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Archive for the ‘Party Theme’ Category

Cookie Exchange Party

Posted in Christmas, Entertaining at Home, Entertaining Ideas, Holidays, Party Theme, tagged , , , on December 13, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Cookie Exchange Party

One of my friends hosted a Cookie Exchange Party during the weekend and she was kind enough to invite me. I mean, how can you go wrong with a room full of cookies all waiting to be admired and devoured and carted home for further sampling?

It was a fabulous afternoon and Edie, the host, and Jordan, her daughter, did a wonderful job of feeding us and making everyone feel welcome.

Our hostess with the mostess, Edie, on the far right in the apron.

She had a tasty spread out for us to munch on and then we adjourned to a cozy room by the fire to share stories about our cookies or holiday baking traditions.

Aimee and Chris

We also played a cute little game that involved digging through our purses and having the most junk. It could  be a statement to the fact that I pack around way too much stuff in my purse since yours truly won. But the prize was so awesome.

I’ll be enjoying this cookbook for years to come. I absolutely love it. It not only walks you through every step of how to host your own cookie exchange, there is page after page of mouth-watering cookie recipes. You can find it on Amazon here.

Finally, we gathered around the table, and started filling our containers with cookies to take home. Everyone did such a marvelous job of baking. These are top-notch cookies, I tell you.

Crescent shaped snow cookies made with anise.

Jolene's Chocolate Mint Cookies

Mary's Shortbread

Edie's Sweet Treats - two Ritz crackers with a layer of peanut butter, dipped in white chocolate. How easy is that? and Yummy!

And my Chocolate Peppermint Cake Mix Cookies

 

One of my favorites of the day came from my friend, Heidi.

Heidi

Here is her recipe. When you bite into this, please be sitting down. Otherwise when your knees turn to jelly and you start to melt in a puddle, you may need someone to keep you upright. Yep, they are that good!

Ho Ho Snowballs

Ho Ho Snowballs

2 6-ounce packages white chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons bourbon or heavy cream
6-ounce package slivered almonds, very finely ground
1-1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Place chocolate chips and cream in a medium bowl set over a pan of hot (not boiling) water; stir until melted and smooth. Stir in bourbon or cream and almonds. Spread in a lightly greased 8″x8″ baking pan. Chill for about one hour, until firm. Cut into one-inch squares; roll each square into a ball, then roll in coconut. Keep chilled. Makes about 3 dozen.

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Tea Party

Posted in Entertaining at Home, Entertaining Ideas, Family, Party Theme, tagged , , on November 18, 2010| 2 Comments »

The party go-ers.

Hubby and I drove four hours one way last weekend so I could attend a Tea Party being held by some of my favorite cousins.

Hubby’s incentive was to escape to one of his favorite stores where he could drool over guns and hunting gear without an uninterested female tagging along asking inane questions or spouting off stupid jokes about the store in general.

We both were quite pleased with the arrangement!

My cousins Twylia, Nancy and Bonnie played host to all the women in the family for an afternoon tea party. It was marvelous. We all converged in Twylia’s new home, which has a fantastic view, and spent two hours chatting, laughing, bonding and catching up with one another.

Then there was the food! Scones, quiche, fresh fruit that was so flavorful, tea sandwiches and decadent desserts as well as some really tasty tea! The table was set beautifully. The three hostesses pulled out their mom’s  china and tea sets. It was so special to use those dishes because it made it seem like a little bit of Aunt Louise was there enjoying the party right along with us.

We all were asked to wear a hat and that in itself was a hoot. Those who didn’t have hats were able to choose one from a vintage collection Nancy borrowed from a friend.

Aunt Robbie

I think my most wonderful Aunt Robbie had the best hat: stylish, sassy, and spunky – just like her.

Nancy and her nieces.

Young and old alike gathered. Nancy is so much fun, even the younger crowd catches her enthusiasm.

