I thought I had typed up the planned menu for this year’s White Elephant party, but after a quick search it was two years ago that I posted the planned menu. So we’re in a quandary and are not sure what we’re making this year. Here’s the list of things we’re considering (this doesn’t mean they’ll all make the cut):
1) Denis’s bruschetta (two kinds – pesto and goat cheese)
2) Bacon wrapped filet
3) Chicken fried steak bites
4) Shrimp meltaways
5) Swedish meatballs
6) Denis’s famous crab cakes Artichoke Crab Bites
7) Stuffed mushrooms
8. Cream cheese stuffed tomatoes
9) Hawaiian meatballs Chicken rollups
10) Homemade pita chips with spinach/artichoke dip
11) Maple Salmon Bites
12) Brie in puffed pastry
13) Deviled eggs
We have a lot of repeats – in fact, eight of those are repeats. But there’s a reason they are repeats – everyone likes them! So we’re trying to decide what to swap out for this year’s party in order to present something new. Based on the list above, only the brie, the swedish meatballs, the pita chips and the chicken fried steak bites are new. Is that enough new stuff that people won’t be thinking, “Geez, they are serving this AGAIN?”
The other change this year is no jello shots or pre-made mixed shooters. Two years ago they were a huge hit but last year they were barely touched. So this year we’ll just serve sodas, coffee, tea, mixed drinks, wine and beer.
Dessert will be standard fare – cookies, chocolate egg nog pie and either pumpkin pie or apple crisp.
We already have 30 confirmed attendees, with another large segment uncommitted at this point. We had 30 attendees last year and it was very crowded. But in a good way. =) We’re putting the tree back in it’s original spot in the bay window as that worked better as far as seating was concerned.
We’re only SEVEN weeks out from the party. Shockingly, I haven’t bought my WE gift yet for the game.
If people liked what you served before, I don’t see why you would want to change the menu. Furthermore, if you are saying that the last party was two years ago, I am sure people would have forgotten what was served before – just a thought.
You might just find a treasure for a WE on Marmie’s Back Porch this weekend. 🙂
Emma – no, this is an annual event, and we have people that come EVERY YEAR without fail (this is our 11th year). We had the party last year, but for some reason I didn’t post the menu here on Cootiehog, as I did two years ago.
I made the crab meltaways last night for book club (I used imitation lobster though), and they were a HUGE hit – I brought home an empty dish at the end of the night.
I think it’s okay to repeat, especially when you know something has been a hit in the past. Anything named “crab meltaways” has to be good! I’ll be passing through SC this weekend on the way to visit the kids in GA, I’ll wave in your general direction! 😉