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Couples Interactive Dinner Party: VALENTINE’S DAY

Wednesday, January 30th, 2013

Recently, we hosted a "Tantalizing Tapas" & "Dating-Couples Game" Dinner Party.

It was really fun and would be a great Valentine's Day Affair!

TANTALIZING TAPAS DINNER PARTY MENU:

Small Sides to Start:

  • Toasted Marcona Almonds with sea salt (Can purchase at Whole Foods or Specialty Groceries.)
  • Marinated Castelvetrano Olives (on tooth picks) (Check out your local Olive Bar.)
  • Pickled Vegetables (on tooth picks)

    Main Dishes:

    Patatas bravas with chorizo
    http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/461640/patatas-bravas-with-chorizo

    Spanish Radicchio Salad with Manchego Olive Vinaigrette (A super hit from 'Toro Bravo' restaurant featured on Portlandia!):
    http://wanderingchopsticks.blogspot.com/2011/04/spanish-radicchio-salad-with-manchego.html#.UILkQIVgOLU

    Spanish Frittata (any filling you desire):
    http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/frittata-recipe/index.html

    OR

    Vegetable Empanadas:
    http://www.food.com/recipe/vegetable-empanadas-with-tomato-sauce-247508

    Dessert:

    Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta

    http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/15191/vanilla+bean+panna+cottaOR

    Spanish Peanut, Buster Parfait Ice Cream Dessert
    http://www.heatovento350.com/2010/06/peanut-buster-parfait-ice-cream-cake.html?showComment=1277755726967

    DATING GAME Steps:

    1. Print out these questions below (One per-pair: Need one-side with "He Said/Partner 1" and one side of paper with "She Said/Partner 2").
    2. Give each couple a # and divide up the couples so that questions are asked by someone who is NOT their partner.
    3. Move couples into separate rooms so they can't hear each others answers.
    4. Ask the "SHEsaid" to the opposite partners.
    5. Then return as a group to share all of the responses.
    6. Score the questions. If the couple has the same answer, they get a point for each they guessed the same answer for.
    7. The Couples who get the most answers in-common, wins!

    ASK HER or Partner 1                          PARTNER NAME #1:______________

    *Answer what you really think (not what your partner thinks).

    1. WHAT DO YOU ENJOY DOING AS A COUPLE? (1 POINT)
    2. WHAT BODY PART DOES YOUR PARTNER LIKE BEST ABOUT YOU? (1 POINT)
    3. DOES YOUR PARTNER PICK-UP AFTER HIMSELF OR LET IT LAY AROUND? (1 POINT)
    4. WAS IT LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT? EXPLAIN. (EACH WORTH 1 POINT)
    5. GIVE ONE INITIAL REASON WHY YOU THOUGHT HE WOULD BE A GOOD PARTNER? (1 POINT)
    6. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE COLOR? (1 POINT)
    7. WHAT DO YOU AND YOUR PARTNER COMMUNICATE BEST ABOUT (MONEY, JOB, SEX, LOVE, LEISURE, FAMILY, OR ETC..)? (1 POINT)
    8. HOW MANY CHILDREN DID/DO YOU WANT TO HAVE? (1 POINT)
    9. IF YOUR PARTNER COULD TAKE YOU ANYWHERE, WHERE WOULD THEY LIKE TO TAKE YOU? (1 POINT)
    10. IN WHAT ONE WAY WOULD YOUR PARTNER LIKE YOU TO SHOW MORE LOVE FOR THEM? (1 POINT)
    11. IF YOU HAD ONE YEAR LEFT TO LIVE HOW WOULD YOUR RELATIONSHIP BE DIFFERENT? (IN YOUR EYES & IN YOUR PARTNERS EYES) (WORTH 2 POINTS, 1 FOR EACH ANSWER)

