place a pizza stone inside the oven and preheat the oven to 500 degrees. If using a regular cookie sheet instead of a pizza stone, set the temperature to 450 degrees.
Lay the flatbreads on a clean, flat work surface. Distribute the cheese slices evenly on the flatbreads; assemble the remaining ingredients on the flatbreads (except for the finishing drizzles as noted!).
Place flatbreads on pizza stone and bake for approximately 5 minutes. Remove when cheese is melted. Remove from oven, drizzle with appropriate finishing drizzles (if called for), and slice into appetizer-sized pieces. Serve immediately.
Brie, Apple and Cranberry Flatbread Appetizer
Ingredients:
- 2 Stonefire Naan Flatbreads (They come packaged in twos)
- Wedge of Brie, sliced into thin slices. (I try to remove most of the white rind on the cheese)
- One apple – skin removed, cored and sliced into thin slices.
- 1/2 cup (Approx.) Dried, Sweetened Cranberries (I used Ocean Spray Dried Cranberries)
Apple, Bacon and Cheddar Flatbread Appetizer With Maple Syrup
Ingredients:
- 2 Stonefire Naan Flatbreads
- One apple, peeled, cored and sliced thin.
- 1/2 cup crumbled bacon (I used Boar’s Head Precooked Bacon – I like keeping things easy!)
- Cheddar Cheese, sliced thin.
- Real Maple Syrup (This is for a finishing drizzle on top of this flatbread)
Fig, Prosciutto, Mozzarella Flatbread Appetizer With Honey
Ingredients:
- 2 Stonefire Naan Flatbreads
- 4 dried figs, chopped
- 4 slices of Prosciutto, thin sliced
- 8 oz. fresh Mozzarella, sliced
- Honey (This is for a finishing drizzle on top of this flatbread)
Pear, Gorgonzola, Provolone, Caramelized Onion Jam Flatbread Appetizer With Balsamic Vinegar
Ingredients:
- 2 Stonefire Naan Flatbreads
- One pear, peeled, cored and sliced thin
- 1/2 cup Gorgonzola Cheese Crumbles
- 8 slices Provolone Cheese
- Caramelized Onion Jam (you can find this in specialty food aisles of your supermarket, or specialty food stores)
- Balsamic Vinegar (This is for a finishing drizzle on this flatbread)
A Big Thank you to Stonefire Naan for providing me with a wonderful selection of Naan Flatbreads for this post!
Simple Holiday Survival: Easy Christmas Cake With Cranberries
This wonderful recipe is the perfect blend of sweet and tart (I happen to LOVE cranberries)! Here is the recipe:
Ingredients:
- 3 eggs
- 2 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup butter, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups flour
- 12 oz. fresh cranberries, rinsed
Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 x 13 pan.
Mix together the eggs and sugar in a large bowl, using a mixer on high speed, for 5-7 minutes. The mixture should double in size and lighten to a soft yellow color. Do not skip or shorten this step – it is what provides the cake’s light texture.
Add the vanilla and softened butter, beating until the butter is thoroughly mixed in – approximately 2 minutes. Add the flour, mixing until it is completely moistened. Stir in the cranberries using a spoon, then pour the batter into the buttered pan.
Bake 40-50 minutes, until the top of the cake is light brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely before cutting.
Enjoy!
I found this recipe on BarefeetInTheKitchen.com, a site chockfull of wonderful recipes! Check them out when you have a chance!
Simple Holiday Survival: Gift Wrapping Secrets!
Simple Holiday Survival: Top Spices For The Holidays
Did you know spices have a shelf life? Humidity, heat, sunlight, and exposure to air can pull the flavor and aroma right out of spices and dried herbs. With the holidays here, now is the perfect time to replace those holiday spices you bought last year! Colleen Messner of The Spice & Tea Exchange in St. Augustine, Florida, has a list of the top spices you should have in your cabinet for the holidays. (And most of them can be used year round!)
Top Spices For The Holidays
Photo from Food.com.
Nutmeg – This brown seed, when grated, provides a warm, spicy/sweet flavor to dishes. A whole seed can be stored indefinitely in an airtight container. Best when freshly grated.
Allspice – This spice tastes/smells like a combination of cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. I love it on pork tenderloin!
Photo from Food.com.
Cloves – This fragrant, nail-head shaped spice is perfect for decorating a ham or whole orange. Imparts a warm and sweet flavor.
Photo from Food.com
Green Pod Cardamom – Cardamom has a strong, unique spicy-sweet taste. Best when purchased in pods, which are removed and discarded before grinding the seeds. Adds great flavor to danish and other pastries.
Photo from Food.com
Star Anise – Sweet/warm spice with a licorice flavor. Great to use in pastries, stews or even asian cooking (It is one element in Chinese 5 Spice Blend).
Photo from Food.com
Candied Ginger – Perfect to use in gingerbread or even chopped as decorative (and tasty!) topping for cupcakes!
Cinnamon – The favorite in the Simple Solutions Diva household! Warm and sweet, cinnamon works well in so many recipes during the holidays!
Storage Tips
- Keep all spices in a dark, cool and dry place, away from heat. (So I guess that means I need to move my spice shelves away from the stove!)
- Leafy items, such as oregano, basil, bay leaves do best when stored in the fridge.
Order Fresh Spices and Dried Herbs
If you would like to order any or all of these spices FRESH from the Spice & Tea Exchange, follow this link HERE to be taken directly to the products page of their website!
