Bitesized Advice

I hosted an event for a group of girlfriends at my house this weekend. It was just a simple open house brunch and an opportunity to take a break from the holiday madness to just take a break, eat and drink, and visit. One of my favorite parts of southern life has always been the "visitin" we do. Have some sweet tea (though I virtually never drink that anymore, so thick with sugar you could stand a spoon in it) or some coffee, some cookies or a slice or pound cake and shoot the breeze.

The holidays seem to be a time when people are running 90 miles an hour 24 hours a day and we needed a respite. Or at least I did and I reckoned that I wasn't alone. I actually thought for a minute that it was selfish to plan something the week before Christmas because I wanted to see as many of my precious girlfriends as possible. In fact, there were several others who clearly needed it too, thankfully, so I felt a little better. Just a moment to stop, not worry about drama during the holidays, bringing a gift, dressing up, or impressing anyone...just to come, laugh and visit.

A simple menu of brunch items made it easy for me. Eggs are a must for brunch, so I made mini-veggie frittatas with zucchini, red pepper and onions and smokey paprika deviled eggs. Little sandwiches of homemade pimento cheese on tiny slices of whole wheat bread were perfect for one hand (balancing pink champagne punch in the other hand). There's got to be bread or pastry, so I made some little millet muffins with dried cranberries and nuts and some fresh banana bread. A marinated edemame and artichoke salad provided some lovely color and flavor, while goat cheese stuffed medjool dates provided something unusual on the buffet. Cardamom and chocolate chip cowboy cookies for dessert. In addition to pink champagne punch, coffee with peppermint sticks and lemon water were served. Again (a key), it was easy for me and well received by my guests.

The one thing that every dish had in common? Size. Everything was small - bite sized, in fact. Listen up...it's party planning season and this is a great tip for hostesses everywhere...serve small portions! This helps your guests to be able to try everything without totally overeating! It will help YOU not to overeat too. In fact, one of my friends came to me during the party with a 2-3 bite cookie in her hand and say, "I love that I can always count on appropriate sized portions with you." As an RD, that made me very proud. Merry Christmas and happy party planning!