Continuing on our earlier post, Graduation Party Family Style, we bring you the recipes. It is amazing how you find favorites that are always there and reinvent them for a new theme. We do that often in our cooking. Things do always seem to evolve and are rarely exactly the same twice. In addition, we are never afraid to try something new for a party. If it doesn’t come out, we improvise…that is half of the fun! As long as you can find a way to enjoy the party, you have succeeded. Let us know how you like these!

The “No Fork” Menu

Challah Bread

Homemade Rolls – just like the buns we made before only smaller!

Homemade BBQ Sauce: This one deserves its own post, so look out for this to come!

Lemon Aioli: Sans basil; so easy!

Cranberry Chipotle Sauce:

Start with cranberry sauce (ours was saved from Thanksgiving and canned), take one chipotle pepper and 1 tablespoon of the canning sauce and blend all ingredients together. Use as a spread for your sandwich (or on everything, it is so good!) If you wanted to get really creative, you could make it into butter or mayo to make a creamy spread. YUM.

Parmesan Croutons:

Preheat the oven to 375°. Cut stale bread into cubes as desired. Place in a bowl and toss with a sprinkle of olive oil, salt, crushed red peppers, and crushed fresh garlic cloves. Melt about a tablespoon of butter in a skillet over medium high heat add the bread to lightly toast the croutons. Stir to brown on all sides. Toss with shredded parmesan cheese. Place the skillet in the oven for about 10-20 minutes until mostly dried out. Allow to cool and store in an airtight container.

Goat Cheese and Pear Appetizer:

Kelly found this recipe for Goat Cheese and Pear appetizer on Pinterest. Just slice the pears (we dipped in some lemon water to reduce browning), then spread goat cheese, and sprinkle with chopped pistachios and dried cranberries. If I was going to do this again, I would make them right before. I don’t think it saved very well, so perhaps best for a smaller group. Also, the original recipe left a bit of space for picking up, which is a great idea. That said, this was a keeper!

Relishes in Jars:

Mary found this idea for the relishes on Pinterest, again! Just find some different jars or vases and fill with vegetables. It creates a great color blocked look.

Caesar Salad Spears with Green Goddess Dressing:

The idea for this salad dish was that guests could pick up the individual spears which were already dressed with Green Goddess and Croutons.

For the Green Goddess, we used about 1 cup of our lemon aioli (leave out the basil), ½ bunch of scallions, ½ cup of chopped Italian parsley, anchovy paste to taste (about 1 tsp), 2 cloves garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Place all ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth.

For the salad, place spears on a platter and dress in layers. Top with croutons and enjoy!

Elvis Style Cole Slaw

Remember this one? All we did was leave out the basil in the aioli and voila it becomes Elvis Style!

Cupcake Mania

We made homemade Sprinkles Chocolate Frosting. I will not even try to take credit for this frosting. It is AWESOME. Every single time it is great. It is rich and light at the same time. If you have been looking for a great frosting, here it is! We just used a chocolate cake recipe that we had on hand, but we are still in search of the perfect cupcake recipe…let us know if you have one!!

We thought this was a hugely successful party, but wish we had hired some help to better serve the 65 people who came. We would have had a better chance to visit with people. Parties like this are always easier in the summer because you can spread out more and make more targeted areas for food, drinks, etc. Overall, we thought this was one of our best parties. We had a great crowd and a great team effort to pull it off! One of the biggest successes of any party has to do with the people you invite and we had a great crowd! Thanks to everyone who shared this day with us.

Mary
& Kelly

I am thrilled that we have a fantastic guest post courtesy of my Aunts. Mary’s sisters, Diane and Sue, were kind enough to share their take on Ali’s graduation party which they help make happen! Thank you both for all your help and for sharing with Zest!! For the complete list of recipes head here!

Kelly

We always enjoy cooking together as a family. So, as the out-of-town aunties, (Mary’s sisters), we were so happy come to town and join Mary and Kelly in the planning, shopping, cooking and entertaining for Ali’s graduation celebration in December. And since we got the chance to pitch in, we have the honor of being the guests on ZESTblog to recap this fun party.

Friday was planning and prep day, and Saturday we got to cook all day together! We had so much fun laughing, sharing ideas and trying out new recipes, but mostly being together in the kitchen.

As hostess and chief chef for the party, Mary’s vision for the dinner was a “no fork buffet” to make it fun, interactive and to cut down on utensils. So with this in mind, the menu we came up with for the Saturday night party was all “no fork” dishes:

By the time we got started with the prep on Friday, Mary already had lots of grocery lists and to do lists written up!