    ASK HIM or Partner 2                         PARTNER NAME #2:______________

    1. WHAT DOES YOUR PARTNER ENJOY DOING TOGETHER AS A COUPLE? (1 POINT)
    2. WHAT BODY PART DO YOU LIKE BEST ABOUT YOUR PARTNER? (1 POINT)
    3. DO YOU PICK-UP AFTER YOURSELF OR LET IT LAY AROUND? (1 POINT)
    4. WOULD YOUR MATE SAY IT WAS LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT? EXPLAIN. (2 POINTS, ONE FOR EACH)
    5. GIVE ONE INITIAL REASON WHY YOUR MATE THOUGHT YOU WOULD BE A GOOD PARTNER? (1 POINT)
    6. WHAT IS HER FAVORITE COLOR? (1 POINT)
    7. WHAT DO YOU AND YOUR PARTNER COMMUNICATE BEST ABOUT (MONEY, JOB, SEX, LOVE, LEISURE, FAMILY, OR ETC…) (1 POINT)
    8. HOW MANY CHILDREN DID/DOES YOUR PARTNER WANT TO HAVE? (1 POINT)
    9. IF YOU COULD TAKE YOUR PARTNER ANYWHERE, WHERE WOULD YOU LIKE TO TAKE THEM? (1 POINT)
    10. IN WHAT ONE WAY WOULD YOU LIKE YOUR PARTNER TO SHOW YOU MORE LOVE? (1 POINT)
    11. IF YOU HAD ONE YEAR LEFT TO LIVE HOW WOULD YOUR RELATIONSHIP BE DIFFERENT? (IN YOUR EYES & IN YOUR PARTNERS EYES) (WORTH 2 POINTS, 1 FOR EACH ANSWER)

    Posted in Dinner Activities, Dinner Party Menu | No Comments »
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    Fast Food made Slow for a Gourmet Dinner!

    Sunday, October 21st, 2012

    Our last Gourmet Club Dinner was a really fun one because of its Fast Food themed recipes!

    • The host assigned us each a restaurant and told us to find a dish or recipe we wanted to recreate in anyway.  They made the salad and dessert to make sure to cover those but the rest was wide open.

    We ended up doing Wendy’s Chili (being from Ohio and all, near the founding location of Wendy’s in Dublin, OH) and Frosty’s.  The Chili was good but the Frosty’s tasted exactly like the real thing (see recipe below).  This was such a fun meal and the Mini-Big Mac Sliders were amazing

    McDonald’s:

    Wendy’s:

    Carl’s Junior:

    Chick-Fil-A:

    Taco Bell:

    Posted in Dinner Party Menu, Home Cookin' | No Comments »
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    Baked Fish Tacos & Mexican Inspired Dinner Party Recipes

    Monday, June 25th, 2012

    I now have a ton of posts to update for you but have been traveling for business and pleasure as of lately and I have been too darn busy! I actually feel guilty about the lack of posts I have kept up with. We have been writing ‘Blame it on the Food Blog’ for almost three years now! It has been a highlight in my life.

    Well, we had this Mexican Dinner at our house within the last month with our Gourmet Group. If I haven’t explained this before, we have a Gourmet Group (some call it Dinner Club) with 5-6 couples and we rotate hosts each month. When the dinner is at your house, you choose the menu and email out the recipes to your friends to make. We have covered a decent amount of creative menus in one year.

    For this dinner, we were inspired by a recent trip to visit friends in Arizona who made us delicious fish tacos with red cabbage slaw and served store-bought Refried Black Beans along side. They purchased these amazing Refried Black Beans at a gourmet market in Flagstaff that are from a Restaurant in Sedona called Elote Cafe.  The beans were so amazing that we bought the Elote Cookbook from the restaurant Elote online immediately (as I searched google over to find the recipe and couldn’t).  We read in the ingredients that Rice Oil was used to make the beans and that theses are actually vegetarian refried beans. I looked at Whole Foods for Rice Oil but couldn’t find and it and John finally found some at Staff of Life in Santa Cruz, or you can order Rice Oil online.

