Holiday Entertaining on a Budget

Inexpensive crackers don't have to be boring

Thanksgiving and other holidays can be a time to shine, whipping out traditional recipes and grandma's silver. But you don't have to spend a ton.

At the Momtrends Holiday Soiree, I picked up some entertaining tips that can keep you on a budget.

Cheese plate: from the Supermarket

Add a drizzle of honey and aspire of rosemary to enliven supermarket cheese

I love cheese, and there's nothing like bit of artisan goat cheese, made from a flock of happy goats frolicking in the Vermont countryside. But some of those cheeses can cost upwards of $30 a pound, and when you are making a platter for entertaining, that can be too expensive.

Likewise, the crackers. Some crackers at my hipster local Brooklyn food boutique cost $10 a package.

At the holiday soiree, we created our own cheese platters, using supermarket cheese and cracker from Jarlsberg. The cheese crips made with chipotle provided nice crunch and just enough spice to transform ordinary cheese.

But the Jarlsberg cheese was also not ordinary. We had a smoked cheese that was a nice counterpart to sliced apples and the Norwegian skiqueen, a brown cheese made with cow and goat milk.

Another bonus: Jarlsberg cheese are lactose free. One of my daughters is lactose intolerant, so we save on her lactaid pills with a cheese platter built on Jarlsberg.

Good, cheap wine: not an oxymoron

Fashionable jeans, under $20 

Another supermarket find was the Noble Vines wine. The 337 Cabernet Sauvignon and 667 Pinot Noir are only about $9-11 a bottle and are perfect for that 'house wine,' - the wine that you buy by the case and keep on hand for when guests unexpectedly drop by.

Staying on Trend

Since this was Momtrends, there had to be a fashion element, and we got to style our own looks with Riders by Lee. Fashionable skinny jeans for under $20? Yes, you can.

Make your own hostess gifts

Of course, if you eat too much of that cheese, skinny jeans might not be your best bet. But there were boot cut jeans and cute tops, all at attractive prices.

Hostess Gifts for Less

If you are lucky enough to be going to a holiday arty, you don't have to spring for an expensive hostess gift. D-I-Y is thoughtful and keeps you on a budget.

But that doesn't mean your gift has to look sad. Name Bubbles has labels that can perk up a homemade gift.

These labels are also great for leftovers. My freezer is filled with what we call UFO's - unidentified frozen objects. The Name Bubbles labels stick on plastic and stay on in the freezer.