How to Make a Charcuterie Platter

I’ll admit, up until a few years ago I wasn’t familiar with the word charcuterie. After I began blogging I began receiving invitations to food events and slowly I began learning more terms as I had the opportunity to try new foods that I probably never would have attempted to prepare myself or order off of a menu.

I have always loved the art of food, and enjoy learning new things. Charcuterie was a term that I learned quickly and have loved since. Charcuterie refers to smoked, cured, or cooked meats, all of which are traditional methods of preservation. Place them all on a platter and you are in heaven.

How to Create a Memorable Outdoor Party This Summer

Compensation provided by Gold Peak via Mode Media. All opinions are my own.

You all know by now how much I love summertime. One thing I really missed doing last year though was the end of summer BBQ that we had held annually for several years. Things just didn’t quite work out right for it to happen and we ended up not having anyone over to celebrate the end of summer with us. It was sad and I don’t want that to happen again!

One of the things that I love most about outdoor summer parties is the memories and traditions that it creates for everyone. The food, family, atmosphere – it’s a day where everyone gathers together to celebrate.

The first way to create a new outdoor party tradition is to just start. Yes it can be stressful hosting a party, yes it costs money and can be slightly overwhelming. But is the look on everyone’s faces when they get together and share an amazing evening together worth it? You bet it is.

Once you’ve established your outdoor party tradition, do something a little different every year. One year I held a pie contest – where everyone brought a homemade pie and then we all stuffed ourselves tasting each one and voted on the best one. Another year we had a bunch of games for everyone to play. Once I held a dinner party on the night of a Blue Moon, so I created a Blue Moon themed party. Whatever you decided to do, changing things up year to year will make for lots of memories – and conversations the next year. 

Create some killer food. I know this definitely is a matter of opinion on what food tastes the best here, but whatever menu I put together, I always try and do this: have an appetizer or a dish that makes some guests step out of their usual food comfort zones. My friends and family for the most part are pretty conservative when it comes to food and they have teased me about my creations over the years, but you know what? They actually end up liking some of it and would have never tried it had I not given them the opportunity.

Of course I always make sure there’s lots of food and drinks that everyone likes, lots of sweet tea being one of them. Nothing sings summer like sweet tea – Gold Peak Sweet Tea is one of my favorites. It’s made with real sugar, no preservatives, and tastes like homemade. Sometimes we’ll serve it right from the bottle, or if I feel like fancying it up a bit, I’ll pour it into a beverage container with ice and some fresh blueberries.

Extra added touches to make your summer party memorable could also include fun invitations, blankets to keep guests warm when the sun goes down, ample lighting to create a homey atmosphere, games available to play, and even a pack of conversation starter cards.

Hopefully in a couple of months I will have more fun photos to share with you, because the best ways to have a fun and memorable evening is to just spend time with people you love.

~Melissa

There’s nothing like Gold Peak’s home-brewed taste. Gold Peak, the taste that brings you home.

Zesty Taco Dinner Party

                                  Compensation was provided by ConAgra RO*TEL via Mode Media  

You might remember by now that I've been attempting to do a themed dinner once a month with the family – it’s something that I thought I’d do to make meal times a little more memorable, and last week I made a simple Zesty Taco buffet dinner with all of the fixings, black beans, cheese, lettuce tomatoes, and RO*TEL’S  Rockin’ Guac. There’s just something about a fun little table spread that makes mealtime so much more exciting.

In addition to the taco fixings, I also had a delicious fruit torte that I purchased as well as beverages like Bud Light’s Lime-a-Ritas. Right now, more than ever, since it’s springtime and nearly Cinco De Mayo, I love big and bright colors so I placed a black tablecloth on and let all of natural ingredients take center stage with their beauty.

A few weeks ago I made RO*TEL’s Rockin’ Guac for the first time and the family loved it – they ate it up pretty quick (we are big snackers around here!) I also found out that Emma LOVES avocados – she can sit there and eat a whole one by herself!

To make RO*TEL's Rockin’ Guac all you need is:

3 pitted and peeled avocados

1 can of zesty RO*TEL Original Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies, drained

½ cup chopped onion

A squeeze of lime juice

All you do is:

Mash the avocados in a bowl, stir in remaining ingredients, then season with salt and pepper. The recipe can also be found on the RO*TEL website, which has a how-to video and other great tips!

RO*TEL's Rockin’ Guac is great to use for a dip, as a spread on sandwiches, or to top off tacos!

Sometimes little things like taking ten minutes to set up a table before a meal can really make a big difference as well as a lasting impression on friends and family. They will remember the extra love you used to create not only a tasty meal, but a fun atmosphere as well.

Life is meant to be celebrated – what are you going to do this week to celebrate yours?

~Melissa

Zest up your fiesta with RO*TEL’s Rockin’ Guac and Bud Light’s Lime-a-Rita.

Bud Light Lime-A-Rita® is a registered trademark of Anheuser-Busch.

