Hello lovelies and welcome to our New Year's Eve Party 2018. I hope you had peaceful, cozy, and restful Christmas days with your loved ones. So now it's time to say goodbye to this year and welcome the new one. And the best way to do that is with a party, or what do you think? In collaboration with MIGROS I've pre-celebrated for you and put together a great menu for your party.
It doesn't matter whether you're celebrating with a big crowd or just a small group. There's a delicious buffet with both sweet and savory dishes and everything your heart desires. Delicious dips, soup, salad, waffles, stuffed baguette, baked lucky pigs, and, as a sweet highlight, a chocolate fondue with lots of fresh fruit. I found all the ingredients at Migros, along with the lovely, understated decoration in silver.
Decoration
I especially love the number balloons, but also the napkins, silver streamers, and the fun disco-ball skewers. Add some fresh flowers and leaves, and the colorful table needs no more decoration than that. I think that even on New Year's Eve you should be mindful not to produce too much waste, and with this decoration (which you can also reuse next year – except the number, of course :-)), that works out quite well.
Recipes
But now to the individual recipes: very traditionally, we always have baked lucky pigs made from braided-bread dough. They're also a great gift for neighbors or friends. Easy to make, very delicious, and totally sweet.
Here's the recipe:
Lucky Pigs
Ingredients: 300 ml (1 1/3 cup) plant milk (e.g. soy or oat) 1/2 cube fresh yeast 50 gr raw cane sugar 500 gr (18 oz.) flour 1/2 tsp salt
Method: Gently warm the milk with the yeast and sugar until both have dissolved. Add the flour and salt and knead into a smooth dough. Cover and let rise until the dough has roughly doubled (about 1–2 hours). Roll out the dough, about 0.5–1 cm (0.2-0.4 inch) thick. Cut out circles with a glass or ring, use smaller circles for the nose and ears, and cranberries or raisins for the eyes. Brush with a mixture of vegan cream and a little sugar. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees (356°F), bake the little pigs for about 15–20 minutes until golden brown.
In my opinion, a dip platter shouldn't be missing from any party – I think it's one of the greatest appetizer ideas. You can offer all sorts of vegetables, crackers, and of course various dips. Everyone finds something to suit them, and you can prep it wonderfully ahead. This time we had beetroot hummus, three kinds of hummus from Migros, and a homemade dip with red lentils and mint. You absolutely have to try that one – it turned out so delicious, wonderfully creamy and so lovely with the mint.
Here's the recipe:
Red Lentil & Mint Dip
Ingredients: 1 shallot 1 garlic clove 2 Tbsp olive oil 130 gr (4.6 oz.) red lentils 1 tsp salt Pinch of pepper 300 ml (1 1/3 cup) broth Juice & zest of 1 lemon 2–3 sprigs mint 125 gr (4.4 oz.) Soja Mousse Cumin Turmeric Coriander
Method: Finely dice the shallot and garlic clove. Heat the olive oil in a pan, sauté the onion and shallots. Add the lentils and deglaze with the broth. Add salt and pepper and simmer for about 10–15 minutes until the lentils are soft. Transfer and let cool. Put the Soja Mousse, lemon juice and zest, and the mint leaves in a blender, add the lentils, and blend finely. Season with salt, coriander, cumin, and turmeric.
Besides the dips there was a stuffed baguette, the ultimate party food, I think. The bread is filled with one of my favorite combinations: spinach and artichoke. If you've never eaten that, you absolutely have to try it. The children love it too, and it tastes good both warm, fresh from the oven, and cooled down as a midnight snack. It can be prepared wonderfully ahead, and all you need is a blender.
Here's the recipe:
**Stuffed Baguette with Spinach/Artichoke **
Ingredients: 1 stone-oven baguette 1 can artichoke hearts (400 gr / 14 oz.) 2 handfuls fresh spinach 1–2 garlic cloves 100 gr (3.5 oz.) Soja Mousse 1–2 Tbsp nutritional yeast (optional) 1/2 tsp salt 2–3 pinches pepper 2 pinches nutmeg 1/4 tsp paprika 50 gr (1.8 oz.) Cashewella 50 gr (1.8 oz.) vegan grated cheese
Method: Halve the baguette and hollow it out as much as possible with a spoon or knife. Drain the artichoke hearts, wash the spinach and roughly chop it. Put them in a blender with the remaining ingredients, except the cheese, and blend well – it doesn't have to be completely smooth, though. Dice the Cashewella and add it with the other "cheese" to the mixture. Fill the baguette, wrap it in baking paper or foil, and bake in the preheated oven at 200°C for about 30 minutes. Cut into slices and enjoy warm.
A delicious salad shouldn't be missing from a party buffet, and for that I "spruced up" a classic a little. Namely the Waldorf salad – my vegan version contains, besides celery and apple, dried cranberries, caramelized walnuts, and a delicious dressing with coconut yogurt. You can get the celery already grated at Migros, so it's made in no time and, served in a glass, very practical for the buffet too.
