Cheers to good company, entertaining in style and great food.

You have to buy a ham. Period.

“A holiday ham on a great big wooden cutting board, on a credenza or a kitchen island, is essential. You can never go wrong with a classic, bone-in smoke ham. We love the ones by Dartagnon. What I love about ham is that A) it’s ridiculously delicious, and B) it’s ridiculously easy to make. For the amount of effort to the amount of impact, you couldn’t ask for anything more. It come out looking gorgeous, the house smells delicious, so when people walk into your home, they’re immediately like ’Oh my god.’ They see it, they smell it, they’re sold.”

You gotta have punch.

“It’s the liquor equivalent of the porky awesomeness of ham. You need nice punch bowl–you do not want to be putting this in your salad or mixing bowl. And ice is the key–it’s the great amplifier. There are two choices, you can fill a large bowl with ice, and set the punch inside it, or you can make a decorative ice ring. To do that you fill a bundt pan with water, fill it with herbs, some pomegranate seeds, freeze it overnight, and float it in the punch bowl. It’ll look beautiful, it’s both form and function.”