I’m not quite sure why we Americans have such a love affair with chicken wings. Maybe it’s because the chicken wing can take on so many different flavors and has a convenient built-in handle. Or possibly our inner children still love to make a mess while we eat and there are fewer finger foods that have such a mess-making potential as the chicken wing. And then there’s the near ubiquitous pairing of sports and chicken wings. A big game watching party is just missing a bit of something if there aren’t chicken wings about.

While I’m a fan of the traditional Buffalo wing with it’s buttery pepper sauce, and I’m not going to turn down a chicken wing bathed in BBQ sauce, I’m always on the lookout for fun twists on wings recipes so I can offer a bit of the unexpected on my game watching party table.

Sriracha-Glazed Chicken Wings from Martha Stewart’s Everyday Food magazine embody that twist. Sriracha, a traditional Thai condiment featuring chiles and garlic, add spice and heat to the wings while soy sauce gives some depth of flavor. Fresh ginger offers nice back-of-the-throat burn that’s different but complimenatry to the heat from the Sriracha and honey adds a bit of sweetness to balance it all out. These wings are baked instead of fried making them less-messy and just a little better for you than a traditional fried wing.

Save Yourself Heartburn, Prep Ahead

While it only takes a few minutes to whip the Sriracha glaze together for these wings, and they technically only need 30 minutes of marinading time, you can do the whipping and marinating much further in advance to give you one less thing to do just before the game starts.

• Toss the wings with the sauce the morning before the party, cover, and let sit in the fridge until you’re ready to bake them. Pull the wings out at the same time you preheat the oven so they can shake the chill a bit, then bake as directed.
• Freeze the wings in the marinade in a heavy duty zip-top bag for up to a month. The night before the party move the bag to the fridge so the wings can thaw safely overnight. Set the wings out on the counter while the oven preheats and bake away.

Burn Baby, Burn

Even though the name implies that these wings might be extra spicy, a single tablespoon of Sriracha really doesn’t bring that much heat to the party, particularly when spread over a pound and a half of wings. You can easily double the Sriracha or if your guests have varying levels of heat tolerance, serve some Sriracha on the side so those who so desire can turn up the heat all they want.

Make Extra, It’s Easy

Besides being quick and easy to put together, this recipe is easy to double or triple to serve a bigger crowd. Just be sure to use a big enough baking dish so the wings aren’t crowded while they bake or you’ll risk soggy, undercooked wings. You can keep extra wings warm in a crock pot on low so fans can nosh (or possibly stress eat) throughout the game.

When I was growing up, nut-crusted cheese balls made an appearance at a variety of parties and open houses. A look at just about any good cheese plate is ample evidence that nuts and cheese do beautifully together, and a cheese ball is a sort of mini-celebration of their happy partnership. Some cheese ball recipes require more labor than I’m interested in this time of year: grating, mixing, shaping, and rolling. I’ve found it’s much easier to start with a semi-soft cheese in a pleasing shape (like goat cheese), add nuts, and garnish. You can get goat cheese logs in a variety of sizes as well, from 4 oz. to 16 oz. typically, so you can easily find the right size for the number of guests you’ll be serving.

This recipe is inspired by the Sweet-’n'- Salty Cheese Spread I took to my first Austin food blogger potluck. For that spring potluck I used sunflower seeds and fresh raspberries. Now that it’s winter, pistachios and dried cranberries are more appropriate. They’re also very festive. I also really like the bit of sweet the honey brings to this dish. It helps balance the other flavors without being overpowering. And to put the perfect bow on this recipe, it comes together quickly and you can make it ahead. What could be better a better easy appetizer for a holiday party?

Recipe: Pistachio-Crusted Goat Cheese

Details

• Difficulty: Easy
  
• Makes: 32 ½ oz. portions
  
• Prep Time: 15 min
  

Ingredients

• 1 16 oz. log goat cheese
• ½ – ¾ c. coarsely chopped roasted pistachio nuts
• 2 Tbsp. honey
• ¼ c. dried cranberries
• Assorted crackers

Instructions

1. Remove the goat cheese from its wrapper and let it sit on the counter for about 10 minutes so it’s easier to work with.
2. Place the nuts in a pie pan or other shallow dish. Roll the goat cheese in the nuts, pressing gently to adhere the nuts to the cheese, until all sides of the log are evenly coated with nuts.
3. Place the goat cheese on the serving dish and drizzle with the honey.
4. Scatter the dried cranberries around the cheese and serve with the crackers.