Waldorf Salad with Cranberries and Caramelized Walnuts
(makes about 4 glasses)
Ingredients: 200 gr (7 oz.) celeriac (grated) 1–2 apples Lemon juice 150 gr (5.3 oz.) coconut yogurt 50 gr (1.8 oz.) Veganaise Juice of 1/2 orange 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar 1–2 Tbsp maple syrup 1/2 tsp salt 2–3 pinches pepper 50 gr (1.8 oz.) walnuts 2 Tbsp raw cane sugar 1 Tbsp margarine 50 gr (1.8 oz.) dried cranberries fresh cress
Method: Finely grate the apples, drizzle with a little lemon juice, and mix with the celeriac. For the dressing, mix the yogurt, the Veganaise, the orange juice, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, salt, and pepper in a glass and shake well until everything is combined. Melt the sugar and margarine in a pan, add the roughly chopped walnuts, and caramelize while stirring. Mix the celeriac, apple, and dressing, add the cranberries and walnuts, and decorate with cress.
What I like best is eating lots of small portions and trying different things, so I love everything in mini version. Like these savory waffles with vegetables. You're very flexible with the toppings too. I decided on the Soja Mousse from Migros and the ready-diced beets. The balsamic pearls and cress are very delicious with it too, so you happily reach for more than one.
Here's the recipe:
Vegetable Waffles with Soja Mousse and Beets
(makes about 30 mini waffles)
**Ingredients: ** 1 handful fresh spinach (about 50 gr / 1.8 oz.) 1 carrot 1 spring onion 1 tsp salt 3–4 pinches pepper 100 gr (3.5 oz.) buckwheat flour (alternatively 200 gr / 7 oz. spelt flour) 100 gr (3.5 oz.) spelt flour 1 Tbsp olive oil 100 ml (1/2 cup) plant milk (e.g. oat, soy) 2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp paprika powder Pinch of nutmeg 50 gr (1.8 oz.) vegan grated cheese **Decoration: ** Soja Mousse diced beets Sélection balsamic pearls Microgreens or cress
Method: Wash the spinach and roughly chop it, peel the carrot and cut it into pieces. Cut the spring onion into rings and chop everything in a food processor/blender. Add the remaining ingredients (except the cheese) and mix into a smooth batter. Add the cheese and stir in. Heat the waffle iron and bake small, crispy waffles. Top with the Soja Mousse, the diced beets, balsamic pearls, and microgreens or cress, season with salt and pepper, and serve.
That I'm a big soup fan, you all know by now, I think. A soup also fits wonderfully on a buffet, namely as a "soup cappuccino" – served in a glass with a fine foam. Not only an eye-catcher, because with the mushroom soup in particular it really looks like a cappuccino at first glance. The soup is quick to make and the flavor is very fine.
Here's the recipe:
Mushroom Cappuccino
**Ingredients: ** 2 shallots 1 Tbsp dried porcini mushrooms 250 gr (9 oz.) button mushrooms 3 Tbsp olive oil 450 ml (2 cups) broth 100 ml (1/2 cup) soy cream 2–3 sprigs fresh thyme 1/2 tsp salt 3 pinches pepper Soy milk or other frothable plant milk
Method: Finely chop the shallots, crumble the dried mushrooms. Heat olive oil in a pan and sauté the shallots and dried mushrooms for 3–4 minutes until translucent. Cut the button mushrooms into small pieces and add them to the onions. Sauté for another 5–7 minutes, then deglaze with the broth. Let simmer over low heat for about 10 minutes. Add the cream, thyme, salt, and pepper and purée finely. Pour into a glass/cup. Froth the milk, season with salt and pepper, and put it on top of the soup. Serve with fresh thyme.
The puff-pastry bonbons that I also baked go very well with the soup, and they went down especially well with the children. For those I used Migros's ready-made organic puff pastry, filled it with a vegan pesto and the Cashewella, vegan mozzarella. Wrapped into bonbons and baked for about 20–25 minutes at 200 degrees (392°F). I tied the two ends together with chives so it really looks like bonbons.
As a sweet highlight I also prepared a chocolate fondue with lots of fresh fruit for dipping. You can mix the fondue very simply with dark chocolate, vegan cream, a little orange juice, and spices like cinnamon, vanilla, or even gingerbread spice to your taste. Cut the fruit into cubes and you'll quickly have a delicious dessert that everyone enjoys.
Of course there were delicious drinks too: non-alcoholic Moscato with fresh mint and pomegranate, ginger ale, rose lemonade, and aperitivo round off the New Year's Eve buffet.
And here are a few more impressions of our table:
I hope I was able to inspire you with my New Year's Eve Party 2018 and my buffet for your big or small celebration! In any case, I wish you all a good start into a happy, healthy, and fulfilling new year, and look forward to many exciting projects and delicious recipes. You can now also find the spinach artichoke dip as its own recipe on the blog, along with the vegan christmas starter mushroom cappuccino. And if you need a little something for your hosts, have a look at my gifts from the kitchen.
Love, Verena
If you're on Pinterest, you can find me here and are welcome to pin one of these pictures:
**This blog post was created in collaboration with Migros! Thank you for supporting the brands that make my work possible. *
