What We Ate with links and recipes…

So I posted a teaser the other day of all f the food that we ate over the Memorial Day weekend but right after that my computer developed a virus and it took me until Friday of last week to get everything figured back out.  I was so lucky and ended up not losing anything but some of the files are different and I had to reinstall some things.  Anyway as promised…

Starting from the upper right hand corner and going clock wise and finishing up in the middle:

  Tzatziki sauce – this is typically used with souvlaki and gyros but we used the leftovers all weekend sometimes even as a salad dressing!!!

 Greek Salad – Really simple dressing that is fresh and quick to make.

 Marinated Shrimp Salad – So simple and the best thing is you make it the night before and allow it to marinate all night.  Then just take it with you the day of the party.

Watermelon infused with watermelon Vodka:  Simply take a whole water melon and cut a hole in the skin just large enough for a funnel to fit in.  Do this about 12 hrs before serving.  Fill the funnel with watermelon vodka and allow the watermelon to absorb it.  Keep doing this until the desired amount is in the watermelon.  Chill and slice immediately before serving.  Place a cork in the whole for transporting to the party!

 Pork Souvlaki:  This is the souvlaki recipe that I got from my friend Peter over at Kalofagas.  It is the best I have ever tasted and made by me at home!

Bread – We bought it from our favorite German bakery and brushed it with garlic infused olive oil and grilled it…

 
Michelob Ultra – Yummmmmm!

Summer Berries with berry reduction and whipped cream (recipe to follow in a day or so)

Happy Summer!!!

What a wonderful and amazing weekend!

I am so blessed to have a family that is so wonderful and friends that are so great!

My sister flew in on Friday night and we have been going hard since then. I picked her up from the airport and we decided that we would go out for a couple of drinks and some food before she entered my crazy house for the week (she lives in a very quiet house with only her husband and a great, floppy chocolate lab). We decide that we would go to The Joint which is right down the street from us.

The next morning the poor thing woke to a very loud house and we raced around and got ready to go for the skating lessons. In the afternoon we went shopping. T. had a meeting in the afternoon and my sister and I had plans to go to a surprise party for a friend of mine. T. was running real late so I decided that I would make dinner for the girls. Now, who really wants to make a major meal for 2 little girls??? I made pancakes for them. At the last minute I decide to throw in some still frozen mixed berries...what a mess that was. I guess I needed to take a bit of time and thaw them??? They were in clumps in the batter. Regardless I cooked them up and T. called just as I was finishing and said that he had dinner plans for the girls???!!! Oh well...at least we had a great breakfast today!

The surprise party last night was great and Wendy was plenty surprised and we all had a great night out without the kids!



Today we got up and decided that since we had a Canadian visitor amongst us that we just had to have a beach day! Now you have to understand something about south Florida...that water is very, very cold to us this time of year so we generally stay away for the beach unless, of course, we have visitors. It was really a beautiful day. The sky was bright blue and the water was clear as clear could be. My sister loved it and so did we. It really makes us realize how good we have it here especially since most places up north are under about a foot of newly fallen snow!!!

Tonight was a quick dinner out and then back to our regular lives tomorrow! Children off to school and my sister and I off to the malls!!! We have waited all weekend for the girls to be back in school so that we can go and do what we love best...SHOPPING!!! I am even setting up a special visit for us to J Crew. My salesman there is going to set up a personal shopping trip for us complete with wine! Life is soooo good!

Hope you all had a great weekend.

As always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Now the mad dash to Christmas!!!

Well we did it...we survived Thanksgiving. It's been a busy couple of days though. We started the prep work and everything on Wednesday night and then jumped right into it first thing Thursday morning. And then spent yesterday cleaning up (and doing our bit for "Black Friday")! It was all so worth it though. Tony fried the best turkey that we have ever had and all of the side dishes and desserts were amazing as well. We went through a truck load of wine (at least that was how it seemed the next day!) but everyone had a great time and left with full tummies and tired children!

Hope yours was great as well and were able to share it with people you loved and enjoyed!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy

http://www.nofearentertaining.com/

Finally a recipe for the "Blue" themed party!

