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Archive for the ‘Entertaining Ideas’ Category

Find Your Inner Warrior Princess

Posted in Entertaining at Home, Musings, tagged , , on October 7, 2010| Leave a Comment »

 

Courage Thorgood

 

Once upon a time, in my la-la-land of ignorant bliss where I most generally ignore the outside world, I received an email that was degrading, insulting, hurt my feelings and just made me plain old mad.

Ever receive one of those?

As I sat alternately pouting, fuming and sulking, pulling in the edges of my hole like a comforting cloak, I decided enough was enough. I needed to get up, get tough and get over it. But that is so much easier said than done.

I needed a little help.

So I envisioned a little kick-hiney, take-no-prisoners, warrior princess who resides deep inside me. And when I need a little help, I can call on her to get tough and help  me plow through my battles.

Hokey? Yes.

Cheesy? Quite possibly.

But it is fun to envision Courage Thorgood and all that she can help me do.

So the next time you are feeling a little battle-weary, find your inner warrior princess – or prince. And if someone will let you have a sword, even better!

Bravely treading forward,

Shanna

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Chocolate Tasting Party

Posted in Entertaining Ideas, Party Theme, tagged , , on October 5, 2010| 2 Comments »

I was flipping through a magazine the other day and came to an abrupt halt when I saw an article about hosting a Chocolate Tasting Party.

Hold. The. Phone.

You can do that? You can invite people over with the only intent (besides connecting and having fun) being to eat chocolate. I want to have one of these parties!

Can you become a certified master taster? How much chocolate eating does that require? Sign me up!

I thought I’d share some of the basic info on how to host a Chocolate Tasting Party. In return for the information, please invite me to your chocolate tasting party. I’d love to come.

Know Your Terminology

Cacao – used by the The U.S. Food and Drug Administration to refer to the bean, which is the source of the cacao components such as chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, and cocoa powder.

Chocolate liquor – produced by grinding the cacao bean nib to a smooth, liquid state. In the U.S., chocolate liquor can also be called chocolate, unsweetened chocolate, baking chocolate, or bitter chocolate.

Cocoa butter – represents the fat naturally found in beans. The amount of cocoa butter in cacao beans typically ranges from 50 to 60%, with the balance being non-fat cocoa solids.

Cocoa or cocoa powder – the product made by removing part of the fat from the cocoa bean and and grinding into a powder.

Milk Chocolate – A combination of chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, sugar and milk or cream. Milk chocolate must contain at least 10% chocolate liquor and at least 12% total milk ingredients.

Sweet Chocolate – A combination of chocolate liquor, cocoa butter and sugar, and contains at least 15% chocolate liquor.

Semisweet or Bittersweet Chocolate – A combination of chocolate liquor, cocoa butter and sugar, but contains at least 35% chocolate liquor. Bittersweet chocolate and semisweet chocolate are often called dark chocolate.

Unsweetened Chocolate or Baking Chocolate – This is straight chocolate liquor formed into a bar with no added sugar.

White Chocolate – Made from the same ingredients as milk chocolate but without the nonfat cocoa solids.  White chocolate must contain at least 20% cocoa butter and 14% total milk ingredients.

Choose your Chocolate

Like wine, chocolate may be chosen based on type, region, blend and ingredients. Try centering your tasting around a theme such as:

Scaled Percent of Cacao: Try a range of chocolates from low  like 35% cacao to high, around 80%. You’ll taste from all the different types of chocolate from milk to extra dark.

Same Percent Cacao: Find different chocolates all at the same percentage. You could taste all chocolates that are 70% cacao, for example.

One Type of Chocolate: Try a selection of only dark chocolates, or only milk chocolates.

Place of  Origin: Sample chocolates from different regions. Observe the variations between chocolates from Central and South America countries versus European blends.

Preparing for the Tasting

You will want to keep your tasting to a maximum of six different chocolates. More than that and your palate loses it’s ability to discern flavor variations.

Keep chocolate at room temperature.

Each sample should be small, no more than 1/4 inch square.

Create a plate for each sampling. Include a place card with the name of the chocolate or the original chocolate label for reference. Make sure you provide a place for guests to take notes. You could create a tasting mat that lists the chocolates, pertinent info about each one and has a place to jot notes.

Go from light to dark. By doing this, your taste buds are set up for a more complex, intense tasting.

Cleanse the palate. Make sure you have room temperature water available for tasters to cleanse their palate between bites. Unsalted crackers or plain white bread will also work.

You may want to provide a light meal before you begin the tasting, making sure to leave enough time between eating and tasting for the palate to be clear and ready for the chocolate.

The Tasting

Engage all your senses and have fun with it. Use these five steps as a guideline:

1. Sight – look at the chocolate’s color. Is it silky, even textured? Does it have a high shine ( a sign of quality chocolate).

2. Touch – Is the surface smooth. Premium chocolate should never be gray or grainy.

3. Sound – When the bar breaks, it should offer a crisp, loud snap.

4. Scent – Breathe in the fragrance. Does it smell rich? Are the aromas intense?  Are there added nuances like vanilla, citrus?

5. Taste – Allow it to melt on your tongue and savor the flavors and richness.

Enjoy your chocolate tasting. And remember if you need an extra taster, I’m always available!

Happy Entertaining!

The chocoholic

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Beautiful Fall Buffet

Posted in Dishes and Serving Pieces, Entertaining Ideas, Party Theme, tagged , , , , on September 28, 2010| Leave a Comment »

The other day I hosted a party which gave me the opportunity to put together a buffet table. Using a fall theme, I knew I wanted to keep it simple, but still have fun with it.

The three elements to setting a successful buffet table are height, color and texture. Remember those three things and you can’t go wrong.

When you are setting a buffet, start with a table covering. It can be anything you want to use. Feel free to get creative and think outside the box. I like to use flat sheets because they are inexpensive, drape well, are easy-care and come in a variety of color and sizes. Go with a neutral base. For this buffet I chose black as my neutral. Add some height elements, remembering to keep your centerpiece on one end of the table to create visual interest. I just used some cardboard boxes to create height then covered them with another black cloth. Over the top of that I layered a fun pumpkin print fabric to add more color and texture.

The centerpiece was the next item to go on the table. Using fall florals from my yard, it came together nicely. Except for the lack of something green and fern-like. (Side note: carrot tops look green and fern-like if you don’t have anything else handy and they stand up much better than I thought they would!).

Plan where each dish will sit on the table. I like to make little party cards that say what  is in each dish and then place them on the table beforehand. That way once it is time to put out the food, I know exactly where it goes. I have also been known to set out the serving pieces before I put the food in them so I can see how the table will look.

Once you dish up the food and put it on the table, it will really start to pull the look together. The combination of height, color and texture found in your table coverings, serving pieces and food will impress your guests and look fantastic!

Give it a try and let me know how it goes!

Happy Entertaining!

Shanna

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Stick to a Timeline

Posted in entertain, Entertaining at Home, Entertaining Ideas, tagged on September 23, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Today is just one of those days when time is getting away from me. I have a houseful of company coming tonight and must stick to my timeline to get everything pulled together in time.

Here is a link to a post about Timelines I did a while back about how entertaining following a timeline makes everything go so much smoother and easier.

Happy Entertaining!

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