Create a Great Hot Cocoa Bar + Soup Bar at Your Party

These cocoa and soup bar additions are easy to prepare and your guests will enjoy them so much! 

Want to warm up your guests and give them a reason to stay and enjoy a little longer? A Hot Cocoa Bar is the perfect addition to any milchig menu and a sweet way to add a finishing touch. A Soup Bar is great for either milchig or fleishig meals…everyone will appreciate it so much. And most of all, they’re both so easy to set up.

Hot Cocoa Bar

Once you have a color scheme, you will find more accessories in various craft stores. I found these straws at Michael’s.

I ordered plain hot cups online. They came with covers and paper sleeves too. They give that finishing touch. You can also find different wooden stirrers and wooden spoons online at really low prices.

Underneath the hot cups I placed a square of fur that I purchased at Stitch n’ Sew for a few dollars.  I wanted to add some ‘warmth’ to the scene.

These chocolate covered spoons are so easy to prepare and so much fun. Just melt white or dark chocolate and top with your favorite toppings. To display, cut out a piece of Styrofoam to fit the tray and just stand them up. Cover the Styrofoam with mini marshmallows to conceal.

Display fun add-ins and toppings on your Hot Cocoa bar. I included fudge (chocolate syrup), peppermint, white chocolate, chocolate chips, and chocolate-covered marshmallows (great for stirring or just eating).

I rented out this teal bookcase (that I used as a table), shelves, and dished from Set It Up NJ Prop Rental. This was so easy and inexpensive. I got to use fun, up to date dishes at minimal cost. (And I didn’t even have to find a place to store them after the party is over!)

The Soup Bar

Soup bars are so much fun when setting up a party in winter. Whether you are having a milchig or fleishig menu there’s so much you can add in form of toppings and accompaniments.  I included different crackers, croutons, breadsticks, pumpkin seeds, and Terra Stix on the buffet. The soups featured here and the beautiful soup warmers (which are available for rental) are courtesy of The Green Bowl (they’re a beautiful way to serve wholesome soup!).

You can find these inexpensive wood boards that come with the hook at Michael’s and spray paint them to match your color scheme. Then use a sharpie to customize them, with your own cute slogan.

Easy Buttery Garlic Knots

  These just work well with soup. Or salad. Or anything. I just eat them plain too, come to think of it. Hey, let’s get real here. These usually don’t even make it to the serving dish; they just get eaten straight from the pan in our kitchen. Yep. That good.

Easy Buttery Garlic Knots

 

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Serves: 35 knots

Ingredients

For the knots:

• 1 tablespoon dry yeast
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 ½ cups warm water
• 3 ½ to ¾ cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened

Garlic coating:

• ½ stick butter
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• ¼ cup parmesan cheese (optional)
• Freshly ground salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Place the yeast, sugar, and warm water in a bowl. Wait 5 minutes for the yeast  to activate. Add 3 ½ cups of flour, salt, and butter (you can soften the butter in the microwave for 30 seconds).  Knead dough by hand or by machine (using the hook attachment) until it forms a nice, soft, uniform dough. Add the remaining ¼ cup of flour only if needed.
2. Cover and let dough rest for 10 minutes.
3. On a floured surface, pinch off a small ball of dough (approximately the size of a ping pong ball) roll into a short rope and then tie into a knot. Place into a rimmed and greased baking pan. Repeat with remaining dough. Let knots rest for another 10 to 15 minutes, covered with a clean kitchen towel.
4. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400ºF. Bake knots for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden.
5. Meanwhile, prepare the garlic coating. Melt the butter in a small saucepan . Once butter has melted, stir in  the minced garlic, mixing until just fragrant. Remove from heat. Brush the still hot knots with the melted butter. Toss with parsley,  parmesan cheese, salt and pepper.

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