A couple of weeks ago (I am so late with this) one of my girlfriends got in touch with me about a baby shower that she was involved with. It was a shower for a boy so instead of going with a theme like Pooh or Noah's Ark they opt to go with a theme based around "blue" food. Isn't that a great idea? I told her that I had a recipe for some killer blue cheese bread and I would get it to her. Well the party is this weekend. I sure hope I am not too late for her!

This ones for you Lisa!!!

Blue Cheese Bread - The Chiappini Way!

You don't need to wait for a party to make this. It goes great with steak and a salad as well!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Oh...What a Night!!!

Well we survived and the fog is finally starting to lift. The party was great. Kudos to Kathy and Josh. They pulled of a great party! I think we left really late and it is definitely a good thing we left when we did. Things get really fuzzy about the end and I have a bunch of pictures on my camera that I know nothing about???!!! Anybody with any ideas let me know!

The food was amazing. The caterer was great and the setting was wonderful. They have a beautiful home on the water and the party was set up around the pool. The weather was beautiful. Not too cold but cool enough to make you appreciate Florida winters! Nothing better than sharing a celebration with family and friends!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Zucchini Fritters

Happy Weekend!!!

Another busy one for us here! We took the girls to ice skating this morning...for the first time since we started taking them there I was warm!!! You may need to be reminded that we live in SW Florida and it is usually hot here. When we go to the ice rink in the morning we dress warm but we know that we always have a ton of errands to do after so I usually just wear a long sleeve top, jeans, a down vest and...Flip Flops! No wonder I have been cold. The ice rink is made of frozen water and they need to keep it like that so the air is real cold!!! Yesterday I went and bought myself a pair of wool lined slipper type things. But I was warm for the first time there ever!!!

Anyway this afternoon we are going to a party that we have been looking forward to for a long time. We are going to a 90th Birthday Party for 2 of our friends. She turned 50 and he turned 40 so they decided to combine it into one huge bash! Cool idea huh? They are having it in their beautiful home and it will be catered and I believe there is a band and everything! So exciting.

Now for the food related stuff. For dinner last night we made our quick marinated pork chops. We marinate them in Soy Sauce, garlic, salt, pepper and fresh ginger (but only because we had it on hand). We usually allow the meat to sit in the marinade for about 15 minutes. It doesn't really need much more time than that. But we also made one of my favorite side dishes. One that we don't make often enough but only because we never really think about it! We made Zucchini Fritters...Yummm!

Zucchini Fritters

4 Zucchini grated
2 eggs
3-4 Tbsp of all purpose flour (this depends on how wet the zucchini is)
1 Tbs granulated garlic or garlic powder
1 1/2 Tbsp of Kosher salt
2 tsp black pepper

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together. Heat about 1/2 inch of canola oil in a skillet. We use a cast iron skillet but you can also use a non stick one. When oil is heated add the zucchini mixture by using a 1/4 cup measure scoop. Flatten the tops down a bit. Cook until golden on one side then flip and cook through on the other side.

I like mine plain but the girls like plain yogurt and sometimes ranch dressing.

Off to the party...I hope I can get some nice candid shots of the party tonight.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend as well!!!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

She was surprised!!!

In regards to my last post where we thought for sure that we had spoiled a surprise party for one of my girlfriends who had just graduated from Grad school...we didn't ruin the surprise!!! She was so happy and surprised. Her husband threw together a great party. Lots of really good food, tons to drink. Nothing was overlooked. I was so proud of him! He kept it nice and casual, children running all around, He even made sure that he did it while her parents were in town visiting from Iowa.

What a great night!!!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Happy Monday!

I am still trying to get all of my recipes from the Partylite party that I had last Thursday together and on here! Just bear with me though...I had a huge problem with my website over the weekend and that took a lot of time away from me. Sorry to anyone who was trying to check it out. All they got was a Halloween recipe!!! All fixed up now though or at least better than it was!

