Foodbuzz 24×24: Hot Summer Daze Party
The day has finally come! I have been waiting to throw my Foodbuzz 24×24 party all month and it finally happened. The 24×24 is a special event where Foodbuzz picks 24 featured publishers to throw 24 over-the-top dinner parties in the same 24 hour period. My themed party was called Hot Summer Daze.
Bananas Foster Flambé
Once everybody thought they couldn’t eat any more at my Foodbuzz 24×24, I made dessert. I was really excited about this dessert because I have never lit anything on fire in my kitchen (on purpose). Even though it was hot, and even hotter in the kitchen with the stove on, I sucked it up and got my rum and lighter ready for the bananas foster flambé .
Tequila Marinated Tri-Tip w/ Avocado Cream Sauce
At my Foodbuzz 24×24 party, I made a tri-tip for the entree.
The Best Tri-Tip Steak Marinade!
The tri-tip marinade was made of tequila, soy sauce, olive oil, cilantro and much more. Marinating it for a whole day made it nice and juicy for my guests. With this, I made an avocado cream sauce to serve over the top. I had seen a recipe for this type of thing earlier on For the Love of Cooking and was waiting for my chance to make it. It is similar to guacamole, but I added sour cream along with red wine vinegar to make it into more of a sauce.
Tequila- Lime Shrimp Kebabs
Since most of my new roommates are vegetarians, I had to provide another option along with the beef for my Foodbuzz 24×24 party. For them I chose to do tequila-lime marinated shrimp for kebabs. Shrimp only need to marinate for about 20 minutes, if you marinate them too long the acid in the marinade will begin to cook the shrimp.
Tequila & Jalapeno Citrus Salad Dressing
Once everybody had refilled their drinks at my Foodbuzz 24×24 party, I brought out the salad. One of my friends exclaimed, “There is alcohol in the SALAD!?” The answer to that is yes of course! I made a tequila citrus dressing with orange and lime juice. It is important not to put too much tequila in the dressing, since it isn’t cooked, but it mellows out the strong citrus flavors in this tangy dressing.
Beer Batter Tempura Vegetables
Along with the chips and salsa for my Foodbuzz 24×24, I made beer battered veggies tempura as an appetizer. Beer batters are great because the carbonation in the beer makes the batter puff up more when frying, which gives the veggies a fuller crunch. For these, I chose to use Modelo beer to keep the Mexican-type theme for the party. I fried asparagus, green beans, poblano peppers and zucchini (one of the first from our garden!). These are great served with guacamole or ranch dressing to dip.
Tequila-Lime Salsa & Homemade Tortilla Chips
For one of my appetizers at my Foodbuzz 24×24 party I made homemade tequila-lime salsa and tortilla chips. This salsa has a beautiful array of colors and a nice spicy kick at the end. I baked homemade tortilla chips seasoned with garlic, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper; such a simple thing to make and so much healthier than fried chips from the store. I also like these homemade flour tortilla chips because they are softer and kind of crumble away in your mouth with the salsa. Usually salsa is hardly touched at parties, but this one got devoured by my guests along with every last chip. I think they might have liked it?
Orange Mint Hibiscus Mojitos
To kick off our Foodbuzz 24×24 party we made mojitos and margaritas, We began by making an agave hibiscus simple syrup by boiling down hibiscus leaves with agave nectar. Once we had our syrup, it was time to make mojitos. We are lucky enough to have our own orange mint plant in our garden this year, but if you cannot find orange mint regular mint works as well. These mojitos are very unique, the hibiscus flowers give them a great pink color and a hint of floral flavor; very refreshing on a hot summer day.
Pineapple Basil Margaritas
For my Foodbuzz 24×24 party, we also made pineapple basil margaritas with fresh basil from our garden. These margaritas are sweeter than your average and don’t have that sour lime taste that sometimes comes with others. The basil adds a nice earthy kick to balance the sweetness. I can safely say that these margaritas are the best that I have ever had. I highly recommend you try both this and the orange mint hibiscus mojito recipes and wow your company with them!
A Pairing Party w/ Swiss Maid Fudge
When I first began blogging, I didn’t really know what I would put on my blog or where it would take me. Actually, I was forced (well maybe required is a better word) to make a blog for my advertising media class last fall and figured I love food, music, photos, etc. so why not focus on my senses. Almost a year later I am at a point that I would have never imagined. I am completely submerged in the blogging universe and loving it! When I tell people that I am a blogger they are always a little uneasy, but then when I tell them I am a FOOD blogger they always seem so intrigued. I am so excited about all of the opportunities I have been given because of my blog, although I must say that the next few weeks are kind of filled with different blogging opportunites, I hope you enjoy them too!
