Must-have Party Food List

There are several party food ideas depending on the type of party you are throwing, like a cocktail party, adults' or kids' party. The menu for the party must be decided accordingly. You can have a welcome drink, followed by starters, the main course and completed by desserts. The main course meal can include appetizers, soups or salads and the main dish.

You can welcome your guests by serving them cocktails or a glass of wine. Choose some mouth-watering appetizers to accompany the drink. You can use a combination of mild and spicy food to give variation to your food. If you have many guests keep a variety of dishes for the party.

In case there are a few guests, then limit the number of dishes you serve as a variety may make the guest wonder what to eat and what not to. By doing so you can save time in preparing the dishes and to avoid wastage. You can also tingle the taste buds of your guests by making some tempting and mouth-watering desserts.

Given here is a list of food that can be prepared without much hassle:

Make sure that the kids have a bit of everything you serve. To end the party you can serve ice creams of different flavors. Here are some party food recipes that the kids will surely enjoy.

Ingredients

• 700 g baby potatoes
• 1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
• ½ cup bread crumbs
• 2 cloves garlic, mashed
• 1 small bunch parsley, roughly chopped
• 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small bunch basil, roughly chopped
• Salt to taste

Directions
Boil water in a pan and add salt to it. Now add the baby potatoes and let them boil in the salted water for about 15 minutes. Transfer the Parmesan cheese, extra virgin olive oil, water, herbs and garlic to a food processor and whisk them until they are smooth. Peel the potatoes and mix them with the pesto.

For making the crumbs, mix the bread crumbs and cheese together and drizzle olive oil on top. Spread this mixture on a greased baking tray and bake it in a preheated oven at 200 ºC for 10 minutes till the crumbs turn golden and crunchy. Remove the tray from the oven and sprinkle the crumbs on the potato pesto and garnish it with cheese shavings.

Ingredients

• 16 chicken drumsticks, with skin
• 225 g Parmesan cheese, finely grated
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 50 g butter
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• Salt to taste

Directions
In a medium-sized saucepan, melt the butter on a low heat and mix the olive oil with it. In a mixing bowl, place the chicken and coat it evenly with the butter oil mixture. In a separate bowl, mix the Parmesan cheese, parsley, paprika and oregano till they combine properly.

Coat the chicken drumsticks into this seasoning and refrigerate them for about 5 hours before cooking. Place the chicken drumsticks on a greased baking tray and bake them in a preheated oven at 190 ºC for about 35 minutes. Remove the drumsticks from the oven and serve them with crisp green salad.

Ingredients for the pie

• 350 g plain flour
• 50 g cocoa powder
• 250 ml low fat buttermilk
• 200 g light brown sugar
• 125 g butter or margarine, softened
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1½ teaspoons sodium bicarbonate
• ½ teaspoon salt

Ingredients for the topping

• 2½ tablespoons cocoa powder
• 150 g icing sugar
• Chocolate strands and silver bells, for decoration

Ingredients for the filling

• 250 g icing sugar
• 3-4 drops vanilla extract
• 150 g unsalted butter, softened

Directions
In a medium bowl, whisk the butter (or margarine) and sugar till it becomes creamy. Now beat the egg into this mixture and keep aside. Take a separate bowl and sift the flour, cocoa, salt and sodium bicarbonate and mix properly.

Add the buttermilk, while stirring the flour mixture till it forms a thick, smooth cake mixture. Drop spoonfuls of this mixture in the shape of a pie on a well greased baking tray and bake it in a preheated oven at 150 ºC for about 15 minutes. Allow the pies to cool for about 5 minutes.

To make the topping, mix the icing sugar and cocoa powder in a bowl and slowly add warm water and whisk gently till it forms a spreadable icing. Spread this icing on one side of the pies and leave them on the wire rack for setting.

For the filling whip the butter in another bowl till it becomes soft. Mix the icing sugar and whip till it becomes smooth and spreadable. Add the vanilla flavoring and whisk properly. Spread the icing on the pie and sandwich the other pie halves. Serve them after decorating the pies with candies, chocolate strips and silver bells.

Always keep a selection of good wines (red and white) handy to accompany your food. If you are entertaining kids, have fruit juices and lemonade that can be served as welcome drinks as well. Decorating the food with colorful garnishes like mint leaves, slices of lemon, tomato flowers and sprigs of cilantro will make the dishes more attractive and appetizing.

Invent innovative and new ideas for presentation as it is an essential factor that must be considered if you want your party to be a success. Apart from all the factors to make the party food appealing, also ensure that there are sufficient paper napkins for your guests. Your party will turn out to be a huge success.