SUMMER FOOD FESTIVAL 2011!!

My apologies for being AWOL the past few days. It has been more than a little hectic around here and  a lot of it had to do with prepping for the Summer Food Festival that took place last Sunday at my house!  The whole day was filled with good friends who brought even BETTER food.

Spicy hot chicken legs, smoked brisket, spicy Southwest ranch beef which can be served on buns or with tortilla chips, pea salad, pasta salad, chilled cucumber yogurt soup, strawberry poke cake, Oreo dirt cake, raspberry peach cobbler, crab dip with crackers, risotto with Swiss Chard, fruit salad, frozen chocolate bananas, rum-spiked watermelon, and Portobello mushroom pizzas were all devoured equally.  Judging took place by a raise of hands and the winners are as follows: Michelle Borst won the main dish category with her Southwest Ranch Beef crock pot dish, Cindy Cassel won for the side dishes with her fresh and veggie-filled pasta salad, and Amber Douglass won the dessert category by a LANDSLIDE with Oreo dirt cake (Get it? Landslide?? Dirt?....sigh....)  Good job guys!

Not only was there good food, but there were nifty party favors for the guest to take home. They were given Chinese take-out boxes filled with Applewood Hickory Rub, Zaatar, Jamaican Jerk seasoning, Chinese Five Spice, and a fortune cookie.

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Memorial Day Recipe: Red, White, & Blue Berry Salad

In honor of the fallen soldiers who have fought for our freedom and those currently serving, something sweet, simple, and patriotic is in order!  What better than a layered red, white, and blue summer berry salad?  It may be mostly common sense, but the colors were so pretty I went ahead and gave you step-by-step pictures and instructions on how to make this lovely dessert centerpiece.

~Ingredients~

1 package of 4 small shortcakes (not the loaf)

1 container of blueberries

1 container of strawberries, cut into slices, discarding the leaves but saving the tips

1 container of raspberries

1 container of blackberries

1 container of extra creamy whipped topping

~Instructions~

1.  In a medium bowl, crumble one of the shortcakes   

2.  Place layer of strawberries on top of the shortcake.

3.  Spread a layer of whipped cream over the strawberries.

4.  Sprinkle half of the container of blueberries onto the whipped cream.

5.  Crumble a second shortcake on top of the blueberries.

6.  Evenly place half the container of raspberries on top of the shortcake.

7.  Here is what your layers should look like from a side view!

8.  Spread another layer of whipped cream on top of the raspberries.

9.  Evenly place half the container of blackberries on top of the whipped cream.

10.  Crumble a third shortcake on top of the blackberries.

11.  Place a row of sliced strawberries side-by-side all around the edges, stacking two on top of each other if you have that many left over.  Place the strawberry tips on top to create cute little peaks.

12.  Place a circular row of blackberries inside the circle of strawberries.

13.  Place a circular row of raspberries inside the blackberries.

14.  I filled the small remaining hole in the center of the raspberries with a decent little dollop of whipped cream and added a raspberry on top as the final touch!  Here is your finished result!

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