Here is the recipe for the Smoked Salmon Lollipop's:

Ingredients:

Green onions (cleaned and all wilted outside leaves removed)

Plain or herbed cream cheese (block - not in a tub)

Good quality smoked salmon

Directions:

Slice the cream cheese into thick slices and wrap carefully around each onion. Press the cream cheese together gently and it will seal right onto the onion. Wrap a slice of the salmon around the cream cheese and the onion and gently press together. Place nicely on a plate and serve! Can be made earlier in the day and covered and refrigerated until your guests arrive.

As Always...

Happy Entertaining,

Judy

http://www.nofearentertaining.com/

Party Fun on Saturday

We were lucky enough to be invited to a party yesterday! I really have not been feeling well, which I guess will happen when you are caring for your ill daughter for 2 days. But I have been taking Zinc and I seem to only have a little bit of what she has (I also think that the amazing vitamin program from Dr. Vince that we take will help you fight off anything). Anyway on to the party. It was at our friend, massage therapist, reiki - ist (is that a word?), and the list goes on and on! It was a really great time. Very casual which is key to holding a party here in balmy (read hot) SW Florida. Yesterday while up north everyone was freezing we were up in the upper 80's but really happy that it had "cooled off" a bit for us!!!

The food was good, huge variety and something for everyone! The best part though was the children. I have no idea what the age of the oldest ones were but it was just a bunch of very nice kids (mostly boys). My oldest daughter spent most of her time fishing in the canal and my youngest one was running around with everyone in the front yard playing lions and gazelles (they are from South Africa-is this how they play tag??)...anyway the children had a great time as did the adults. We left early when they party was just reaching it's momentum but I was tired and wanted to give the girls another early night after fighting sickness all week long!

Hope everyone has a great Sunday! Maybe invite some people over for dinner. It doesn't have to be fancy. Maybe hamburgers and a salad...whatever you decide will be great as long as you are sharing it with friends!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Make Ahead Marinated Shrimp

Had a great Partylite Candle Party last night. Thanks to everyone who gave me suggestions for the drinks! And to everyone who came as well!

When it came right down to the last minute I decided I was going to use the huge bottle of rum from parties past. I made a mixed fruit juice type punch:

equal parts rum, pink grapefruit juice and orange juice. I added one small can of pineapple and some cranberry juice to taste. Went through 2 large pitchers of it. It was nicely balance - not too strong, sweet or bitter.

Onto the food. The Make Ahead Marinated Shrimp is the appetizer that everyone wanted the recipe for. It looked nice and colorful and the best part about it is that you have to make it the night before! No rushing to get it done that day.

Make Ahead Marinated Shrimp

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy

http://www.nofearentertaining.com/

Oh Nooo!!!

Yesterday I tried to make the Apple Cranberry Muffins. They taste really good but the pictures don't do them any justice...actually the pictures look better than they really look. My own fault though. I hate for the kids to have all purpose flour and white sugar. We believe that the closer o nature you stay the healthier it is. So I substituted all purpose flour for Wheat flour and white sugar for organic brown sugar. I know that there is something that I need to take into consideration when I do this (less whole wheat flour? more sugar? more liquid?) but I am always into a recipe when I realize that once again I forgot to look this up. If anyone has any ideas let me know!

Doesn't it just figure? I spent most of last night making food for my party tonight and then my oldest daughter woke up this morning sick!!! I think we will be able to quarantine her okay and there won't be any children here so on with the party we go!!!

Menu:

Wild Mushroom Dip
Spinach Veggie Sandwiches - Done

Make Ahead Marinated Shrimp - Done

Cream Cheese Lollipops
Brownies - Done

So I am well under control. I just have to clean a bit and then I am all set.

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy

http://www.nofearentertaining.com/

Can you help me?

I am having a party on Thursday and I have no idea at all what to serve for an alcoholic beverage. I have red and white wine but I like to have a drink as well. We just served Margarita's on Labor Day and I don't want one of those again yet! I was thinking something fruity with Vodka or Rum. I would also like to be able to make it ahead and have it in pitcher's to serve through out the party. Any ideas? I think last year I did Vodka with pineapple juice, orange juice and cranberry.

Let me know if you have anything better than that for me!

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
http://www.nofearentertaining.com/

Another crazy weekend!

