This weekend we are invited to a holiday cocktail and appetizer party. This party is to celebrate our neighbor, Ted, who successfully opened his very own Christmas Tree Farm with a blockbuster turnout of over 3,000 tree cutters this season!
His appropriately named farm, “Theodore’s Thicket” is a retirement dream come true. From our log cabin, we can see Ted happily hauling freshly cut trees on his ATV through acres of beautiful snow-capped pines. As part of his farm, he even built a stunning craftsman’s style event barn to host community events and to defrost holiday tree-cutters with complimentary hot apple cider and a warm fire!
My husband and I are so blessed to have Ted as a neighbor. He embraces the true meaning of the Christmas season with his sincere goodwill and cheer!
I want to bring a special appetizer to the party that goes along with the tree-cutting theme. I also need to make something that is quick and easy since I still have dozens of things to do before my grandsons arrive from Southern California for our holiday festivities.
Lucky for me I had just purchased a bag of Season & Steam Whole Brussels Sprouts! I love the fact that these little balls of goodness are so easy to cook in the microwave!
To make an amazingly simple appetizer, I cut up some pre-cooked apple smoked chicken sausage while I microwaved my Brussels sprouts following the package directions. Next, I quickly sautéed the cooked sprouts and pre-cooked sausages on a very hot grilling pan to give them those appetizing grill marks. This added step gave the sausages just the right amount of smokiness to complement those little green gems.
To assemble, I used festive toothpicks I found a while back to stack a bite size piece of sausage with a tender Brussels Sprout ball. I made a quick Dijon mustard and honey dipping sauce and there you have it - hassle-free “Sprout & Sausage Appetizer Skewers”!
You can really have fun plating these appetizers by adding pine sprigs to the platter, too!
These protein and fiber rich appetizers are easy, festive and delicious. They’re the perfect addition to the table and probably the first to disappear!
So here is to the season of family, friends and great food and may you and your loved ones find good health and much joy in 2019.