Cocktail Hour Hack: How to Feed 20 Guests with NO Food Prep
Hosting a cocktail hour is an incredibly fun, yet challenging task especially when you are not a cook. One would think that a cocktail is centered around the actual drinks but providing food will keep your guests happy and prevent them from getting a little too tipsy. If you are not a gourmet chef, these easy appetizer ideas will feed a group of 20 and keep you out of the kitchen!
Buy Pre-Cut Vegetables
Even though pre-cut vegetables have a bit of a mark-up, cutting vegetables takes valuable time and energy away from your other tasks as a host. It is worth the money to but precut vegetables of your choosing especially if time is not on your side
Stick to Spreadable Cheeses
Although you can buy pre-cut cheeses, cheese that is already cut or shredded has a tendency to lose flavor quickly. When making a charcuterie board and you are pressed for time, either buy the entire block or buy a spreadable cheese like a nice brie or boursin. Additionally, some spreadable cheeses can have a sweet flavor or are able complement desserts nicely.
Delicious Deli
Deli meat is your friend. You can make the deli meat easier for your guests to pick individually by rolling them up. Additionally, you can roll up slivers of pickles or a cheese spread inside your deli meats. This makes an extremely easy bite to whip up in just a few minutes. Moreover, deli meat roll-ups look absolutely tantalizing on a plate.
Cupcakes
Avoid food prep by purchasing your cupcakes at the store. Enhance the decoration by placing cocktail umbrellas or edible pearl details. If you want to add a boozy element, making these drunken cherries adds decoration with a hint of your favorite alcohol. To make drunken cherries, take maraschino cherries and soak them in alcohol for 30 minutes. Then, dip the cherries in chocolate so the cherries keep the alcohol.
Snacks Galore
Peruse the snack aisle and grab both salty and chocolate snacks to create an eclectic mix for everyone. Grab nuts, yogurt covered pretzels, chocolate bonbons, chips, banana chips and crackers to tantalize each taste bud. Since you are not prepping these food items, think about how you would like to present them. Consider the bowls you will use or if you’d like to arrange them on a platter. Additionally, little notes are a great touch.
Fruit Platter
A fruit platter can be purchased at a store pre-cut. In order to make a fruit platter more upscale, rearrange the fruit on a nicer plate and arrange the fruit in a fashionable way. Keep an eye on color combinations.
With these ideas, you can easily feed 20 people with mere minutes of food prep. Your cocktail guests will be happy and so will you because elegance has never been easier!
