Après Fête: Ramen Party for New Year's Eve

Throughout 2012 I did many menu proposals for various parties. No matter the occasion, I almost always suggested a 'build your own ramen bowl' party (even for baby showers--I was getting desperate!). Because I've been obsessed with eating ramen all year, it's my perfect idea of a 'taco party' equivalent. However, despite all of my attempts, I had no takers. Finally, my friend Leanne let me do ramen for her New Year's Eve party!! We agreed that after all of the ham & turkey throughout December, people were ready for something different. Greg and I filled each bowl with freshly boiled noodles and then guests went through an assembly line of toppings--e.g. pork shoulder, poached egg, frozen corn, kale & nori--selecting their favorites. Then we topped the bowls off with either the pork broth from David Chang's Momofuko Cookbook (a really amazing read) or a spicy miso broth. If you're in LA, a trip to Mitsuwa Marketplace is a great source for fresh ramen, Japanese snacks and candies (when there have a bowl of ramen from Santouka for inspiration. If you're a real enthusiast, make it a crawl and also go to Tsujita on Sawtelle, my current favorite). The ramen was a huge hit. This is a fun meal for a casual get together or game night because everything can be made in advance and people can assemble their bowls as they please--just leave the broth simmering on the stove. And any dessert from Christina Tosi's Momofuku Milk Bar cookbook is a perfect & fun sweet finale. Thanks Leanne for letting me end 2012 on a high!!