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A Quiet Super Bowl Sunday 2018 with a Paleo / Keto friendly Appetizers!

February 5th, 2018

We had some big plans for Super Bowl Sunday 2018! My sister was having a big party and I was planning to bring several of my favorite dip platters.  However, life had other plans for us.  Our poor little doggie got super sick and we couldn’t leave him at home alone, so we called my sister, canceled our plans and decided to have a Super Bowl Sunday at our house.

My husband eats paleo, so it was important we had non carb options for him to enjoy.  I loaded our coffee table with plenty of vegetables and a few pork rinds,  as well as some fun snacks for my kids, which included Chex Mix and tortilla chips.  My husband’s two favorite dips were on the table… my famous Smoked Bacon and Gouda Spinach Artichoke dip (super low carb), which I will include in my book as well as a paleo Seven Layer dip recipe which I found on the internet. I also added some  lettuce leaves for him to create delicious wraps, he loved it and so did my kids!

Although our plans changed last minute and we didn’t get to go to a large party, we appreciated the time with our family and our sick little doggie, who actually felt a lot better on game day!

Super Bowl Snackadium – Well, sort of!

May 9th, 2016

What can I say, my friends know how to party!! I am just IN LOVE with this gorgeous and super sophisticated “snackadium” my friend Robynn assembled.  Most of the plates were elevated, although it’s hard to see in this photo.  And although it didn’t have a traditional stadium look, it still fit the bill.  If you think it looks good in the photo, you should have seen it live in person!  I also loved that she incorporated some healthy buffet items.  Two thumbs up!!

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HALLOWEEN MONSTER VEGGIE PLATTER

October 31st, 2015
HALLOWEEN VEGGIE PLATE

I am ending 31 Days of Halloween off with a BANG!!  This healthy veggie platter was a hit at a recent party I attended.  It was fun and funny!  And best of all… HEALTHY!!!  Happy Halloween Everyone!

Olive and Artichoke Salad Skewer

September 9th, 2015
oliveandartichokesaladskewer
Join the latest trend of salad on a stick! Great for BBQs and picnics and beautiful to serve at any party any time of the year!

Ingredients

  • 1 can Green Olives
  • 1 can quartered artichoke hearts
  • skewers
  • For the Lemon Butter
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 stick of butter

Preparation

Drain the olives and artichoke hearts. Skewer an olive and follow with 2-3 artichoke pieces… repeat the process until you get to the end of the skewer and then top off with an olive. Plate the finished skewers. To make dressing, melt the butter and add the lemon juice. Mix well. Brush a little bit of the butter dressing on each finished skewer, making sure that each olive and artichoke have a little bit of dressing. Serve the remainder of the dressing on the side.

Sun Dried Tomato Bruschetta

May 25th, 2015

sundriedtomatobruchetta

Brace yourselves, you are about to fall in love!!  While I was working on my 30 day salad challenge (that’s right, I’m making a new salad every day for 30 days), I discovered this recipe.  Originally, I made it for my Sun Dried Tomato & Mozzarella Salad.  I didn’t add enough olive oil to the recipe initially, so my dressing turned out a bit thick.  When I tasted it, I was IN LOVE.  I quickly put it on top of some french bread and voila… it was as if it was meant to happen!!  Below is the recipe… enjoy!!

4-60z  Sun Dried Tomatoes in Olive Oil
1 Tbsp olive oil
1-2 tsp capers (drained)
1-2 garlic cloves
9-10 basil leaves

Combine all ingredients above in a food processor (leave a few basil leaves for garnish) and pulse until well blended.  Spoon the mixture on top of french baguette pieces and top off with basil leaves. If the mixture is too thick, add more olive oil until the desired consistency.

Easy Recipes for Your Next Wine and Cheese Tasting Party

May 24th, 2015

tvshow-07-2015

What is one of the easiest parties to throw?  A wine and cheese tasting party, of course! Just ask your friends to bring a bottle of wine and a wedge of their favorite cheese, and before you know it, you’ll have a buffet worthy of royalty!!  You can even make a “theme” out of it.  Ask your guests to only bring a particular kind of wine (red or white) or narrow it down to a wine from a specific region.  You can also choose a single type of cheese you want your guests to bring.  For example, ask everyone to bring only their favorite sheep cheeses or only goat cheeses.  It’s fun to see what people enjoy and you don’t have to take on the financial burden of paying for all the cheese and wine, which can get pricey!

