Early Christmas Party

Thanks to Foodbuzz and Hormel, I had a Christmas Party on Halloween Day.  I had originally thought about having a Halloween Party but thought my recipes using some of  the Hormel products would be more useful with the Christmas holidays coming up. 

I'll start with the bottom right corner and going clockwise.  The cake is a recipe that came from Uncle Scott's Root Beer which is actually bottled here in NC.  The cake's recipe came from the company but the icing is one I created myself.  Watch for my post later for Root Beer Float Cake.  Next, bottom left, are my Ham & Mushroom Finger Sandwiches.  This is using Hormel ham and the recipe was posted last week.  To find this recipe, scroll down or type the sandwich name in the search above.  Just above the sandwiches you'll find a Peppercorn Hormel Tenderloin.  This was baked according to the package.  Before plating I sliced and inserted mushrooms between the slices.  Above the tenderloin you'll find 2 spreads.  One is topped using Hormel Real Crumbled Bacon, the other is topped with chopped Hormel Ham.  The recipe for this spread will be posted later and will be called Bacon Topped Cheese Spread.  Next, going up, you'll see my Mini Pizza Cups using Hormel's Turkey Pepperoni.  If you like thin crust pizza, you'll love these.  This recipe will also be posted later.  Directly across from the Pizza Cups are Mini cups made with leftover filling used in my Ham & Mushroom Sandwiches.  I'll include the directions for these when I post the Mini Pizza Cup recipe.

All dishes are so simple to make.  All ingredients are commonly found in most kitchens, no specialty ingredients.  They can all be made in advance and served at room temperature.  So, how did it go over with my guests?  I will say that I have very few leftovers and the rankings from 1 - 10 were all ABOVE 10.  My last report came in as an 11 so I would say all dishes were a hit.