While enjoying all of the tasty bites and sips at last week’s Party Ready Boot Camp, I missed a few of the great tips and tricks from Kelly and Tom. Thankfully, the nice folks at Electrolux provided me with a quick recap and some how-to instructions from the event.
I’m psyched to share this information with you guys, and I will definitely bookmark this post for my next get-together. I loved all of the recipes and they were soo easy to make!
Antipasti: Cheese and Charcuterie Preparation
- Keep a variety of cheeses, cured meats and spreads on hand (or in your Perfect Tempâ„¢ Drawer!) to present as an easy antipasti.
- Tom used Scharfe Maxx, Gabietou and Monte Enebro cheeses along with Saucisson, Glenchall and Fennel sausage. The possibilities are endless!
- Even master chefs use prepared goods every once in a while! Don’t be afraid to use quality jarred olives, spreads and artichokes on your antipasti plate. Try jams, honey and relishes as well.
- Nuts and dried fruit add color and crunch.
- Let your friends have fun trying all the different combinations of tastes and textures.
- Pair this dish with Vouvray, Domaine Huet Petillant, 2005, Loire Valley, France
Pasta: “One Pot Pasta” – Pasta with Broccoli, Garlic and Parmesan
- This “one pot wonder” is a breeze and requires only a few ingredients: store-bought dry pasta, broccoli rabe (or any vegetable in the refrigerator), garlic, black pepper parm!
- Throw the pasta into boiling salted water. Add uncooked broccoli rabe, strain, add back to the pot with garlic and olive oil, and then finish with a bit (or a lot) of cheese and black papper.
- And there’s only one pot to wash when all is said and done!
- Pair with Grüner Veltliner, Högl, Ried Schön, Federspiel, 2008, Wachau, Austria
Entrée: Roasted Chicken with Roasted Pepper Relish and a Green Salad
- To create this dish in under twenty minutes, either roast a chicken ahead of time, or have a prepared chicken in your fridge. You can re-roast the prepared chicken quickly with olive oil and lemon or serve it room temperature with a cold relish and a fresh salad.
- To make the roasted red pepper relish, julienne an onion and caramelize in a sauté pan, add jarred piquillo peppers, julienned (or any kind of jarred red pepper) to the pan. Soak golden raisings in warm water to plump, then add to onion/pepper mixture, add sugar until caramelized, then sherry or red wine vinegar. Reduce down to relish consistency and serve warm or cold.
- Serve dish with a side salad (arugula, romaine, spinach)””whatever is in season, dressed simply
- Pair with Pinot Noir, Au Bon Climat, La Bauge Au-dessus, 2007, Santa Maria Valley, California
Dessert: Biscotti with Whipped Mascarpone, Orange peels and Pistachios
- Biscotti are a great store-bought option that pair well with mascarpone whipped with sugar and vanilla.
- Soak orange peels in simple syrup.
- Top with pistachios or another crunchy pantry item, like slivered almonds or hazelnuts.
- Pair with Vin Santo, Castellare, S. Noccolo, 2005, Tuscany, Italy
43 Comments
This post is definitely a keeper, thanks.
I absolutely adore cheese, nuts, fruit and jams together. Such great combos that awaken the palate! Yumm.
Thanks for the recap, Tina 🙂
All of that food looks delicious — I’ll have to try that pasta recipe because it sounds pretty easy!
Drooling over the One Pot Pasta! I love broccoli with my pasta 🙂
These are some great tips! I love the idea of cooking a green in the same pot as the pasta! It definitely does make for an easy cleanup! 🙂
Yum, that pasta looks divine! Looks pretty simple to make too which is even better for me 🙂
I got hungry just looking at that antipasti tray! And so easy!
The pasta and biscotti look oustanding and simple to make, especially if I grabbed homemade authentic pasta at the farmer’s market. Thank you for sharing!
I want to eat all of that! It looks so good. Thanks for the recap + tips 🙂
Delish! I was going through vegetarian cook books this weekend and got excited by a whole section of party ideas, can’t wait to entertain!
That dessert looks really good> Biscotti is always a good finger food dessert choice!
Those biscotti look so fancy! How perfect and easy. Love it!
This event looked so great. Those big pasta noodles look amazing!
I love the cheese and charcuterie idea! So easy, but looks fancy!
We make that type of simple pasta all the time. Pasta, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and veggies. So easy!
Great post! I love the antipasti idea. My favorite appetizers to serve at a party are:
Blue cheese-stuffed dates or dates wrapped in bacon
Small toasts with blue cheese, pear, and honey
Shrimp wrapped in bacon, baked, then dipped in a sweet mustard sauce
That pasta DEFINITELY looks more complicated!
@Claire @ Live and Love to Eat: It’s really not. I swear!
Thank you for this post!! They’re so fancy but seem to be pretty easy to put together. I’ll definitely be using this in the future!
oh all this food looks so fancy and awesome 🙂 I wish i could say my party food looks that good…but just serve them enough cocktails and they wont notice is my strategy (kidding!)
I love roasting chicken for parties and easy dinners. It always look so nice and it really is easy. Thanks for sharing the tips Tina!
This post is so helpful! I can definitely see myself getting a lot of use out of your suggestions because I get loads of last-minute visitors! I’m bookmarking this post right now! 😀
This is great! Totally love one pot dinner here, especially this time of year..everything is so fresh! I always make a caprese salad in the summer months when entertaining. Or the avocado salad! This post is making me hungry!
Thanks for sharing – what great recipes to have ready and handy!
these are totally my kinda recipes!
Yum! Perfect tips for last minutes guests.
oh my gosh, that looks delicious!
Oh wow, my Tex-italian husband would love this post. 😉
That pasta looks amazing!
On an unrelated note, I’ve been searching your archives for a quote that you had posed a while ago. It was a rather long quote (the font that is was printed on was unique – it was a combo of large and small letters) that you had in your office – can you point me in the direction to find it? I’m in the midst of some big life changes right now, and I rememebered when I first read it, it filled me with a sense of calm!
Thank you so much!
@Aimee: It’s called the Holstee Manifesto: http://carrotsncake.com/2010/10/doggone-it.html I have it hanging in my office now! 🙂
@Tina: Thank you so much! You have totally and completely made my night!!
I love how complicated all those recipes are when in fact they are simple to make. Love a good fake out! 🙂
I’m sure all of the dishes were amazing however I had a hard time getting past the cheese and charcuterie plate. I’m somewhat infatuated with cheese. I vaguely remember something about biscotti…I could be wrong. All joking aside, these are phenomenal ideas! Thanks for sharing.
Great post – sweet tips! And, that one pot pasta..OMG…now that looks so easy and delicious!
What a great post!!! 🙂 They all look SO good! I love how easy they are to make! 🙂
Wow! T love this post. Is Kelly in as good of shape as she looks??
I am a huge Tom Collechio fan and am dying to go to one of his “wichcraft” restaurants. One day soon….
Yum I had biscotti for dessert tonight. It was served with yummy Trader Joe’s jams like cherry and apricot and was so delicious.
Wow. Everything looks so good!!
Great post- will def be referring to it before my next dinner party!
I also think mixing in some chopped candied orange peel in the mascarpone would taste insane.
Thanks for sharing…these all look like great quick fixes!
Just got word from Amazon that your book is on its way to me here in Australia! WOHOO!!
I made the pasta for my family and my non-veggie-loving brother. Scarfed. Thank you for sharing with us!