The Cooking Channel's Nadia G Offers Tips for a Knock-Out Holiday Party

NEW YORK, Dec. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- She's cooking up a storm on Nadia G's Bitchin' Kitchen (Cooking Channel), setting new style trends for television chefs, turning out cutting-edge cookbooks, and rockin' new music videos. Now, she turns her unconventional eye to the holidays.  She's Nadia G and any way you look at it, she's spicing things up.  Who better to make your holiday party the hottest event of the year?

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20111212/LA20532)

With the holidays fast approaching, Nadia G has teamed up with Van Gogh Vodka to offer tips to help every hostess become an entertainer extraordinaire:

• Get yourself out of the kitchen.  "The hostess should enjoy her holiday party every bit as much as the guests," says Nadia.  "The best way to get yourself out of the kitchen is to prepare foods ahead that will taste great at room temperature.  Some of my favorites are crostinis and sliders.  I make my sliders with veal cutlets – they're great."  (Recipes below from Nadia's new cookbook, COOKIN' FOR TROUBLE.)  By letting guests serve themselves, everyone can eat on their own time giving the hostess time to kick back and relax with her own cocktail and spend quality time with friends. 
• Let the guests be their own bartenders.  Nadia G recommends a vodka punch like her Pomagrenade Punch (recipe below) or a DIY mixers bar:  stock a table with bowls of bite sized fresh fruit and herbs that have been soaking in liquor and simple syrup.  Serve these gourmet mixers with chilled bottles of unflavored- and flavored-vodkas (Hint: flavored vodkas from Van Gogh Vodka make everyone an instant expert bartender with their smooth, authentic taste and vibrant colors), carbonated water, rum and white wine.  Guests will have a blast mixing and matching cocktails and experimenting with new combinations!
• Give them something sweet – and don't forget the coffee.  Nadia's Chocolate Balls made with butterscotch chips, peanuts and crushed pretzels are easy to whip up and major crowd pleasers.  Topping off the evening with coffee is always a good idea; have regular and decaf on hand for guests to choose from at the end of the night.
• Send the guests home with something you've created in your kitchen.  "Everyone loves my Homemade Hot Cocoa mix.  I add a little cayenne and some cinnamon to step it up," says Nadia. "Gifted in a glass jar or a tin with a bright ribbon, it's my personal way to say Happy Holidays at the end of the night."
• Nadia also has some great tips on holiday activities, such as, "The Anonymous Laugh Box". Depending on the theme of the party, print questions on a bunch of cue cards.  From, "if you could change one thing about your partner," to, "the worst Xmas gift you've ever received," have your guests anonymously submit the answer into a makeshift "Laugh Box," and take turns reading the responses out loud.  Laugh Boxes are as fun as Truth or Dare!, especially after a Van Gogh cocktail or two.
• And of course the most important part of a party is the music; as Nadia says, music can make or break a party.  If the host or hostess doesn't have any musical taste, get a friend to make a playlist for the party. 

For more information, interested chefs and party planners can find Nadia's bitchin' party guide included in her latest cookbook, COOKIN' FOR TROUBLE.

For More Information Please Contact:
Alana Signor: [email protected] / 212-477-8090 x18
Jamie Bussy: [email protected] / 212-477-8090 x15 

SOURCE Van Gogh Vodka