Recipe for Success

• You can easily substitute your favorite nut or dried fruit in this recipe. A pecan-crusted log with dried cherries would be lovely as would a walnut-crusted log with chopped apricots. Dried fruits and nuts are common ingredients in holiday cooking so use whatever leftovers you might have in your pantry.
• You can crust the goat cheese log up to 8 hours in advance. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until about 30 minutes before you’re ready to serve it. Unwrap the log, drizzle with the honey, and garnish with the cranberries before serving.

One of the reasons I relish any holiday season is I have (more of) an excuse to entertain friends and family. Comfort and joy for me is a house full of guests savoring good food, drink, and company. But, as much as I love to entertain, it’s not the only thing I want or need to do during the busy holidays. When I’m pressed for time but want to put a lovely menu together for guests, I often rely on simple dishes that showcase high-quality ingredients. The ingredients do all of the hard work and I get to take the credit.

In the spirit of making entertaining fun and less stressful, I’m devoting the next 12 posts to easy appetizers for a party, dinner, or any other entertaining occasion. I’ll share eleven of my favorites and on the twelfth day I’ll gather together a list of many others for you to try out this holiday season. If you have a favorite recipe for easy appetizers, be sure to share it with me in the comments so I can add it to the post on day 12.

The first recipe in the series, and the one that inspired me to put this collection of posts together, is one my mother served at a casual dinner just after Thanksgiving. It’s an easy alternative to the traditional baked brie and really allows the flavor of the cheese and nuts to stand on their own. A touch of brown butter and honey bring the dish together in gooey, melty goodness that everyone will enjoy.

Recipe: Brie with Honeyed Walnuts

Details

• Difficulty: Easy
  
• Serves: 6-8
  
• Prep Time: 10 min
  
• Cook Time: 5 min
  

Ingredients

• 8 oz. brie round
• 2 Tbsp. butter
• ½ c. walnuts, coarsely chopped
• 1 Tbsp. honey
• Assorted crackers and bread

Instructions

1. Cut the top ¼ inch of the brie off to remove the rind and set the cheese on a serving plate.
2. Melt the butter in a small non-stick skillet over medium heat. Cook until the majority of the bubbles disappear and the butter starts to brown lightly.
3. Add the walnuts to the melted butter and sauté for 2 minutes.
4. Add the honey to the pan, stir to combine, and cook for 2 minutes.
5. Pour over the brie round and serve with the bread or crackers.

Recipe for Success

• This would work just as well with a wedge of brie, but like the way it looks with a small round. You could also buy a large round and double the walnut and honey mixture.
• Choose honey with a warm flavor profile for this dish like sage honey or fireweed honey for a warm, rich flavor to compliment the nuts and brie.
• You want fairly large pieces of walnut so guests can get a bit of honey and walnut in every bite.
• Sliced apples or pears would also be lovely served alongside this dish.

With peach season in full swing, I spent some time experimenting with subtle variations on my family’s favorite cobbler recipe. My goal was to create a slightly sophisticated cobbler that still stayed true to its roots. I wanted intriguing without being foofy. The end result was a traditional cobbler scented lightly with lavender, honey, and vanilla, but cooked in a cast iron skillet to remind everyone that it was indeed a cobbler. I served it with good ol’ vanilla ice cream because that’s just what we do in my family, but of course if you’d like you could serve it with freshly whipped cream or even a cream anglaise sauce.

Recipe: Lavender Vanilla Southern Peach Cobbler

Details

• Difficulty: Easy
• Serves: 8
• Prep Time: 60 minutes (because it takes a while to peel this many peaches)
• Cook Time: 35 minutes
• Optional Special Equipment: 9 inch cast iron skillet

Ingredients

• 4-5 lb. peaches (about 16-18 medium peaches), peeled and cut into ¼ – ½ inch slices
• 2 Tbsp. good quality honey
• ½ tsp. cinnamon
• 1 ¼ tsp. vanilla
• 1 ½ tsp. dried lavender
• 1 c. sugar
• 1 c. flour
• 1 ½ tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. kosher salt
• 1 egg
• 1 stick + 1 Tbsp. butter softened, divided
• 1 egg white mixed with 1 Tbsp. water
• 2 Tbsp. raw sugar