Simple Holiday Survival: Gluten Free Guests And Holiday Meals
Holidays are a wonderful time to bring family to the table to share meals and enjoy time together, but what do you do when extended family or friends are gluten intolerant? Make Gluten Free side dishes that everyone will love! It doesn’t take much to do gluten free, and your family won’t be able to taste the difference! Tammy Barr, personal chef and owner of Change Your Crave, gives some simple tips and recipes to help you provide gluten free options for your guests.
Food ingredient lists don’t include the actual word for gluten, so it can be difficult to know if something is gluten free. You can look for a few Warning Words: Caramel Coloring, Malt, Barley, Rye, and Monosodium Glutamate. These ingredients are usually derived from wheat products or contain gluten.
The easiest way to make sure the items you buy are gluten free is to look for the GF symbol on the shelf tags at your grocery store. You can usually find these in the organic aisle, and these are products specifically marketed/approved as gluten free.
Try one or both of these simple and TASTY recipes, both provided by Chef Tammy. No one will know they are gluten free!
Gluten Free Classic Thanksgiving Stuffing
From Tammy Barr, Personal Chef, Change Your Crave
Ingredients:
- 1 loaf white sliced Gluten Free bread (Tammy likes to use Udi White Sandwich Bread), toast each piece
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh garlic (or to taste)
- 1/2 cup butter (no substitutes!)
- 4 large celery ribs, chopped
- 1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
- 1 tablespoon Kosher salt
- 1 -2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 1 (10 ounce) can water chestnuts, drained and coarsely chopped
- 1 C Sliced Almonds
- 3 C Turkey Broth or Turkey drippings if you have them
Directions:
- Toast all the bread slices and cut into cubes.
- Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat until HOT and sizzling.
- Add in onions, garlic and celery, stir immediately with wooden spoon; add in the poultry seasoning, Kosher salt and black pepper; sauté for about 5-6 minutes, or until onions are translucent.
- Stir in the chopped water chestnuts, sliced almonds and cubed GF toast cubes; toss well to combine.
- Add the turkey broth 1 cup at a time. Carefully combine so bread does not completely fall apart. Continue adding broth until everything is well combined.
- Transfer into a baking dish and drizzle Olive Oil over the top.
- Bake for 20 minutes at 360 degrees.
Enjoy!!
Gluten Free Classic Thanksgiving Gravy
From Tammy Barr, Personal Chef, Change Your Crave
Ingredients:
- 1 stick butter
- 4 cups pan drippings from turkey (or see **Options below the recipe)
- 1 can evaporated milk
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (I use freshly ground pepper)
Directions:
- Drain the pan drippings for the roasted turkey through a fine strainer.
- Let sit and then remove any fat from the top of the drippings.
- Add in chicken broth or water to make 4 cups if necessary.
- In a medium saucepan, melt butter.
- Add in black pepper.
- Add in 1/2 cup brown rice flour; constantly whisk for about 3 minutes over low heat.
- Slowly add in the evaporated milk and then 4 cups turkey broth/drippings; whisk constantly over medium-low heat until bubbly and thickened (about 3 minutes).
- Use right away or keep warm over lowest heat setting, whisk again before serving.
**Options: You can use more evaporated milk or drippings to thin out if it’s too thick.
Newly diagnosed as gluten sensitive? Chef Tammy teaches families how to cook terrific gluten free recipes. To schedule an appointment with her, visit ChangeYourCrave.com.
To find the book, Gluten Is My Bitch by April Peveteaux, a humorous and informative book on how to be gluten free, you can find it on Amazon.com by clicking on the link below:
Simple Kitchen Tip: Peel And Store Fresh Ginger
Simple Fall Recipe: Fantastic Pumpkin Cheesecake Bread
This recipe is the best of both worlds – pumpkin bread AND cheesecake! Feel free to use your own favorite pumpkin bread recipe, then use the directions below to create the cheesecake layer and to assemble the layers!
Ingredients:
Pumpkin Bread Layer
- 2 Cups canned pumpkin (one can of canned pumpkin)
- 4 Eggs
- 1 1/2 Cups flour (You can make this 1/2 white flour and 1/2 wheat flour, for a healthier and more dense bread)
- 3/4 Cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoons nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon ginger
Cheesecake Layer
- 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 4 Tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons flour
- 1 egg
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a bread loaf pan.
For the pumpkin layer – In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin and eggs until mixture is smooth. In a separate, medium bowl, combine the flours, sugar, baking soda, and spices, making sure they are well mixed.
Slowly add in the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Mix well and set aside.
For the cheesecake layer – In a small bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, flour, and egg until smooth.
To assemble the layers – Spoon or pour the pumpkin mixture into the bread loaf pan, filling 1/2 way. Spoon or pour the entire cheesecake mixture over the pumpkin mixture, covering well. Add remaining pumpkin mixture to fill bread loaf pan 3/4 of the way.
Place in 350 degree oven for approximately 50-60 minutes. Test with a knife or toothpick in center for doneness – toothpick should come out clean. If not, place it back in oven and test again in five minutes!
This wonderful recipe was adapted from the website, BroughtToYouByMom.com. If you would like to check out the original recipe, click Here.
Simple Solutions Diva Talks Simple Halloween Decor on First Coast Living!
Thank you to First Coast Living on WTLV-TV, NBC 12 in Jacksonville, Florida for having me on the show Monday, Oct. 21!
If you would like to see the “How-To” instructions for the projects featured, Click Here!