Preserve Wildlife, Attend a Party!

The girlfriends got together for a much anticipated 50th birthday party for girlfriend, Anne. We celebrated at Sharon's pool, a backyard oasis that was especially appreciated during this August heatwave! I signed up on the evite to bring a veggie appetizer, shocker, I know.

So, I brought two dishes, one from SBK and one I saw in Epicurious.com, and then modified to suit my needs. Remember it was H-O-T, so I was glad to bring something lite.

First, I made Mock Chopped Liver, SBK page 45. At the bottom of the recipe page a note says "It's good enough to eat with a spoon, but serve it on crackers or something. Be a lady." Yes ma'am.

Now that I am in possession of refined coconut oil and Bragg's Liquid Aminos, all I needed from the store was the raw cashews and 1lb of cremini mushrooms. This recipe was easy to make, basically saute mushrooms and onions, and then combine everything in the food processor and whir it to a pulp. Yum! Okay, I get it, stop tasting. I added a little more Bragg's like the recipe suggested, and boom, I'm done.

I took it to the party in a cute Chinese bowl with lots of colorful decorations on the outside. Mock Chopped Liver is not the prettiest offering on the tapas bar so I dressed it up in its serving dish. But, it is delicious! I served it with WheatThins, not very creative, but the perfect size for a bite of MCL. I saved some at home for a little snack tomorrow. How did it go over with the girlfriends? Well, it was a little late to the party, but the last time I saw it, the bowl was only half full.

The other veggie appetizer I brought was a combination of two of my fave things: grape tomatoes and guacamole. Heavenly! I bought two pints of tomatoes from Farmer Mike at Lone Maple Farm, http://www.lonemaplefarm.com/ and then I cheated. I bought 6 avocados, but none of them were ripe, so I bought organic guac from the refrigerated section of Healthy U, http://www.clintwoodhealthyu.com/, just in case the avocados didn't soften up in time. They didn't. That's okay, after girlfriend Heather and I took a slice off the stem end of each little tomato and scooped out the insides, I cut off a corner of the plastic bag and piped the guac into the 54 hollowed out grape tomatoes. High maintenance, yes. Worth it, definitely. I sprinkled chopped fresh cilantro over top, and boom, an appetizer was born. This one was easy to look at, so I just fit all the stuffed tomatoes into a tupperware container and hit the road for the party. Instant success. When we arrived at Sharon's there were girlfriends in the pool, around the pool, at the bar . . . and with my hands full I just offered up the tomatoes first thing, and they were half gone by the time I set them down. Lite and colorful, big hit!

So, I'm liking this personal challenge so far. It gives me some direction in the kitchen, and I'm making new recipes that I may otherwise just read and stick in a folder for "when I have more time." Challenging myself causes me to make the time. Groovy!

Want to try the recipes? Buy Skinny Bitch in the Kitch at Healthy U, or go to their website.