Party Food Archives – Page 12 of 17

Friday Finds: Fondue for You! Suggested Fondue Supplies

July 18, 2014 No Comments A Well Crafted Party

*Product links in this post are affiliate links. A portion of the purchases from affiliate links help support this blog. Thank you.

Suggested Fondue Supplies — Nostalgia Electrics Fondue Pot

Last week I shared a delicious recipe for fondue. I personally have three fondue sets and a TON of fun accessories to go with them. I love fondue for large events, dinner parties, or an intimate dinner for two. I thought I’d suggest a few of my favorite fondue items so you can get in on the fun as well.

Suggested Fondue Cookbooks

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The Fondue Bible: The 200 Best Recipes Last week I shared a recipe from this book. I’ve made at least 5 of the recipes so far and have really liked them all. (I did receive this book free for purpose of review, but my suggestion of it is based on my experience only.)
Great Party Fondues Come on… fondue is perfect for a party. I love this little cookbook for party-friendly recipes!

Suggested Fondue Pots

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Nostalgia Electrics FPS200 Electric Fondue Pot While I love a good fire underneath a fondue post, I also like the idea of easy clean up and the extra safety benefit of this electric fondue pot. Added bonus… the color of this pot is a a pretty metallic rose!
Trudeau Multi 12-Piece Stainless-Steel Fondue Set This one is one of the pots I own. I love it because it is great for meat fondues, cheese fondues, OR chocolate fondues.
Trudeau Century 15-Piece Stainless-Steel 42-Ounce Fondue Set I love the little protector piece that comes with this one— it is great to have the added protection for broth and oil based fondues. The cute little cups coming with it is an added bonus.

Suggested Fondue Accessories

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Trudeau Square Fondue Plate, Set of 4 Seriously, how great are these plates!? They not only have a spot for your fondue concoction, but also little areas for dipping sauces!
Norpro 6 Piece Porcelain Ramekin Set One of the things I love about fondue is all of the fun dipping sauces that can accompany a meal. A good set of ramekins is the way to keep those dipping sauces looking great on your table, and not wasting space on your plate.

A Well Crafted Pantry

Saturday Spirits: Spiked Ice Cream Recipes (No Ice Cream Maker Needed!)

July 5, 2014 4 Comments A Well Crafted Pantry

Happy Saturday Spirits! It is getting HOT HOT HOT outside which makes this a very fun recipe for a hot summer evening. These Spiked Ice Cream recipes are easy to make at home without the use of any fancy ice cream makers or tools. I used a food processor for mine… but, they can just as easily be made with a hand blender or by mixing with big spoon.

These are fairly light on the alcohol over all. But, they should definitely be served to those legal to drink only.

These recipes aren’t super precise since they are not from scratch recipes, but rather are using some premade items. When I say a carton it may be slightly different than your size of carton. I do write how big of a carton I used. But, please get creative with these items and taste test along the way! (That is most the fun anyways!)

Mango & Bitters Cocktail Sorbet

Supplies: (Some of the below links are affiliate links. Purchases from affiliate links help suppport this blog)

Approximately 1 carton of your favorite Mango Sorbet (I used Trader Joes Mango Sorbet which is 33.81 oz)
10 Shakes of Bitters
3 oz Vodka
Mint (for Garnish)
Food Processor (or hand mixer or big wooden spoon with large mixing bowl)
Ice cream containers (you can use the original container if you’d like, or pretty containers for parties! Portland locals can pick up ones like those photographed at Fancy That Shop in Orenco Station! )

Directions:

Let your mango sorbet soften on the counter for a bit. You should be able to easily scoop out the sorbet.
Scoop the sorbet into your food processor or into a large mixing bowl
Add in the 10 shakes of bitters and 3 oz vodka
Mix like crazy. Make sure everything is incorporated.
Fill your ice cream container with the sorbet and then place back into freezer. It should firm up after an hour or two and be ready to fill ice cream bowls!

