Y'all, when I tell you I hate still being in School, I am not weaving any tall tales. I feel like I have been in school FOR-EH-VER. But, there is one thing I am supremely grateful for....it's all online. Now that may seems like a "Duh" moment given the current public daily death watch, but its a little more than that. Its actually a "I can spend my day in pajama pants and no one cares" kind of situation. Combine that with Stretchy Pants Season and holiday baking and you'll find me rolling out the other side of New Year a little fatter and a little sassier, but rubbing my belly with a big ol' smile on my face like a honey stuffed Pooh Bear!
Lets talk party food..... holiday food.... tasty snacks and delicious treats... lets talk "I'm about to make you drool on your keyboard!". Honestly, one of the best reasons, especially if you're an introvert, to even attend a party is the food. And if your from the south you KNOW you'll be gazing lovingly down the table at meatballs in grape jelly and barbeque sauce, Bisquick sausage balls, home made cookies and cakes, maybe even a giant punch bowl filled with lime green punch with sherbet floating on top.
But we need to take a second and review the kind of people who bring the food! You know .... and I know.... there are a few categories each party goer falls into when they lay those festive dishes out on the table:
The Church Lady
The Fancy Foods Coinsurer
The Healthy One
The "You Can Just Bring Ice"
The Baker
We all know which one we are, so I've compiled a list of recipes for each. We won't ever ask you to identify yourself, and we will always support you if you want to claim you made your dish 'just because it looked yummy", but we want to make it clear - we support delicious honey food preparation at ALL skill levels!!!
The Church Lady
Think Paula Deen, think Sunday Supper, think Southern Comfort! These recipes are made with sticks of butter and pounds of love. You don't ask what's in it, because it tastes too good to care! Every ounce of hug and comfort these cooks posses make it into their food, and each bite wraps you up and never lets you (or your waist line) go! The recipes aren't always fancy, but they are ALWAYS exactly what you didn't know you needed! If this is you, or you want it to be you, check out these recipes!
When do you ever go wrong with donuts? These bite size treats are deep fried to golden perfection, glazed with spiced honey sauce, and topped with powdered sugar and/or walnuts. RealGreekRecipes has a great walk through on her blog, she even explains the traditional method for portioning these little fried bits of heaven.
If you are ANYthing like me, you could literally eat a whole tray of these right by yourself. People who try to take my pigs typically are met with death stares and even sometimes a growl or snarl! ButterYourBiscuit offers up a recipe that puts a little holiday pizazz on the traditional pigs with a some Everything Bagel seasoning and a homemade dipping sauce.
We can all attest to the fact that ingredients can make or break a dish. PlainChicken offers up a combo that you can have anytime, anywhere. Warm biscuits stuffed with ham and swiss and drizzled with sticky honey. Use your Kaes Line Blended Honey to make it extra fancy and no one will ever suspect your dish was mostly premade!
The Fancy Foods Coinsurer
This cook likes to introduce us to the finer things in life. Whether its grazing tables, or goats cheese, foreign dishes, or whipped air. This person likes to shock and amaze with how creative and delicious (and sometimes tiny) their creations can be! If you are the master of your kitchen, or maybe just the master of a charcuterie board, these recipes will definitely tickle your fancy!
If you love all things charcuterie, WaysToMyHeart has the perfect addition to your board. We're coating bacon with honey and sriracha, then combining it with caramelized onions and some balsamic vinegar to make the ultimate topper! If charcuterie isn't for you, check out the link she stuck in here for her BLT Bruschetta recipe!
If you want to bring the sweet heaven that is baklava to a party, without the flaky or sticky mess, these are the most amazing alternative. Perfect size for grazing tables. Single serving with no flake, and we all know that if its bite size the calories don't count - right?!?! CelebrationsAtHome has whipped up these tiny sweet morsels using fillo cups right out of the freezer section, you can't beat that!!
Do you love your air fryer as much as I love mine?? We cook almost everything in that bad boy. It's so fast and easy, plus I don't always have to wait for it to preheat - win, win! PixelsAndPlates has fantastic mini party fare, so crank up that air fryer and show people how bougie they secretly are!
The Healthy One
First I just want to say, if this is you, thank you and God Bless you! Without fail there is always someone at holiday parties looking out for my waist line more than I am... and I am grateful! The best surprise for me is when the healthy treats taste as decadent as the fatty ones. This holiday season, bring your healthy A-game and lay one of these plates of delicious goodness out for us gobblers!
