Before we moved to Texas, we had a New Year's Eve tradition of a games night with prizes. Since moving, we have continued celebrating New Year's Eve at home. We just prefer being home and safe to being on the roads with the drunks and crazies. However, we always make sure to have some delicious drinks and eats for our celebration. On tap this year, were Moscow mules for Mike, in his new copper mug. I celebrated with a variety of craft beers and we both toasted 2016 with champagne.

We did 3 of our favorite appetizers to snack on. I made the beer dip the night before. I got this recipe from my friend, Carrie, and it has been a hit at my celebrations for years. To make the beer dip, you need a package of cream cheese, 1/2 package of Hidden Valley Ranch dip/dressing mix, a package of shredded cheese, and beer. I throw all the ingredients into my stand mixer and let it mix to the right consistency. I usually use 1/4-1/2 cup of beer depending on if I'm doing a double or single batch and depending on how thick I want my dip to be. For this batch, I used a Texas Ziegenbock beer. I refrigerated the beer dip overnight and served with pretzels. My next treat was pigs in a blanket. For this recipe, you need a 2 cans of crescent rolls and a package of cocktail wieners. I preheated the oven to 350. Meanwhile, I cut my crescent rolls into 1/2, and wrapped each strip around a wiener. I placed them on baking sheets and baked them about 12 minutes. I serve them with my favorite mustard. Finally, I made some buffalo chicken dip. For this recipe, you need a package of cream cheese, 1/2 cup buffalo sauce, 1/2 cup blue cheese dressing, and 1 1/2 cups shredded or chopped chicken. I mixed them all together in a glass bowl and microwaved for about 5 minutes, stirring every few minutes. Once everything was well mixed and combined, I put the dip in a mini crockpot to keep it warm. I doubled the recipe and a double recipe fits perfectly in my mini crockpot. I served the buffalo chicken dip with tortilla chips.

While we enjoyed our appetizers, we binge watched The Americans, which is a great show. At 11:30, we tried to turn on one of the New Year's Eve shows to watch the ball drop. I must be old because all the music on the Ryan Seacrest show was either terrible, or I didn't know the artist. I definitely preferred the show that played Earth Wind and Fire. We watched the ball drop, had our smooch, and stayed up a bit later. It wasn't our fanciest New Year's Eve, but it wasn't too bad.

The New Austonian