Festive Food and Wine for Holiday Entertaining

The perfect snacks and spices to liven up your guests' palate

From the LifeMInute team

It's holiday crunch time for all you hosting the season's celebrations. Here to help you out is youngmarriedchic.com's Kris Schoels with food tips and treasures for entertaining.

Starting with appetizers and the perfect snack staple is cheese and crackers. Kris says Wheat Thins holiday edition are a perfect choice. The festive hexagonally shaped cracker are imprinted with snowflakes, a gingerbread man, a bell and a candy cane that are super cute to serve up to your guests. "Not only cute they are 100% whole grain goodness...always baked and never fried so your guilt free holiday munching is covered," says Schoels. Find them in the cracker isle.

Now the cheese and Kris likes Cabot. "They're owned by 1,200 dairy farm families as a cooperative so 100% of the profits go directly to them," she says.

And when it comes to flavor this cheese has cleaned up; winning major national and international awards for taste and quality including World's Best Cheddar. You can also feed good about serving it up to your guests because varieties like their Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar is naturally lactose and gluten free.

For guests looking to keep their calories in check, the light version (made with low-fat milk) is only 70 calories a serving which is 50% less fat than other sharp cheddars. And beyond cheese they also have a full line of dairy products that can be found in your dairy or deli section of your local grocer. Check out Cabotcheese.coop.

The holidays are also a perfect time to try new recipes or do a twist on an old one. "The easiest way to that is with premium herbs and spices," says Schoels. For a flavorful foundation she turns to McCormick's Gourmet for everything from the main meal to appetizers and dessert.

And speaking of desserts nothing screams holiday more than gingersnaps. Made with ground ginger, crystalized sugar and Saigon cinnamon they're crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside. Try 'em out for your holiday cookie exchange, gift or just to bring into the office. For more ideas go to mccormick.com/gourmet.

Lastly, don't let guests go thirsty. It's best to offer a bit of selection when it comes to beverages. "Fetzer Gewrztraminer wine is perfect to pair with your turkey," she says, "it has a sweet and crisp viscidity with flavors of clove, orange, caramelized apples, tangerine, mango and pineapple, plus baked pair and a hint of cinnamon." Made with 100% California grapes. They offer a rich heritage of sustainable wine making practices and is only around $8.99 a bottle.

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