Party Inspirations

Those who know me well aren’t surprised that I start to plan the fall and winter holidays right around the fourth of July. Now that it’s past mid-June, I’m starting to seriously think about parties and what great new cooking adventures I want to embark upon. I’ve already decided that this year I will make a tower of profiteroles for our holiday open house, but reading this Trendy Hors D’oeuvres post on chow.com I’m even further inspired. I think I want to add the following kinds of things to my repertoire:

• A spoon presentation. This just sounds like too much fun, although the components will all need to be pre-prepped so final assembly is all that’s required.
• A shot glass or shooter presentation. For a while I’ve wanted to do a tuna tartare in a shot glass with wonton chips, but as I think about it, the tuna with a wasabie vinaigrette might do very well in the spoon. I’ve contemplated something simple but classic like chocolate mousse shots but might also do a mini salad.
• New and interesting skewers. I made Mini Caprese Bites for a potluck a few weeks back and they were a huge hit. I couldn’t find bocconcini that were small enough so I bought smoked mozzarella and cut it into rounds with a small circular cookie cutter. I also drizzled it with a basil-infused olive oil because I didn’t want to deal with prepping basil at the party. We had another engagement before the party so the bites sat in the olive oil for a bit in a cooler and that only made them better, so they have the benefit of make-ahead plus a cool presentation. Assembly took a bit but I enlisted help and it turned into a fun family activity.
• Lamb lollipops. I’ve seen these crusted, rubbed, and marinated. They are just a couple of bites and have their own handle. However, given the current price of lamb I think I’ll serve these at an intimate gathering.
• Cheese truffles. I have a recipe from Paula Lambert of the Mozzarella Company for goat cheese truffles rolled in spices, nuts, and other goodness. I made Feta Cheese Truffles and Gorgonzola Truffles as welcome bites before a pre-Easter dinner and they were a hit. I’m a big fan of encouraging my guests to try new cheeses so this may be another path to that.

Thinking about this now is most likely a good thing because my current partyware collection includes neither spoons nor shot glasses. Time to start shopping.