There's nothing quite like entertaining in the comfort of your own home, especially at peak times of year such as Christmas, Valentines Day and Easter Holidays. You can avoid the suddenly expensive set menus that always seem to be reserved for such occasions, the very limited time you're allowed to enjoy your food at the table, public transport fails, bad weather... the list goes on. Instead you can relax, unwind and let the night unfold at a relaxed and enjoyable pace. However, you don't want to be chained to the oven all night and have a pile of dishes to tackle at the end. This is where sharing platters, grazing tables and Charcuterie boards come into their own.
HOW TO KNOW WHAT PRODUCTS TO BUY?
Don't worry.... We have done all the hard work for you and put together our suggestions for everything you need to create the perfect night in.
We like to have some initial nibbles to get things going. You can serve these as a kind of starter or put them out with everything else, it's up to you. We recommend some good quality Olives. Spanish Gordal Olives are highly regarded and have a lovely taste and texture, they are also huge. It's always good to have some dips with some lovely quality bread. Oil with Balsamic is a classic, or you can add flavoured oils to change things up. Mayonnaise is another classic dip especially garlic flavour although you can experiment with other flavours too.
A lovely quality pate is always a great addition as this can be eaten with bread or crackers. If you fancy something with a more corse texture try a Rillette instead. They are made with shredded meat and are delicious. You can find all of these products in our Pantry Section.
SHARING BOARD
Having a Charcuterie board filled with delicious high quality meats is a must. There is nothing better than grazing all night with some great quality wine or beer and nibbling on different flavours of cured meats. Its good to mix up different cuts and types of meat as it will add lots of different flavours and textures. You can go for a traditional European board made up of Spanish, Italian and French meats such as Serrano, Cecina and Saucisson, or you can mix it up and add some amazing British Charcuterie which is a lot more experimental with flavours and techniques. We have a great selection of all of these in our Charcuterie section.
Make sure you have a selection of crackers and some lovely bread to add to the board. You can also add some different types of cheese to compliment the meats. We recommend a high quality Manchego, a strong Blue Cheese and a soft Cheese like a Brie. If you are lucky enough to have an independent Cheese shop near where you live treat yourself as the quality will be exceptional compared to Supermarket cheese.
And last but not least are Condiments. A quince Jelly is a wonderful addition that compliments both meats and cheese. A lovely relish and some nice mustard is also recommended, but you can literally add anything else you like. We have a great selection in our Sauces, Pickles & Preserves section.
FINALLY
We hope you've enjoyed reading our suggestions for creating the perfect night in.
We would love to hear your comments or see examples of your perfect night in. Thanks for reading
To shop a selection of our suggestions on our website please see below
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