Relax -- It's Just a Wedding Shower
(ARA) - Among all
the things that can cause the pre-wedding jitters, wedding showers
seem to top the list. Just the thought of managing all those
boxes, making the food and handling the organization is enough to
send even the seasoned entertainer running for the
hills.
But it doesn't have to be that way, according to
Linda West-Eckhardt, a food educator who has written more than 17
cookbooks (Linda
West Eckhardt Cookbooks ) and won Julia Child & James Beard Awards for her
books on easy entertaining. With the choice of the right wine and
some showy-but-easy recipes, Eckhardt says having a shower at home
is a lot easier than you might think.
"The most important
thing to remember about wedding showers is that most people there
want light, feminine food," Eckhardt says. "You really don't need
a big spread -- just some fun food that people can easily balance
on a plate in their laps. The main challenge is pacing and
organizing the event."
Eckhardt recommends the following
timesaving strategies:
#1 -- Involve the bride in the
invitation list, and choose the guests carefully.
Think
hard about the number of guests you can comfortably seat together
in one main area of your house, either on the floor, in extra
chairs or around tables. If you are hosting the event outside, do
you have enough space to accommodate guests in the event of rain?
Is the bride having any other showers, and are there people who
might be invited to two different events? Asking these hard
questions will help you "right size" your guest list.
#2 --
Make sure there's enough wine to go around.
"Gone are the
days when every wedding shower features sherbet-y punches. Today's
shower goers expect something more sophisticated, and a nice
German Riesling like Relax brand Riesling, at around $8 a bottle,
really fits the bill. German Rieslings are brighter and more crisp
than Rieslings grown elsewhere, because of the rocky, loamy
growing conditions in Germany. It pairs well with just about
anything; and its fresh taste is very accessible, even for people
who are not regular wine drinkers," Eckhardt says.
She
recommends a twist most people haven't tried -- mixing 3/4 pitcher
Relax brand Riesling wine with 1/4 pitcher peach flavored
schnapps. "It makes a very delicious, girly cocktail. It's
considered a classic in Europe, especially in Germany, where
Riesling wines are as revered as German beer," she says. "Of
course, you'll want to make sure you have non-alcoholic beverages,
too. But for the wine, I generally buy a bottle for every two
people attending, assuming that they will each drink two glasses a
person."
#3 -- Make what you love and buy the
rest.
You can still give the impression of having a
homemade buffet if you just make one or two showy items, like a
cupcake tree or tea sandwiches, then buy the rest of the items at
the grocery deli. Eckhardt recommends buying relish trays of
pre-cut vegetables and fruits; deli-case sides like deviled eggs,
pasta or rice salads; and finishing the buffet with colorful
candies like candied almonds or pastel colored M&Ms. Set up a
bar to the side where the wine can be poured, or allow guests to
serve themselves from a fancy pitcher filled with your pre-mixed
wine cocktail.
#4 -- Decorations need not be
expensive.
"You don't need to buy fancy arrangements from
the florist," Eckhardt says. "Just decorate like the professionals
do." She recommends putting down short boxes and thick hardbound
books on the table to create staggered display heights, then
covering them up with a tablecloth that's draped to create little
valleys in between. A few carefully placed flowers and petals
around and between the displays completes the look. "And bring out
the real china plates and nice silverware, even if you have to
borrow or rent them, to add an element of grace to the event. Many
rental services will even let you return the dishes and wine
glasses unwashed," she says.
#5 -- Plan ample space and
time for displaying, opening and cataloging the gifts.
Make
sure you have a gift table that is centrally located; with enough
space so all your guests can watch the gifts being opened if they
so choose. Depending on the size of the shower, the gift opening
could take as much as an hour, so plan to have your guests go
through the buffet line first, and nibble on food while the gifts
are opened.
To help the bride, print out all the guest's
addresses on labels, and buy thank you notes. As each gift is
being opened, have a designated "gift recorder" peel off each gift
giver's address label, put it on an envelope, and slip a piece of
paper inside noting the gift that was given.
After the
gifts are open, allow guests around an hour for socializing. You
might even want to put out a guest book that each guest can sign
with wedding wishes and messages for the bride and groom to-be.
Instead of silly shower games, let the guests peruse photo albums
of the bride and groom when they were children, or offer up their
fondest memories of the couple on videotape.
"Having a
shower is really all about expressing love and support for the
couple as they start a new life together. In the long run, what
matters is that people had the chance to relax, raise a glass for
a toast, and enjoy their time together," Eckhardt
says.
