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Holiday Cocktails

So, to catch up a bit... As Kreblog mentioned, a couple weeks before Christmas we hosted a holiday cocktail party for some friends, family and neighbors. This is something I wanted to do last year but we couldn't get our act together. This year my wife was wary but we went for it. Overall I think it was a success. About 20 people showed up, and we seemed to have a good amount of cross-clique-mingling. We had some logistical problems, but now we know for next year!

Bar logistics: All the sources say for a successful cocktail party, so you don't get bogged down at the bar, offer guests a limited selection of featured cocktails which you have preferably pre-mixed. We did that and even made a menu (pdf). Our selections (recipes follow):

• Candy Cane Martini
• Pomegranate Martini
• Moscow "Yule"
• Cranberry-Lime Sparkler
• Espresso Martini
• Chocolate Martini
• See the menu (pdf)

Despite pre-mixing most of these, we still got a little backed up at the bar. The Moscow Yule was a surprise hit for which we were not prepared. For the uninitiated, a Moscow Mule is vodka, Ginger beer and lime juice. (It was originally created to try and introduce Americans to vodka, here's a fun history on it.) My wife and I have always been fans of the Moscow Mule. I happened across Reed's Spiced Apple Cider Ale (non-alcoholic) which tastes like a cross between ginger beer and mulled cider, I thought it would be a great spin on the Mule for the holidays, especially when mixed with the General John Stark, which is an excellent vodka (speaking from experience) distilled from apples at the Flag Hill Winery in Lee, NH. And so, the Moscow "Yule" was born.

I am also a big fan of the Cranberry-Lime sparkler, which came from Food and Wine magazine, especially when made with Polar Cranberry-Lime seltzer. It is a very crisp, light and refreshing drink.

We knew the Espresso and Chocolate martinis would be requested, so we had to have them available also, but we did not want to have to be making too many different types of drinks at the same time, so we marked these as "after 8pm" on our menu. Our idea was that around 8pm we would switch to "dessert" -- we'd bring out the cookies, stop making Pomegranate and Candy Cane martinis, and switch to Espresso and Chocolate. This did not really play out that way... especially since people were still arriving at 8pm. Some of our guests were in near revolt when they found out they could not have a Chocolate martini as soon as they walked in the door. So I caved in and started making them at 7:40.

Food logistics: We were left with a ton of food. We could live off the leftover hors d'ouevre in our freezer for about 2 months. The reference material all agreed: plan for 8-10 hors d'oeuvre per person per hour for the first 2 hours, and then 4-5 after that. We did the math and had some 450 pieces of finger food on-hand. We had them all spread on foil trays -- including veggie only trays -- and ready to pop into the oven. We also had vegetable crudite and a couple cheese plates.

I did not want to get embroiled in cooking, so I only made three things myself (recipes follow): Pork skewers with Mango dipping sauce, Lemon chicken skewers, and Artichoke dip with pita chips. I tested out both skewer recipes earlier in the week, and I was underwhelmed (if that's a word, I know it's not, 'cuz I looked it up, that's one of those skills...) with both of them. I took the leftovers to work the next and put them out cold -- and they were a huge hit, so they were a "go" for the party. Kudos by the way to the butcher at Shaw's, who offered to cube up the 2 lbs of pork and 2 lbs of chicken for me -- that really simplified preparation.

Moscow "Yule"
1 General John Stark vodka
4 Reed's Spiced Apple Cider Ale
Squeeze fresh lime
Serve over ice
Garnish with a lime and cinnamon stick

Cranberry Sparkler
1 Stoli Cranberi
1/2 Rose's lime juice
4 Polar Cranberry Lime Seltzer
Serve over ice
Garnish with cranberries and lime

Pomegranate Martini
2 Pomegranate juice
1 Cranberry juice
1/2 Charbay Meyer Lemon (or Absolut Citron) vodka
1/4 Cointreau
1/4 fresh lemon juice
Shake with ice and serve straight up
Garnish with frozen pomegranate seeds

