dreaming of a full house

Each year i dream of hosting elaborate holiday parties. last year was maybe the closest. Not elaborate, but fun and festive and fairly well attended nonetheless. And one day I'd love to hold a New Years Eve dinner party. Eat at about 9 p.m. with a table full of friends reminiscing about the year. Countdown together at midnight. Or maybe a New Years day brunch. I blame my excessive magazine and blog reading on this compulsion to entertain. I guess it's in my genes a bit, too. My mom catered when I was younger, even had a little sandwich shop in the town where I grew up for a few years. So I saw a lot of the details and planning that went in to good food and happy people. And that's all I want. Not to be told "so delicious" but that people have a good time and know they can expect that when coming to see me. High expectations for myself, non?

Anyway, knowing the holiday season is jam packed and with budgets a bit tighter the hubs and I decided having a few people over to just hang out would be a better use of time than planning a big bash...and fighting for a weekend to host it. Holiday parties are competitive....and people are having annual parties now. Yowza.

I decided to go easy and comforting and serve soup as the main dish. I made a pasta soup that I love more than most things and a potato, that I sort of came up with, and wasn't as pleased with. The pasta soup was a hit (and SOOO easy). The recipe is here.

I always feel the need to have nibbles. I was pleased with the sugar and spiced nuts I made but more so with the candied nuts. I made some puff pastry cheese twists that were new and I won't be making again. Wish I would have gone with these gems instead. Olives were more for my benefit (obsessed!) and some summer sausage cut up. Wish I would have gone with prosciutto ham instead as really I was the only nibbler. I swear I could exist on appetisers.

Dessert also seemed to be a success. Chocolate peppermint cake balls (I use THIS philosophy and make up new balls when I feel creative) and salted carmel cheesecake which I can not say enough good things about. It was my first attempt at cheesecake and came out without a hitch.

We played board games, laughed, shut things down after midnight. It was the best night I've had in a long time. Goes to show sometimes you just need the right people there (even a handful) to make it a good night.

But I'm still holding on to my dream of hosting a massive backyard Mexican fiesta... :)