Menu: Bruschetta Bar, Pasta Primavera, Cannoli Dip with Pizzelle Chips, Sangria Cupcakes & Chocolate Salted Caramel Cupcakes
Recipes:
Bruschetta Bar
Crostinis: Slice French bread on the bias, brush with olive oil. Toast at 350 degrees for
5 minutes.
Bruschetta: Dice 3-5 tomatoes, removing seed pockets to avoid too much moisture. Add
1 clove crushed garlic, 1/4 chopped basil, 2 tbsp. olive oil, 1 tbsp. red wine
vinegar, and salt and pepper.
Whipped Ricotta: Whip 15 oz. part-skim ricotta with 1 tsp. salt.
Pesto: store-bought
Olive Tapenade: store-bought
Balsamic Berries: Reduce 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar over medium heat 8-10 minutes.
Combine with approx. 2 cups (total) blueberries, raspberries, and chopped
strawberries, and about 6 chopped mint leaves.
Honey & Walnuts: That's it. Easiest topping ever.
Pasta Primavera
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green zucchini, chopped
1 yellow zucchini, chopped
1 bunch asparagus, chopped
1/2 bunch broccoli, chopped
1 container mushrooms, chopped
1 bag spinach
1 container cherry tomatoes
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
Cayenne pepper
2 boxes pasta
Grated Parmesan
Juice of 1 lemon
1. Chop all vegetables (except spinach) to the same size. Drizzle with olive
oil, season with salt and pepper. Roast peppers, zucchini, and broccoli for 12 minutes,
tomatoes for 7 minutes, and asparagus and mushrooms for 5 minutes, all at 425
degrees.
2. Heat approx. 1 tbsp. oil in a skillet. Add spinach, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper.
Toss until spinach is wilted, remove from heat.
3. Cook pasta according to directions, drain. Mix in all vegetables, lemon juice, Parmesan,
salt and pepper to taste.
Cannoli Dip
15 oz. ricotta
8 oz. mascarpone
Splash vanilla
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
Dash cinnamon
1 cup mini chocolate chips
Pizzelle cookies for dipping
1. Whip ricotta and mascarpone until smooth, add vanilla. Mix in confectioners' sugar 3/4
cup at a time, add cinnamon. Fold in chocolate chips. Serve with pizzelles.
Sangria Cupcakes
1 box angel food cake mix
Zest of 1/2 orange
1/2 cup blueberries
1/2 cup strawberries, chopped
2 cups red wine
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup shortening
1 cup butter
Splash vanilla
4 cups confectioners' sugar
Blueberries, strawberry & orange slices for topping
1. Prepare cake mix as directed, folding in zest and berries before scooping batter into
lined cupcake tins. Bake as directed, let cool.
2. Combine wine and sugar into small saucepan, bring to a boil on medium-high heat.
Reduce to medium-low heat 20-30 minutes, take off heat, let cool.
3. Whip shortening and butter together. Add vanilla and 1/2 cup wine reduction,
combine. Add confectioners' sugar 1 cup at a time, whipping until combined. Add pink
and purple food coloring, if desired.
4. Pipe frosting onto cupcakes, top with reserved fruit.
Chocolate Salted Caramel Cupcakes
1 box chocolate cake mix
1 box chocolate pudding mix
1 cup shortening
1 cup butter
Splash vanilla
1/2 cup caramel sauce
4 cups confectioners' sugar
Sea salt
1. Prepare cake mix as directed, adding pudding mix to cake mix before combining. Scoop
into prepared cupcake tins. Bake as directed, let cool.
2. Whip shortening and butter together. Add vanilla and caramel, combine. Add
confectioners' sugar 1 cup at a time, whipping until combined.
3. Pipe frosting onto cupcakes, sprinkle with sea salt.
Timeline: The shower was on a Saturday evening, so I prepped and made as much as I could on Friday. Friday morning, I started with the sangria cupcakes. While those were cooling, I chopped made the bruschetta, leaving out the basil until serving the next day. When the cupcakes were cool, I made the chocolate cupcakes with the same tins. With those in the oven, I chopped most of the primavera vegetables and put them into a bag and kept them in the fridge. Then I made the cannoli dip. After that, I made the balsamic berries, leaving out the mint until serving the next day. Then I made the red wine frosting, piped it onto the cupcakes, and left the fruit topping for the next day. Finally, I made the caramel frosting, topped the chocolate cupcakes, and sprinkled on the sea salt.
On the day of the shower, I made the pasta and kept it warm in foil pans placed in a towel-lined cooler. I also did finishing touches, like topping the sangria cupcakes and adding the herbs. I also didn't make the crostinis until the shower was about to start.
Setup: The shower was in a house, so I utilized the space I had to make food stations. On the kitchen table, I put down brown butcher paper and laid out my bruschetta bar. On the counter, I put the cupcakes and cannoli dip, and put the pasta on the stove. There was also and Italian wine tasting (which I was not in charge of) in the dining room. This all allowed people to grab what they wanted easily and kept it so that no one area was too congested.
That's it! I've never catered a whole event before, and this was really catering made easy. Everything was successful - Italian food done like this always impresses, and it's way easier than it looks.
I adapted the sangria cupcakes and cannoli dip from these blogs:
http://thefirstyearblog.com/sangria-cupcakes/
http://www.ifyougiveablondeakitchen.com/2016/02/06/easy-cannoli-dip/
The rest of the recipes are mine, so please credit Streamers of Consciousness if you use them elsewhere.
I wish you all the best,
Erin
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