Raspberries & Cream Spiked Ice Cream

Supplies: (Some of the below links are affiliate links. Purchases from affiliate links help suppport this blog)

1 carton of your favorite Raspberry Sorbet or Gelato (I used the Raspberry Sorbet from Trader Joes which is 1 pint)
1/2 carton of your favorite Vanilla Ice Cream (I used Trader Joes French Vanilla which is 1/2 a gallon)
3 oz Raspberry Vodka
Food Processor (or hand mixer or big wooden spoon with large mixing bowl)
Ice cream containers (you can use the original container if you’d like, or pretty containers for parties! Portland locals can pick up ones like those photographed at Fancy That Shop in Orenco Station! )

Directions:

Let your Raspberry Sorbet (or gelato) and Vanilla Ice Cream soften up on the counter for a bit.
Scoop the sorbet into your food processor or into a large mixing bowl
Add in the 3 oz of Rasberry Vodka
Mix like crazy. Make sure everything is incorporated.
Fill your ice cream container half way with the sorbet mixture. Then spoon in vanilla ice cream and swirl around with your spoon. You can mix everything together if you’d prefer, or you can leave it a little unincorporated for a swirl-like dessert.

Raspberries & Limoncella Sorbet

Supplies: (Some of the below links are affiliate links. Purchases from affiliate links help suppport this blog)

1 carton of your favorite Raspberry Sorbet or Gelato (I used the Raspberry Sorbet from Trader Joes which is 1 pint)
1 carton of your favorite Lemon Sorbet or Gelato (I used Cioa Bella Lemon Zest Sorbet 14 oz)
3 oz Limoncello
Food Processor (or hand mixer or big wooden spoon with large mixing bowl)
Ice cream containers (you can use the original container if you’d like, or pretty containers for parties! Portland locals can pick up ones like those photographed at Fancy That Shop in Orenco Station! )

Directions:

Let your Raspberry Sorbet (or gelato) and Lemon Sorbet soften up on the counter for a bit.
Scoop the Lemon Sorbet into your food processor or into a large mixing bowl
Add in the 3 oz Limoncello
Mix like crazy. Make sure everything is incorporated.
Fill your ice cream container half way with the Limoncello & Lemon sorbet mixture. Then spoon in Raspberry Sorbet and swirl around with your spoon. You can mix everything together if you’d prefer, or you can leave it a little unincorporated for a swirl-like dessert.

What do you think? Will you be spiking some of your ice cream desserts?

Party Food

Real Party: Aged Birthday Party

December 27, 2013 4 Comments Party Food

This year I turned the big 3-0. I thought it would be much more significant or earth shattering than it ended up being. I mean… my mom was 29 until she turned 39. So, I expected to really feel sad about the end of my 20s.

I didn’t really care so much this year… as a matter of fact, I was actually sort of happy about turning 3o. I feel like I’m in a good spot in my life and I’m pretty happy with where I am in life. So, this year’s party I really wanted to celebrate the fact that I am happy in my age and that I think maybe I’ve even improved with age. What a better way to celebrate the great things about aging than celebrate with other things that get better with age… like wine, cured meats, pickled items, aged cheeses, and wonderful friends.

I celebrated with a ladies night “Aged” birthday party. Maryhill wines, a Pacific Northwest winery, provided me with bottles of Zinfandel, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon to taste and serve with a selection of aged meats and cheeses. And, of course, chocolate! It was fun catching up with everyone and enjoying how different wines paired so nicely with different meats and cheeses. I especially loved the pairing of the Maryhill Zinfandel with chocolate laced cheddar. (Yes, that is really a thing and yes it is delicious.)

I’m pretty easy to please. But, this was probably one of my favorite party menus so far. The food was easy to put together with quality, store-bought items and a few pretty platters and bowls. The wine selection was limited (three different red wines and one white wine option) but, tasty and paired wonderfully with the food items. I actually set the entire thing up with the help of a couple of friends after I left work.

The decor for the evening was simple. I like the look of chalkboards for this time of event… something about the classic look of a piece of black slate with white chalked writing. I labeled the food items with a white gel pen on black cardstock and then wrote a quote on a big chalkboard in my kitchen. This party can definitely be brought up another level with a more coordinated and styled look. But, it was also perfect as a laid back event.

These photos were all from my iPhone the evening of the party. Next week I’ll be sharing some more photos, some menu & decor ideas for a slightly fancier “Aged” party, and some “Aged” party printables. I have birthday printables as well as printables I’ve created for a fun “Aged” New Year’s Eve event. But, for now, let me leave you with this question:

How do you feel you’ve improved with age?

Comment below! Leave your twitter handle and I’ll tweet out your comment as well!