I woke up yesterday just like every other morning, a little stiff, a little achy (we were in a serious car accident about 3 years ago and are still being treated so this is normal). Little did I know that within an hour I would hardly be able to move my head!!! I somehow ended up with a huge knot in my neck as have pain halfway down my back, through my chest and head!!! Not nearly as much fun as it sounds. Oh well...life still goes on and I still have things to do!

I am in the midst of preparing for my Partylite Candle party which is gong to be on Thursday night. I am pretty excited. I have a bunch of new recipes that I can't wait to try out. I can't wait to give you the recipes and have pictures to show you as well!

Partylite Party Menu

Wild Mushroom Dip
Spinach Veggie Sandwiches
Make Ahead Marinated Shrimp
Cream Cheese Lollipops
Brownies

I am kinda stumped on a drink to make. If anyone has any ideas that would help me greatly! I would like something that I can make a big batch of and have in pitchers to serve during the party. I should have about 15 or so people. Any ideas????

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Halloween craft for a party

I know this isn't really about entertaining but it is really cute and would make a cute easy decoration for a Halloween Party either at home or at a school party. I am not even sure that most children even have school party's anymore. I think I remember hearing that they weren't allowed to in public school here in our district but my children go to a private school and they have a real fun Halloween walk where we set up stations for them to go and get treats. Then they have a little party in the class and then it is back to work for them!

My friend Barb, has graciously given me some pictures of the craft that she has done for the classroom every year that she had been at the school.

This is what you need to make the spiders. I was able to find the webs last year at Big Lots. Which is a close out store. Maybe try one of those places or dollar stores?

Lollipop Spider Materials:

Lollipop (We use Tootsie Roll Pops)

Three 6 inch pieces of black pipe cleaner

Small movable eyes

Glue

1.Wrap pipe cleaners around base of Tootsie Pop, in the center of the cleaners to form an x.

2.Glue eyes on pipe cleaner.

3.Bend ends of pipe cleaner to make them look like legs.

That's it! ( other than attaching to the web!)

Let me know if anyone else has any quick and easy decorating ideas for Halloween!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy

www.nofearentertaining.com

Sign up for my newsletter!!!

I am working on a great newsletter for the month of October. I am going to have a special feature on Halloween (no big surprise there) but I am also going to do a special section on hostessing shopping parties.

Now I know we have all gone to the old Tupperware parties and we all know how me we hate them but the parties now are a bit different. Now they have home goods parties, lingerie parties, cooking parties...you name it it's out there now! Every year I am hostess to a PartyLite party and that is coming up in the month of October. I am such a fan of PartyLite products so for me this is a no brainer. I have 2 dogs and I always feel like my house stinks so I have candles going all of the time! But it is also a fun time for all of us Moms to get together without the children running around! Think about hostessing a small party for a group of your friends...it's a great excuse to get together. I will also take all of the brain work out of hostessing. No fear entertaining.

Sign up now for my FREE monthly newsletter! You won't want to miss an issue!

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
http://www.nofearentertaining.com/

Football is on.....

Have I mentioned how much I dislike football!!! Pretty sure you have the point by now. But seriously now once it starts that is all there is. Last night Tony TIVO'd a game so when I went to bed I got to here the lovely sound of the remote and TV "boinging" through the fast forward and pause etc. Then this morning we runaround like crazy people trying to get things done before a 1:00 kick off! Oh well maybe I should do a count down to super bowl?

Enough about that! I am having a Partylite candle party in October. I would never have them but for the fact that the girl who does the party is a ton of fun and of course I love their product. I will be figuring out food and drinks as it gets a bit closer. So stay tuned in!

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Yeah, It's the Weekend!!!

Thanks to all of you who have been reading this blog and adding comments! It really is a great way to let me know what you would like to see more of and whether or not you like it. It has also helped me to keep in touch with those of you who are far away!

