Low-stress munchies made for holiday gatherings

Published 12:00 am Tuesday, December 20, 2016

It’s that festive time of year — between now and New Year’s Eve — when we’re welcoming family and friends into our hearts and homes and our kitchens are stocked with fabulous food so we can party hearty. When it comes to entertaining during this hectic time of year, nobody would fault you for relying upon store-bought appetizers. But with just a little more time and effort, consider some of my simple munchies that are relatively stress-free.

Take marinated olives. Store-bought olive bar varieties are stratospheric pricewise, often as high as $8 and $9 per pound. But it doesn’t take much to transform plain ol’ canned or bottled olives straight off the grocery store shelf into great olives — just a few of your own seasonings, vinegar and olive oil. You can keep the cost reasonable and really go all out on flavors. They also make terrific gifts to take along to a party, by the way.

Another smooth move involves a bottle of late-harvest Gewürztraminer, a wedge of Huntsman cheese and a bowl of roasted, new-crop Oregon hazelnuts. It’s an exquisite meeting of flavors! I make sure my refrigerator is stocked with at least a pound of Huntsman cheese and a bottle of late-harvest Gewürztraminer. The roasted hazelnuts, of course, are always close at hand in the pantry. It’s a great combo for last-minute gatherings and very special drop-in guests.

For the blue cheese and sharp cheddar fans in your group, this is the ultimate experience, since it’s a layering of English Stilton (a blue cheese) and double Gloucester, which has the creamy-yet-powerful character of a sharp cheddar.

Partnering such a complex and bold cheese with roasted hazelnuts and a late-harvest Gewürztraminer is a brilliant maneuver. The hazelnuts act as a bridge between the rich-earthy cheese and the complex wine, which has a classic Gewürztraminer nose of spice and floral, along with a flavor combination of apricot, pineapple, brown sugar and honey. But even with all those sweet notes, a late harvest Gewürztraminer usually boasts plenty of acidity for balance. So you can see where those hazelnuts come into play.

Then build the flavors to the next level by surrounding the cheese and nuts with thinly sliced rounds of sourdough baguette and some fresh grapes.

And don’t forget that gorgeous platter of fresh vegetables, partnered with a tame dip for folks who appreciate such simple fare.

For a dramatic veggie platter, consider keeping the vegetables to one or two colors, such as a green and white assortment composed of cauliflower and broccoli florets, strips of green pepper, sugar snap peas and small (lightly blanched first) green beans, slices of peeled turnip or daikon or white radishes, scallions, endive leaves, edible parts of asparagus and the whitish inner stalks of celery.

Or you can produce a dramatic assortment made with whole, peeled, small carrots or carrot strips, red and yellow and orange pepper strips or squares, cherry tomatoes in reds and yellows, and even small leaves of radicchio.

The advantage of the color limitation is that your arrangement looks attractive, even if it’s totally random. You can prep the vegetables hours ahead and crisp them in iced water. Right before arranging them on your platter, drain off the water and throw a little crushed ice over them and drape with a damp kitchen towel until your guests arrive so the veggies don’t look dried out.

— Jan Roberts-Dominguez is a Corvallis food writer, artist, and author of “Oregon Hazelnut Country, the Food, the Drink, the Spirit,” and four other cookbooks. Readers can contact her by email at janrd@proaxis.com, or obtain additional recipes and food tips on her blog at www.janrd.com.