Several years ago when my Husband {a huge sports fan} and I were first married, I thought I would try and be the dream wife and create a fabulous game day party for him and his friends. I came to find out that I was seriously lacking in the culinary department. It turned into one of those horrible, stressful parties that I would love to pretend never happened.
One of my sweet husband's all-time favorite treats is a big ole' bowl of Buffalo Wings with all the fixings. I thought I would be the most aaaaamazing wife and hostess if I created a fabulous Buffalo Wing spread for the game day party. I quickly learned that I had NO IDEA how to deep fry anything. I promptly managed to ruin my brand new, very expensive soup pot {wedding present} not realizing that you had to keep an eye on the temperature of the oil. My young, inexperienced culinary mind thought, "hot oil is hot oil, right? It doesn't matter that the oil should be watched and an even temperature maintained. I'm lucky I only destroyed the soup pot, and not burned down the whole house in the process.
I have since learned that when it comes to entertaining the old adage, "keep it simple, stupid" really applies. However, I offer a bit of a caveat to that… Keep the food simple, but make the presentation stunning. Here are some of my tips to easily and inexpensively create a stunning yet simple party spread.
Tip #1
Color is your friend and no one does color better than Mother Nature. Head to your produce department and load up on all colors of the rainbow. Instead of plain old green peppers, include red, yellow and orange peppers for the fun color pop. Layer your veggie platters with the beautiful purple and green kale for a stunning presentation. I really try and embrace the simplicity of a good veggie and fruit plate. Not only that, I use the veggies as my dip bowls for a added touch of fun…
For this plate, I carved out a bowl in the eggplant for my veggie dip. A great way to add more color to your platter with a little rustic elegance.
Tip #2
Capitalize on that rustic elegance by finding some unusual elements from around your house to add to the table to create dimension and to add a bit of charm…
I used a clean kitchen towel inside a small plant pot for the crackers and then placed the appetizer on top of an old scale that I found on Etsy a few months ago. Both elements add character and charm to the simple spread.
Tip #3
Use some simple snacks that require no effort on your part to bulk up the spread…
I filled some old jars with some cocoa almonds and salty cashews for some added crunch and color on the table.
Tip #4
Put all of your effort into one or two stars on the table. Preferably, use recipes that can be made ahead of time so when it's go time, you aren't rushing around in the kitchen with last minute dishes…
A little gem that my sister-in-law shared with me is this lovely Jalapeno Craisin Salsa recipe that combined with some cream cheese and crackers makes for a show stopping plate on the table. Make sure to make a full batch, because I promise it will go quick. The best part about this recipe is that the longer it sits in the fridge for the day or two the day before the gathering, the better it gets!
Tip #5
Leave the Buffalo Wings to the experts! I know that my husband's love of Buffalo Wings will never die. I also know that I will never be a fan of deep frying food. I grew up in a house where we never deep fried anything, so it's really not my favorite method of cooking. So… I leave it up to the people who really know how to make a mean Buffalo Wing… Tyson Anytizers!!
Right now you can visit the Tyson Anytizer Facebook page and receive $10 when you buy 4 bags of Tyson Anytizers!
I grab several bags and bake them up right before our guests arrive. Then I incorporate the rustic theme of the table by using a hollowed out orange bell pepper for the blue cheese dip for the wings. To add dimension to the plate, I cut long stalks of celery on the bias and place them decoratively at the back of the plate.
With a little extra thought and effort beforehand, your party can be simple, elegant and stress free! That way you can have as much fun as your guests and not chance burning the house down!
What are your ideas for stress free, game day entertaining? I would love to hear if you guys have crashed and burned as bad as I did, and what have you done since then to create a better party!!
Tell me what tips you have for hosting a successful party for friends and family for the Big Game and be entered to win a 42” LG flat Screen TV!
Tyson Any’tizers are a great snack that satisfies your kids on game day or any day!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Tyson Any'Tizers. The opinions expressed by me do not necessarily reflect the view of the Tyson Any'Tizers Brand. Official Sweepstakes Rules
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I collect bowls, and am always looking for unique ones. That sweet little plant pot for the crackers really caught my eye. What a creative & eye-catching idea!
Have a great day!
I try to have 3 different “stations” of food throughout the kitchen and living room so that no one area gets too busy. Our house is pretty small so traffic flow is everything :o) We could never have a game day party though… my husband’s friends might just laugh at our old 19″ tube TV!
Ahh, yes, I have crashed and burned also trying to be the perfect little party hostess, it wasn’t for game day though, it was for a fourth of July family party, I tried to go way above and beyond my cooking ablilites by picking recipes that sounded so unique(big mistake), nothing turned out right, and I was very disappointed. So I quickly learned what my capablities were and thus adapted. The next year I decided to do a Halloween party, so I started prepping a few days before, made the food that I could beforehand, and let myself have fun with it instead of trying to impress and it turned out fantastic, we had yummy food that look disgusing with gross names, like purple punch that was named sewer water, and a coucous salad that was called vomit, the whole house was decorated, we ate, played games, watched scary movies, that party is still talked about to this day. Whew sorry so long winded.
Prepare, prepare, prepare! Do what you can in the days leading up to your big event – like set the table, slice and dice veggies, and always make a list and check it twice. You don’t want to be in the middle of a recipe, only to realize you forgot a key ingredient. But most of all, have fun and don’t stress! (Your guests will pick up on it.)