Dinner Party!

Because I am a sucker for self-punishment and Thanksgiving, Husband's 3 December birthday, First Christmas, Actual Christmas and New Year's weren't enough, we're throwing a small dinner party on 2 January to round out the holidays. There will be about 10-12 of us and I am thinking about a tapas theme. Would love to hear some suggestions for good recipes as well as a fun punch or drink of some sort. I've never really done tapas before, but the husband mentioned that he thought it would be fun. And prep time shouldn't be an issue since I have all day Friday and Saturday off. Hit me!

Posted by: Niknud
December 18, 2015

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9 Comments

9 Comments

lloreen December 18, 2015

I did a tapas Easter party once and made this chickpea and sausage dish inspired by Pinotxo, a lunch bar in the market of Barcelona. One of my favorite food memories and the home-made version was almost as good, which is saying something! https://food52.com/recipes/14359-chickpeas-with-blood-sausage-pine-nuts-raisins
Also, based on my experience, I recommend at least one light salad dish. A little bright veggies are a welcome break.

Nancy December 18, 2015

I would not go for a punch, which is fun but not what you drink with tapas in a Spanish bar.
Rather, as budget and your tastes or preferences allow, make the drinks offerings like the tapas - many small tastes of different things. Ask your wine shop for help in selecting those available near you.
sparkling - Cava Seguar Viudas Brut Reserve
sherry - fino, amontillado dry, dry sack solera medium oleroso, etc
reds- bobal, rioja, tempranllo, monastrell, garnacha
white - rioja blanco castillo

C S. December 18, 2015

After all the other things you were doing I would keep it simple. Plenty of crusty bread and olive oil, cheese, chorizo, ham, olives, a tortilla, maybe ensaladilla russa and then gambas al ajillo or croquettas or another warm dish. Penelope Casas wrote a whole book on tapas - called appropriately enough Tapas - you can probably have time to find a copy of her book somewhere. Of course now all sorts of cuisines use "tapas" to describe small plates so you could be non traditional and stay true to the spirit of tapas eating.

aargersi December 18, 2015

Barlata is amazing! In particular we loved the stuffed pequillo peppers, the chorizo plate (it was all seared and crispy deliciousness), the shishito peppers, and the lamb empanadas ...

Niknud December 18, 2015

recipes for these? The menu looked amazing but it was little light on the details....

ChefJune December 18, 2015

Oh my goodness, what a super idea. Especially after all the traditional eating that will precede a Post-New Year's party. You could make Sangria for your "punchy" drink. Very Spanish, altho the traditional drink with Tapas in Spain is Fino Sherry.

drbabs December 18, 2015

That sounds like so much fun! And you could make it easy--lots of cheese and olives, a tortilla, fried potatoes. There is a restaurant here that has an all tapas menu; here's a link to the menu for reference. You're so creative, i thought you could use it as a jumping off point: http://www.barlataaustin.com/food-drink/menu/

drbabs December 18, 2015

Here's Amanda's super easy Spanish Tortilla: https://food52.com/recipes/24011-spanish-tortilla

Niknud December 18, 2015

Thanks Barbara - I'll go check out that menu.

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