Then there were those who just can’t be serious. Ever. These are my kind of people to hang out with!

I really mean ever.

I hope when I am nearing 80 that I have as much fun as Aunt Robbie. She really is an inspiration! And Julie, Sweet Julie, is always loads of fun.

I highly recommend spending time with your favorite group of girls. It really does your heart good. Thank you to all who attended and made the afternoon fun and especially to Twylia, Nancy and Bonnie for hosting!
Your Devoted Tea Drinker,

Shanna

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Harvest Party Theme Ideas

Posted in Entertaining at Home, Entertaining Ideas, Party Theme, tagged , , , on October 26, 2010| Leave a Comment »

If you aren’t into spooks and ghouls or bats and vampires, you can still host a fun, seasonal Harvest Themed Party. 

Incorporate the elements of the season, think outside the box and be prepared to have a really great celebration.

Start with your invitations. You could do something fun like a making a simple scarecrow face. Cut a heavy piece of tan or yellow construction paper into a square. Turn the square so a corner is pointing toward you and one away from you.  Glue two wooden buttons or two pieces of candy corn near the middle for eyes and a gumdrop for a nose. Glue a piece of orange string in a smile for a mouth and then “stitch” over it with a black marker. Stitch around the edges of the square with the marker and add a little raffia bow at the top. On the back, glue your invitation. If you are creative with clip art, you could also create invitations that featured corn stalks, pumpkins, baskets of apples, or a harvest moon.
Decorations could include piles of pumpkins. Think about what you have on hand you could dress up. Right now I’ve got miniature pumpkins surrounding the little cement bunny that stands guard at my front door. An old wheelbarrow, a child’s wagon, even an empty birdbath can be fun containers for pumpkins. If you are going to put candles in pumpkins, I highly recommend the battery-operated variety. You don’t have to worry about fire issues that way. For something a bit off the beaten bath, take leaf shaped cookie cutters, pound them into the pumpkin with a rubber mallet, pull out with needle nose pliers and get ready for the compliments to roll in once you drop in a candle and illuminate your handiwork. 

If you are doing a more formal plated dinner, you have to try this great idea for placecards. Write names of guests on mini pumpkins then using a small knife, follow the outline of the name and peel away the rind without cutting all the way through the pumpkin. Place a votive inside each one. What a fun way to let guests know the seating arrangement. You could also do this with words like “Welcome,” “Harvest,” “Bountiful,” and “Autumn” and place throughout your buffet.

You could also use baskets of apples. There is absolutely nothing on the planet that says fall to me like a wooden basket filled with shiny red apples. Use little baskets to display apples throughout your entertaining area. 

Gather stalks of corn and have them stand sentinel by your front door. If you are going to be entertaining outdoors with a bonfire or some other fun activity, be sure to include decorations outside. Straw bales, especially when draped with a thick blanket, make perfect seating for outdoor events. Stack them up and cover with a colorful cloth if you need extra serving space.

Sprinkle fall leaves along your buffet table. You can even tuck a pretty leaf or two into the frame of a mirror or picture.


Bonus decorating tip – nuts and pinecones are your friends! Remember nuts and pinecones can be trailed along tables, nestled in bowls, poured into jars and stacked in boxes or baskets to create great fall accents. If you’ve got nothing else, at least have a basket of nuts and pinecones! 

Let the kids make a scarecrow and set him by the front door or somewhere sure to be noticed.

Do include a few candles in safe and strategic places throughout your home that carry through the scent of fall like pumpkin, apple, maple or spice.

For a simple menu, think about making a big casserole. They are warm, filling, easy to serve and easy to eat. It doesn’t have to be fancy, anything hearty and warm will do like a Cheeseburger Pie, Rigatoni Bake, or even Enchiladas. Serve with warm cornbread, a green salad with chopped apples and toasted nuts, warm apple cider and  bar cookies for dessert. You can also prepare take- with-you treats like caramel apples or this super-simple snack.