    Here are the recipes below to have your own Fish Taco Feast … not really a Fiesta, more of an Americana Feast with Cilantro, Peppers, & Spices in some interesting recipes below:

    • Appetizer: Jalapenos Wrapped in Bacon & Grilled (Ok, fine, they were actually ‘Atomic Buffalo Turds‘, embarrassingly good)
    • Baked Fish Tacos with Red Cabbage Slaw
    • Refried Black Beans from Elote Cafe
    • Potato Salad with Caramelized Onions & Roasted Chile Vinaigrette
    • Cinnamon Churros with Mexican Chocolate Dipping Sauce (they turned out great)

    For Recipes ->

    Click to continue »

    Posted in Dinner Party Menu, Home Cookin' | 4 Comments »
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    Adult Sleepover Themed Dinner Party

    Saturday, March 10th, 2012

    *Photos from my iphone with my olioclip fisheye lens.

    This dinner party theme may sound a bit, well, kinky I guess.  I mean, there were homemade jello shots and adult snow cones  being consumed by adults in pajamas. This couple goes all out when they host. You can be assured every detail will reek with the theme of the dinner. I’ve told Sarah many times that she could have been (still can) one of those bloggers with all of the dinner party ideas and custom kid’s birthday party winners, that you pay for because they are so brilliant.

    Do you know the blog hostesses out there, the ones that tell you that you don’t have to worry so much about the house being clean for a party and it really doesn’t have to take you that much time to get ready for the guests.  Yea right!  If I started a list of the details (I don’t want to give away all of her secrets) and number of dishes and perfect touches attended to by Sarah, the hostess, you would immediately know it will take you hours and hours to prepare for a party like this, even when your guests are chipping in by bringing some of the food. However, each one of their dinners are so awesome, fresh, and exciting that I feel inspired to step up and strive for the same, even if it takes me many, many hours!  See, creativity is an important skill and we creative folk get extreme enjoyment out of life when we get to express it.

    If you aren’t creative in coming up with themed dinner party ideas:

    1. First define an overall idea (Rustic Italian, Fall Harvest, Family Favorites, Chinese New Year etc..)
    2. Then ask an artist friend for tips to tie all of the details together!

    The Details:

    • Guests wear pajamas! (or sweats, which is the best part)
    • Homemade Flavored Popcorn
    • A Bed Sheet as the Tablecloth
    • Snow Cone Machine
    • Homemade Corn Dogs
    • Muffin Tin Pizzas (thought these were fabulous for a luncheon, served with a salad)
    • Homemade Fruit Juice Jello Shots
    • Cheese Fondue + Bacon (brought my family recipe, see below)
    • Sausage Cheddar Balls
    • S’mores Pie

    Bacon+Cheese Fondue Dip Recipe

    You can serve this in a bread bowl or a Fondue pot.  It is easy to make, fast and you can do it in the microwave.

    • 4 Slices of Bacon, cut into 2″ pieces
    • 2 T flour
    • 1 C milk
    • 1 garlic clove, halved
    • 8 oz. Monetery Jack Cheese, shredded (2 C)
    • 4 oz. Cheddar Cheese, shredded (1 C)
    • 1 t. dry or prepared mustard
    • 1/2 t. Worcestershire Sauce
    • dash hot-pepper sauce
    1. Cook the bacon. Crumble and set aside.
    2. Put bacon drippings in a glass, microwavable bowl. Stir in the flour, add milk and garlic, stir until smooth. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes until thickened, stirring once. Discard garlic.
    3. Stir cheeses into milk mixture. Cook on medium (50% power) 4-6minutes until smooth, stirring once. Stir in mustard, Worcestershire, pepper sauce, and reserved bacon. Mixture will thicken as it stands.  Makes 2 Cups.

    Serve in round bread or Fondue pot. Remove top of bread and hollow out leaving a 1/2″ shell.  Serve with bread cubes, vegetables or chips.

    Posted in Dinner Party Menu, Family Favorites, Home Cookin' | 1 Response »
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    Year of the Dragon Chinese Dinner Party Recipes

    Saturday, February 11th, 2012

    It’s still not too late to celebrate the year of the Dragon.  The Year of the Dragon Dinner Menu Recipes were all put together by a friend of ours who is a master at the recipe compilation for parties.

