Tomorrow is a big and exciting day for all! The end of one year, the start of another. For some of my friends this is their last year before parenthood. For me this new year represents opportunity. This past year I finally found love, a place to call home, and a career that feels like the perfect fit. Now that I have less to search for, I can spend my days bettering myself and my surroundings. I can not wait to see what I can accomplish. I can not wait to meet new friends and family members. I can not wait to watch myself, Michael, Ella and all my friends and their families grow in 2015.
In my intro I had hinted that throwing a party is my FAVORITE thing to do. Every single part is exciting to me. The planning, creating a menu, shopping, and DIYing decor- all to watch my friends have a blast! It fills me with joy. New Years Eve is my favorite party to plan because it feels like the final hoo-rah, and everyone just completely let’s their hair down.
Today I will fill you in on my Menu, Cocktail, and Decor Ideas. Next week I will let you know how it all turned out!
For eats:
I am keeping it light. I made mention in my invite that I will have snacks to pick at but I want my friends to fill up with a nice base before coming over! Here is what we are having:
Mine are slightly different: I chopped sundried tomatoes and garlic and whipped them with a hand blender into mascarpone cheese. I will add a dollop to the cucumber and top with Chiffonade basil
Here is the recipe I followed: http://picturetherecipe.com/index.php/recipes/spicy-firecracker-shrimp/
Pillsbury sugar cookies in a mini cupcake tin, Jello Chocolate Pudding ( I added a dash of cayenne pepper), dollop of cool whip… and adorn with quick dash of cinnamon and a ton of chocolate shavings!
But my main focus is around MEATS AND CHEESE! Cheese and Charcuteri are really ‘in’ and I have always taken a liking to the two. As Kristina mentioned in a few posts past in Pittsburgh we live close to a giant market known as the “Strip District.” Perusing the famous “Penn Mac” cheese display, I am always over-whelmed. Luckily the staff is extremely friendly and knowledgeable. After learning a few favorites from past recommendations we chose the following: a nutty Cave Aged Gruyere, a luscious creamy Double Cream Gouda, a cool and sharp Collier’s Welsh Cheddar, and a hard Italian Pecorino. I also have a goat Chevre at home I will add in a dish, aside a pepper jelly and party crackers. We grabbed an assortment of dried sweet and also spicy sopressata’s, salami’s, and prosciutto. I rounded up some rustic italian bread, a variety of olives from all over, dried apricots, cherries, and cranberries, raw almonds, honey roasted nuts, and sesame snacks. I am simply going to roll out a sheet of brown paper on the table and tag some where near each item on the paper with a sharpie! Easy set up- Easy clean up!
This image was my Pinspiration !
To drink:
Champagne and beer and a stocked bar goes with out saying. The signature shooter of my friends (and the rest of pittsburgh) is the “Mini Beer.” My signature cocktails designed with the ladies in mind is as follows:
- 2 Parts Absolut Mandrin
- 2 Parts Absolut Rasperri
- 1 Part Malibu Rum
- 1 Part Cranberry Juice
- 1 Part Lime Juice
The cocktail that makes for a HAPPIER new year!
*Tip; a nice touch? I dropped frozen berries in ice cube trays to add more PINK to my pretty glitter cocktail. This also makes for a a fun and fruity additive for my MaMa-to-be friend to add to her PG cocktail !
How to Dress it all up! :
A few things make for a big impact, but at a low cost. I will take more of the brown paper roll I mentioned I bought for the meat and cheese table. I will hang it on the wall and encourage friends to write their New Years Resolutions. A chalk board costs nothing to fancify if you have one, and if not … a can of chalk board paint is less than 5$! I do not have enough champagne flutes for all of my friends… so all though I had to buy the cheapy two pieces I took the time to hot glue the flute into the base and dressed them up with glitter and felt! I’ve done some other things like printing a few “Printable’s”, made those oh-so-cute (oh-so-annoying-to-make) tassel banners, and made a goodie bag! Check back next week to see the final product!
HAPPY NEW YEAR !
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