Tasty snacks to ring in the new year

As the clock winds down on 2023 and excitement builds for the dawn of 2024, there's no better way to celebrate the past and welcome the future than with a New Year's Eve party with close friends and family. Elevate your celebration with a feast of quick, easy, and tasty party snacks to keep your guests happy as you ring in the new year. Consider these bite-sized delights that are not only delicious, but also easy to handle as guests mingle and toast to the memories of the year gone by.

Loaded Cheese Fries

With just frozen fries, a creamy cheese sauce, bacon, and green onions, this loaded cheese fries is the perfect addition to your New Year's Eve party.

INGREDIENTS

Frozen French fries

Shredded cheddar cheese – You’ll use this to make the creamy cheese sauce, plus some to sprinkle over the fries before you bake them. For the best sauce, shred some block cheese as it will melt better. You can use packaged shredded cheese, but the sauce will be a little more stretchy instead of creamy.

Cornstarch

Heavy cream

Bacon bits – You can cook bacon and finely chop it or skip all that and use real bacon bits to make it really easy.

Sliced green onions – Or diced red onion, yellow onion. You can choose to skip the onion and instead sprinkle some sliced chives over the top.

DIRECTIONS

The cheese sauce: Place the shredded cheese in a small saucepan, toss it with some cornstarch, and add the cream. Warm the mixture on the stove and whisk until the cheese melts and the sauce is smooth. It only takes a couple of minutes.

The fries: Follow the directions on the frozen bag of fries or use an air fryer to get that extra crisp.

Assemble: Spread half of the crispy French fries in a single layer on a small baking sheet or in a shallow baking dish. Top the first layer of fries with drizzles of cheese sauce, some shredded cheddar, and a sprinkle of bacon. Do another layer of cooked fries on top and add the rest of the toppings.

Bake the fries for about five minutes or until it is warmed up and the shredded cheese is melted. Sprinkle the green onions over the top for serving.

Ham and Swiss Sliders

Be prepared to leave your guests wanting more with these ham and Swiss sliders.

INGREDIENTS

1 package (12 ounces) Hawaiian sweet rolls

3/4 pound sliced deli ham

6 slices Swiss cheese, halved

1/2 cup butter, cubed

2 tablespoons finely chopped onion

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard

2 teaspoons poppy seeds

1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

DIRECTIONS

Without separating the rolls, cut rolls in half horizontally. Arrange bottom halves of rolls in a greased 9x9-inch baking pan. Spread cut side of roll bottoms with spicy brown mustard. Layer with ham and cheese; place top half of the rolls.

In a small skillet, heat butter over medium-high heat. Add onion; cook and stir until tender, 1-2 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients. Pour over rolls. Refrigerate, covered, for a few hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Remove rolls from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Bake covered for 25 minutes. Bake uncovered until golden brown, approximately 5-10 minutes longer.

Source: girlgonegourmet.com and tasteofhome.com