Bacon Wrapped Prawns Appetizer

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appetizer, bacon, Bacon-Wrapped Prawns, New Year's Eve, party food, Prawns, spicy, Sweet

Last week I was asked to bring my, “favorite holiday dish” to the Christmas celebration at my dad’s house. Well, I don’t really have a “favorite holiday dish” so I decided to try something new! (Though I did bring my favorite-to-make holiday cookies for dessert – Norwegian Krumkake! See the recipe here.)

So, I threw some prawns into a bowl and went to my cupboard and added a bit of this and a bit of that!

With a hard to please family, I am always looking for something that everyone will enjoy. This comes about as close as anything I make. Most everyone likes bacon AND prawns.

This slightly sweet, slightly spicy appetizer would make a great addition to your New Year’s Eve celebration – or for any other celebration of the year that you need a crowd-pleasing snack.

Bacon Wrapped Prawns

• 1 lb raw, shelled prawns (26-30 size)
• 1 lb raw, sliced bacon (not thick sliced)
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin
• fresh ground pepper

In a small bowl, mix all ingredients together except the prawns and bacon. Marinate the prawns in this mixture for 30 minutes to an hour. Slice bacon in half and wrap each prawn with a half slice of bacon. Secure each wrapped prawn with a toothpick. Bake wrapped prawns on a baking sheet in preheated oven at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Then heat under the broiler for about 5 minutes or until bacon crisps to desired crunch.

What is your favorite appetizer to serve on New Year’s?

Happy New Year! A Festive New Year’s Tree

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balloons, celebrate, Christmas tree, decorations, Happy New Year, New Year's Eve, New Year's Tree, Party, party hats

Have you taken your Christmas tree down yet? I always get sort of sad when it’s time to take it down so we usually leave ours up until at least New Year’s Day.

But this year I was torn. I was sort of ready to get things tidied up early, but not really ready to say goodbye to the beauty of the lights twinkling on the tree.

So I decided to do something I haven’t done in many years. I got a head start putting the ornaments away while still making it possible to enjoy my tree for a few more days.

My answer?

A New Year’s Tree!

Take all those NYE party hats and blowers off your table, and the banner and balloons you have been trying to find a spot to hang, and simply add them to your tree!

This is a great way to present your party accoutrements, and so fun for the kids to help with!

As guests arrive (or close to midnight), have them choose a party hat and blower right off the tree.

You can leave your ornaments on if you like and just add to it, but I chose to take all the special ornaments off to make some room for the balloons.

I did leave the plain colored balls and the lights on though because I liked how the colors (and the lights) added to the look.

The “Happy New Year” banner is attached to branches with ornament hooks and then I just loaded the tree with hats and party blowers. Use as much or as little as you like.

It would be cute to add little treat bags for party favors, wouldn’t it?

The balloons, in an assortment of shapes and sizes, are just stuffed into the tree. The bag of cheap balloons I bought at the dollar store, I thought, had an assortment – but they really were all about the same size and shape (you get what you pay for!)

I made it work – I just filled up each balloon with a varying amount of air to make them differ in size.

The balloons may waft off the tree as the evening wears on, but that just adds to the festive feel of the event as they float through the space.

In fact, if you don’t have little ones or pets about, you can even blow up a bunch of extra balloons and surround the tree with them – intentionally adding a bit more of a party atmosphere.

And for the top of the tree? I took off the star tree topper and added a nice big party hat on top. What else? 🙂

Our tree is ready for a celebration!

I know many people have different traditions surrounding the taking down of the tree – When do you pack yours in? Do you leave it up through New Year’s like we do, or are you a “get-it-all-cleaned-up-immediately-after-Christmas” type? I would love to hear what your traditions are.

Wishing all of you a fun and safe New Year’s! Bring on 2013!

Setting a Pretty NYE Table – Sparkly Silver & Blue

Tags

2013, blue, New Year's Eve, Silver, Tablescapes, Tinsel

Are you throwing a grand New Year’s Eve party this year? Or, are you like us –  just staying in all cozy with only the family? Either way, this truly festive holiday is yet another excuse for you to set a pretty table.

This year’s theme for my NYE table is sparkly silver & blue.

I am a strong believer in using what I have around the house for entertaining, and then adding items that I find by thrifting or shopping discounts. You will see that theme run through my blog – over and over again.

This year when I unpacked the Christmas tree decorations, I pulled out a box of shiny blue glass ornaments that I never seem to be able to put on my tree (they just don’t go with anything else I own) – it had a note I had written on it before packing them away last year.

It read, “2012 NYE decorations. With Silver balls.” (You see I also have some silver glass ball ornaments that I never use either.)

When I received these shiny silvery napkin rings as a gift for Christmas from my Mother-in-law, I knew it was meant to be.

But I did shop the Christmas clearance sales yesterday for a few items that just make this table.

I started with our chandelier, and decided to hang the blue glass ornaments from it at varying heights with some blue organza ribbon I had on hand.

I then added tinsel garland I found for a steal at the dollar store! (half price of a dollar is…that’s right 50 cents! How can you beat that?)

I found this miniature silver Christmas tree and thought it would be perfect on my table!

To it I added this “2013” cutout I bought at the local party store. I was going to craft something almost exactly like this but when I saw it for $2 I was overjoyed – time is money after all! I added these fun silver and blue present bows I found (also at the dollar store.)

