Every year I mull over the same predicaments! What to serve for holiday dinners!?!?
Not necessarily the ones where the entire family gathers on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, but appetizers and dinners that I can serve for friends dropping in for casual dinners and get-togethers!
Thankfully, I don't have too far to look for inspiration. Great ideas can be found in my local
Whole Foods Market. Unfortunately, for me, that's about a 40 minute drive to the Hartford/Glastonbury area from my hometown of Branford CT!
But as I was lamenting the fact that they're not right around the corner from me while I was there last week , Whole Foods Corporate tweeted me that they are always looking for new locations to open! How's that for active listening to their consumers???
So, if you would like the great folks at
Whole Foods to consider opening in an area near you, here's where you can make your recommendation ==>
bit.ly/1iXTJAJ
At the event I recently attended at
Whole Foods Market in Bishops Corner West Hartford CT, many of their culinary experts gathered to give us some great ideas for all the upcoming holiday soirees!
And I also got to meet up with some local bloggers I've been following, Carrie from
Poet in the Pantry, Allie from
VitaTrain4Life, Erica from
Erica: Thoughts of an Organic Mama , Jess from
Foodette Reviews, and of course, Wendy and Greg from
Connecticut Lifestyles Magazine.
I started with some of their savory ideas. My favorite was the
Crispy Risotto Ball served on a bed of pureed sweet potato, prepared by Chef Bryce. So crispy good and delicately fried on the outside, with soft and creamy risotto on the inside. Then I swirled a few bites into the sweet potato puree to take me right straight into holiday heaven food bliss! So good and this would be a great appetizer or side dish to serve at any holiday party.
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| Chef Bryce's Crispy Risotto Ball |
My favorite inspired protein of the evening was the
Grilled Lamb. I'm a little sheepish (PUNNY) to admit that I've never prepared lamb at home, although it is something I always order when I'm out. However, Chef Devlin furnished me with a recipe that just might get me over my trepidation of preparing it!
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| Devlin prepares rack of lamb |
And Devlin also showed a simple yet creative way to display your lamb when serving it. Simply mound it up on a stack of grilled vegetables surrounded by some simple holiday decor! Recipe for the Rack of Lamb
HERE.
For seafood we were treated to some of
Craig's lobster tails and some
bacon wrapped shrimp and scallops. Did you know that you can purchase party packs of bacon wrapped scallops and shrimp at Whole Foods?
What a great idea! Pop them in the oven with no fuss while you mingle with your guests!
Then I moved on to some of the sweets! We were able to sample some
Bourbon Pecan Pie, Dairy Free "Cheesecake" ,
Chocolate Biscotti (Recipe
HERE), and
Cocoa Oat Truffles (Recipe
HERE)!
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Clockwise, L-R
Top L: Dairy Free Cheesecake, Top R Cocoa Oat Truffles
Bottom R: Chocolate Biscotti, Bottom L: Bourbon Pecan Pie |
To cap the evening off with a beverage, we sampled a great alternative to the traditional heavy and rich eggnog! This one is called
Almond-Nog, and it's quite light in consistency because of the Almond Milk, but still has that nice holiday flavor.
As you can see they used a banana as a thickener. I think when I make it I'm going to use a
frozen banana to make it almost milkshake-like. YUM! And healthy too!
 |
| Almond-Nog |
Thanks to
Whole Foods in Bishops Corner West Hartford CT for the wonderful holiday cheer and inspiration!
Look for great events at YOUR local Whole Foods Market!
Incredible specials, a calendar of events, cooking classes, holiday magazines, and more!
For more pictures from this event visit the Home Place Facebook page
HERE!
What's on your holiday menu this season?
I'd love to hear about it in the comments below!
