This Hanukah – Let Your Fingers Do the Work for You!
Planning an event for Hanukah? Want to organize something for your family or friends but don’t have the time to get everything ready? We have a solution for you.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFUpdated: DECEMBER 20, 2016 16:29A “finger food” spread especially for Hanukah – any reason is a great reason for a party(photo credit: Courtesy)
How can you entertain guests over Hanukah without dropping from exhaustion after the festivities? The answer, surprisingly, is: “Fingers”.Or in plainer terms, finger food – the new trend that’s bringing the fun back into entertaining.When you decide to entertain family and friends during the holiday you can expect a lot of fun, but also, and who better than you know this, a lot of work! One way of making things easier for yourself without compromising on the quality and style of your hospitality is to change the concept – but just by a little. Meet the new trend in intimate entertainment and hospitality – “finger food”.What does “finger food” offer that other solutions don’t? According to Erez Turgeman, CEO of Canapes, it has, more than anything else, advantages. It transforms an event into one that is more relaxed and more enjoyable for the guests and the hosts. It offers a wide range of possibilities but cuts down on the effort and, it is very, very aesthetic.Planning an event? Want to organize something spontaneous but don’t have the time to get everything ready? Here are a few of the advantages you should know about:Enjoy your Event Without Dropping from Exhaustion.This stunning table is exactly what you want from your event. But let’s not forget that, to achieve these results, there is a long list of things that have to be done. Make the guest list, see who is allergic to what, who has any special food preferences (Vegan, vegetarian, gluten free etc.), decide on a menu, do all the shopping, do the cooking so that everything is ready at just the right time, clean before the guests arrive, set up the tables and still have time to be fresh and well-groomed to welcome the guests.Finger food not only makes it possible to provide your guests a table full of inviting, good food, it also saves you from any extra work. Decide on the menu and invite the guests – even arranging the table becomes a whole lot easier because the emphasis is on the aesthetics of the food so that, wherever and however people sit around the table, everything will look delicious and inviting.Unlimited Choices – Finger Food“To everything we’ve already mentioned, we should add the element of spontaneity”, added Erez. “We’ll often decide not to have a party or entertain guests because there just isn’t enough time to get everything ready. Finger food and hospitality providers mean you don’t have to make any decisions because, unlike traditional catering which requires a lot of planning, finger food catering can really be ordered on the spur of the moment. Whether it’s a family meal that you suddenly decided to organize for Friday night or an impulsive get-together of friends. Finger food is also perfect for more intimate and spontaneous events as well as for larger, planned events such as a Brit Milah or a Bar or Bat Mitzvah”.
Ease of EnjoymentFinger food shouts out comfort and ease for hosts – it saves time, cooking, cleaning before and after, and the inevitable accumulation of dirty plates, silverware and serving dishes. What’s more it allows the host get to their event relaxed and to greet their guests without the stress or tension that is so often associated with an event.But apart from making the host’s life easier, finger food has another, wonderful, quality – it transforms an event into one that is relaxed and more enjoyable so that guests and hosts can mingle and socialize.Your guests won’t stop enthusing over your event. The table layout, the tastes and aromas and about the idea itself, the way the food is presented. Eating together, without silverware and without rigid seating arrangements will bring a smile to your guests' faces – and to yours.“Finger food is a great way to “break the ice”, its inviting”, says Erez. “It also lets the hosts enjoy the guests. It’s so much more than just good, tasty food, it’s a sociable and relaxed way to entertain that nobody can be indifferent to. The fact that there is no silverware and that you don’t sit around the table but, instead, mingle with all the guests, totally transforms the experience for everybody taking part”.Makes every event easier and more relaxedPersonalized FingersToday, with everyone having different culinary tastes, preferences or allergies, hosting becomes more of a problem. Nobody wants any of their guests to be left out, but, having said that, it’s extremely difficult to accommodate everybody’s tastes. Here as well, finger food provides the solution with a wide range of menus and personal choices about what to eat. Food is served on different trays so that you can make it easy for vegans, people with gluten allergies or who avoid dairy products or guests who are simply “fussy” to find the food they want. Serving the food on different trays and serving dishes makes it possible to provide a wide variety of taste experiences and culinary styles so that, in the end, everybody has a selection of food to choose from.Erez continues: “A finger food table transforms the event into an aesthetic experience involving many different colors, tastes, textures and shapes with each tray displaying the food in a different style using only the very best ingredients to ensure a perfect combination of tastes. Serving food on a variety of trays, means we can provide a wide variety of dishes suited for all the guests. This is, after all, what we, and you, want – for your guests to enjoy the event in a pleasant, pleasing and delicious environment”.Sweet Delights – Individual PavlovasWe Saved the Best for Last – Finger Food DessertsIf, during the event, you thought that things just couldn’t get any better, the desserts will surprise and delight you. Individual trays with a selection of delectable and enticing desserts will stun the; guests – even those that fervently decry sweet things.Just between us, even if you’re an amazing host, it is extremely difficult to create individual desserts for your guests. The time it takes, the dishes you need; and it gets even more complex when you should work under dietary restrictions and limitations.Individual dessert trays give guests a wide variety of choices – from delicate dairy free desserts, to mousses, pastries, krembo (chocolate-coated marshmallow treats), chocolate desserts and more. For the health conscious, they can enjoy fruit and muesli. Everyone will find their perfect “sweet treat” and, if we had to sum up a finger food meal, all we can say is that it was “finger lickin’ good” and go back for some more.With Hanukah, the Feast of Lights almost upon us, let the fingers do the work for us so that we’ll have time to enjoy good food and quality time with family and friends.Have a happy Hanukah!