Showing posts with label appetizer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label appetizer. Show all posts

Monday, January 31, 2011

Engagement Party



Saturday we hosted our friends to celebrate our engagement. The party was wonderful. I love entertaining, having a home full of people I love. To make a relationship succeed through the good and bad, I think you have to have a support system of friends and family. It is a blessing to have wonderful friends in our lives, in our life together. I look forward to our next get-together, whether it be a large group or one-on-one.

We wanted to keep this party simple, so we ordered a Boar's Head meat tray from Publix. On the side, I fixed spinach dip, guac, and goat cheese/sun-dried tomato crostini. Kristy brought her signature pizza dip (oh so so SO good) and Melissa brought a black bean dip that received rave reviews. On the sweet side, we had a m&m bowl, chocolate covered pretzels (not GF), cupcakes, and some chocolate-pretzel-pecan creations by Kristin that also got tons of complements. So much for keeping it simple. If you come to our house, we will feed you. Well.

The spinach dip is a bit funny- it takes an obscene amount of spinach to make a small dip. I used a Martha Stewart recipe for it (the recipe is here). As for the goat cheese crostini, I used rice crackers instead of bread. The crackers did get a bit soggy under the cheese, but nobody seemed to mind. The crostini disappeared quickly. Next time I might try to cut some GF bread into squares. Read on for the easiest recipe ever.

Goat Cheese and Sun Dried Tomato "Crostini"
Ingredients
Goat Cheese log
Sun Dried Tomatoes
GF Base - rice crackers, bread, etc.

Take your cold goat cheese, and mold a dab of it onto the base. I found it much easier to use my (clean) fingers than to use a spreading knife. The pressure from the knife broke a lot of crackers and left flakes, while my fingers made a smooth finish. Next, add the sun dried tomato pieces. Enjoy!

I served mine on a shallow chip tray (I ran out of big flat serving things). To even the surface I used candle-scaping rocks, but you could also use dried beans or peas.

Monday, June 14, 2010

World Cup Rules!

With all the controversy regarding the deafening drone of the vuvuzela, it may be better that we've been enjoying World Cup soccer from our living room. Apparently the horn that makes the droning sound we hear on our tv's can lead to permanent hearing loss and the spread of cold and flu. Well then.

To celebrate the US VS England game, we had friends over for sports and socializing. What is a good theme for a soccer party? Balls. Like soccer balls. To take the theme to the next level, we also labeled our plates with silly names. Nick also invented a drinking game for our event based on soccer play, cards, and goals. Our menu included:
* cheddar cheese ball + crackers
* goat cheese balls + crackers (aka "goat balls")
* meatballs (aka Nick's "shweaty balls")
* popcorn balls (regular via a Martha Stewart recipe and chocolate via Paula Deane's recipe, aka "sticky balls")
* cherries (for balance of power)
Of course, our friends were inspired by such an amazing theme. We had additions of a soccer ball shaped cake, rootbeer cupcakes, guac (pit dropped in) + chips, mangu, grapes, peanut butter/pretzel/chocolate balls, and sausage balls. I had never had a sausage ball before, but discovered that I love them. Kristy made two versions. The gluten-containing version, and a GF batch made with Bisquick. Thankfully, Kristy left me her recipe.


Kristy's Sausage Balls
3 cups GF Bisquick
4 cups cheddar cheese
1 lb sausage
1/4 teaspoon pepper
EVOO

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prep a baking sheet with a thin coat of olive oil.

2. Mix all ingredients together. The mixture will be crumbly.

3. Form the mixture into balls and place the balls onto the baking sheet.

4. Bake the balls for 20 minutes. Serve warm and enjoy!