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New Year Nibbles

Hors d'oeuvres for New Year's Eve!

By Debbie Friedman

I'd like to tell you about the fancy party I'm throwing for the New Year, but as the mom of two young children, I doubt very much I'll be able to stay awake until midnight. I will, however, do my best to make this a special night and make some fun foods to celebrate New Year's Eve. We'll have a few friends drop by on their way to parties and our home will serve as the "pre-party" for many of them.

I plan to prepare the cold hors d'oeuvres and dips ahead of time and have the table set so our guests can help themselves. For hot appetizers, I'm picking recipes I can make early and that require little heating so I can serve them warm, yet not feel as though I'm stuck in the kitchen. I'll involve my children by having them decorate paper cups and a paper table cloth – I'll spread it out early during the day so they can color and adorn it with stickers. I'll give them some ideas for a New Year's theme, but I suspect the project will take on a life of its own – which tends to be more interesting and enjoyable than anything I can suggest!

Here are a few of my ideas – enjoy!

Cold hors d'oeuvres are the easiest to prepare ahead of time. Pesto Deviled Eggs is a recipe that takes familiar deviled eggs and goes one step further by adding pesto, one of my favorite sauces. I learned to make pesto years ago from a good friend of mine from Italy. I usually have a batch in the freezer, so I find it easy to incorporate it into recipes. It is not as difficult as many people assume and it is a sauce my children really enjoy – typically with pasta or pizza, and in this case, eggs.

Guacamole is always a popular dip. Here's a variation on the traditional avocado, garlic, lime and salt recipe that we call "Mike's Dip," named after – yes, you guessed it – a friend of ours named Mike. While not something you'll find in Mexican restaurants, it takes avocados and stretches their value and flavor by mixing them with cottage cheese and salsa. This recipe is easy to make and really tasty. Of course, serve with tortilla chips.

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