The Key to Holiday Entertaining
Just think…snow falling outside, dusting the pine trees just a little white…a hot mug of Door County Christmas in your favorite cup, the fireplace roaring, and Burl Ives in the background singing out your favorite carols. This truly is the best time of the year, especially in Door County. We are blessed with beauty all around us, all year long, but the snow-covered trees and twinkling lights on everyone’s front porches really make this time of year magical. Not only that, but it sets the perfect scene for any kind of Holiday party!
When sitting down to plan a party, especially a holiday party, you want it to be festive, fun and EASY! Nothing comes easier to prepare and plan for, than brunch! Brunch is such a fun way to include easy and delicious breakfast foods, along with lunchtime favorites! From recipes, to decorations and coffee, we have everything you need right here, to throw a great Holiday Brunch for all your favorite people!
The best part of a holiday gathering is…FOOD! And to make it even better, we have put together recipes for food that can be made ahead or before guests arrive and be kept warm! When we thought about brunch, the first thing that came to mind was French toast! And a warm, gooey, Caramel Pecan French Toast bake was the perfect way to go and can be made ahead of time and warmed in the oven right before your guests arrive! You can find the recipe here…
You can include other breakfast favorites, like bacon, waffle sticks or eggs, that can all also be made ahead and put in crockpots or warmer trays! Don’t forget to include some lunch munchies, like grilled cheese sliders or sliced ham with buns, both easily kept warm in crockpots too!
What better to go with a yummy brunch, then a Hot Cocoa bar?! We gave this one a try, and used our gourmet Hot Cocoa, and had both alcoholic and non-alcoholic options! We recommend using milk or cream to make your mug of cocoa, but after that, the options are endless! We dipped plastic spoons into melted milk and white chocolate, just slightly cooled, and then them fill as far as we could. Then we sprinkled anything and everything from mini chocolate chips, caramel and seas salt, m & m’s, mini marshmallows to candy cane bits and sprinkles, to make stir sticks that add a little bit of extra fun! We also like the optional extra shot (or two!) of fun in each mug, with Peppermint and Butterscotch Schnapps.
You can take it up a notch higher, with a little boozy cream, which just entails adding a little bit of Jameson to your whipped cream and beating it with your hand mixer for a few minutes! We also like to make sure we have a full pot of coffee, usually Door County Christmas or Candy Cane, so that if anyone wants to go for a Swiss Café instead, they can make their hot cocoa with coffee instead of milk, cream or water! You can even keep a large amount of the world’s best coffee hot and ready for sipping by brewing it and pouring it into an Air Pot! This will keep your coffee at the perfect temperature for up to 10 hours! And convenience is key to having a great time at your own party! All that is left is to put out little bowls of candy canes and marshmallows and enough mugs to go around and you are all set!
Between the delicious food, the festive drinks and all the time with your family and friends, it is hard to find a more magical time of the year.