Wedding Bellini
Fill the pitcher of your
choice 3/4 full with Relax brand Riesling. Top the remaining
fourth off with peach-flavored schnapps, and stir. Serve
chilled.
Serve in a tall tumbler, and your guests will have
a silky sweet cocktail that will be truly memorable. If your
guests would like a little fizz, have them fill their glasses 1/3
full with club soda, then fill the glass to the top with the
Riesling/schnapps mixture. Garnish with a Maraschino
cherry.
Simple Party Sandwiches
Nothing could be
simpler than whizzing up three different sandwich fillings in the
food processor the night before the party, then refrigerating,
covered until party time. Serve in three bowls with
mini-croissants or Pullman bread for your guests to make their own
sandwiches. Or, prepare the sandwiches in advance and cut them in
festive shapes with cookie cutters. Here are some recipes you may
want to try:
* Black Forest Ham and Pineapple Sandwich
Filling
Makes about 5 cups (enough for 30 to 40 small
sandwiches)
1/2 pound black forest ham or good quality deli
ham
1 small, sweet onion such as Vidalia, quartered
1 cup
crushed pineapple
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup celery,
broken into 3 or 4 pieces
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/8 teaspoon
cayenne pepper
Directions: Combine all ingredients in the
food processor bowl and pulse to mix thoroughly. Pack into a bowl,
cover and refrigerate overnight until the party time.
*
Cucumber Onion Sandwich Filling
Makes about 2-1/2 cups (enough
for 15 to 20 small sandwiches)
Choose European cucumbers if
possible. To prepare the cuke, cut it lengthwise, and scoop out
and discard seedbed using a teaspoon.
1 small, sweet onion
quartered
English cucumber, ends cut off, seeded and cut
into chunks
1 8-ounce package cream cheese (or
Neufchatel)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
pepper
Directions: Combine all ingredients in the food
processor bowl and pulse to mix thoroughly. Pack into a bowl,
cover and refrigerate overnight until party time.
* Pecan
Olive Sandwich Filling
Makes about 3-1/2 cups (enough for 25 to
30 small sandwiches)
8-ounce cream cheese
1/2 cup
mayonnaise
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 cup drained salad olives
with pimento (a 5 oz. Jar)
2 tablespoons olive juice
1/8
teaspoon cayenne pepper
Directions: Combine all ingredients
into the food processor bowl and pulse to mix thoroughly. Pack
into a bowl, cover and refrigerate until party time.
*
Lemon Glazed Vanilla Pansy Cupcakes
Adapted from Cakes from
Scratch in Half The Time, by Linda West Eckhardt, Chronicle
Publishing, September 2005
Makes 18 standard sized
cupcakes
Directions: Look for pesticide-free edible flowers in
your natural food store like roses, nasturtiums or pansies; or,
use sugared flowers from the cake-decorating store. The citrus
glaze can be made with any juice you choose, such as orange, blood
orange, lemon, tangerine, or lime juice. For extra panache,
consider buying a cupcake tree to display them, such as the Wilton
brand one, shown pictured.
4 large eggs
1 cup (2 sticks)
unsalted butter
1-1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon
vanilla extract
2 cups sifted cake flour
1 teaspoon baking
powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Lemon glaze
1/4 cup fresh
lemon juice
Grated zest of 1 lemon
1-1/2 cups sugar
18
edible flowers
Directions: Preheat the oven to 400 F. Line
a muffin tin with paper or silicone liners. Spritz papers with
Baker's Joy or other baking non-stick spray. Place unbroken eggs
in a bowl of hot tap water to warm up.
Cream the butter and
sugar in the stand mixer about two minutes, then break eggs in,
one at a time. Now add milk and vanilla. Sift cake flour, baking
powder and salt together and spoon into the mixture. Mix just
until well blended.
Divide the batter among the muffin cups
(about 1/3 cup batter in each cup) and bake on the middle rack of
the hot oven until a wooden pick comes out clean, 10 to 12
minutes. Cool in the pan 5 minutes, adding glaze and flowers, then
remove to a rack to cool thoroughly.
Meanwhile, make the
glaze by combining lemon juice, zest and sugar in a small heavy
saucepan. Cook over medium heat until transparent, about 10
minutes. Test to see if glaze makes a "string" when dropped from a
spoon. When it does, take it off the heat. Spoon hot glaze over
the cupcakes just as soon as they come out of the oven. Top with a
flower and cool. The glaze acts as a glue to hold the flowers in
place. Courtesy of ARA Content
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