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Combine the sliced peaches, honey, cinnamon, vanilla, and lavender in a large mixing bowl. Taste for sweetness and add more honey to sweeten to taste (see Recipe for Success).
3. In a food processor combine the sugar, flour, baking powder, and kosher salt. Pulse 3-4 times to mix. Add the egg and the stick of butter to the dry ingredients. Process on low speed for about 30 seconds to a minute until the dough comes together in a sticky ball.
4. Place the remaining Tbsp. butter in the bottom of the cast iron skillet or baking dish and place in the hot oven for 5 minutes or until melted. Carefully remove the hot dish from the oven and swirl the butter around until it coats the bottom of the dish.
5. Spread the peaches evenly in the baking dish.
6. Drop tablespoons of the dough all over the top of the peaches and press them down with your fingertips to form a mostly uniform crust. Don’t worry if it’s not completely even or covered. The crust will spread a bit during baking and the slightly uneven look is very rustic.
7. Brush the top of the cobbler with the egg wash and sprinkle with the sugar.
8. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the peach juices are bubbling up on the sides.

Recipe for Success

• The amount of honey you use has everything to do with how sweet and ripe the peaches are. Early season or under-ripe peaches may need a little more help in the sweet department. Late season and juicy overly-ripe peaches may do just fine on their own. Start with just a couple of tablespoons of honey, taste the mixture, and add more until the mixture is just about (but not quite) as sweet as you’d like it to be. The peaches will give off some of their natural sugar and sweeten while they cook to round out the final flavor.
• You can use regular sugar instead of honey if you’d like. I think the honey lends a complexity to the peaches that you don’t get with sugar, but that’s a personal preference.
• I made this is a cast iron skillet because it makes it feel more traditional. You can use a deep dish oven baker or even a glass pyrex dish just as easily.
• Instead of greasing the bottom of the baking dish with melted butter you can use baking spray. The butter tastes better though and what’s one more tablespoon among friends?
• I use a tablespoon scoop or mellon-baller to drop the dough in even rows over the peaches. After that it’s easy to press into an even crust.
• You could make this cobbler with frozen peaches if you had to. I’d reduce the amount of peaches to about 3.5 lbs (a couple of good size bags) and I’d thaw and drain them first to prevent the cobbler from being too watery.

Last weekend a bunch of Austin food bloggers got together to share great food and to make real world connections. A wonderful time was had by all at Penny De Los Santos’ beautiful home as we tasted the most amazing range of food from curry-spiced cookies to vegan samosas from the owner of local Kula Catering to some of the best tacos I’ve had in a very long time from Mando of Taco Journalism. Some of the attendees have put together fantastic recaps of the event with some amazing photography, so I’m going to leverage (that’s marketing speak for be really lazy and not do it myself) their posts for those who want a download on the day’s activities:

• Addie Broyles, Statesman food writer goddess and organizer of local bloggers (and this event) put together a lovely recap and gets extra points because she included a really big picture of my sunflower and goat cheese dish in her post aptly titled: Who woulda guessed? Food bloggers like potlucks.
• Logan from Boots in the Oven makes reading about the event almost as fun as being there. He also does justice to the beauty of Penny’s house in both pictures and words.
• Michelle Cheng’s photo gallery showcases the variety of the food and the bloggers behind it.

All-in-all the event was very satisfying for both the stomach and the soul.

However, when I first accepted the invitation for the party the first thing I experienced was…anxiety. Not only was I going to have to cook for a collection of food bloggers whom I respect for both their food and writing prowess, but I had to cook for a potluck which in-and-of-itself has a whole collection of issues to contend with. For about two weeks I was truly flummoxed. And then, as if my mental hamster wheeling over the food blogger event wasn’t enough, I was invited to an Easter potluck to be held a short week later.

Typically menu planning and recipe selection come easily to me. My biggest challenge is usually excluding dishes I want to make to create a menu that’s manageable for me and my guests’ pallets. After some thinking about why I was thrashing about these two potlucks so extensively, I realized that the nature of a potluck was really to blame.

The Problem with Potlucks

Don’t get me wrong, potlucks are great for a whole host of reasons:

• The host doesn’t have to bear the whole burden for cooking (and financing) the event.
• A range of food and culinary styles come to the table to create what can be a truly great experience.
• Their communal nature helps set the stage for party goers to connect. Everyone at the party has at least one thing in common: prepping a dish for the party.

