Jingle, Mingle, and Game On!
This December, we had a blast hosting our friends for a holiday party with a twist of some friendly competition. We ditched the traditional BYOB and potluck for something even more exciting: BYOG! Wondering what that means? Keep reading for a peek behind the scenes of our festive celebration filled with laughter, games, and unexpected surprises!
Festive Sips and Bites
To align with the theme, we decided to create a laid-back atmosphere for the party. We opted for a buffet featuring easy-to-grab, hearty appetizers, letting guests to casually enjoy the food wherever they felt most comfortable. We set up plenty of seats in our open living room and kitchen area, making sure everyone stayed connected and didn't feel isolated. And, of course, there was a mix of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, including a special winter-themed signature drink - Frosty Pomegranate Paloma (thanks to Erin O’Brien). The festive red hue, thanks to pomwonderful pomegranate juice, added just the right touch. Now, here are the recipes for a couple of my favorite dishes from the night.
Easy Brie Appetizer
Ingredients
• 1 box Athens Mini Fillo Shells
• 4 ounces brie cheese
• 1/2 cup of your choice of raspberry jam or fig jam
• Chopped pecans or almonds to sprinkle on top (optional)
Instructions
• Preheat over to 400 degrees F.
• Place fillo shells on baking sheet and place 1/2 teaspoon chunks of brie into each shell. Bake for 5 minutes or until brie is melted.
• Remove from oven and add spoonful of your choice of ham and sprinkle your choice or nuts on tip.
Khachapuri
Ingredients
8 oz mozzarella cheese (you can also use feta cheese)
2 puff pastry sheets (defrost overnight in refrigerator or 1 hour before baking in room temperature)
2 eggs (1 egg for filling and 1 egg to brush the tops of khachapuri
Instructions
Preheat over to 375°.
Grate cheese and mix it with 1 egg - that's your filling.
Roll your puff pastry sheet and cut in triangles or squares.
Place a generous teaspoon of cheese and egg white mix into each triangle/square.
Fold the dough over the filling to create triangles or rectangles. Then crimp the edges closed with a fork.
Place the cheese turnover on parchment-lined baking sheets and brush the tops with egg.
Bake for 25 minutes until the pastries are golden brown.
Frosty Pomegranate Paloma
2 oz. tequila
2 oz. freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
1 oz. pomegranate juice (must use pomwonderful, to make sure you get that festive red)
1/2 oz. agave
Juice of 1/2 lime
Sparkling water to top
Rim glasses with sugar to add the frosty vibes. Garnish with pomegranate arils and grapefruit/orange slices
Game on!
We planned three games because I wanted to ensure guests had time to mingle and enjoy unstructured time (can’t plan every minute of a party - trust us on this!). Our goal was to choose games that were easy to set up and clean up, with simple rules. Being the planners that we are, you bet we played these games ahead of time and made necessary tweaks. Take, for example, 'Hungry Hungry Reindeers'— was initially too easy, so we added blindfolds to up the challenge and make it more entertaining for spectators. Here's a big tip for anyone planning a party: run through the event in your head and test out games and food (especially new recipes) to ensure everything goes off without a hitch.
In the party invitation, we asked our guests to bring a small wrapped gift which were up for grabs as prizes as we played winter themed games throughout the night. We asked the winners to open their prizes, as part of the fun was seeing what everyone got as prizes. Some lucky winners even snagged games as prizes that spontaneously joined our holiday game night!
Here are the games we played along with my planning notes for rules and items needed to play the game:
Musical Snowballs
Why we chose this game: Chosen for its festive theme and guaranteed laughter.
Rules: Dance around the snowballs on the floor clapping above your head the whole time. As soon as the music stops, grab a snowball, player without a snowball is out!
What we need for the game:
i. Faux Snowballs
ii. Speaker to play fun music during the game
iii. Someone to start and stop the music
Hungry Hungry Reindeer
Why we chose this game: Selected for its simplicity and ability to involve everyone.
Rules:
i. 4 players at a time
ii. Blindfold the players and start the timer. When the timer starts, the players have to put the solo cups on both hands and collect as many marshmallows as possible into a plate or bowl
iii. Winner gets a prize. If there is a tie, there is a sudden victory round between the players that have a tie
What we need for the game:
i. Solo cups
ii. Bowls or plates
iii. Marshmallows (big)
iv. Blindfolds
v. Speaker to play fun music during the game
vi. Someone to be the time keeper
Sleight Ride Challenge
Why we chose this game: It was the last planned game of the night and it was a fun way to give away the rest of the prizes
Rules:
i. There is a solo cup filled to the brim with water on top of a rolled out toilet paper. Player has 10 seconds to roll the toilet paper that will move the filled up solo cup across the table.
ii. Must roll the toilet paper, can't just pull on the toilet paper
iii. Prizes lined up with masking tape separating each prize. The player picks the prize where the solo cups stops or player runs out of time.
What we need for the game:
i. Toilet paper
ii. Solo cup filled with water
iii. Candy cane
iv. Shot glasses
v. Masking tape to mark the prizes
vi. Towels to clean up the water spillage throughout the game
vii. Speaker to play fun music during the game
viii. Someone to be the time keeper
In the midst of planned games and festive indulgences, our night was sprinkled with the magic of unplanned fun and delightful surprises. It was an evening filled with friendly rivalry, heartwarming connections and lots of belly laughs! Cheers to the holiday spirit, fantastic friends, and the art of transforming our festive gathering into an unforgettable winter game night! Hope this post gives you some inspiration to plan your next unforgettable evening!
