Appetizer Aggravation

A few days ago I received this question on the Classy Event Organizer Facebook page:

Not only am I happy to find a solution to this appetizer aggravation,  I am happy to say that this question is the inspiration for an addition to the Classy Event Organizer website.  As you can see in the page listing above, there is a newly added “Services” tab.  (Go ahead, click it!)  I am now offering free services to help you alleviate  your party and etiquette headaches (the only catch is...I might use the question as a blog post!) 

Now, without further ado, let us address the original question.

Friday has been designated as "Martini Friday", any suggestions for a great appetizer or table decoration?

I LOVE the fact that you have designated a day of the week to Martinis, however I can see how that puts a lot of pressure on creating a new appetizer each week!

After scouring my cookbooks and the handy-dandy internet, I have found that usually olives are a Martini’s best friend (some people even say that a martini without a olive isn’t a martini at all!) due to the flavor of the olive changing the overall taste of the Martini.  Also, a Martini can be garnished with a lemon twist, for the same reason that the fruity zest of the lemon affects the overall Martini taste. 

You might ask why an olive or lemon, of all things, is an appropriate Martini garnish.  Well, usually when matching food with drinks, the rule of thumb is opposites attract!  The Dry Martini (as opposed to the Appletini, Chocolate Martini, Lemon Drop, or MY FAVORITE the Cosmopolitan) has a spicy herbal flavor that is best served with fruity or “light” refreshing food.  I have found that olives and blue cheese are favorites for light refreshing flavors to compliment a Martini.

I suggest using these two foods as a main focus on recipes for appetizers. 

One REALLY easy appetizer (and can be used as table décor) would be a platter of different kinds of olives and another platter of cheeses. To add some flair, you might even label each different type of olive and cheese with a toothpick and name tag!     

If you are looking for appetizers that are more filling (and scrumptious) than olives or cheese trays, here are some appetizer recipes that I found that use olives and blue cheese (they are really making me hungry!)

Olive Tapenade  (Joyfulabode.com)  This website also gives really good idea for how to serve Olive Tapenade!

Chicken, Bacon, and Blue-Cheese Sandwiches (Sunset.com)

Olive and Blue Cheese Ball (AllRecipies.com)

Bacon Wrapped Olive Wraps (AllRecipies.com)

Lastly, a few table décor ideas:

1.  Use extra Martini glasses, shot glasses, or cocktail shakers to serve other appetizers such as nuts, pretzels, or small candies.

2.  If you have bottles of Gin or Dry Vermouth left over from previous gatherings, use them as vases for flowers.   (Wash them out first!)

3.  Use a Martini Glass shaped cookie cutter to make decorated sugar cookies with each guest’s name on it for a name card on each plate

4.  Martinis remind me a lot of James Bond, so I would follow suit and stick to black and white for colors (maybe even add in a bit of deep green to compliment the olive!)