It seems that tasting parties and small plates are all the rage right now. And, I couldn’t be more thrilled. I am a big fan of small portions (and the ability to try lots of different dishes without needing to be rolled away from the table!).
Not only is it great to go to a restaurant with a small plates menu, I think it’s a trend that can be applied at home, too… Especially for holiday entertaining!
While it may not be practical to make 20 different dishes for your holiday dinner and let your guests choose from a selection of small plates (unless you have a kitchen staff to help you… and wash the dishes!), I think there are a lot of fun ways to include individual portions in your holiday entertaining.
If you’ll have guests for breakfast or brunch, consider dividing an egg casserole up among some ramekins or mini cocottes. It will bake faster, and the individual portions are cute. Serve with some mini french toast bread puddings (or the cranberry nut breakfast pudding recipe I’ve included below), muffins, and fruit, and let your guests choose the assortment of their choice.
If you’re hosting a dinner party for a small group of friends, consider a comforting casserole that can be baked in mini casserole dishes for each guest. Or, you might opt to serve a side dish baked in ramekins! Your guests will feel special, and it’s not really much more work for you.
Of course, individual portions are perfect for desserts, too. Everything from chocolate mousse to crème caramel, panna cotta to fruit crisp, and even cakes and tarts can be prepared in single servings without a lot of added effort on your part!
Le Creuset Giveaway!
Of course, I can’t just go on and on about cute casserole dishes without giving you the chance to win some. That only seems fair, right? And, when you think of stunning casseroles and dutch ovens, what name immediately comes to mind? Le Creuset, of course!
For the holidays, Le Creuset has put together holiday-themed sets of adorable miniature cocottes. They come packaged in an adorable box, and would make a perfect gift for anyone who likes to entertain (or for yourself?). I just can’t get enough of them! Want to know more about Le Creuset and their new products? Be sure to look them up on Facebook and Twitter!
Giveaway Details…
Two lucky winners will each receive a holiday set of three mini cocottes (one all white set with a snowflake design, and one set containing red, white, and green cocottes).
Congratulations to Brian from A Thought for Food and Jessica from The Novice Chef, who were randomly selected as the winners of the giveaway!
Please Note – This giveaway is open to US residents only. You must leave a comment for each entry in the giveaway.
Recipes to get you started…
Looking for recipe ideas? Here are just a few that will lend themselves well to cute miniature portions…
- Chicken Pot Pies – She Wears Many Hats
- Individual French Toast Puddings with Maple Caramelized Apples – eat. live. travel. write.
- Crab Mac n’ Cheese – Tickled Red
- Ham and Swiss Baked Egg Soufflés – Bluebonnets & Brownies
- Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal – Good Life Eats
- Raspberry Vanilla Bean Bread Pudding – Guest post by Food for My Family on Good Life Eats
- French Onion Soup – Simple Bites
And, of course… I promised you a recipe for breakfast bread puddings. So, here it is! These puddings were inspired by the recipe for individual french toast puddings over at eat. live. travel. write. I haven’t been able to get them out of my head! They have just the right balance of sweet and tart. They are best served warm from the oven, but they can be reheated in the microwave, too.
Cranberry Nut Breakfast Puddings
Yields 6 individual puddings
(Adapted from eat. live. travel. write.)
- 1 tablespoon butter, softened
- Approximately 6 cups of leftover bread or dinner rolls, cut into cubes
(these light and soft dinner rolls are what I used) - 1 cup milk
- 3 eggs
- 1/4 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Zest from 1 orange
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
- 1/2 cup walnuts
- Maple syrup (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Use the softened butter to grease the insides of 6 cocottes (or ramekins). Place them on a baking sheet. Loosely arrange the bread cubes in the cocottes, being careful not to overfill them.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and orange zest. Give the cranberries and walnuts a quick chop (a food processor works best for this!), and then add them to the milk and egg mixture. Stir to combine.
Carefully ladle the mixture evenly over the bread cubes in the 6 cocottes. Use your fingers to incorporate the nuts and cranberries and make sure each piece of bread is soaked in the milk and egg mixture. Transfer the cocottes (on the baking sheet) to the oven and bake for about 30 – 35 minutes. The puddings will puff up on the top and the centers will set up (and not be liquid and jiggly).
Serve warm, topped with a drizzle of maple syrup, if desired.
My Kitchen Addiction Disclosure– The giveaway items (two sets of mini cocottes from Le Creuset) have been provided at no cost to me and will be shipped from Le Creuset. I also received samples of the mini cocottes for the purpose of reviewing the product. I have not been otherwise compensated for this post or for reviewing the product. As always, all opinions expressed are my own.
And after seeing them on so many blogs I’m totally in love with the Le Creuset silicone utensils – the 7 piece set in the crock is a great deal!
