Last week we had a few drinks and starting discussing New Year's Eve plans with our friends. We're all completely over dressing up and spending half of our pay-cheque on a crowded downtown party so being the generous (and slightly drunk) friend that we are, we suggest everyone come over to ours for a dinner party. We've now sobered up and the fear sets in. We realize that we are far from dinner party masters, and we also know that Ben is going to bring his super 'sophisticated' girlfriend who's going to quietly judge our feeble attempts at a cheese plate and that we're serving prosecco instead of champagne (cheers Ben).
If you're in the same boat as us, we've had our friend (term used loosely) Chef Mark McEwan round up his top-six things to have on hand for New Years. He said it best himself:
“Throwing a successful New Year’s Eve party can seem a bit overwhelming. On one hand it’s the most celebratory day of the year, and on the other it can be one of the most dreaded festivities to plan," he says. "To make sure your night is a success there are six must-have essentials every good kitchen needs to have on hand. My top picks help bring out the best in food or can be used together as a really spectacular salad dressing."
Crisis averted. Check out the items in the gallery below and conveniently enough, all items are available at McEwan so you can spend less time shopping and more time prepping that perfect playlist for the evening.
People often default to balsamic, but Mark says this is the one vinegar to always have on hand. It’s rich and nutty and can be used to punch up the flavour of many New Year’s Eve dishes with just a few drops.
Mark says this dried berry is ground into a beautiful, tart powder and is great for upgrading basic dips served with traditional vegetable platters.
You can snack on them alone, but Mark suggests crushing them to top soft cheeses served with a charcuterie platter. Ben's girlfriend will be impressed.
Everyone knows that bubbly is a must have but what you serve before midnight is just as important.For a crowd-pleasing white wine, Mark recommends a Stoneleigh Sauvignon Blanc because its citrus and passion fruit notes work wonderfully with a wide variety of foods.
The holy grail of must-haves. Plan to have plenty on this on hand as you'll use it to cook with, to finish a dish or simply to break bread and use for dipping.
"Flor de Sal isn’t an ordinary seasoning," Mark says. "Rather than using it during the cooking process, treat it as a garnish or condiment to add a burst of flavour to a dish."
