100 Posts and a Party

It seems only right to ring in the 100th post by celebrating another small victory. I finally (and I mean finally) threw a Christmas cocktail party. This is something that I've wanted to do since I moved into my first solo apartment. It happened to coincide with our first big snowstorm of the year, but I think that only made it more charming. I tried to do the whole thing Barefoot Contessa style, with a balance of store bought and homemade treats and a lot of atmosphere.


I made a sweets platter on a simple, white cake tray. I picked up some quality peppermint bark, a few clementine, some stollen and baked up a few of the Chez Panisse cookies. And the savory snacks came in the form of a cheese tray, a bowl of marinated olives and a small pyramid of arincini.



I even broke out the old $1 silver platter to use as a cocktail tray.

There were a lot of twinkly lights and no shortage of champagne, but more importantly the company was delightful. I should do this every year!