I would make French Onion Soup! This looks great!
I would do french onion soup if I would be the lucky winner!!
I would pick the 7 quart french oven with a family of nine I need big!
I would bake sticky toffee puddings in them.
Hey Jen, your Individual Dessert is a Recipe Guessing Game on Knapkins. Think your friends can win? http://www.knapkins.com/guess_games/978?source=blog Show your foodie love and vote here http://www.knapkins.com/duel?dish=15612
I would make french onion soup. I also wonder if these would be good for cooking individual portions of “Dutch Pancakes”.
I have wanted a round french oven since being introduced to Le Creuset french ovens through the family I babysat for in college. I’d need a larger size for cooking for my family of five. The color would be red.
What a wonderful giveaway! If I had my wish, I’d buy the Signature Collection 13-1/4 quart Round French Oven. I love their French Ovens. They are so useful and the quality is impeccable. Happy holidays!
I would make individual mac and cheese for my sweet girls. I would love to win!
I would make a wonderful nutmeg bread pudding recipe that I saw the recipe for a couple of weeks ago
I’d bake some mini-french toast casseroles…which I suppose are like bread pudding! YUM! Thank you for the opportunity :)
at the top of my list is….: http://cookware.lecreuset.com/cookware/product_Griddle%2FGrill_10151_-1_20002_10101_10052
tweeted! https://twitter.com/#!/rachelroland/status/144538464917000192
I’d make French Onion soup. My husband loves it and we don’t have anything that works well for making individual servings.
I’d like the 5 1/2 QT. Round French Oven
It would be a toss up between this pudding and French onions soup.
Bread pudding! No really. I have bread in the freezer I’ve been saving and everything.
I tweeted!
It’s silly, given how many awesome bakeware/cookware items they have…but I can’t help coveting their mugs! A set of cobalt mugs would be so amazing!
Love my Le Creuset…and would love these mini pans! First thing would be chicken pot pie… then Mac and cheese…. then French onion soup then….
Apple crumble would be the first thing I would make.
I would love to have a 5 quart braiser in cassis.
Tweeted https://twitter.com/#!/rusthawk/status/144643688130285569
These look great! I would make some sort of baked egg dish first.
I think the panini set looks amazing. That’s on my long-term wish list.
Individual Mac and Cheese…..yummm
This cranberry bread pudding !!!!!! Looks yummy and I am a sucker for small pots/dishes and bread pudding!
Ooooooooohhhhh would have to be the smaller crackpot – perfect for soups!
I think I would try your recipe for cranberry bread pudding, it looks wonderful.
I did tweet the comment.
Macaroni and CHEESEEEE!
Or…individual french onion soups, that would be good, too!
Heritage 3 1/10 QT. Au Gratin Dish
I would make bread pudding. I’ve never made it before, but it’s on my list of foods I’ve always wanted to try. What a great giveaway! Thanks!
The item I’ve had my eye on is the 3 1/2 quart oval French oven. I saw it in a catalog not too long ago, and I think it would be perfect for my family!
Those little Le Creuset pans are adorable!!! Le Creuset is a brand I grew up with. My mother and my grandmother both have a set of Le Creuset dishes that they got as wedding gifts, that are still fully functional. That is motivation for finding a husband if I ever heard it :) I have had my eye on the Heritage 2 1/2 QT. Covered Square Casserole dish forever (it is one of the pieces that neither of them have).
Bread pudding is also my mother’s favorite dish. I think she would really like yours. Do you think a brandy sauce would compliment it?
Madison – Yes, I do think a brandy sauce would be fabulous with the bread puddings!
Oh, I also tweeted. :)
How cute are those. Little turkey pot pies would be perfect, I think, in those!
the 13 1/4 qt round french oven looks TO DIE FOR!!! Love.
I tweeted (ShugarySweets)
Oh my goodness these are so cute! I don’t know if it would be individual Chicken Pot Pies or French Onion soup that I love.
I would love to have a 6 quart french oven, or a grill pan, or a griddle, or a roaster, or a gratin, or a stock pot or the revolution utensils set. Oh what the heck I will live in a dream world and say one of each.
I would make some gooey chocolate cakes in those, and I might even share them with the family :)
oOo so amazing! I would definitely make individual mac n cheese’s! :)
I would love to get the LeCreuset silicone baking cups! never have the muffins stick to liners agaaaain!
Fruit cobbler, I think! :)
Individual chicken pot pies would be the dish I would bake first……………
Mmmmm, the first thing I would like to bake in these beautiful mini cocottes is souffles! :)
I’m thinking I’d want to make a cheesy noodle casserole, with smoked turkey or ham! Yummmmm
at the top of my wishlist is the Signature Collection Oval 5qt French Oven in the ridiculously gorgeous Aubergine ♥