Even so, when it comes to prepping food for the party, potlucks present a not-so-nifty collection of challenges:

• The food has to be prepped ahead. This narrows the possibly recipes down considerably. Recipes that include the words “serve immediately” are out.
• The food had to hold for both transport and serving. When you combine transit time, milling time when you first get to the party, and the time it takes everyone to serve themselves at a party, potluck dishes need to be able to hold their own for quite a while. In my mind, this immediately eliminates any food that uses mayo or eggs, and possibly chicken depending on the preparation because the last thing I want to do is make give a whole group of people food poisoning. I can hear it now “Oh yeah, that was the food blogger event when the Everyday Foodie made us all sick”. Ugh.
• The food has to travel well. Unless you’re hosting the potluck (and then you’re in your own kitchen and none of this really applies to you) you have to get the food from point A to point B more-or-less in good shape, so delicate or fragile food may not be the best choice.

The good news is all of these challenges are completely manageable with just a little know-how and planning. As I finalized my plans for both the food blogger and Easter potlucks, I kept track of the tactics I employed to overcome potluck problems and find the perfect dishes for each occasion.

Potluck Solutions

In the end, surviving a potluck comes down to following a few simple strategies:

• Let the ingredients be the star. A defining characteristic of potlucks are lots of different dishes that may not necessarily go together well. Rather than add fuel to the fire with a complex dish, consider recipes with 5 or fewer ingredients and then buy the best possible ones you can lay hands on and/or afford.
• Choose recipes that do well at room temperature. Cheese dishes are great for a party because cheese is actually best at room temperature. Cured meats, nuts, veggies, and some hearty fruits also do well at room temperature. Vinaigrettes are the best dressings for potlucks because they handle sitting out much better than mayo-based dressings.
• Select recipes that can be prepped ahead. The last thing you want to be doing while you’re trying to get out of the house for a party is cooking a full recipe from start-to-finish. If you can put most or all of a recipe together 12-24 hours in advance you’ll have the time you need to focus on a great dish and prepping for the party.
• Make enough for everyone. Find out from your host how many people will be at the party and plan to serve that many plus 20% more. There’s nothing worse than standing at the end of the line and missing out on a dish because there wasn’t enough to go around.
• Don’t forget presentation. Just because you’re serving at a potluck doesn’t mean you can’t have a pretty presentation. Consider how you’d serve the dish at home and think about how you might replicate that at the potluck without sacrificing your best china or having to arrive 2 hours early. I have a collection of high-quality plastic presentation dishes specifically for serving at potlucks. They are durable and I won’t be heartbroken if I lose one along the way.
• Plan for transportation. Consider how you’ll get your dish to the potluck, particularly if you have to keep it warm or cool. Remember that you can assemble your final dish at the potluck so package elements separately if necessary and put them all together when you get there.
• Be kind to your host by bringing everything you’ll need to plate and serve your dish. At a lunch recently a dining companion told me she’d hosted a potluck party for 30 people and almost none of them had thought about serving the dishes they brought, so she was left scrambling at the last minute. To avoid this plan to bring:
  • A serving dish which is probably different from the one that will get your food to its destination.
  • Serving utensils.
  • Garnishes and final seasonings.

Given all of these strategies, the dishes I chose for my various potluck events included:

• Sweet-’n'-Salty Honey Cheese Spread
  from Southern Living magazine. With only three ingredients (plush garnish) this recipe provides a great opportunity to showcase great goat cheese and honey. I choose local Pure Luck goat cheese which is some of the best you’ll ever taste and Tupelo Honey. An imported orange blossom honey would have been nice as well. With this dish, tasters get to experience high-quality ingredients they may or may not have had before, which is a great gift to give to anyone. This dish holds well at room temperature, lends itself to pretty plating, and travels well (plan to plate at your destination). It also has a make-ahead component and is almost silly-easy to put together. You can roll the goat cheese in sunflower seeds a few hours before the party and finish assembly and garnish at the party.
• Prosciutto-Wrapped Dates with Marcona Almonds and Manchego Cheese. Dates stuffed with nuts and cheese then wrapped in pig meat are a classic appetizer that can be elevated to amazing when you choose great ingredients. Prosciutto de Parma, Marcona almonds, and artisan manchego cheese are best-of-the-best ingredients that come together to create taste experiences. These taste great right out of the oven or at room temperature. You can assemble these up to 24 hours in advance and refrigerate. Cook them for 10 minutes just before you leave for the party and transport in a warm carrier or consult with your host and possibly cook them on-site, but only if you ask first.
• Spring Pasta Salad. Sometimes the oldies but goodies are perfect for a potluck because they are comfortable and expected by the crowd. My mom has been making the pasta salad for potlucks since I was a kid and it’s always well received. You can make it up to 12 hours in advance and take advantage of whatever fresh product you have available at the time. It scales easily to feed a few or a bunch of people and you can make it visually interesting by choosing a fun pasta shape. We simplify the recipe even further by using bottled dressing, but you can just as easily use your favorite vinaigrette. Because this recipe is mayo-free it holds well and it’s easy to transport. For serving, pile it on a beautiful platter, toss on some parsley sprigs and you’re done.

