Dessert Party
Wednesday, Dec 30, 2009
Dessert Parties—Living the Sweet Life! Dessert parties are a fun spin on traditional entertaining. After all, desserts are the favorite part of everyone’s meal, anyway, so why not create a menu that is centered around all that is sweet, tart, and, of course, chocolate-y?
The best part about dessert parties is that the require absolutely no cooking talent. All you have to do is go to your local bakery, choose a section of tasty favorites, and then serve them on elegant cake platters. It is sure to be the most low maintenance party you ever throw—and also the tastiest!
Decorations for a dessert party should be as novel and charming as the desserts. In celebration of the holiday season, you can decorate your dessert buffet with coconut shavings to create the effect of a winter wonderland. You can also use green or red sugar as a garnish on the dessert tray to usher in holiday cheer. Another cute and original twist is to make green or red jell-o and then use these as a base on your serving trays, or scatter Cinnamon Red Hots along the trays. Another cute(good but can we have a different lead into the sentence so they are not repetitive) way to bring in the holiday cheer and the dessert theme is to use an edible Christmas place card. These festive garnishes will be sure to wow your guests and keep your theme of sweetness intact.
For non-edible garnishes, check out low-cost options at locations such as Oriental Trading Company, Tag Outlet, Target, Cost Plus World Market, or any grocery store. Avoid department stores or drugstores that mark up décor around the holidays, and preferably, you can even stock on low-cost decorations after the holidays end. Then, you will be stocked up and ready to go the next time the holidays roll around.
Of course, while a dessert party can bring sweetness into the holiday parties, keep the needs of your guests in mind. Some might have medical issues with sugar, or have common food allergies to chocolate or nuts. Serve low-sugar options such as sugar-free mousse or cheesecake, and make sure to have some dessert items without nuts or chocolate.
If you are serving cocktails at your dessert party, use lollipops or licorice to garnish your drinks. If you are hosting a coffee bar, bring in tasty touches like flavored whipped creams, and flavored syrups.
Check out the sample menus below for some ideas and what to serve your sweet-toothed guests:
Mini Cupcake Bar A selection of miniature, decorated cupcakes featuring: Eggnog cupcake Red Velvet cupcake Pumpkin Spice cupcake Lemon Cupcake
Lollipop Garden Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Lollipops Fresh, juicy strawberries dipped in dark chocolate and served on a lollipop stick "sprouting" from a tray of wheatgrass
Chocolate Dipped Pineapple Lollipops Fresh, juicy pineapple squares dipped in semi sweet chocolate and served on a lollipop stick "sprouting" from a tray of wheatgrass
Chocolate Dipped Banana Lollipops Freshly cut bananas dipped in semi sweet chocolate and served on a lollipop stick "sprouting" from a tray of wheatgrass Chocolate Dipped Rice Krispe Treat Lollipops Rice Krispe treats dipped in milk chocolate and served on a lollipop stick "sprouting from a tray of wheatgrass Mini Cheesecake Lollipop Rich cheesecake rounds dipped in white, milk, and dark chocolate and served on a lollipop stick "sprouting" from a tray of wheatgrass Chocolate Dipped Apricot Lollipops Dried apricots dipped in rich dark chocolate and served on a lollipop stick "sprouting" from a tray of wheatgrass White Wine Cheese Ball Display on dried cherries to compliment the presentation with crackers and French bread.
Mini S’mores Open-faced crushed graham cracker crust topped with ganache and homemade marshmallow and toasted until golden brown Mini Crème Brulee in Strawberry Traditional vanilla bean crème brulee served in a fresh strawberry
Christmas Cookies Decorated colorful Christmas cookies!
Flavored Coffee Station
Prepare a station with different coffee liquors creams ranging from full cream to low fat.
HAUTE Chocolate Bar Decadent servings of hot chocolate with a kick made of cayenne chilies, Ceylon cinnamon, vanilla bean and dark cacao to warm up a chilly night.
Holiday Martini’s Apple Martini Blueberry Martini Cranberry Martini Blackberry Martini Lime Martini
Flavored Lollipop cocktail Make any clear cocktail you want flavorful and colored by adding your favorite lollipop