ConAgra Foods, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

3 Things to Have on Hand For Spring Entertaining

Compensation was provided by ConAgra RO*TEL via Mode Media 

I still can’t believe that we are already well into spring – it seems like just yesterday it was Valentine’s Day! There are quite a few events happening for us over the next month like Noah’s birthday, his preschool graduation, Mother’s Day, Cinco de Mayo, and of course Memorial Day – lots of excuses to celebrate!

Noah and Emma will be starting T-ball soon, Anika’s soccer is well underway and the two sports will overlap until the end of May, so I’m hunkering down for 6 weeks of crazy fun. I've been collecting some quick and easy recipes and stocking up on snacks and beverages to have on hand for when parties happen or last minute friends arrive.

Planning ahead and picking up a few extra things while shopping really helps me eliminate any last minute anxiety that I may have for parties or entertaining. I always like to have extra food and drinks around, in case the party is bigger than anticipated, or just to have available if a friend randomly stops by for a visit.

One of the recipes I've found and filed away for future reference is RO*TEL’s Rockin’ Guac – it’s a really easy to make homemade guacamole that  tastes good and seriously only takes a couple minutes to create. You use one can of RO*TEL’s Original Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies in the recipe which gives the guacamole a little zesty flavor.

All you need:

3 pitted and peeled avocados

1 can of zesty RO*TEL Original Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies, drained

½ cup chopped onion

A squeeze of lime juice

All you do:

Mash the avocados in a bowl, stir in remaining ingredients, then season with salt and pepper.

The recipe can also be found on the RO*TEL website, which has a how-to video and other great tips.  I also like to buy a variety of chips, crackers, and other things like carrots and celery to have on hand because they can quickly create a tasty appetizer/snack tray.

I have plenty of juice boxes and water at my house, but I like to buy a few special adult beverages drinks to have available for guests (or myself!) and I've recently discovered Bud Light Lime-A-Ritas – if you like margaritas these are a great option to serve quickly with the same great margarita flavor – and it happens to pair well with the RO*TEL's Rockin’ Guac!

So I have chips and crackers, adult beverages, and lastly I know that this sounds ridiculous – but always make sure you have ice! I know many of you have an automatic ice dispenser in your freezer, but for those of us who are behind on the times – always make sure you have plenty of ice on hand to quickly cool down a drink, or to keep food at appropriate temperatures. We make our own ice cubes the old fashioned way, but I like to keep a bag of ice in our second freezer because it’s come in handy more times than I ever would have thought.

Do you have any special recipes that you use for spring entertaining? What is the one thing you always have on hand for guests?

~Melissa

Zest up your fiesta with RO*TEL’s Rockin’ Guac and Bud Light’s Lime-A-Rita.

Bud Light Lime-A-Rita® is a registered trademark of Anheuser-Busch.

ConAgra Foods, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Why I Took a #MEday - and Why You Should Too

We work hard. Let’s face it – between juggling the kids schedules, your spouse’s agenda, work, volunteering, after curricular activities, plus handling all of the little mundane things (like shopping, cleaning, and bills) there’s just not much time left – is there?

Sometimes I tend to overdo it, and in the past I've found myself in a vicious cycle of being over committed, completely exhausted, unable to focus, and in doing so I know that I’m not being the best ME that I know I can be – and I know I’m not the only one out here that struggle with this.

I’m not sure why we always feel the need to have an excuse to take time for ourselves, because in reality it should be a necessity. It’s not being selfish to take time for yourself. Ever.

Sometimes taking a ME day isn't necessarily an entire day or a huge planned event, sometimes it’s just making an effort to do something for you, whether that be taking a hot bath, spending half of an hour in a coffee shop solo sipping a latte, a 20 minute nap, a pedicure, or even a 30 minute workout in the gym – taking time to do all of those things will in return make you a better wife, better mother, better YOU. I make sure that I do these things on a weekly basis for ME.

Taking care of yourself makes you a better self.

According to a recent survey conducted by domain.ME 8 out of 10 participates stated that they felt stressed about their work and life balance - and that’s not right.

This past weekend I had the opportunity to have a girl’s night with a couple of friends plus some co-workers. One of my friends drove down from Astoria and she and I stayed the night at our other friend’s house. We met everyone and then went to a special movie theater that served snacks and cocktails.

After the movie the three of us went back to her house where we snacked and talked until nearly 4 am. These women, like me, are incredibly busy and I won’t lie and say that it didn't take any effort to make our girl’s night happen, but we all decided that it was a priority and made the time to have fun. I know that sounds crazy, right? But it’s so important.

Even though I was very tired the next day it was so wonderful to be able to catch up and maintain my friendships, celebrating each other’s lives, while each of us had a little ME time.

International ME day is coming up on March 16^th, but we shouldn't need a set day to take time for ourselves. Everyday some small part of the day, should be devoted to spending time with ourselves.

When was the last time you took some time for you?

~Melissa

This post was sponsored by domain .ME. All thoughts, opinions, and photos are, as always, my own.