Recipe ideas for annual squadron party

Oh, the holidays. We are told that visions of sugar plums should be dancing in our heads during this time of year, and although this may be true, sometimes the burden of knowing what to bring to your third squadron Christmas party or get together with friends can seem overwhelming. You may spend hours browsing Pinterest boards for “on-trend” food ideas, but I’m going to take the thinking out of it for you with tasty but photo worthy recipes.

This holiday season I am sharing a savory pesto puff pastry tree as well as an antipasto wreath. This recipe makes a considerable amount of pesto because I am a big fan of making things in bulk, then repurposing, or freezing later. The pesto will be used in both dishes and will also have enough left over to use in pasta another day this week.

PESTO

10 cups of packed basil

¾ cup EVOO

½ cup lemon juice

8-10 gloves of garlic

6 oz shelled pistachios (I prefer pistachios to pine nuts in pesto)

6 oz shredded parmesan

2 tsp salt

3-4 tsp red pepper flakes

1. Combine all ingredients, except for the basil, in a food processor until they have a thick grit-like consistency.
2. Add the basil and blend until everything is the same consistency.
3. Transfer to lidded containers for later use. The pesto sauce will keep in the fridge for 1-2 weeks. If you plan on freezing it, make sure to set aside some for the appetizers you will be making today. I used roughly 1 – 1 ½ cups of the puff pastry tree and about 1 cup for the antipasto wreath.

PESTO PUFF PASTRY TREE

This could not be simpler: pesto, puff pastry, some egg wash and viola. If you want in on another secret, you can also make this dish sweet not just savory. If you’re looking for a dessert or brunch item, fill it with Nutella and top with sliced strawberries.

2 sheets puffy pastry

1 – ½ cups of the pesto mentioned above

½ cup shredded parmesan

1 egg, beaten

Tomatoes or mozzarella pearls for garnish

You may also decorate with sprigs of rosemary to make it look more festive

1. Defrost puff pastry according to the directions on the package.
2. Using flour and/or parchment paper, roll the sheet of puff pastry out lengthwise in one direction only so that it resembles a tall rectangle.
3. Repeat this process with the other sheet so they are roughly the same size.
4. Lay one sheet down on a piece of parchment paper that is laid upon a large baking sheet.
5. Using a spoon, evenly spread the pesto out onto the puff pastry.
6. Sprinkle the grated parmesan evenly on top of the pesto and then place the other puff pastry sheet on top, gently pressing it into the other layers.
7. Use a pizza cutter for a triangular tree shape down both sides on the puff pasty so that is resembles a Christmas tree.
8. Then, slice a line down each side of the tree, also using a pizza cutter. You will want to leave an inch or a little less down the center so that everything stays together. The space between your horizontal lines should be ½ to ¾ inches apart. You also want to cut a trunk our at the bottom.
9. Twist each “branch” multiple times so that it forms a spiral and press the trip down at the end. Repeat this process for all branches.
10. Brush your egg wash over the whole tree.
11. You may use the scraps to cut out stars or other ornament shapes. I did this and simply placed them on another baking sheet.
12. Cook at 425 F for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.
13. You may garnish with cherry tomatoes, mozzarella pearls, sprigs of rosemary or a balsamic reduction.

ANTIPASTO WREATH

There is no exact science for this one. I purchased all my ingredients, which we will discuss below, and put them onto skewers. I had some extra of other ingredients and whatever I had leftover I put in a bowl, tossed with pesto, EVOO, lemon juice and salt and served to my family as a pasta salad. So while the below listed ingredient quantities are not specific, you will easily be able to eat any “waste.”

1 package frozen tortellini of choice, cooked to package instructions (mine was 19 oz)

Variety of cured Italian meats (my package was 6 oz)

Container of mozzarella pearls (mine was .9 lbs)

Marinated Kalamata olives (mine was 8.8 oz)

1 jar artichoke hearts (mine was 9.9 oz)

Cherry tomatoes (mine were 12 oz)

1 cup pesto (recipe above)

1 package fresh basil

EVOO and balsamic reduction for drizzle

Sat and pepper, to taste

Rosemary garnish

Skewers 3-4” in length, depending on the size of the platter

1. Simply arrange the antipasto ingredients on skewers and form in the shape of a wreath. I like to make sure my colors are balanced by rotating ingredients in a way that evenly spaces color. While one skewer may go meat, basil, mozzarella, tomato, tortellini, artichoke; another may go mozzarella, meat, artichoke, basil, tomato, tortellini.
2. Place the skewers in a circular arrangement, leaving a gap in the middle for a bowl of pesto to dip the skewers in.
3. Place a small bowl in the middle and spoon in some pesto.
4. I also like to “season” my skewers. Again, there is no real science here. Drizzle a little bit of olive oil and some balsamic reduction (which can be found in stores, already reduced) evenly over the skewers. Also lightly sprinkle some salt and pepper on top of the skewers.
5. You can also garnish it with sprigs of rosemary to really enhance the whole wreath aesthetic.