NYE party to DIY for

Raise the barTasheen Rahimtoola founder Taste Retreat a menu curation and catering service shares that at the heart of every good party is the ability to keep guests engaged Set up an interactive bar with a selection of seasonal fruits herbs alcohol mixers and ice Leave your tablet on the table with a few cocktail recipes and let your guests fix their drinks up Arrange a corner with statement decorations and lights where people can take pictures Recycle your old Christmas decorations or bottles cups pictures etc to avoid buying new decor A definite icebreaker is a party game such as The Ballot The rules are simple you ask a question such as who has the best shoes tonight and your friends can vote It helps guests ease into the moodKeep it cheesyChefs Ryan Braganza and Annabelle Lobo who run a home delivery and popup service tell us that presenting even the simplest of food well is key Opt for a cheese platter that is easy to curate and sits pretty Pick up different varieties of locally produced cheese Throw in some cheese spreads and add garlic or crushed peppercorns to it for more diversity Pick fresh figs and grapes to dress up the board Buy puff dough from your local bakery Roll it out cut as you like and bake Top up with fillings mdash savoury like homemade garlic or herbed butters and sweet ones You can also try bruschettas with kadak pao from a local bakery and add a variety of toppings like tomato oil and basil or Baba ganoush topped with marinated aubergine For presenting your food try and place the platters at different heights on your table you can overturn bowls and use that as a prop Microgreens also work wonders to dress up tarts or bruschettasTurn a chopping board into a cheese platterSorbetIngredients 500g fruit pureacutee used green apple here 50g liquid glucose 50g sugarMethodPut everything into a pan and bring it to a boil Freeze in a container overnight Cut up into chunks and blend it in a mixer until smooth Freeze it again for an hour scoop and enjoy If using green apple dice up some of it with chopped mint and lime juice and spread it as the base for the sorbetGin upChef Juliano Rodrigues from Out Of The Blue picks Bramble a gin and berrybased cocktail that is served in a Tom Collins glass for an NYE house party Fresh raspberries are preferable for garnishing but if you dont have it even the pureacutee works Its best had freshly prepared he suggestsBramble Ingredients 30 ml Tanqueray gin 30 ml cregraveme de Cassis 1 bottle ginger ale 15 ml sugar syrup 30 ml raspberry pureacutee 10 g ice 10 gm cranberryMethodShake the gin and cregraveme de Cassis followed by an addition of lime juice and sugar syrup Pour the contents in a Tom Collins glass with ice and top it with ginger ale and raspberry puree Garnish with frozen cranberries