Candy Cane Martini
1 T superfine sugar
1 T hot water
2oz vanilla vodka
1/2oz white creme de menthe
1 t milk
Shake with ice and serve straight up
Garnish with crushed candy canes

Espresso Martini
1 espresso (pre-brewed and chilled is best)
1 Stoli Vanil
1 Kaluha
Bailey's
Chocolate syrup
Swirl a martini glass with chocoloate syrup. Shake espresso, vodka and kaluha with ice and strain into glass. Add a splash of Bailey's on top.

Chocolate Martini
1 Stoli Vanil
1 white creme de cocoa
1 Godiva liqueur
1/2 Frangelico
1/4 cream
Chocolate syrup
Swirl a martini glass with chocoloate syrup. Shake ingredients with ice and strain into glass. Garnish with shaved bittersweet chocolate.

Lnotes' Mom's Artichoke Dip
2 cans artichoke hearts
1 c mayo
1 c parmesan cheese
2 cloves of garlic
juice of 1 lemon
dash of tabasco

Preheat oven to 350. Put all ingrediens, save one can of artichoke hearts, into a food processor and blend well. Add second can of artichoke hearts and pulse until chopped but so some nice chunks remain. Spread in dish, top with some pepper and bake until top is lightly browned, about 1 hour.

Pork and Red Pepper Skewers with Mango Dipping Sauce
1 c coarsely chopped mango
2 T pineapple juice
2 t lime juice
1 1/4 t kosher salt
2 T chopped red onion
1 T chopped fresh cilantro
1 t chopped green jalapeno
1 lb boneless pork loin, cut into 3/4" cubes
1 large red pepper, cut into 3/4" squares
2 T olive oil
2 t paprika
2 t onion powder
2 t cinnamon
1 t allspice
5-inch bamboo skewers soaked in water

Preheat oven to 450. Place the mango, pineapple juice, lime juice and 1/4 t of the salt in a food processor and process until well blended but not smooth. Pour into a bowl and stir in onion, cilantro and jalapeno. Refrigerate until chilled. Toss the pork, bell pepper and oil in a medium bowl. Mix together (in another little bowl) all the spices and the remaining 1 T of salt and then add to the pork. Toss to coat. Slide one piece of red pepper, skin side first, onto each skewer, followed by one piece of pork. Place on foil lined baking sheet and bake until meat is barely cooked in the center, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve with the mango sauce. Makes about 36 skewers.

Lemon Chicken and Snow Peas on Skewers
1 1/4 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4" cubes
1/2 c plus 3 T fresh lemon juice
3 T brown sugar
2 T water
1 T plus 1 t grated lemon zest
1 1/2 t kosher salt
1/2 c flour
1 t paprika
1/4 t pepper
6 T vegetable oil
36 snow peas, cut into 1-inch diagonal pieces BLANCHED
5-inch bamboo skewers soaked in water

Toss the chicken in a medium bowl with 3 T of the lemon juice. Marinate for 30 minutes. Combine the remaining 1/2 c lemon juice, sugar, water, lemon zest and 1/2 t of the salt in a medium bowl. Drain the chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Put the flour, remaining 1 t salt, paprika and pepper in a plastic bag and shake to mix well. Add the chicken and shake to coat. Heat half the oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add half the chicken and cook until crispy (well-browned) on all sides about 4 minutes. Transfer to paper-towel lined baking sheet. Wipe out the skillet and repeat with the rest of the chicken. Add the cooked chicken to the lemon-juice mixture and toss to coat. Pour into a clean glass baking dish and refrigerate at least 8 hours.

To assemble: Preheat the oven to 350. Slide one piece of snow pea onto each skewer, followed by a piece of chicken and another piece of snow pea. Bake until warm, about 5 minutes, or serve slightly chilled.

Posted by David at January 2, 2006 11:09 PM | Edit