We had fun posting a small, hand-written sign in front of each food item, since we had a couple of meat choices and to designate the different and delicious sauces.  Mary’s favorite sign was the “Elvis – Style Slaw for Sliders” because the guests actually followed the instructions and put the coleslaw on their sandwich. (no forks!)

So the menu was set, the each course created and the food stations decided. Every pretty platter in the house was set out with the dishes accented by sauces and signage. Mary seemed pleased at how everything came out.

We were so impressed that there were so many homemade dishes. Most of the sauces and breads were homemade, using either one of Mary’s or Kelly’s tried and true recipes, like the Green Goddess dressing, and some were created that day with last minute ingenuity, like the sauces for the smoked meats. (Also note, the signature drink, in Ali’s school colors.) But all were amazing and delicious:

Challah Bread/ Homemade Rolls

BBQ Sauce

Lemon Aioli

Cranberry Chipotle Sauce

Green Goddess Dressing

Parmesan Croutons

Cupcake Frosting

(Recipes To Come!)

Steve’s Smokin’ Smoked Meats:

The entrée was home smoked pork shoulder and beef roast, which we turned into sliders. The meat was prepared by Steve, a very generous family friend and great cook on his home smoker, and Mary asked him to do the honor of opening the buffet. (This is a tradition that our Mom, Del, used to do – pick someone special to “open the buffet”). The meats were served with a variety of homemade rolls and Mary’s beautiful Challah bread, with the various homemade sauces. We added BBQ sauce to half of the pork to make BBQ pulled pork, and we sliced the other half of the pork along with the smoked beef roast for sliders. So tender and tasty, a variety of sliders!

Goat Cheese and Pear Appetizer:

Kelly found this recipe for Goat Cheese and Pear appetizer on Pinterest. Just slice the pears (we dipped in some lemon water to reduce browning), then spread goat cheese, and sprinkle with chopped pistachios and dried cranberries.

Relishes in Jars:

Mary found this idea for the relishes on Pinterest, again! Just find some different jars or vases and fill with vegetables. It creates a great color blocked look.

Caesar Salad Spears with Green Goddess Dressing:

The idea for this salad dish was that guests could pick up the individual spears which were already dressed with Green Goddess and Croutons. (no forks!)

Elvis Style Cole Slaw:

Remember this one? All we did was leave out the basil in the aioli and voila it becomes Elvis Style!

Cupcake Mania:

We made homemade Sprinkles Chocolate Frosting and had fun decorating regular size and mini cupcakes with Christmas theme sprinkles on top. Specialty theme was Hostess Cupcake swirls on a plain chocolate cupcake, which Ali had requested.

~Guest Bloggers: Diane and SUE

When we were kids, my mom, Mary, always had us involved in the kitchen. I don’t really remember a time when I didn’t help my mom or my grandma cook. It is such a good way to teach kids to be independent and creative in the kitchen. Although, I have to stay I still often call my mom for help reminding me how to do things. This is one of the first things Ali and I learned to cook together. I am not exactly sure how it came about, but I mom probably looked in the fridge and thought, “We have nothing to eat except some smoked chicken…oh, and these wonton skins.” So this lovely little creation was born. It is a little tedious to assemble, but that is the fun part of doing it with kids. We always made these pretty plain as kids, but I decided to kick this up a little bit with bell peppers and jalapeños. We eat these as an entrée with some sort of salad or veggie as a side. In this case, we made jicama slaw. It would have been delicious had I not mistaken cayenne for chili powder…oops. See, I still do need my mom! These would also be great as an appetizer or tapas for a party not to mention it would be a great way to use up your extra Beer Can Chicken. Try it out and let us know what you think!!

Kelly & Ali

BBQ Chicken Wontons

1 Pound Chicken, Cooked and Finely Chopped (I use smoked, but roasted, grilled, etc. will work)

½ C. BBQ Sauce

1 Package Wonton Wrappers

½ Yellow Bell Pepper, Finely Chopped

¼ C. Pickled Jalapeños, Finely Chopped

1 Beer

1 C. Water

1 Egg White

Combine the peppers and jalapeños in a bowl. Set up the BBQ sauce, veggies, chicken, wonton skins, and egg wash as an assembly line. Line a baking sheet with parchment or waked paper. Take one wonton skin add a teaspoon of BBQ sauce to the center.

Add about one teaspoon of chicken and veggies.

Brush two sides of the wonton with egg wash and fold over into a triangle, making sure to press out as much air as you can and tightly seal the edges.

Repeat until all the ingredients are gone, laying each wonton out on the baking sheet and adding a new layer of parchment between each layer of wontons so they don’t stick together. Mix water and beer in equal parts and set aside. Heat a non stick skillet over medium high heat and spray with cooking oil. Add wontons to the pan so they are not touching.

