World renowned. Washington grown.
Tom Douglas’ Tips for the Holidays
1. One of the easiest, and classiest, holiday appetizers is a festive cheese tray. Explore your local cheese shops or the “gourmet” cheese section of your supermarket. Choose by your own taste buds; there’s no right or wrong way to set up your cheese tray. Garnish the tray with a few toasted nuts, bunches of grapes, dried figs, or ripe pears, and set out crackers and a few baguettes. You can try drizzling some flavorful honey over a wedge of creamy blue cheese, or serve your cheese with some quince paste (membrillo). But don’t forget, the cheese is the main attraction, you don’t need too many garnishes.
2. When you buy your holiday turkey, pick up some turkey parts at the same time. Turkey is usually cheap and abundant this time of year. Use the turkey parts to make turkey stock and refrigerate or freeze it. Then you’ll have plenty of stock both to make gravy for the holiday and turkey soup the day after.
3. If you’re passing around “finger food” rather than serving food on plates with forks and knives, be sure to make appetizers that are small, neat, and easy to eat in only one bite.
4. Make the holidays easier by purchasing good quality, ready to eat foods for your holiday parties. There are so many good products available these days in supermarkets, online, or by catalog. Look for cured meats and sausages, imported anchovies from Spain and olives from France, Spain, or Greece, jars of tapenade, imported Spanish piquillo peppers, smoked trout and smoked salmon.
5. Crush ice in your blender and use it as a bed for shrimp cocktail or oysters.