A New Year’s Day Open House

This year will mark our 15th year living in New York City. That meant it was time for a party -a BIG party for all the wonderful friends we’ve made over the past 15 years. And what better day than New Year’s Day?

Now, any normal person planning such a thing would make a guest list and send out invitations with RSVP’s, plan the menu at least two weeks ahead, and start cooking a week ahead and freeze the make-ahead stuff…You know, the right way to have a big party.

Let’s just say we didn’t do it that way.

Two days before Christmas, when I still hadn’t sent out invitations, Mr TBTAM just started e-mailing his tennis buddies that we were having a party. That meant I’d better get a move or none of my friends would be there. So two days after Christmas, while we were driving back from Philly, I went through the contact list on my phone and began calling my friends. I had no idea who was in or out of town, but no one was home so I just left messages everywhere. The connection was probably terrible, because one friends called me back saying “I think you are inviting me to something, but I couldn’t understand a word you were saying”.

Then I got sick. Really sick for the rest of the week. On New Year’s Eve morning, I awoke with a whopping headache, but we finalized the menu and headed out to shop. Somewhere between Costco and Fairway, I realized I was feeling better. Really good, actually. Either the Imitrex had kicked in or the cold had run its course. Praising Big Pharma, I headed into the kitchen where we spent the remainder of the day, only stopping briefly at midnight to run up to the roof with the kids to scream Happy New Year and have some sparkling cider. By 1 am, we were all in bed, only to rise at 9 to start cooking again.

The party was to start at 12 pm. My friend Mark arrived shortly thereafter, having just come off the morning shift at his deli. He helped my glaze the ham and arranged the salmon tartare and egg salad platters as only a real foodie can, then left. By 1 pm, when no one else had arrived and the girls were sure our party would like the one Michael threw at the Convention in “The Ofiice”.

But they were wrong – by 1:30pm, we were in full swing.

Overall about 60 folks came, and from the post party calls and emails, I think they all had a good time. I know we did. So many wonderful people, such dear friends. What was so great was seeing folks from the disparate parts of our lives talking and getting to know one another. I can’t think of any better way to start the New Year.

Of course, not everyone could make it with such short notice, and I had accidentally missed inviting a few wonderful people since their numbers were out of date in my phone. That’s the price I paid for not doing this thing so last minute.

Next year I’ll do it right.

Menu for a New Year’s Day Open House (Feeds 60 guests)

This menu will work for a mixed vegetarian-carnivore crowd, and has some healthy choices for folks trying to keep New Year’s Resolutions. Unfortunately, it has nothing for the Jewish meat eaters, as noted my friend Andy with the comment that “Grammie Hall would have loved the ham”. So next year I’m doing a beef tenderloin instead of a ham.

Guests will need to supplement this menu with desserts, as did ours, and thank goodness – most everything went!

You’ll need to do some cooking, reheating and restocking during the party to keep the food supplies fresh, but making the streudel and quiches ahead makes this easy, and you get some nice time in the kitchen with good friends who offer to help.

I’ll be posting the recipes for some of these things in the days to come, and will insert the links then.