Allow to brown on each side, about 2 minutes per side.

Reduce the heat to medium low and add the beer/water mixture so it covers the bottom of the pan and cover for about 3 minutes until the wontons are steamed.

We don’t actually have a lid to fit this pan, so here is my solution:

Remove from the pan to a warm plate and cover with foil (use the parchment to separate again).

Repeat with subsequent batches of wontons wiping out the pan in between if need be. (We used extra cabbage to separate the layers here.)

Tip: if the wontons stick after steaming, add a little more liquid to loosen. Enjoy as soon as the last batch is done! Using remaining BBQ sauce mixed with some teriyaki sauce sprinkled with some chopped green onions to dip.

During the winter we regularly roast chicken so that we have a healthy supply of homemade chicken stock and high-quality chicken to use during the week. Not to mention, it smells so good and homey with a chicken roasting. In the summertime, we can’t even think about heating up the kitchen like that. So what to do? Beer can chicken, of course! This is something new for us, but it will definitely become part of the repertoire. We did this on our gas grill, but I am looking forward to trying it over charcoal as well. Our grill doesn’t have a working temperature gauge so we just went with high heat since we were cooking two chickens at once. Another big bonus of cooking these outside is that the mess stays (mostly) outside. That means no cleaning of the oven. There are so many things you can do with this once it is cooked. The meat came out super flavorful, tender and moist. You can really put it in almost anything: salads, quesadillas, rice, pasta… By imparting the flavor through the steam from the beer, you get a ton of moisture! Plus, you can use whatever kind of beer you like. We used something we happened to have around, but there are so many good beers that would be great. Just like cooking with wine; use something you don’t mind drinking. I highly recommend trying this super easy technique!

Beer Can Chicken

1 Good Sized Chicken (Preferably a Roaster)

1 Can of Good Beer

2 Cloves of Garlic, Peeled

2 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary

3-5 Fresh Sage Leaves

1 t. Paprika

A Few Shakes of Hot Sauce

Olive Oil

Salt & Pepper

Pre-heat your grill for about 30 minutes. Remove the giblets and neck from the chicken (if necessary) and rinse inside and out. Pat dry with paper towels then rub with olive oil, salt and pepper. (We made some hot spicy olive oil that we will tell you about later!)

Pour about 1/3 of the can of beer into a glass for the chef.

Add garlic cloves, hot sauce, paprika, and herbs to the beer can (leaving the herbs sticking out of the top of the can.)

Gently place the chicken onto the can so the can is resting in the cavity and supporting the chicken.

Tuck the wings back toward the back bone so the chicken is sitting nice and pretty. Make sure to adjust the seasonings on the skin if necessary.

Place on a broiler pan then place on the grill. You can place directly on the grill, but I think the pan helped prevent flare-ups.

Close the lid and cook for 1 hour- 1 hour 30 minutes checking partway through.

The chicken is cooked when golden brown and the temperature reaches 165° in the thigh.

Turn off the grill and allow to rest. Carefully remove the chicken from the can when cool enough. Serve immediately or refrigerate for later!

Kelly & Mary

P.S. These guys produced more smoke than expected, so keep that in mind if you are planning to enjoy your outdoor space while cooking.

P.P.S. Yes, that is a garlic roaster in the background. Roasted garlic is one of the best things ever!

P.P.P.S. Play “Beer Can Chicken” by Kenny Chesney while eating!

Memorial Day seems to kick off the BBQ season. We grill, not so much BBQ, though I’m thinking about getting a smoker. Here in Boulder, we have a hugely athletic community and our Memorial Day tradition is the Bolder Boulder. My husband, Jack (mowing the lawn above), runs with a group of disabled athletes called Beyond Limits. We like to celebrate both the season and all the men and women who have fought for country and paid the ultimate sacrifice.

We never miss the Memorial Day Concert that airs every year on PBS from the steps of the Capitol. We stumbled upon it one year in D.C. and sat through a downpour to watch John Denver perform in one of his last performances. It is one of our favorite family memories. Thank you to all of those who serve our wonderful country!

Kicking off the “summer” season can mean a lot of things in Colorado, this year we had highs in the mid-fifties and snow in the mountains, but some years are HOT. We spent the weekend BBQ hopping and shopping for new plants to add to the garden. Check out our menu below. We will have more recipes and progress on the garden coming soon! How did you spend your holiday weekend?

Mary & Kelly

Menu

Burgers

Condiment Bar including Homemade BBQ Sauce

Homemade Hamburger buns

Onion Jam with Habenero

German Potato Salad

Baked Beans

Salad