Olive the Other Reindeer Holiday Appetizers

Thank you to Mezzetta for sponsoring today’s post and inspiring me to get creative and create a unique recipe for the Holidays. 

I love absolutely everything about Christmas… the sights of Christmas lights twinkling on the tree, the sounds of Christmas carols and Holiday books being read, the smells of pine, the feelings of warmth and memories of my childhood, and the tastes of delicious Holiday cookies and treats.  I grew up with our house often being the center of Holiday family parties, so I always helped my Mom prepare Christmas Cookies and Appetizers.  It’s one of my favorite Holiday memories and one that I plan to continue with my girls.

I’ve also carried on the tradition of reading Christmas books nightly.  The girls have quite the collection of Christmas storybooks and they look forward to bedtime to see what book we’ll be reading next.  One of the girls’ newest favorites is a fun book called Olive the Other Reindeer.

You see Olive is a dog who suddenly hears the phrase “Olive the other Reindeer” instead of “all of the other reindeer” in the Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer song, and suddenly realizes she must be a reindeer not a dog!  The girls just love the book and I’ve caught them singing the song with the phrase “Olive the other Reindeer” many times – even before the book!   So while we were reading this one the other night, it sparked an idea for me…

Let’s make Olive the other Reindeer Snacks!

I was inspired by the new campaign #MezzettaMemories as there are lots of fun Reindeer Snacks floating around on Pinterest, but I wanted to include not only Mezzetta Olives because my family loves them, but a fun take on one of our favorite Christmas books too!  I also loved that this Reindeer Party Appetizer can appeal to both the adults and kids at your next Holiday gathering.

Our Olive the other Reindeer Appetizers are super easy to customize as you’d like, but here’s the ingredients that we chose to make them!

Bagel Crisps or Crackers as a Base
Triangle Swiss Cheese [cut in half]
Pretzels for the Reindeer Antlers
Sprinkles for Olive’s Eyes
Mezzetta Sliced Greek Kalamata Olives for the Nose [after all, this isn’t Rudolph we’re talking about!]

We also made some super cute Snack Stackers to go along with our Olive the other Reindeer Appetizers that were on a Rudolph toothpick and featured a small cube of Havarti Cheese, Sausage, Mezzetta Sliced Greek Kalamata Olive, and half a cherry tomato!

Moreaya had a fun time making her own Olive the other Reindeer snack – I definitely see this as a DIY Appetizer for the Kids table at my next Holiday party!  I love that my girls are enjoying the same type of things that I enjoyed doing with my Mom as a child and making memories that will last them a lifetime!

Speaking of memories, Mezzetta is encouraging you to share those memories as well – by sharing your memories in the #MezzettaMemories Giveaway, you’ll be entered to win a Mezzetta Gift Basket for the entire 31 days of December!

The Mezzetta Favorites Holiday Gift Basket includes:

• 100% Italian Estate Grown Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Golden Greek Peperoncini
• Garlic Stuffed Olives
• Castelvetrano Olives
• Pitted Greek Kalamata Olives
• Roasted Marinated Red & Yellow Sweet Bell Peppers
• Cocktail Onions
• 1 Apron (from House Party contents)
• 1 Metal Olive Spoon (from House Party contents)
• 1 Tote Bag (from House Party contents)
• 1 Ceramic Bowl

You can be 1 of the 31 Winners… Enter the Giveaway HERE.

In addition, Mezzetta wants to give you another opportunity to make new memories with your family by recreating my Olive the other Reindeer Appetizer – or one of your own – by giving you a 50 cent off coupon on your next Mezzetta purchase too!