Monday, December 19, 2011

Christmas Lights & Party Food

My husband and GP finally had a tall ladder and a dry day to finish putting up the Christmas lights on the house. They surprised us by adding a little light up tree with flickering lights that make various patterns.

It made me nervous to see him up so high on a ladder. 

I forgot to put on the porch lights, it looks better with them on.
While the men were putting up the lights, Boogs and I went with GM to see A Merry Fairy Christmas Carol at the Scottish Rite Children's Theatre. The play was cute and we all enjoyed it. Boogs waited in line after the show to get autographs from all of the actors. He thought that was really neat.
I have no idea why Boogs has crazy eyes in this photo.

Boogs decided he wanted an autograph and a photo with Merlin, although
he did say that Snow White was his favorite character. Later, he said Robin Hood was his favorite.
We had a get together at our house for about 20 people on Saturday night. Luckily, I had taken a look at Cute Food For Kids 35 Edible Christmas Tree Craft Ideas. I used three of her food finds for snacks for my party. I think they turned out really well.
Tortilla Roll Christmas Tree - It was funny, at first no one wanted to "mess it up". Then people started eating off of only one side until it fell over. (I used spinach tortillas filled with herbed cream cheese, turkey, and spinach. Roll them up, chill in fridge for a bit, then slice.)

Fruit Christmas Tree - fruit toothpicked to a plastic wrapped styrofoam cone. I used cookie cutters on the cantaloupe to make stars and gingerbread men.

Christmas Tree Vegetable Platter - everything except the bell pepper garland was eaten.
We had other snacks and goodies brought by our guests. Two of our guests even brought their own supplies to make some amazing fried pastries. I don't know what they were called, but they were delicious.  I also served my favorite dish for parties - Penne a la vodka. It tastes good when it is warm and when it cools off. This pasta is always a hit. Here's my go to recipe for it:
1 lb penne rigate
3 T olive oil
8 cloves garlic
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
28 oz can of diced tomatoes, drained and some additional fresh cherry tomatoes, halved
1 pint heavy cream
4 T butter
1/2 cup basil, chopped
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup vodka
Cook penne al dente and drain.
In skillet, heat olive oil and saute garlic and crushed red pepper
Add tomatoes, heavy cream, and butter - simmer until slightly thick
Toss pasta with sauce, basil, vodka, and parmesan
Serve with additional cheese and freshly ground pepper

We really enjoyed having everyone over. It was the first time we used the fireplace on the back porch. It was so cozy out there with the fire when the drapes were pulled closed.

6 comments:

  1. I love all of your trees! What wonderful creations!

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  2. EEP! I love them ALL! I'd throw a party just so I could try and make the trees (especially the pinwheel one!)

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    1. Thanks, Karen. They are a bit messy, but you can see by the mess in the background that they were prep "ready" not "presentation ready". :-)

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  3. Hi Keitha, May I know what is the whole ingredients of your tortilla wrap? Thank you.

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  4. I used spinach tortillas filled with cream cheese with herbs, turkey, and spinach.

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