Blog Party #45: 20th Anniversary Party!

Fried Gnocchi Bites with Marinara

 

Welcome back to the original online cocktail event - Blog Party!

It's been a few years, I know.  Life, eh?

 But I'm happy you're here - I've missed you!

 

I've embraced the 'china/platinum/emerald' theme of 20th anniversaries (ok, sure; that's for weddings, but I don't think there's blog gift etiquette lists out there), & hung these gorgeous strings of lights around the dining room.

 

The tables have been set with platinum cloths and platinum-trimmed emerald plates.

 

 And the jazzy sounds of the greatest hits of the (19)20's are playing!

 

Of course, there's plenty to eat.

Bites of fresh gnocchi rolled in seasoned breadcrumbs, fried & served with marinara sauce.

Astoundingly good caprese poppers: cherry tomatoes cored & stuffed with mozzarella pearls, coated in panko & fried, then drizzled with a honey-balsamic reduction.  

Little pizza bites: 3-day fermented crust topped with Fromage d'Affinois & roasted garlic, thin slices of potato, a sprinkling of smoked mozzarella, & rosemary. 

And to balance all the richness, the Paloma. Sweet & tart grapefruit & lemon juices, simple syrup, & club soda with a salted rim.

Caprese Bites

Roasted Garlic-Fromage Potato Pizza

 

Paloma

 

 

It was fun having you here after all this time.  Twenty years!  

Hopefully, it won't be another two decades until the next Blog Party...

For 20, Give China

 

Petit Four Cake

 

But you get cake!

Because...drum roll...Dispensing Happiness will turn twenty this month.

I know, right?

But it's true.  I've been doing this for nearly twenty years.

TWENTY YEARS.

Yeesh.

Lots of things have happened over those two decades (Alex is a legal adult now.  The mortgage was paid off.  Dogs have come into and out of my life. Health issues.  And on and on...), but my love for food and cooking and baking? That has not changed. 

And while, over the years, I would step away (variety of reasons, like burn out and health), I could never leave for good.

When I decided to start back up in January, I had no idea what to expect. But to my surprise and delight, the past seven plus months have been fun.  

No stress. No pressure to post daily. Just little blocks of text, a photo, and maybe a recipe. 

It's more for me than anything else.  And I'm enjoying it.

But twenty years!

That feels like something to celebrate.   So I am. We are!

What does that mean?

For the month of August (for now, at least), new Wartime Wednesdays posts.

New Blog Party!! Woo-hoo!

This one will be simple - on the 17th, I'll host a celebratory BP.  If you want to participate? You know what to do (because the 'rules' are in the link above)!

There may be a couple of other throwback favorites showing up this month, as well.  Fingers crossed.

It's been s a hell of a journey, and I hope you're still along for the ride.

Blog Party #44: Pantry Raid! The Round-Up

Welcome to Blog Party!  We're starting a little late, as one of our guests was delayed.

We have a small group, which, considering how long it's been since we've gathered, is still pretty wonderful. 

I've put up some pretty purple lights around the house.

I've set our bandana-themed napkins, which double as masks!

And I've got a nice music mix going, including Stevie Nicks (Stand Back), Dua Lipa (Don't Start), Men at Work (Who Can it Be Now?), Billy Idol (Dancing with Myself), and Celine Dion (All By Myself).

Keeping things simple as we ease back into Blog Party-ing, so let's take a look at our guest's contributions!

First up is Jasmine, who brought Eritrean Tsebhi Birsen and pita chips.

Using up some canned tomatoes she had on hand, spices, and my favorite, galic-chilli paste! Yum. 
And according to her, it can be turned into a soup - talk about double-duty!

Thanks, Jasmine!

Next,  Breadchick arrived with Left Over Cold Veggie Peanut Soba Noodles - looks tasty!

" a handful of soba noodles, little this and that from the past week’s roasted vegs, about an 1/8th cup of chopped peanuts, and some pho broth"

Way to use it all up!

And of course I've set out a few bites for everyone.  First up, Smoked Chicken Salad Bites.