Fabulous Fall Munch
1 pound spiced gum drops
1 pound candy corn
1 pound pretzel sticks
3 cups goldfish crackers
1 16-ounce can salted peanuts
Mix together and serve in waffle cones. Kids will love being able to play and munch at the same time!

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Pumpkin Party

Posted in Entertaining Ideas, Party Theme, tagged , , , , on October 19, 2010| 1 Comment »

As the weather turns colder, the leaves more golden, and the air crisp, my thoughts (and tastebuds) seem to wander toward all things pumpkin.

I had a piece of pumpkin cheesecake from one of my favorite restaurants the other day. If I hadn’t been at home enjoying it, Hubby would have had to scrape me up off the floor of the restaurant. Yeah, it was that good.

So that got me thinking about how fun it is this time of year to host a pumpkin themed party.

Start with the invitations. You could use mini pumpkins and florist picks. Type out a simple invitation on some card stock or hand-print a fun invite. Place the florist pick into the top of the pumpkin and insert the card in the holder then hand deliver to your guests.

 

Another fun idea would be to color a black band around your pumpkin and then write in metallic or glitter a very simple invitation message. This is guaranteed to get you some attention.

You may also use some fun pumpkin paper, cut your invitations out in the shape of a pumpkin or just use pumpkin colored paper.

Once you have sent out the invitations, think about decorations. The options for decorating with pumpkins are only limited by your imagination. You can carve them, bedazzle them, color them, and stencil them.

Etched Pumpkin from Southern Living at Home

Etching is a great way to display a fabulous design without having to dig out all the messy insides of the pumpkin. I’m pretty certain this would take way more creative talent than I can muster. If you do find yourself having to clean out a pumpkin, use a sturdy ice cream scoop. It gets in there and digs out all the icky goo like nobody’s business.

Line your driveway with illuminated pumpkins. Carve out the letters “w-e-l-c-o-m-e” as a fun greeting for guests. Have piles of pumpkins by your door, set little pumpkins on tables and in corners.

 

You could even march them down a table for a fun and easy accent.

Think about using white pumpkins mixed with the traditional orange or go all white for a dramatic effect.

 

Hollow out pumpkins for candle holders or serving containers. This large pumpkin works great as an ice bucket.

Don’t forget to light a few pumpkin candles so your home even smells like pumpkin. Two of my favorites are Spiced Pumpkin from Yankee Candle and Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin from Bath & Body Works. You can even get pumpkin soap, if you want to really take your pumpkin theme to a whole new level.

For your menu, think about fun things you can add to tie in the pumpkin theme. You could offer pumpkin soup or even a chunky stew served in hollowed out mini-pumpkins. You can offer pumpkin bread, mashed pumpkin or grilled pumpkin. Serve up a pumpkin dessert like Pumpkin Cake, Pumpkin Roll (a holiday-must have at our house) or even a Pumpkin Trifle.  And for goodness sakes, don’t forget the pumpkin seeds. You can make your own or buy them plain or with interesting flavors like chipotle, lemon or barbecue.

Have fun with your pumpkin party and explore all the fun possibilities.

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

Pumpkin

Salt

Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 400°F. Cut open the pumpkin and use a strong metal spoon to scoop out the insides. Separate the seeds from the strings and rinse.

In a small saucepan, add the seeds to water, about 2 cups of water to every half cup of seeds. Add a half tablespoon of salt for every cup of water. Bring to a boil. Let simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and drain.

Spread  a tablespoon of olive oil over the bottom of a roasting pan. Spread the seeds out over the roasting pan, all in one layer. Sprinkle on a bit of salt, and seasoning if you so desire.  Bake on the top rack until the seeds begin to brown, 10-20 minutes. When browned to your satisfaction, remove from the oven and let the pan cool on a rack. Let the seeds cool all the way down before eating.

Enjoy and Happy Entertaining!

Shanna, aka the pumpkin fan

 

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