Holiday Platters & Trays

Holiday Platters to Make For Every Party

When you're deep in the throes of menu planning, it's easy to remember to make lists of ingredients -- but have you decided how you'll serve everything? Holiday platters are a must-have for any home where a party -- or even a Christmas dinner -- is about to transpire.

Plan A Delicious Spread of Snacks

One amazing thing about stocking up on platters is that you can make unlimited snack offerings for family, friends and neighbors.

• For cocktail hours and casual mixers, keep the food light to medium. Topped crackers, crudités and cheese boards take care of guests at these events.
• If you're providing music and room for dancing, place platters in a different room. Fill them with trimmed sandwiches, wraps cut into rings and other food that's easy to nosh on.
• At a sit-down dinner party, your platters become more important. Use them for sides, entrees and chargers for smaller dishes of dips or spreads.

Mix and Match Holiday Trays and Boards

When selecting your holiday trays, hone in on the ones you love. Platters look beautiful across a table when it's a curated collection of different interesting styles.

• Cheese boards, help keep cheeses cool and leave room for cheese knives to lay alongside cheese.
• Nut bowls are perfect for placing around a room on side tables or in between other hors d'oeuvres.
• Fruit bowls take more of center position. Fill them with traditional winter citrus or include grapes, figs, apples and other fruit to go with wine and cheese.
• Crudités are always a hit. Create several of these trays for every party.

Select A Big Platter for Your Entree

Your entree requires a big platter. For your full bird or a delicious roast, look for a large serving platter with a wide rim or slight slope to hold juices and natural gravies. These shallow platters are meant to be a focal point of your tabletop.

Pair Your Platters with Holiday Serveware

The platter matter is completely solved once you've decided on holiday serveware, too.

• Pick fine silver or other polished finish to complement formal platters.
• For hors d'oeuvres, look for forks or sometimes slotted spoons, like for scooping olives in brine.
• Cheeses each have their own style of cheese knife that's most appropriate, too.

Now, check your menu again and see just how many platters you need.