Bright flavors? - check. Healthy greens? - check. Tasty homemade vinaigrette? - CHECK! SmallTownWoman's Christmas salad doesn't skimp on flavor or goodness. With delicious pomegranate seeds, oranges, almonds, and feta cheese, there is no way people are skipping this dish! (I'm debating stopping on the way home to make this for dinner!) Make your dressing with a blend from Kae's to hit that vinaigrette out of the park!
If you're in a pinch and pressed for time, The ReluctantEntertainer has the perfect recipe for you! Crisp Endive lettuce, spread with goat cheese, drizzled with honey and sprinkled with walnuts! Pack an even bigger punch by changing the cheese (whipped feta anyone?) or making the Hot Honey Bacon Jam from above. There's no way you won't be asked for a repeat performance!
If you love all things avocado, SkinnyMs. has you covered. Golden, crispy, OVEN BAKED, avocado fries, with a Greek yogurt based spicy honey lime dipping sauce is about to steal the show. Not only are you bringing the creamy goodness, but you're cutting those calories left right and center with that dip! Meet me at the food table so I can shake your hand, hero!
The "You Can Just Bring The Ice"
If you are ok with being this person, honey you bring that ice and do it proudly! As a life long Southerner, I can go through a bag of ice by myself in a day. Put all of the drinks on ice! BUT, if you want to shock and amaze this holiday season, try your hand at one of these super simple recipes.
Hear me when I say this... no oven, no cooking, nothing fancy, no crazy kitchen utensils... just you, a bowl, and something to mix with! TheNoviceChef's recipe can be made with goat cheese or cream cheese. If you want to try your hand at super fancy, add some bacon bits (use they chewy kind, not the crunchy ones) to the outside or even some minced fruit. Drizzle with honey and watch the jaws drop!
A little bit of slicing, a pinch of stove top cooking, a tiny bit of oven, and a store bought flat bread and you have yourself a Michelin Star. SimplyHappening's salty, sweet pizza is sure to please even the pickiest of eaters. Switch out the toppings, then serve it up with different flavors of our Kae's Line Blended Honey. Try some shredded rotisserie chicken, sliced red onion, asiago cheese and Kae's Real Deal Jerk! Or how about some sliced pears, a little white cheddar and some Hot Tamale?!! YUM!!
What if I told you, you could buy bread at the bakery, cheese from the deli, slice a few apples and be the most loved person at the party?? Keveller will help you pull off "I own this kitchen" vibes with only a fraction of the effort. Sadly this recipe does require slight oven usage, but I promise it will be worth it!
The Baker
Are you the baker of your group? Do people put in requests ahead of time to ensure that whatever is coming fresh from your oven is all theirs? If so, welcome friend! My husband's co-workers know that come Christmas, the baking frenzy begins here at Casa de Harris! I've gotten requests for all kinds of things: eclairs, red velvet cake, peppermint mocha cookies. They know that if it comes from here, I'll only send out the best. If this sounds like you, check out these honey based home runs!
My stepdad was a pecan fanatic. Every year I scoured the internet for recipes to impress him, and trust me when I tell you, he was a hard sell! These delectable little cheese cakes would have been a huge hit! I'm sure he would have counted them out and rationed them, like he used to do with his pecan fudge. LOL You can't go wrong with HomeMadeInterest's pecan crust and honey cheesecake, but you can go oh-so-right by adding a drizzle of Thomas honey to the top. Or even a drizzle or two of Kae's!
Now, every baker knows the key to the tastiest, richest, melt-in-your-mouth'iest baked goods is butter. Lots and lots of butter! If you've ever put a morsel of food in your mouth, and your eyes have rolled back in your head, and you just couldn't help but let out a sigh of happiness... you can thank butter! VintageKitchen is whipping up some gooey, buttery rich, shortbread cookie bars you won't want to miss!
People! I will speak for myself -even as the granddaughter of a beekeeper - (although I'm sure I'm not alone) when I say bee stings suck, but this... THIS is the kind of bee sting folks will ask for. This traditional German cake is completely gorgeous, looks like it took a million hours to make, and will leave people singing your praises. You never have to tell them that it wasn't that hard! Let InternationalDessertBlog walk you through how to sandwich fluffy, sweet cream between thin layers of yeast cake, then top it with crunchy, buttery, honey candied almonds. Just don't come after me later when you've lost your willpower and your pants no longer fit!
Happy Stretchy Pants Season, may the oven temps be ever in your favor!
XOXO,
Em