Learn more about prosciutto

Recipe: Prosciutto-Wrapped Dates with Marcona Almonds and Manchego Cheese

Details

• Difficulty: Easy
• Makes: 30
• Prep Time: 30 min
• Cook Time: 10 min
• Weight Watchers™ Points: 1 each, 5.5 for 4

Ingredients

• 30 pitted dates, (about 8 oz.)
• 4 oz. good quality manchego cheese, cut in to ¼ in. cubes
• 30 marcona almonds (about 4 oz.)
• 12 thin slices prosciutto (about 3 oz.), each cut into 3 long strips, for a total of 36 strips

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Using a sharp knife, cut through one long side of each date so it opens like a book for stuffing. Be careful not to cut the date fully in half.
3. Place one cube of cheese and one marcona almond side-by-side in the open date.
4. Wrap the stuffed date in a strip of prosciutto and place seam side down on a baking pan.
5. Repeat with remaining dates, almonds, cheese, and prosciutto.
6. Roast the dates for 8-10 minutes or until the prosciutto is crispy and the cheese begins to melt.
7. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Recipe for Success

• Not every date in your package will be the right size for stuffing and you’ll probably lose a few to breakage, so start with two packages to find your 30 best dates and expect to have a few leftovers. They’re great on salads or for snacking.
• Every strip of prosciutto will not necessary cooperate with the rolling process which is why the recipe calls for a few extra slices of prosciutto. Consider the leftovers treats for the cook.
• You can stuff and wrap the dates up to 24 hours in advance. Bake them just before serving or porting to a potluck.

Recipe: Spring Pasta Salad

Details

• Difficulty: Easy
• Serves: 8-12
• Prep Time: 40 min
• Cook Time: According to pasta package directions

Ingredients

• 2 medium carrots, cut into ¼ inch slices
• 1 bunch asparagus, ends trimmed, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 8 oz. package pasta in the shape of your choice
• Cooking spray
• 1 medium yellow bell pepper, chopped
• 1 English cucumber, chopped
• 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup. shelled edamame, cooked according to package directions and drained
• ½ bottle (or so) of your favorite bottled vinaigrette or Italian dressing
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Bring a big pot of salted water to a rolling boil.
2. Blanch the carrot slices and asparagus pieces for about 2 minutes. Scoop them from the boiling water and shock in ice water to stop the cooking. Don’t discard the boiling water as you’ll use it for the pasta.
3. Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain the pasta and coat lightly with cooking spray to prevent sticking. Let cool to room temperature.
4. Combine the pasta and all prepared vegetables in a large bowl and toss lightly to combine.
5. Add ½ cup of the dressing to the pasta and vegetables and stir to coat. Add additional dressing in small amounts until all of the pasta and vegetables are lightly coated with dressing.
6. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste (if needed).

Recipe for Success

• Use whatever shape pasta that strikes your fancy. Have fun with it. You can also use whole wheat pasta to make the dish more fiber-rich.
• You can make this salad up to 12 hours ahead. Store in the refrigerator before setting out for service.
• The combination of veggies in the recipe is my favorite but you can use any combination you like. Try for a mix of colors, flavors, and sizes. Some other good options include broccoli, green peas, other colors of bell pepper, and red onion. You could also narrow the selection down to a single color (cucumber, edamame, and asparagus for example) for a more focused taste and look. Also, try tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, and cubes of mozzarella cheese for a take on a traditional salad.
• Watery vegetables can make this salad watery, which is why I use grape tomatoes and English cucumbers. If you want to use a regular tomato or cucumber, seed them first to keep the water content down.
• Don’t dress this salad until the pasta has cooled or it will look greasy. The type of pasta you use and your personal preferences will guide how much dressing to use. Be careful not to over-dress the salad. If you make the ahead, plan to add a bit more dressing just before service because the pasta will absorb the dressing over the course of a few hours.
• I use bottled vinaigrette for this recipe because it’s easy but you can absolutely make your own. Like many of my other recipes, this recipe is more of an approach than a recipe. Make it your own with the pasta, veggies, and dressing of your choice.