We'd smoked some chicken (and for the vegetarians in the house, Delight Soy 'chicken') last week, which was turned into a simple chicken salad for tea sandwiches. 

There was plenty left, so dollops of the smoky stuff is served on some pecan crackers that were taking up some valuable space. 

DIVINE. 

Next, Paneer Tikka Naan Pizza Bites.

I'd made naan earlier in the week, and had some kicking around the fridge.  There was a partial block of paneer in the freezer, and oh, hey, a jar of Tikka Masala sauce in the cupboard (yes, sometimes we cheat).  A quick blast of heat, and some finely chopped mint (that needed to be used up) to finish.  

Simple, tasty, and filling mini pizza slices for all. 

And finally, Non-alcoholic Citrus Sunrises. 

Another case of using up what's already on hand. 

We'd purchased a 2 liter of Sprite for something, and never actually used it! And as I'm loathe to toss anything that could be used, there it sat. 

So, mix Sprite with some orange Crush from a bottle left over from the holidays, and some grapefruit seltzer (a favorite of Matt's), and a little bit of grenadine for color. 

Decorate with a grapefruit wedge, and enjoy!

This is where I'd usually invite everyone to hang around and visit, but this time I'm saying: Stay Home.  

Thanks for stopping by, take care of yourself and your loved ones, and I hope to see you - from a distance!- back next month.

Oodles

Hey.

How are you all doing?

JEREMY BEARIMY, my friends.
Jeremy Bearimy.

But this is most definitely not The Good Place.

Turns out, when we were all sick in late February/early March, it was Covid-19

So.  Yeah.  That's a thing.

Let me say, from experience, you Do Not Want.

Keep washing your hands.  Stay home. Get your groceries delivered. And if you can't? PROTECT YOURSELF.  If your employer isn't providing the proper materials, raise hell. We'll back you.

Anyway.

We had the tail end of a carton of eggs, and Matt liked the idea of fresh Chinese egg noodles. Sure, why not?

Pretty easy: flour, salt, eggs, water.  Mixed by hand, a bit of a chill in the fridge, then a few passes through the sheeter before switching to the cutting roller.

Really nice, tender noodles.  Alex used some to make himself peanut noodles (he even found a recipe on his own!). 

The rest were bagged and tucked into the (overflowing) freezer. 

Just wanted to remind you that Blog Party is tonight!  In these strange times, I'll take entries up to six PM (EST), in case you were still thinking about joining.

We're using up those the half-bags, hidden-away cans, and deep-freeze treasures and creating bites and sips to share - from the safety of our digital devices! - with friends old and new.

I do hope you'll attend.  See you later tonight!

This time, I mean it!

We're living in strange, confusing times.

We're all a bit scared, and trying to get comfortable in our alone-ness.

Turns out, here at Dispensing Happiness, we've been practicing social distancing for years!

Welcome back, Blog Party!

Yes, the original virtual cocktail party was bringing people together - while never leaving home - before it became the rule.

So, on Saturday, 4 April, we're putting the social in social distancing with what will officially be Blog Party #44: Pantry Raid!

That's right; we're going to have a rockin' good time, nibbling on tasty bites and drinking fabulous beverages (from well over six feet apart!), using what we already have on hand.

No shopping!

Just look in your cupboards, on your shelves, check the back of your fridge, or deep in those freezers.
Let's make do with what's around.

That condiment you bought for a recipe, and never used again!  Get creative.

That can of water chestnuts you keep ignoring? Time to show them some love.

We're not going fancy. We just want to come together, be a part of something, and stay busy.

What's that? You're new to Blog Party (It's ok; it's been on hiatus)?

No problem!  You can read all about it here.  But to summarize, you make an appetizer and a drink - non-alcoholic is totally fine. Post it somewhere (blog, Tumblr, IG, Twitter, whatever works for you), and send me the link (my email address can be found under 'links).

I'll post the round-up (aka, party) on the 4th, where everyone can join in and see what our friends, new and old, have brought!

I hope you'll join!

Edited: To RSVP, send your entries to me by Friday, the 3rd!

TDATD: Retro Vibe

Old-timey POP.

