Engagement Partay!

I love my mama!

Thanks Mom AND Dad for throwing such an amazing day of parties.

Onto the food.

So for the evening party I wanted something SUPER simple and something that could be 100% prepped ahead of time. So I decided on a taco bar.

It was perfect, everyone loved it and it was ZERO work for me after the shower. THANK GOD!

We did beef and chicken tacos.

I seasoned the beef with this, and it was delicious.

The red pepper flakes added a great kick, don't ever buy packet seasoning again please!

For the chicken, I just made something up.  CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?!?

I'm really not that kind of cook, or a t least I never have been in the past.

I think that the 1 yr + of blogging and cooking has increased my skills...at least a little.

Anyway to the chicken (which we just pulled from already cooked rotisserie chickens from the store) 

I added green chilies (from the can) along with cumin, chili powder, garlic powder and S&P. 

I added some chicken stock to make the meet nice a tender and juicy as well as to allow the spice mix to stick to the chicken and not just hang at the bottom.

I guessed on the ratio of the spices but I think it was something like 1 part cumin to 2 parts chili powder then 1/4 part garlic powder...hmmm does that make sense??

Well just try it!

Ok NEXT...

I also made pico de gallo for people to put on their tacos and dip their chips in.

It was pretty darn good, if I do say so myself.

Nice and fresh and light, not too cilantroey...oh made up words... :)

Pico De Gallo

2 beefsteak tomatoes, cut into 1/2 in pieces

1/2 white onion, finely chopped

1/2 to 1 serrano chile minced

2 T fresh lime juice

1 T olive oil

2 T finely chopped cilantro

coarse salt

Combine all ingredients in a nonreactive bowl, adding 1 tsp salt; let stand 5 min.  Season with more salt to taste.

Makes 2 cups.

Guest Appearances 

So my uncle Dug made the salsa, both a medium and a hot.  He makes the BEST salsa...thanks again Dug!

My mom made her famous bean dip, which I will definitely be making again in the near future.  I'm telling you, this stuff is amazing, could eat it all day!

To round it all off, my sister in law, Lindsey made some grilled corn with cilantro lime butter.  This was a hit!  Everyone loved it!  Unfortunately I didn't get to try it, but I will definitely be making it so that I can!

Pre grilled corn, so pretty!

WOAH I know this is overload!!!!

Don't worry we only have dessert left.

So for dessert I made Mexican wedding cakes (HOW FITTING) and margarita cookies.

I found the margarita cookies here and they were delicious, but kind of a pain to make, I won't lie to you.

Mexican Wedding Cakes

1 cup pecan halves

1 cup all purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, room temp

confectioners' sugar for coating

In a food processor, pulse pecans, flour, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt until mixture resembles coarse meal.  Add butter and pulse until a dough forms.  Shape dough into a disk and wrap tightly in plastic; refrigerate until firm, 30-60 min.  Dough can be frozen up to 3 months.

Preheat oven to 325, with racks in upper and lower thirds.  Scoop off level tablespoons of dough and roll into balls.  Space them 1 1/2 in apart on two large baking sheets.  Bake, rotating sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through, until just lightly golden around edges, 20-25 min.

Cool 5 min on sheets, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  

Place confectioners' sugar in a bowl and roll cookies in sugar twice to coat thoroughly, tapping off excess each time.  ( be careful they are kind of fragile and can come apart easily.)

ENJOY!

Makes 24.

These were REALLY good!

Again no Logan ratings...he doesn't remember  his ratings...largely due to the Mexican beer.