I threw a shower!

I have a friend. Well, I have several friends- but I only have one getting married. I get to be a bridesmaid, and Mr. M gets to be a ringbearer (with a fake ring obviously- he'd totally lose it, especially since it's not a treasured firetruck). The best part? I got to throw a bridal shower! I love entertaining, and food, and my friend, so it was a no brainer. The primary point of this post is to share the recipes that I used to create our yummy, multi-ethnic spread! First of all, the crab rangoon was my basic recipe- I played around with the shape a bit, but it's my standard. I also served spanakopita (like a real Greek, a guest proclaimed!), Greek salad, sesame noodles, Thai rice salad, curried chicken salad, and a lovely coconut cake. As for party throwing- choose a color theme, and then become obsessed with it. We used orange, pink, and yellow for everything from invites to favors!

So here goes:

Greek Salad

Cucumbers, cut in half and seeded, then sliced
Red onion chopped
Tomatoes, chopped
Kalamata olives, pitted (I use the pre-halved ones in a jar!)
Feta cheese

Dressing:
3 parts red wine vinegar to one part lemon juice, 1 part olive oil, a few shakes dried oregano. I like to combine them in a mason jar and shake like crazy!!!! I am sorry I don't have real measurements, but I don't measure when I make this- I shake and taste.

Sesame Noodles

Pasta (I used plain old spaghetti), cooked- I tossed with a smidge of olive oil so it didn't stick together)
12 ounces of the pasta
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbsp sugar
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp rice vinegar
3 tbsp sesame oil
4 tbsp olive oil
5 green onions (snipped- I use scissors!)
Sesame seeds

Combine all of the ingredients except the pasta, sesame seeds, and onions. Stir well and combine with pasta. Garnish with green onions and sesame noodles. If you like some spice, you can use about a 1/2 tsp of hot chili oil- I don't, because I am a PANSY.

Spanakopita

Now, bear with me- I don't really measure but these are DELICIOUS.

3 boxes frozen chopped spinach
5 green onions
Large container ricotta cheese
8 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp dill
Bag of shredded parmesan (about 1.5 cups if you're shredding fresh)
Phyllo dough (get the sheets)
Cooking spray, butter flavored

Thaw the spinach and REALLY drain. I like to put it in a dish towel and twist it up like salt water taffy, and squeeze all the liquid out. Add to garlic, chopped green onions, dill, parmesan and combine well. Add about 3/4 of the container of ricotta. Combine thoroughly. Just use your hands- it works so much better. Allow phyllo dough to thaw, and then lay out on the counter. It should be very thin sheets. I lay them out so the long edge is like the horizon, and use a knife to cut into four even strips. As you cut, you are doing ALL the layers. For them to be fairly equally wide, I have a fifth teeny strip left over. You can be all mathematical and organized about it, and have equally sized strips, but I'm not that good. Spritz all exposed surfaces with cooking spray. This spray is your new BFF. Use it plentifully on exposed phyllo dough. You can also use melted butter, but I think the butter spray makes everything easier. Scoop a spoonful at the top of the strip, and proceed to fold over into a triangle shape, spritzing and folding over until the strip is gone. Think flag folding. I don't have a good explanation, but if you know how to fold a flag, you can do this. Hell, there is probably a youTube video on flag folding that might be helpful! Continue to spritz with your butter spray, and arrange folded triangles on a baking sheet that has been (you guessed it!) spritzed with the lovely butter spray. Bake at 375 degrees until golden brown.

As for the Thai Rice Salad, I LOVE THIS RECIPE. I often make it with chicken so that it is heartier. I rarely remember to add the shredded spinach, too.

Thai Rice Salad w. Peanut Dressing

2 1/2 c. water

1 c. white rice

1 tsp. salt (optional)

1/3 c. chunky peanut butter

1/4 c. white wine vinegar

3 tbsp. vegetable oil

2 tbsp. soy sauce

1 tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. grated fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

2 c. cut up cooked chicken (optional)

1/4 c. finely chopped onion

1 1/2 c. spinach leaves, cut into thin strips

Cook the rice according to package directions, and allow to cool. Using a wire whisk, combine peanut butter, vinegar, oil, soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic and cayenne in small bowl. Add to rice with peanut dressing, chicken and onion. Mix well. Cover and chill. Just before serving, stir in spinach. Yeah right. Forget the spinach. I always do. This gets better by the DAY!!! I adore making this for a crowd too, because it's super cost effective. 

Well, that's all I have for now. I'm not sharing the cake recipe, because I guess I'm just mean. I will say the key is coconut pastry cream between the layers, but that's as far as I go!!!