Holiday Meatball Wreath Appetizer

This easy to make, yet elegant Holiday Meatball Wreath Appetizer is sure to steal the show at your next holiday party or get-together...

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Carando®. All opinions are entirely my own. 

One thing that I really love about the holidays is being able to host & entertain. I love to invite over a small group of family & friends for a little cookie baking party or maybe for hot cocoa & to watch Christmas movies. I always seem to host at least one cocktail or wine party before the start of the New Year. 








I prefer my holiday get-togethers to be casual, simple yet elegant, & as fuss-free as possible for me. I mean, what holiday hostess wants to be spending all her time in the kitchen & not mingling with her loved ones? (Not me! ;) )








That is why my new go-to for holiday appetizers this season is the tasty selection of Fresh Italian Style Carando® Meatballs that I can pick up in the refrigerated meat aisle at my local Food Lion. 

Not only are Carando meatballs easy & convenient (you only have to brown them in the oven for 20 minutes!), but they are also authentically crafted for the perfect texture & amazing flavor without you having to do any of the work...

Holiday Cheese Platter {& How to Throw a Wine Tasting Party on a Budget}

I am partnering with ALDI today to bring you all this fun & delicious Holiday Cheese Platter and to share my tips for hosting a budget friendly wine tasting party...

I think by now most of you all who have been following me for any number of months (or even weeks) have figured out that I have much love for the ALDI grocery store chain.  I do have to admit though that there was once a time in my life when I turned up my nose to the very thought of shopping there. (Can you all even believe that??)  

 

That all changed when I made the decision that I wanted to stay at home with my daughter after she was born.  I was searching for ways to cut down on our budget when I decided to give ALDI another chance. And folks, I have never looked back since... ;)

You may already know that ALDI has fabulous deals for your everyday grocery shopping, and that their ALDI brand products almost always stand up to and even surpass their name brand counterparts.  

But did you know that ALDI can also help you throw a swanky wine tasting party for the holidays without totally emptying your wallet?  Today I am going to show you all how.

Just about everything I used for my holiday wine tasting party that I am sharing with you all today was purchased at my local ALDI. From the wine to the cheeses to the grapes and baby carrots, even the fun slate cheese platter (around $10!) you see below was bought there.

The focal dish for my wine tasting party was this fun and simple Holiday Cheese Platter. I created mine in the shape of a Christmas tree, but you could certainly get even more creative and try a wreath or a candy cane shape...

A No Fuss Hot Cocoa Bar Party

Spread a little holiday cheer by hosting this kid friendly & adult approved No Fuss Hot Cocoa Bar Party...

This holiday season I decided to resurrect a little festive get-together I used to host every December right before the holidays just for friends.  For the previous two Christmases, I didn't have the space to host a party... at all.  

I try to keep these get-togethers small.  A couple of girlfriends and their families.

This was my first time doing a hot cocoa bar for a party.  I had seen a few different ideas for doing hot chocolate bars (some adult, some kid friendly) floating around on Pinterest. 

There would be 5 children attending the party, so I kept the toppings PG.  But if you were hosting all an adult party, you could add fun alcoholic options to your bar- think whipped cream vodka, Irish cream liqueurs, coffee liqueurs, and so on. ;)