Showing posts with label Parties. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Parties. Show all posts

Sunday, July 18, 2010

FUN FOODS :: Marshmallow Cupcake on a Stick!


My daughters went to the birthday party of one of their friends yesterday, and this is one of the favors they received. 

IT'S JUST TOO STINKIN' CUTE!!!!

I'm going to have to try making these.  It's simply a very large marshmallow drenched in colored sugar, then topped with colored icing and sugar candy decorations.  Set inside a colorful cupcake wrapper, then impaled on a skewer, it becomes a Marshmallow Cupcake on a Stick!

Here it is in a cellophane bag and ribbons:

Friday, July 16, 2010

Friday FUN Day: The Mad Hatter's Tea Party

Even though they have cell phones, computers, music galore, wii games, movies, trampolines, bicycles, a golf cart to drive, etc., etc....

Teenagers get bored easily.

Hmmmmffff...

My girls were sitting around one afternoon, saying "We're bored!". 

Yes, teens love to say, "I'm bored".  Actually, it's not a statement.  It's sort of a whine. 

Teens love to whine.

And smart mom's love to reply to a whiny "I'm bored" with "If you're bored I have some chores for you to do". 

That reply ALWAYS shuts 'em up and gets 'em busy real fast!!!!

After I made my obligatory reply to their sighfully made boredom statement, creativity kicked in.  The bored teens decided they wanted to plan a Mad Hatter's Tea Party.  They asked, I gave permission, and I told them that this would be THEIR party, not MINE.  I gave them a budget of $20.00 and promised my help and support.  Of course, Nana purchased a few decorations.  (Grandmas always like to help out!) 


What an awesome experience!  Along with having a GREAT time, the girls learned to plan something from beginning to end and stuck to their budget.  They made their costumes, as did their friends.  We even fashioned a Mad Hatter's hat from an old cowboy hat and paper mache!  They did the shopping, the cooking, the cleaning, made invitations, did the decorating. 

This Mama is proud of what they did!

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The Mad Hatters Tea Party
The cast of characters:
Rabbit, Mad Hatter, Alice, White Queen, Chesshir Cat


Menu

Finger snacks
On the table:  bowls of Gummy Worms, Skittles, and M&Ms


Main Menu
Missie’s Marvelous Devilled Eggs
Chicken and Cheese Sandwiches
Skewers of Cantaloupe, Strawberry, and White Grape
Relish Tray of Cucumbers, Carrots, and Pickles with Creamy Ranch Dressing
Potato Chips
Sammie’s Lucious Lemonade


Dessert
Mini Cupcakes made of spice cake and cream cheese frosting.
Cupcakes have "Eat Me" written on them just like the little Petit Fours in the movie!


Mad Hatter’s Tournament
Bubble Blowing Contest
Pin the Tail on the Rabbit
Flamingo Croquet
Frisbee Toss
Spoons card game
Wii: Alice in Wonderland

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Father's Day Shrimp Boil

Hello, my old friends! It's me, Menu Maker Mom!!

I'm sorry it's been so long since I've shared. As an apology, I offer you my recipe for our shrimp boil!

This is such a fun party, and everyone has a great time. You can never go wrong when you offer shrimp and cold beer to your family and friends! Oh, and don't forget the mimosas... That's what we had, and they were so very refreshing!


This is a fun activity for a summer evening, and really pretty easy to do.  The aroma is very strong, so I recommend that you do this outside in a turkey fryer, and not in your kitchen with a large stockpot.  The most important part of the process is the timing.  Follow the timing that I list and it will all be cooked to perfection!

SUPPLIES:
Gallon-size zip lock bags
Kitchen Timer
Boiling Basket
Turkey Fryer
















INGREDIENTS (I put the meat and veggies into large Zip-Lock bags, so they are ready to be emptied at the right time) :

2 Crab 'n Shrimp Boil bags by Zatarain
1 bottle Crab 'n Shrimp Boil oil by Zatarain
1 cup salt
3 large onions, peeled and cut in half
2 bulbs garlic, top cut off (don't separate the cloves, leave whole)
2 lemons, cut in quarters
10 ears corn, shucked and cut in half (can use frozen halves)
3 pounds link sausage (down here we like Polock's Wedding Sausage!)
4 pounds raw shrimp, large size without heads
3 pound bag small red potatoes

FOR SERVING:
Cocktail sauce
Lemons, cut into wedges

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Set up the turkey fryer with the boiling basket. Fill with water and set it on the fire. Bring water to a boil.
2. Once water boils, add the 2 bags of Crab 'n Shrimp Boil, the bottle of Crab 'n Shrimp Boil oil, the salt, and the garlic. BOIL 15 MINUTES.
3. Add the potatoes. BOIL 7 MINUTES.
4. Add the corn. BOIL 5 MINUTES.
5. Add the sausage. BOIL 5 MINUTES.
6. Add the lemons and onions. BOIL 3 MINUTES.
7. Add the shrimp. BOIL 3 MINUTES.
8. Strain out the water and empty all the goodies in one of the following two ways:
     (a) If you are serving from a buffet-type table, pour the shrimp and goodies into the aluminum turkey pan. You can see from our photo that we served this way, as we had other salads and sides that required a plate and fork.
     (b) If you are serving the traditional way, cover a table with several layers of newspaper. Pour the shrimp and goodies down the table. Everyone eats with their hands! When done, wad up the paper and all the mess and toss into the garbage can! Easy!

Be sure to have cocktail sauce and fresh lemon wedges on the table.  A little Tobasco sauce is good too!

Hope you have a chance to try this out. It is so much fun and gets everyone involved in some way. Be sure to have lots of ice cold beer on hand and take plenty of photos.
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Menu Maker Mom ~
Makin' Yummies... Stuffin' Tummies