The Perfect Holiday Meal

Is your house filling up with friends and family this week? Are you staring in your fridge thinking, what in the world am I going to feed these people? We've got you covered. As we were enjoying this meal last weekend I kept saying, "We have to share this menu!" It's easy to prep, easy to finish off the day of and you'll love having a fridge full of leftovers. And guess what, we're going to give you one of our favorite appetizer recipes from our book Dinner Changes Everything. If you love this recipe, you'll devour the rest of the book ;) Here is everything you need to create a delicious Rustic Italian Dinner for your group.

Appetizers :

Charcuterie Board - Merlot Soaked Cheese, Italian Salami + crackers of your choice

Balsamic Grape Crostini with Blue Cheese (from our book Dinner Changes Everything - the recipe is below)

Main Dish : 

Creamy Soft Polenta with Meat Ragu

Roasted Cherry Tomato Caprese

Brussel Sprouts with Pine Nuts and Bacon

Dessert : 

Italian Almond Pear Cake

We'll definitely be making this menu again - and serving it up with some of our favorite salad tongs, ladle, appetizer boards and serving bowls. Isn't it grand when filling your table fills your heart, belly and helps someone at the same time. 10% of all of our proceeds go to fight human trafficking, plus everything in our shop employs artisans locally and globally. Together dinner really is changing everything. 

Balsamic Grape Crostini with Blue Cheese

4 cups seedless red grapes, halved

4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 shallots, minced

1 teaspoon raw sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 baguette, cut into 15-20 slices

6 tablespoons butter, softened

5 ounces blue cheese (plus more to garnish with)

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, to garnish

Preheat the oven to 425°. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine the first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl, then spread onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, stirring halfway through. Remove from the oven and set aside. Turn the oven to low broil and move the oven rack closer to the top element.

In a small bowl, blend the softened butter and blue cheese; set aside. Cut the baguette into 1/4 inch slices (15-20 pieces). Place the slices on a clean baking sheet and spread with the butter and blue cheese mixture. Place under the broiler for a couple of minutes, keeping a close eye on them—they can burn fast! Take them out when the bread is lightly toasted and the butter and blue cheese is melting.

Top the crostini with 1 tablespoon of the roasted grape mixture, a few small crumbles of blue cheese, and a few fresh thyme leaves.