But....It is the weekend and we all know how much I love the weekend and this weekend is extra special because it is a long one! We are busy getting all of the preparations done for our party tomorrow as well. Most of the food that we are making can be made ahead. The only thing that is complicated is the smoked pork butt and that is only because Tony will have to get up during the wee hours of the morning and start that smoker!!! But are we afraid? No way we entertain the no fear entertaining way! We follow all of the "7 Golden Rules of No Fear Entertaining" ( sign up for my FREE monthly newsletter and as a special bonus get the "7 Golden Rules of No Fear Entertaining at http://www.nofearentertaining.com/) and it will be as easy as pie. I already have all the paper plates, napkins, knives and forks, cups laid out ready to go. The children's juices are on ice already the margarita's for the adults will be made tomorrow. We also decided to buy a small keg of beer instead of having bottles that we had to have a separate cooler for. Saves space and has much less waste! No rushing, no fussing just a relaxing fun day with a bunch of good friends!

I hope your Labor Day weekend will be as fun as mine!

I will add some pictures on Monday of the party for you to see.

This would be cool to have for tomorrow! Maybe next time.....

Margaritaville CP1000 Tub-N-Tap Party Cooler

Happy Entertaining!

Judy

http://www.nofearentertaining.com/

What would salad be without the toppings?

Is anyone doing anything fun this weekend...maybe having a party and stuck for ideas on what to serve? It is Labor Day you know. That means 3 whole days off! How about inviting some friends over and doing something simple like Hamburgers on the grill? Maybe a choice of Hamburgers or Hot dogs? My husband is convinced that you can serve people just about anything as long as you have lots of toppings! About a year ago we were making some Black Beans and Rice. Pretty simple meal but we ended up inviting some of our friends over and we had about 10 people for a real simple dinner but everyone agreed it was all in the toppings! For toppings we had crumbled Mexican cheese, jalapenos, onions, hot sauce, sour cream, tomatoes, and avocado. It sure makes the meal. What would salad be without the toppings? A bowl full of lettuce!

I guess in all of my rambling what I am trying to say is be a little creative with your toppings. If you are serving Hamburgers try putting out some sliced avocado, BBQ sauce, different types of cheeses (blue cheese burgers are big right now), different types of mustard, tomatoes, maybe bell peppers sliced. Just try something different. Your guests will just really appreciate being invited and all the special attention to toppings will truly make the meal!

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
http://www.nofearentertaining.com/

P.S. My FREE monthly newsletter will be going out the first week of September. You don't want to miss it! Sign up now at http://www.nofearenertaining.com/

Can you see the fear in my eyes???

So we have about 4 days until our party on Sunday. Am I afraid? Can you see fear in my eyes? Not a chance! We have decided on a menu. Started shopping and gathering all of the supplies we will need. It is nice to have this head start. Sometimes we decide to do this just a couple of days before and we don't get all of this extra time!

We will be serving Smoked Pork Butt, Baked BBQ Lima Beans, Dirty Rice, Italian Salad and Golden Margaritas (and Beer) as the beverage. For the children we will have PB & J roll ups and juice. Sounds pretty good huh? Almost all of these items can be made ahead so we aren't having to cook while everyone is here. We have over 30 people (children are included) coming. I ordered some extra chairs from our local party rental company. You can get these for about $1.50 a piece and I figured seeing as we are in SW Florida and the temperature is about 100 degrees come late afternoon I needed to give people a spot to plop their bottoms. We have a water slide and a bounce house as well as the pool to keep the kids going. It should be a good time for everyone! I will be featuring these recipes in my October Newsletter. Sign up now at www.nofearentertaining.com.

Check back for new posts to see how we are doing as we get closer and closer to party day!

Happy Entertaining!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Am I in A Panic? No Way!

If you have been following my Blog you will know that I am in the midst of planning a party during the Labor Day weekend. I now have a guest list of over 30 people. Am I freaked out? Am I suffering from "fear of entertaining"? No Way!!! I love this. I follow the "7 Golden Rules of No Fear Entertaining". By following these rules I am able to save myself a lot of time, energy and money! You can get these FREE by going to my website at http://www.nofearentertaining.com/ and signing up for my FREE monthly newsletter (which I am currently working on and it is going to be GREAT) and automatically you will receive the "7 Golden Rules of No Fear Entertaining" as an added bonus!

Judy
http://www.nofearentertaining.com/