NYE Party Take 4

This New Year's Eve we hosted our 4th party.  3 of the 4 parties have been hosted at our current house.  You can read about last years party here.  This year I kept the decor pretty much the same and also included a photo booth again which you can read more about in the post from last year.  What I always change up a little bit is the menu.  So this blog post is a look at what I served at the party.

The last few years I have served a queso dip but this year I decided to change it up with a delicious hot jalapeno corn dip.  I used this recipe from Lovely Little Kitchen.  The recipe calls for you to bake the dip in the oven but I doubled the recipe and just stuck the ingredients in my small crockpot.  It worked just fine and was very tasty.

I once again served meatball sliders at the party.  Last year I made the meatballs and slider buns from scratch but this year I decided to make it a little easier.  I bought some pre-made frozen meatballs at Target and a couple of jars of marinara and threw it all in the crockpot about 5 hours before the party. For the slider buns I just bought some rolls at Great Harvest Bread Company.  I love their potato dill bread and the potato dill rolls made delicious slider buns.

I had a hot chocolate bar again this year but I made it a little fancier this year.  I used this hot chocolate recipe from Graceful Little Honey Bee.  It is so delicious and easy.  I doubled the recipe since I got a brand new large crock pot for Christmas.  It is really had to get the cocoa powder to mix in instead of just sitting on the top so I discovered this year that using an immersion blender really helps to mix it up.  The printable was a freebie that I found here from Upcycled Treasures.  I just stuck it in a frame that I had lying around.  For mix-ins I had raspberry and caramel syrup, amaretto liqueur and salted caramel vodka, chocolate chips, marshmallows, cinnamon, candy canes, pirouette cookies, and fresh whipped cream.  The hot chocolate bar was a big hit at the party.

The caprese kabobs and deviled eggs were two simple appetizers to put together.  For the kabobs I just cut up fresh mozzarella and skewered it onto toothpicks with a cherry tomato and a leaf of fresh basil.  I then drizzled olive oil and balsamic vinegar over the kabobs.  I never use a recipe for the deviled eggs.  I just mix mayo, mustard, and pickle relish into the yolks until I get the right consistency and taste.  Then I fill the eggs and sprinkle paprika over the top.

For a dessert I served eggnog gingerbread trifle. I used this recipe from Six Sisters' Stuff.  The recipe uses a spice cake mix for the cake layer but I love homemade gingerbread cake so for my cake layer I used this recipe.  I doubled the recipe and baked it in a rectangular cake pan because I wanted leftovers just to eat with whipped cream.

I served fruit and teddy grahams with a gingerbread cheesecake dip.  I used this recipe from Food, Folks and Fun. The only thing that I changed was adding about half the amount of molasses that was called for.  I also made some delicious toasted ravioli served with some jarred marinara sauce.  I used this recipe from the Land O Lakes website.  I actually changed quite a bit of the recipe after reading comments on the recipe.  I used frozen cheese and frozen beef ravioli from Target.  I thawed it the day before the party.  For the bread crumb mixture I used half italian seasoned bread crumbs and half panko bread crumbs for a little more crunch.  For the sour cream mixture I actually only used half the amount of sour cream and used ricotta instead.  To bake them I used my largest cookie sheet with two cooling racks.  This is my favorite method of baking things like chicken strips and coconut shrimp because it helps the air in the oven to circulate all the way around whatever you are baking and it turns out so much more crispy.

Last but not least I served cowboy caviar with scoop tortilla chips.  I always serve this at my NYE party because black-eyed peas are said to bring good luck in the new year.  This year I thought I would share my recipe as there are many variations on the internet.

Cowboy Caviar

• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1.5 to 2 tsp hot pepper sauce
• 1.5 tsp oil
• 1/8 tsp pepper
• 1 firm ripe avocado, cubed
• 1-15oz can black-eyed peas
• 1-15 oz can corn
• 2/3 cup thinly sliced onion
• 1/3 to 2/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 3-4 Roma tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• salt to taste

In a large bowl, gently mix all ingredients together.  Serve with tortilla chips.

I wait until right before the party to add the avocado since it turns brown quickly.  I usually make a double recipe because this stuff is so popular.  I could seriously just eat this stuff as a meal.  Wait, I've done that before!  

I haven't been working on a whole lot of projects lately but I hope to start on some surprise projects soon.  I can't wait to share those with you once I can!