World Cup Party

Red, blue, white, yellow, and green are some of the most common colors seen in flags across the world. Use these to create a vibrant look for a World Cup party. Set the food on different-shaped platters and serve the punch in an easy-to-access punch bowl. Select glasses that can hold both punch and beer. Fill a bucket with ice and beer and place it on the ground near the glasses. Hang a World Cup bracket on the wall so guests can keep track of teams and groups. Throw in a few daisy arrangements, a soccer ball, and printed cocktail napkins and you're ready to party!

Are you excited for the World Cup? How will you celebrate?

Like the competitors in the World Cup, the menu for my viewing party consists of dishes from all over the globe. For the drinks, I'm offering one sparkling specialty cocktail and assortment of beers. The signature drink is a punch that features Italian spirits: Galliano, Aperol, and Prosecco. When floated on top, fresh citrus and berries provide a festive touch to the concoction. I'll stock my fridge with beers from participating countries. Beverages and More has a great selection of imported beers. Tecate from Mexico, Becks from Germany, Fosters from Australia, Quilmes from Argentina, Bass from England — there are too many options to choose from!

Learn the easy punch recipe after the jump.

When planning a World Cup viewing party, there are lots of fun options for the menu. You could serve classic American game day food, or if you're not rooting for the US, create a menu based our your team's country. Then you could always offer South African cuisine in honor of the host country. Or you could do what I'm doing and have each course represent a different country. The spread of appetizers consists of Spanish, Mexican, American, and French dishes.

For dessert, I'm turning to Greece. What's on the menu? Baklava! The Greek favorite consists of layers of flaky phyllo dough with chopped nuts and honey. I'll also pick up a couple bars of Toblerone chocolate for guests who have a super sweet tooth. It's from another competing country, Switzerland! To get the simple baklava recipe, keep reading

The World Cup comes once every four years and it starts this Friday, June 11. Although the majority of the games will be early in the morning, I'm so excited for the competition I'm hosting a party. The menu consists of a bunch of different appetizers from all over the world. There's spicy margarita shrimp from Mexico, and slices of anchovy-topped French pissaladiere. Piquillo peppers stuffed with goat cheese will represent (my favorite team) Spain, and herb sliders with cheddar cheese are in honor of the good old US. To get these delicious recipes, read more