While everyone else was mashing potatoes and getting creative with pumpkin, we were channeling the 1940s-1960s in preparation for our annual Two Days After Thanksgiving Dinner.

 


Iceberg lettuce wedges with a house-made French dressing.

Matt doesn't like turkey, and Alex and I are both vegetarian. The traditional Thanksgiving dinner isn't something that appeals to us.

Many years ago, even before we met, Matt started hosting a dinner party for friends the Saturday following turkey day, aptly named the Two Days After Thanksgiving Dinner.

Each dinner carries some sort of theme. Previous parties included Indian, Things Stuffed Into Other Things, Mexican and Halloween in November. This year, we decided to give retro foods a spin.


Rolls from a wartime (the big one, for those wondering) cookbook.

Pulling from both vintage and retro-themed cookbooks, we put together a casual, almost-cocktail party menu.


Tomato soup

You've gotta have soup, right? Very basic, but strongly flavored.


Shrimp cocktail with a horseradish-heavy cocktail sauce.

What's a more classic appetizer than the shrimp cocktail?  The sauce came from my trusty Wartime cookbook.


Waiter, would you serve the nuts? I mean, serve the guests the nuts.




Smoked-chicken salad, served with classic crackers.

The molded salad was such a standard dish. It's also pretty gross. I wanted to keep the look without turning my stomach while making it, so we went with chicken salad: smoked chicken, mayo, celery and chipotle powder, molded in a plastic wrap-lined bowl and chilled then served on a bed of lettuce with Ritz, Triscuits and Captain's Wafers on the side.


Deviled eggs



Feta salad in cucumber cups

Like your favorite Greek salad, inverted.



Making it up as we go: Mock-Champagne Punch.

Matt and I don't drink alcohol (not for preachy reasons, we just don't care for it), but I'm always looking for reasons to use my vintage punch bowl.
The Champagne Punch without the punch is a good enough reason.  Vanilla seltzer, lavender dry soda and pineapple juice.



Dessert

Hostess was in the news around the time of the party. So I made my own cream-filled chocolate cupcakes and 'canoe' cakes.



Oh, look - it's me! Or my pedicured-foot in my rockabilly shoes and dress.




Even did my hair sort of vintage: the pin-curl is my new best (style) friend.

Happy Birthday, Wonder Woman! And an Amazon Princess Party.

My first superhero. My role model. A beacon of strength during what was far from a happy childhood.

Diana's been getting some, well, less-than flattering treatment lately. But those of us who love her & all she symbolizes remember the 'good' times.

So I'm honoring her in the way I know best.



Today is the birthday of Wonder Woman, the Amazon Princess.

And you, too, can have an Amazon Princess Party!

First, you'll need to send those invitations.

After the royal scribe has finished hand-lettering each one, wrap the scrolls around an arrow, aim your bow & fire in the direction of each guest's home. (Or, simply wrap the invite around a plastic arrow & send in a mailing envelope; your choice.)

Next you'll need to decorate.

Outdoor spaces are best, but wherever you host your party drape the area with gossamer in alternating red, white & blue. Wrap the tables in a similarly-colored bunting. Add metallic gold gossamer streamers, preferably hung from classically-styled columns.

No Amazon Princess Party would be complete without activities! Of the sporting kind, that is.

Depending on the number of Amazon Princesses attending, the events can run in order or concurrently.

Possible activities:

• Foot races


• Archery competitions


• Long jump


• Discus (Frisbees are a suitable alternative)

Winners receive tiaras and/or laurel wreaths.

Your party guests will have worked up an appetite by this point. The birthday Amazon Princess can now lead them to the feast table.

They will be served cubes of melon, wedges of oranges & tangerines, plums, nectarines & grapes (still in bunches).

Pomegranates, broken open & ready to be eaten.

Platters of feta & saganaki with pita.

Goblets (or juice boxes) of grape juice.

After the Amazon Princesses have had their fill, bring out a platter of baklava. It's ok to stud it with candles.

If you can arrange for your guests to battle evil gods or align themselves with talking gorillas, I can guarantee that this is one birthday party that they'll never forget!!

(baklava recipe can be found here.)