    The year of the dragon started on January 23, 2012 and it will end on February 9th, 2013.

    These recipes are tried and true for an entire meal at home with friends (thanks Aubri!).  Aubri is the web recipe guru, probably why she is such a web-savy asset at Facebook. She knows how to find the winner recipes as tried by many viewers.  The egg rolls with the mustard sauce are the bomb! We put the mustard sauce on everything.

    Each menu item has a symbolic meaning.

    And, don’t forget the oranges because they represent wealth and good fortune!

    Year of the Dragon Chinese Feast Recipes:

    Mango Pudding Recipe
    8 servings
    • 3 mangoes
    • 2 1/4 c water, divided
    • 1/2 c sugar
    • 1 T unflavored gelatin
    • 1/4 c whipping cream
    1. Coarsely chop 2 mangoes. Dice the remaining mango.
    2. Combine coarsely chopped mangoes and 1/4 c water in a blender; process until smooth. Press puree through a fine sieve over a bowl; discard solids.
    3. Bring 3/4 c water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add sugar to pan, stirring until dissolved. Remove from heat. Stir in the remaining 1 1/4 c water. Sprinkle gelatin over water in the saucepan; let stand 1 minute. Add the mango puree, stirring with a whisk. Pour the mixture evenly into each of 8 (6-oz) ramekins or custard cups. Cover and chill overnight or until set. Top evenly with diced mango.
    4. Place cream in a medium bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until stiff peaks form. Serve with pudding. [I might add some vanilla and powdered sugar, but it’s up to you.

    Posted in Dinner Party Menu, Home Cookin' | No Comments »
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    Breakfast for Dinner Club Menu

    Tuesday, November 8th, 2011

    When mom is out of town or dad is out town, breakfast for dinner!  But when Gourmet group meets, is brunch for dinner off limits? Absolutely not. Come on, you can wear your pajamas.

    Breakfast for Dinner, Menu for Ten:

    Posted in Dinner Party Menu, Home Cookin' | 1 Response »
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    Halloween Dinner for Many!

    Sunday, October 30th, 2011

    Homemade Bat Shaped Tortilla Chips accompany this great Vegetarian Chili recipe!  It is a good one to put in the crock-pot and serve to your friends all night long.

    You will need a Halloween shaped cookie cutter.

    &

    Homemade Baked Tortilla Chips Recipe

    • 12 Flour Tortillas
    • Butter & Minced Garlic, melted
    • Cookie Cutter (for whatever holiday you desire)

    Preheat oven to 350F.

    With your cookie cutter, cut out the pieces and then lay them as a single layer on a cookie sheet.  Brush the melted butter and garlic on both sides of the tortillas.  Then bake in the oven for 12-15minutes.

    Posted in Dinner Party Menu, Home Cookin' | No Comments »
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    Rustic Italian Dinner Party Menu & Recipes

    Thursday, September 8th, 2011

    There is an art to planning a menu for a great dinner party.  It can be more doable when each guest is given a recipe to make and bring to share.  Of course, these have to be good friends in order for you to feel alright about assigning them a recipe versus telling them to bring a salad so this is more of a Gourmet club style dinner.  This Rustic Italian menu was very well planned not only because each recipe fit well with the theme but because each recipe was recommended fairly well by online reviews.  One of our friends even made his dish the week before to test it out. Then he perfected the dish he made for our dinner night, seriously impressive!

    We made the Rustic Nectarine and Blackberry Crostata with Cornmeal Crust and we served it with ice cream and apple brandy (as an after dinner drink).  This is a great dessert and we non-bakers even pulled it off!

    Rustic Italian Dinner Party Menu:

    Appetizer: Olives & Classic Tuscan Flatbread w/ Olive Oil & Balsamic

    Posted in Dinner Party Menu, Home Cookin' | No Comments »
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