For more sparkle I love lots of candle light!

I pulled out my best Champagne glasses (these were my great-grandmothers) and tossed in some party hats and blowers I bought at the dollar store.

It’s okay to go easy on yourself (and cut back on your laundry chores) by using paper napkins when entertaining – just buy some really nice, thick ones and then dress them up with napkin rings.

I found these Christmas silver swirl paper napkins at the party store on 70% clearance! I simply rolled them, inserted them in the rings and then fanned them out, displaying them on a stack of my plain glass plates.

To see more of my inspiration and many other wonderful ideas, check out my Pinterest board chock full of New Year’s Eve visuals.

My table is all ready for appetizers! Check out this great list of seafood apps to make from Whole Foods Market or my recipe for easy, fantastic stuffed mushrooms here.

Seafood Appetizers for NYE

Tags

appetizers, Crab, holidays, New Year's Eve, Seafood, Shrimp, Whole foods Market

With New Year’s just days away, I am gathering all the decor (silver & blue this year!) for my table and planning my menu for New Year’s Eve.

We usually tend to shy away from the crowds, choosing instead to stay in and celebrate as a family. But whether you are hosting a large shindig, a few friends, or just family (and after the lavish meals of Thanksgiving and Christmas) an appetizer spread is a nice way to go.

One way to give your appetizer buffet more impact is to give it a theme.

We have a seafood-loving family and since shrimp cocktail is a holiday staple for entertaining (right up there with cookies, crudités and cheese plates) why not a seafood selection?

Here’s some fun ways to put a unique spin on shellfish appetizers – some great recipes from Whole Foods Market:

·         Deviled Eggs with Shrimp – Deviled Eggs are a big favorite in our home! And shrimp makes a delicious and dramatic garnish for stuffed eggs. Cooking the shrimp only until they are opaque keeps them sweet and tender.

·         Two-bite Shrimp Pancakes with Satsuma Relish – Try these delectable bites with wild shrimp highlighted by a simple citrus topping.

·         Seafood Cucumber Stacks with Lemon Cream and Chives – These refreshing hors d’oeuvres are delicious with shrimp or crab, so pick your favorite!

·         Hot Crab and Artichoke Dip – Enjoy this savory dip, a mixture of delicious crab and artichokes in a creamy base, with other classics: crackers and crudités! Wonderful!

·         Mini Crab Cakes with Spicy Red Pepper Sauce – Fry up these succulent two-bite treats up to two days ahead and refrigerate between layers of waxed paper. Give each a dollop of pepper sauce just before serving.

·         Crab Canapés – These are great placed atop baguette slices or pretty crackers and broiled.

Additionally, did you know when you buy seafood at Whole Foods Market, you’re helping to support more sustainable fisheries and aquaculture?

Their shrimp and crab are sourced from farmers and fishermen that meet the company’s quality standards for farmed and wild-caught seafood, including preservatives, a suite of requirements to protect the environment, and traceability from farm and fishery to store.

What are you serving on your New Year’s table?

All photos used courtesy of Whole Foods Market.

An Easy Stuffed Mushroom Appetizer for New Year’s

Tags

appetizers, New Year's Eve, sausage, stuffed mushrooms

I hope everyone had a nice Christmas spending time with family and enjoying all the festivities. I have been taking a much needed break since Saturday, but today I returned to work (until the next holiday weekend!) and decided to return to the blog as well. Just in time to give you this fantastic appetizer idea for your New Year’s celebrations.

We entertained 15 people in our home for our Christmas Eve open house and these mushrooms were the hit of the party. I created this recipe at 11pm the night before the party. As I sat, furiously scribbling, my husband looked over at me and asked, “What are you doing?”

“What else?” I told him matter-of-factly, “Writing a recipe. For tomorrow.”

I think I may just do these things for the heavy sigh and eye-rolling reaction I get. Though, I know for a fact that the satisfaction I felt in the compliments the next day were definitely a driver as well. As soon as I laid down that pen, I knew this would be a winner – but I guess it just as easily could have gone bad. Luckily for you, it didn’t 🙂

Sausage Stuffed Mushroom Appetizers

• 1-1/2 lbs Fresh mushrooms – about 40 medium
• 1lb ground sausage
• 4 oz softened cream cheese
• 1/4 cup breadcrumbs (I make my own – but plain store-bought work just fine)
• 3 cloves of minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon fresh chopped rosemary
• olive oil
• 1/2 Tablespoon butter
• fresh-squeezed lemon juice (about a Tablespoon)
• salt
• fresh ground pepper
• grated Parmesan cheese

1. Clean mushrooms and remove stems by twisting slightly.
2. Chop 1/2 of stems (discard the rest or save for another recipe), rosemary and garlic.
3. Cook sausage until browned in a frying pan breaking into small pieces.
4. Once sausage is browned, remove from pan and set aside.
5. Melt butter in same pan over med-high heat. Add chopped mushroom stems, rosemary and garlic and cook until soft.
6. Mix sausage, sauteed mushroom stem mixture, softened cream cheese, breadcrumbs and lemon juice in a bowl – I had to use my hands to really work the cream cheese in.
7. Toss the mushroom caps in olive oil, fresh ground pepper and salt.
8. Stuff mushrooms.
9. Place on greased cookie sheet.
10. Top each one with grated (or shaved) parmesan cheese and bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

What is your favorite appetizer to serve on New Year’s?