The reception was for a professor at a seminary so I tried to decorate with a more “studious” theme in mind. The wreath is made of old, antique book pages and I hot glued a mound of potpourri in the middle for the centerpiece. I purchased the old book that I used at the thrift store for $.90. Total cost $3.50. SCORE! I “bookended” the table with two large vases ($.50 each at the thrift store) that contained reeds ($4 for all of them at the Dollar Tree) to give the table some height.
Now, a good party hostess is not suppose to point out the flaws of the event. But, for the sake of blogging and learning from one another’s mistakes I will share with you my little blunder of the evening.
It was the dessert. All week I planned on making tiramisu in individual cups. It was going to be so lovely and frankly, quite spectacular looking. I had to make the tiramisu in two batches because I had to make enough for fifty cups. The first batch went perfectly and looked awesome. I was tickled pink. Then, I did the second batch. Same ingredients (there’s only 3), same everything. As I finished mixing it together I could tell right away that the cream was not right. Then I tasted it and knew it was a total and complete failure. NOOOOOOOO!! What in the world am I going to do? I have to leave for this reception in one hour!
But here is why I am sharing this horror story with you…. there is always a plan B. DON’T GIVE UP! Since there was no time to go to the store and get more ingredients, I calmly (but angrily), called the grocery store, ordered a cake, and that was that. I still to this moment do not know what happened to that tiramisu. I have made it a hundred times and it always turns out great. Bad ingredients? Bad eggs? I just don’t know!
Oh well, the cake was delicious and only I knew about the flaw. It was a little burst to my pride having to serve STORE BOUGHT sheet cake but oh well.
So, I wanted to share one of the appetizer recipes with you because there were a huge hit. The spinach and sun dried tomato pinwheels were so delicious and super easy. Try them for your next party!
| Spinach & Sun-dried Tomato Pinwheels |
- 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach
- 1/2 cup re-hydrated sundried tomatoes, chopped finely (or use those packed in oil but drained well and patted dry)
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise (light mayo is fine)
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (or more)
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1 (17.3-ounce) package of puff pastry (2 sheets)
- Prepare filling: Drain spinach well, squeezing out moisture and pressing between layers of paper towels. Stir together spinach, sundried tomatoes, mayo, Parmesan and spices. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
- Thaw puff pastry at room temperature for 30 minutes, or until defrosted and easy to unfold. Unfold pastry and place on a lightly floured surface. Spread one-half of the spinach mixture evenly over pastry sheet, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Roll up pastry, jellyroll fashion, pressing to seal seam; wrap in plastic wrap. Repeat procedure with remaining pastry and spinach mixture. Freeze 30 minutes; cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices.
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown.
You can make up a batch of these and freeze them for up to 3 months. Just roll up the ingredients in the pastry but don’t cut them into pieces. Freeze the pastry logs. Take them out when you need them, cut into slices and bake it up!
Recipe Source: The Recipe Girl original recipe from Southern Living
