Happy Fall everyone! It is finally that time of the year again! The weather is starting to get chilly here in Maryland, 49° Fahrenheit to be exact. I actually had to pull out my coat this morning when taking Ghost out for a walk.
Nothing is better than enjoying comfort food, drinking, and playing card games with your friends and family on a cold day. Sometimes, the most stressful part about having everyone over is deciding what food and drinks to serve (actually, it’s always the stressful part). I threw together a few recipes that (I think) pair really well together. Hopefully this post will spark some ideas and take the stress out of hosting your next get-together!
We are going to take full advantage of the fact that it is officially okay to make soups and stews. They are a life saver when hosting for large groups because you can make a big batch the night before or the morning of your party! The flavors always taste better when you let them sit.
The best part is that your guests won’t even know how effortless it was to make most of these recipes. In their eyes, it’ll seem like you spent all day preparing, when in reality, you simply just threw a few things together (they will never know 
).
The links to all of the recipes will be at the end of the post (jump to section). Everything I made is fully vegan, but feel free to adjust according to your diet. Let’s get started!
Fall menu
Happy hour
Caramel Apple Martini
Cranberry Barbecue Glazed Meatballs
Chive & Onion Crusted Cheese with Crackers
dinner
Hearty Potato Stew
Cauliflower Mash
Thyme & Plum Prosecco
dessert
Chocolate Soufflè
happy hour
Caramel apple martinis
Who doesn’t like to be greeted with a delicious martini upon arrival? Always plan to have a happy hour before the actual dinner so that your guests aren’t awkwardly standing around waiting for everyone to get there.
Use this time to put those festive drink recipes to use! I suggest serving Fall themed drinks before dinner so that it doesn’t overpower your actual meal.
I decided to serve these delicious Caramel Apple Martinis. I HIGHLY recommend them; my family loved them and they just make you feel so warm inside (literally, lol).
Cranberry Barbecue Glazed Meatballs
Keep the apps light and simple. Meatballs are the easiest and tastiest appetizer to serve at any gathering. You literally just toss a few bags of frozen meatballs (I love the ones by Gardein), BBQ sauce, and a can of whole cranberries into a crockpot (or pan) and let simmer for ~30 minutes. Once they’re done, just add a little chopped parsley on top.
Chive & Onion Crusted Cheese with Crackers
In addition to the meatballs, I also wanted to serve cheese and crackers. I saw this super cute idea on YouTube and knew I had to re-create it for this dinner! It was so simple and only took minutes to prepare.
I might make a separate post for this recipe but essentially just take container of Kite Hill Chive Cream Cheese, add onion flakes or whatever else you want and give it a stir.
Then you put the cream cheese in plastic wrap and shape it into a ball. Put it back in the fridge and let chill for about an hour. Once chilled, crush up a good amount of cheese crackers (I love the one’s by Earth Balance) and completely cover your cream cheese ball.
The green stem was taken from a bell pepper and brings the presentation to the next level!
Dinner
Hearty Potato Stew
This stew recipe is amazing and the best part is that you can prepare it either the night before or the morning of your dinner party!
The longer you let a stew simmer and marinate, the more flavorful it gets. I personally think it taste’s even better on the second day.
Cauliflower Mash
Since most stews have potatoes, I wanted to use a cauliflower mash or purèe as the base. Boil a whole head of cauliflower and one red potato then prepare as you would any other mashed potato recipe!
Thyme & Plum Prosecco
Aaand of course, you cannot host a dinner without having the perfect drink to pair with the meal!
Remember to keep it light, crisp and fresh so that it doesn’t take away from the meal itself. Prosecco is great no matter what season we are in and looks way fancier when you add fruit!
Dessert
Chocolate Soufflè
You would think that a soufflè takes a good amount of time to prepare but really, they are effortless and do not take much time to put together.
The batter can be made the night before and left in the fridge until it’s time to bake. Once dinner is served, pop into the kitchen and throw these in the oven. They only take 20 minutes to bake and 15 minutes to cool down. These are perfect because they are baked in individual ramekins, making your friends and family feel that much more special!
Thanks for reading today’s post and I hope you are now inspired to have your loved ones over for dinner! Let me know in the comments below what you will be serving at your next gathering!
recipe box
Caramel Apple Martini: Recipe
Cranberry Barbecue Glazed Meatballs: Jump to section
Chive & Onion Crusted Cheese with Crackers: Jump to section
Hearty Potato Stew: Recipe
Cauliflower Mash: Jump to section
Thyme & Plum Prosecco: Recipe
Chocolate Soufflè: Recipe
