New Year's Eve 2018 Party Menu

Seeing that it is January 1, 2019, I thought it appropriate that my first post be about the New Year's Eve party I hosted last night. I had a bunch of my closest friends over and we spent the night laughing, grooving, eating, drinking, and making merry -- the perfect start to 2019.

Every great party needs yummy food and I made an effort to make sure my guests were happy! I created a small vegetable platter, fried up some Trader Joe's chicken gyoza, baked cheese-y garlic monkey bread, and pigs in blankets. My best friend supplemented these nibbles with potato bites and pimento pepper deviled eggs. (Both were delicious)


Last year, I made pigs in blankets and they were a hit! I know I could buy the frozen pre-made Hebrew National ones, but I like making the pigs in blanket from scratch. Call me crazy, but I find the whole process relaxing.



I also experimented with a recipe I saw on TASTY a few weeks ago for bacon-cheese monkey bread. I've never baked monkey bread before, but I've always wanted to. I've also never seen savory monkey bread, so I was intrigued. Since one of my guests was a vegetarian, I only used cheese, but it was still quite yummy (and easy to make). Using canned biscuit dough, all I had to do was cut each biscuit into quarters, stretch out each quarter and fill with cheese, close up seam, dip dough balls in garlic butter, and then toss into monkey bread mold. Then, I let it bake in the oven at 350F for about 45 min. After letting the monkey bread cool for a few minutes, I flipped the mold over. This was both very exciting and really fun! I was keeping my fingers crossed that the monkey bread held its shape...and it did! Although the cheese didn't really come through -- it was overpowered by the biscuit dough -- the dish was still really yummy and well received by my guests. I mean, it was basically garlic bread. Who doesn't like garlic bread?!



For dessert, my best friend's husband baked beautiful pavlovas, another friend make two kinds of cake balls, and I provided a chocolate chip panettone. Everything was devoured. I saw many happy faces.


All in all, I'd call this party a success. Everyone seemed to have a great time and they certainly didn't go hungry! Looking forward to my party next year and coming up with new yummy treats to nosh on! 

On that note, hope everybody else also had a fun New Year's Eve. Happy New Years, to all. Hope you guys have a wonderful 2019. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Shalom Japan: It's Me, on a Plate!

Image
Last month, my best friend (E) and I ventured out into the outskirts of Willamsburg to try a new restaurant called "Shalom Japan." We are always looking for new places to try and this establishment peaked our interest. Why? Because it is Jewish-Japanese fusion…basically, me on a plate! I've heard of all sorts of cuisine fusions, but this was certainly a first. I'll admit, Shalom Japan is not necessarily in the nicest of neighborhoods and it's not not a busy street. E and I were a bit nervous that we'd gone the wrong way, but eventually, we found the place. The restaurant is quite small, but homey. It's got wood tables/chairs and the building is brick. The atmosphere is very laid back and nice. So far, so good.  I was really intrigued by the menu. I was familiar with all of the ingredients, but was truly impressed by how they were incorporated into Jewish dishes. For example, the sake kasu challah.  I LOOOOOOVE challah. If I had no self contr
Read more

Gordon Ramsay's Cheesy Potato Dauphinoise

Image
I am fairly impressionable --- at least when it comes to cooking. When I see a recipe or a dish that intrigues me, I become obsessed and determine to give it a go. I have been obsessively watching Come Dine With Me  for at least one month and a dish that keeps popping up is: Potato Dauphionoise. I've eaten this side dish a couple times in my life, but not recently. It looked so delicious and easy to make, and I was determined to try my hand at this posh looking side. As per usual, I consulted the internet to look for recipes. As most of you know, I am obsessed with Gordon Ramsay. He is always my go to. If he doesn't have a recipe for something I want to make, I'm always feel a little lost, but luckily, that wasn't the case this time. I was delighted to have stumbled upon Gordon Ramsay's "Gratin Dauphonoise." He has yet to let me down and you know what, this dish was a winner! Something that I am adding to my repertoire.  This dish was incredibly e
Read more

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: Where Greek Mythology Comes to Life

Image
Last week, I finally made it to the movie theater to see Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters. I don’t care what anyone says, I LOVED IT. I loved the film, I love the Percy Jackson franchise, I love the Rick Riordan books, and I cannot wait for the next book ( The Titan’s Curse), to be made into a film! For those who may be unfamiliar with Percy Jackson, allow me to briefly explain. Percy Jackson is essentially Harry Potter , but the magic has been swapped for ancient Greek mythology. The protagonist of the series, Percy Jackson, is a demi-god and son of Poseidon --- god of the Seas. Percy lives at Camp Half Blood and is often accompanied by his best friends, Grover (a satyr) and Annabeth Chase (daughter of Athena). These three, along with a variety of other characters, go on quests and do everything in their power to stop the return of the evil Titan, Kronos, who is trying to resurrect himself and overthrow Olympus. (He’s got a bit of a grudge against his sons --- Zeu
Read more