Corner Of Holiday And Vine

It’s Friday night.  You’ve managed to schedule an hour or so for drinks with friends before heading to the late show, or a Christmas concert.  Or maybe you’re multi-tasking and having an intense giftwrapping session with the gals.

Chill the wine.

When you’re short on time, the best plan is a few really good ingredients and a “serve yourself” mentality.  A couple bottles of red, a couple of bottles of white, bottled water, ice, and glasses.  Set out the corkscrew and let visitors help themselves to drinks as they arrive.  For something light to munch on, make a stop at the deli section of the market.  Most of them have a gourmet section these days that house all sorts of wonderfully quick options:  marinated olives, antipasto, artisan cheeses, a loaf of freshly baked crusty bread.  Pick up whole nuts out of the shell, like almonds or walnuts.  And a bunch of robust, colorful seedless grapes.  Think fresh, whole flavors in small bites — nothing processed, partially hydrogenated or microwaved.  Just good honest morsels.

If you want to earn bonus points, wrap thinly sliced prosciutto around delicate slices of melon and nestle them into your presentation among the nuts, fruit and cheeses.  Or if you’re planning ahead, try this recipe for crispy cheese wafers.  It is a mix of salty/savory/nutty crunch that goes great with a glass of vino.  They can be made a few days ahead and stored in an airtight container.

Herbed Parmesan Wafers

1 cup coarsely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (pick a really good chunk of this at the deli and grate it using a box grater)

These make-the-day-before bites are big on flavor

1/3 cup sliced almonds

2 T. chopped pine nuts

2 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary

Line a baking sheet with a nonstick baking mat, or use a non-stick baking sheet.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl.  Divide cheese mixture evenly into 4 piles on a work surface.  Working with one portion at a time, divide pile evenly into 5 smaller piles, placing them at least 1″ apart on baking mat.  Gently flatten each pile into a 2″ to 2 1/2″ circle, making sure there are no large holes.

Bake at 400 degrees for 4 to 5 minutes or until edges are browned and wafers are bubbly throughout.  DON’T LEAVE THE KITCHEN during the baking!  Turn the oven light on and watch the magic unfold before your eyes.  Just a minute too long and they will brown and turn bitter.  Save them from the oven before they go too far.  Working quickly, carefully transfer hot waters with a thin spatula onto a cooling rack — again:  work quickly!!! Don’t answer the phone or run to change a load of laundry, or the wafers will become one with the pan and you’ll regret the whole experience.

You will impress the heck out of your friends with these cheese wafers.  Any leftovers can be crumbled on top of a salad or floated on top of a great soup, like the Tomato Tortellini recipe I posted previously.

What’s key here is that you spend time enjoying the company of your friends and not worrying about anything else.  It’s your hour or so.  Use it wisely connecting with people you like, love, and otherwise adore.  Or secretly lust.  Or covet their hair color.  Or admire their knack for telling a good joke.

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