Thanksgiving Survival Guide- Part 1- Drinks & Apps

Drinks and appetizers set the tone for your holiday party, especially if you're entertaining all day long.  Here are some recommendations to help you start your party off on the right foot!

Drinks:

Bloody Mary- You can't go wrong with a good Bloody Mary.  Make up a pitcher of these for the early arrivals to enjoy:

I love spicy, but you can adjust the heat based on your preference. If Absolut Peppar is too hot for your liking, just substitute your favorite vodka. In a pitcher, combine 36oz low sodium tomato juice, 2 tsp horseradish, a few dashes each of lemon juice, worcestershire, green tabasco (it's a mild version of the red), sriracha (the best chili sauce around, hands down!), and a few shakes each of celery salt, white pepper, cayenne pepper, onion powder, garlic salt, and black pepper. Mix well. Stir in 1.5c Absolut Peppar Vodka, and chill. Pour into glasses and garnish with whatever you like- olives (my favorite are jalapeno stuffed olives from Trader Joes), lime wedges, lemon wedges, celery stalks, shrimp, etc. Drink responsibly and enjoy!

Mimoas- pair your favorite champagne with some orange juice- easy and delicious!

Apple Cider- Hot and delicious, and perfect for the lead-in to winter!

I like it hot with some spiced rum, which you can add a shot to before serving if desired. Take 9 large apples (gala apples are my favorite) and quarter them. Place them in a large soup pot and cover with water. Add 3/4c sugar. Take two pieces of cheesecloth and bundle up 2 cinnamon sticks and 2 tbsp allspice. The doubled up cheesecloth is to keep as much of the spice pieces out of the liquid as possible. Tie the cheesecloth and put in with the apples. Boil the apple mixture on high heat for 1 hour, uncovered. Then reduce the heat to simmer, cover, and cook 2 additional hours. Remove from the heat and cool. Remove the spice cheesecloth and remove all solids- you may need to strain twice. Serve hot or cold. As mentioned above, I like to serve it hot with Captain Morgan's spiced rum. Garnish with a cinnamon stick, or you can sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon on a plate, pour a circle of caramel syrup over the sugar mix (the size of the glass rim you are using), and dip the glass rim in the syrup/sugar mix. Looks really pretty and tastes great!

Wine- here's a great link to help you pair your food with your wine:
http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/drinking/wine/tasting-notes-thanksgiving-food-wine-pairings

This is my current fave- Wine Nation has it on sale right now for $5 a bottle!

It's very light and refreshing, with a hint of pear and a bit of carbonation.   Goes down VERY easy!

Beer- All the Christmas beers are out right now.  I can't find an Oktoberfest anywhere except in my friend Jeremy's fridge!  For turkey day, I'd recommend Stella Artois, Lagunitas' Brown Shugga, Sierra Nevada Tumbler or Celebration, Dogfish Head 90 Min IPA, or Old Rasputin.

Toast time- cheers!  What to toast with?  My favorite right now, hands-down: Segura Viudas Brut

Apps:

Deviled Eggs- Can't go wrong with these- piping the filling in makes them look very fancy, you almost forget you're eating eggs ;)

Place 8 large eggs in a medium pot covered with cold water by about an inch. Bring to a gentle boil, and remove the eggs from the heat. Cover them and let them stand in the pot for about 15 min. Carefully drain them and run them under cold water. While they are cooling, mix 1/2c canola mayo, 1.5 tbsp dijon mustard, 1.5 tsp white wine vinegar, 1.5 tbsp finely minced shallot, and season with salt and pepper. Peel the eggs and halve them lengthwise, and carefully remove the yolks. Add the yolks to the mayo mix, and combine well. Season with additional salt, pepper and paprika. Pipe the yolk and mayo mix into the egg whites. Just before serving, sprinkle with additional paprika and garnish with diced green onion, if desired.

Pancetta & Goat Cheese Tartlets- I buy the frozen phyllo shells but the same amount of love goes into these bite-sized beauties

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a baking sheet with 2 packages of mini phyllo cups (15 each, makes a total of 30 appetizers). Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil on medium. Saute 4oz pancetta until browned, then remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. In a small bowl, whisk 2/3c half & half or light cream, 2 large egg yolks, and season with black pepper and garlic salt, and a pinch of cayenne or paprika. Stir in 4oz crumbled goat cheese, the cooked pancetta, and 1c diced green onion. Mix well and fill all the phyllo cups. Bake approx 15 min- they should be slightly browned and the goat cheese should be melted.

Sausage Cups- Another fun pastry- based option

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a muffin pan and press a wonton wrapper (use 16oz package for this recipe) into each slot, forming a cup. Bake 5 min and cool. Remove from pan. While the wonton cups are baking and cooling, brown and crumble 8oz of hot or sweet (your choice!) italian sausage, 1/2c diced yellow onion, 1/3c diced red bell pepper, and 3 garlic cloves in olive oil. Remove from heat and cool. Combine 16oz reduced fat cream cheese, 1.5c shredded cheese (cheddar jack works great here, as does paremsan), 1/4c milk, 1/4c canola mayo, 1/4c light sour cream, 1c fresh chopped spinach and 1/2c banana pepper. Stir the sausage mix into the cream cheese mix and combine well. Spoon the sausage mix into the wonton cups and bake on a cookie sheet 10-15 minutes until bubbly and slightly browned. Garnish with diced scallions and enjoy!

Antipasto- the ultimate staple.  Put out whatever you can find- meats, cheeses, sliced italian bread, gorgonzola crackers, olives, artichokes, hot peppers, marinated mushrooms.  Easy and delicious.