As the hostess, I love making fun recipes which guests can sample.  As I said in my TV segments, I don’t typically like to have all my dishes be experiments, but I at least try one dish which is a little bit out of the  box.  Here are three recipes which I find to be easy and very attractive and they are all perfect for a wine and cheese tasting party!!  One of the recipes, the easy Antipasto Plate, was contributed by a very talented florist and friend, Rhae Adams, owner of FOUND IN NATURE.  

Would you like to watch these dishes be prepared?  You can go to the videos page and find the recipes you like and watch how simple they are to create. http://www.partytipz.com/media/

Rhae’s Simple Antipasto Plate

antipasto
Go to the marinated and canned section of your store and find what you love. I love purchasing these items at Trader Joes since they are all right next to each other. Some of my favorite things are:

1 can of Artichoke Hearts
1 jar of marinated olives (stuffed with almonds, onions, garlic, or whatever
you like)
1 jar of marinated red and yellow peppers
1 jar of pre-made tamponade
1 jar of sun dried tomatoes in olive oil
additional jars of items you like
goat or sheep cheese
crackers

Make sure to drain all jars of the water or olive oil. Cut up the items (such as artichoke hearts and peppers into small pieces, carefully arrange all items on plate, making sure that the colors go well together. Use chopsticks to move and arrange items neatly on the platter and use paper towels to absorb any extra liquids which may mix on the platter. Lastly, add your favorite cheese have a selection of various crackers, and add some fresh bread. Enjoy!

Cheese Stuffed Strawberries

strawberries

1/2 bottle of white wine
5-6 strawberries
25 small slices of Fontina cheese
Balsamic vinegar or balsamic reduction sauce

Soak strawberries in wine for 24 hours
Slice and fan strawberries
Slice fontina cheese into thin and small slices which can fit inside the
strawbwerry
Place each slice in the strawberry crevices
Drizzle balsamic vinegar or reduction sauce on the strawberries
Top off with almonds or mint and enjoy

Cheese Kabobs

cheesetortellini

Skewer Sticks
Mozzarella cheese
Salami
Meat or cheese tortellini
Heirloom Tomatoes

Grease the skewers with oil
Skewer a tomato, followed by mozzarella cheese, salami, tortellini and
repeat until you cap off with the last tomato. Arrange finished skewers on
platter and drizzle with balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and serve

SIMPLE VEGGIE PLATE

May 5th, 2015

veggieplate

Sometimes the simplest thing can be the most beautiful on your table.  That is what I love most about fruits and vegetables, they are so gorgeous and no matter how you arrange them, they WILL look beautiful.  This simple vegetable platter was created by my sister for one of our parties a few weeks ago.  I bought a large vegetable tray at Sam’s and I’ve used it non-stop for YEARS!!  I don’t even bother putting it away, because it gets used on a regular basis.  It looks great with all kinds of things, but it looks the BEST with fruits and vegetables.  My sister also made sure to separate the colors, which plays a big part in presentation.  But all in all, it was one of the simplest food items at our party and the most popular!

A Veggie Kaleidoscope With Beet Hummus – FABULOUS Veggie Plate!

May 4th, 2015

veggiekaleidoscope

I don’t know if you heard the news, but the Kansas City Royals won the World Series!!  It’s a pretty big deal in KC.  In fact, they closed all the schools yesterday so that everyone can enjoy the Rally and Parade.  Over half a million people attended and it was a celebration like no other!  And while most of Kansas City was enjoying the parade, I decided to skip the crowds and instead, had a watch party at my house.   My friend brought over delicious Dean and Deluca salads, while I created this vegetable platter.  Unfortunately, no blue vegetables (Royals color)… but this  Kaleidoscope of colors did the trick!  The Beet and White Bean hummus was delicious.  I found the recipe on Marthastewart.com and played around a little with the ingredients, which I will post at a later date.  But for now,  Martha’s Beet and White Bean Hummus recipe is very good!!

DELICIOUS VEGGIE WHEEL PLATE

May 3rd, 2015

veggiewheel

Who wouldn’t love a Veggie Wheel Plate at your next gathering?!  You don’t need those fancy schmancy veggie bowls with the separate compartments for your vegetables, just make your own.  I used different colored carrots to separate the vegetables.  It was easy and beautiful.

SIMPLE VEGGIE PLATTER

May 1st, 2015
simple veggie plate

Delicious, healthy, and simple veggie plate

What do you do with the leftover veggies from yesterday’s Monster Veggie Platter?  You make a new veggie plate and serve it up as a delicious snack while watching the World Series game!  Super easy and delicious!!