I have spent the last 2 days recuperating from this....

Mandy & Lisa's fabulous Cle Elum Wedding!!

I was asked to (maybe I volunteered, I don't remember) make the appetizers and some salads for dinner.  They had the brilliant idea of having Dante's Inferno Hot Dog & Hamburger carts for the dinner.  It was HOT (100 degrees), I forgot my wedding outfit, I drove out there with 6 coolers full of food and I have the best set of work\friends\slaves a girl\caterer could ever ask for.  Thank you Nikki, Ben, Kim, Matt and MaryEllen for all of your help getting it all done.  Here are some pictures of the food that I planned, shopped, prepped and served. 

Antipasto Kabobs 

1 pkg (9 oz.) refigerated cheese torellini

40 pimento stuffed olives

40 large pitted black olives

3/4 c. italian salad dressing

40 thin slices pepperoni

40 thin slices hard salami

fresh parsley sprigs

~Cook tortellini according to package instructions; drain, rinse in cold water.  In large resealable plastic bag, combine tortellini, olives and salad dressing.  Seal bag, turn to coat; refigerate for 4 hours or overnight. 

~Drain and discard marinade. For each appetizer, thread a stuffed olivev, parsley sprig, folded peperoni slice, tortellini, folded salami slice, parsley again and then black olive.  I used 4 inch skewers I found at Safeway. Yield: 40 appetizers 

Cucumber Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes

24 cherry tomatoes

1 pkg. (3 oz.) cream cheese, softened

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

1/4 c. finely chopped peeled cucumber

1 tbsp. finely chopped green onion

2 tsp. minced fresh dill

~Cut a thin slice off the top of each tomato. Scoop out and discard pulp; invert tomats onto paper towel to drain.  In a small bowl, combine cream cheese and mayo until smooth.  Stir in onion, cucumber and dill. Spoon (I piped the mixture in using a cake decorating tip and Wilton bag) mixture into tomats and top with sprig of fresh dill Refrigerate until serving.  

{Disclaimer: I am not a huge tomato fan, but these were delicious.  Very cool and refreshing.}

Fruit Kebabs with Cinnamon Cream

10 red and green seedless grapes

10 watermelon bubes

10 pineapple cubes

10 cantaloupe cubes

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 c. non-fat vanilla yogurt

~On each skewer (I used 6 in. skewers I found cheap at Cash n Carry) thread 1 grape, 1 watermelon cube, 1 cataloupe cube, 1 pineapple cube and end with another grape.  You could also use strawberries instead of two different grapes.  Arrange on a platter. 

~Mix cinnamon with the yougurt.  Makes 5 servings. 

Caprese Salad

I don't have exact measurements for this one.  It is so simple - you cant mess it up.  

Roma tomatoes sliced

Mozzarella (Costco has the best and best priced) sliced

Fresh basil leaves 

evoo

balsamic vinegar

fresh cracked black pepper

salt

Slice tomats, mazz and wash basil, pick off the leaves.  Place a cheese slice on top of tomatoe, garnish with the basil.  In seperate bowl add some evoo & balsamic, s & p and whisk together.  Drizzle over top.  Refrigerate until ready to eat.

Pesto Pasta Salad

3/4 pound bow tie pasta (in the bulk section)

3/4 pound fusili or spiral pasta (bulk section)

1/3 c. evoo

1/3 c. pine nuts

1 1/2 c. pesto

3 tbsp. ffreshly sqeezed lemon juice

2/3 c. good mayo

1/2 c. freshly grated Pecorino Romano

1 1/2 c. frozen peas, defrosted

1/4 c. chopped green onion

3/4 tsp. kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

~Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the fusili or spiral pasta and cook for 2 minutes.  Add bow tie pasta and cook until both are al dente.  About 8-10 mins total.  Strain and rinse with cold water. Toss with olive oil ad set aside. 

~Place the pine nuts on a micorwave safe plate. Microwave on high for 30 seconds, toss repeat until toasted. About 1 minute total.

~In a very large bowl, stir together pesto, lemon juice, mayo, s & p.  Add pasta, pine nuts, peas, green onion and cheese.  Toss together until the pasta is coated.  Serve immediately or chill until ready to eat. 

Dante's Hot Dog cart.  These guys were a blast to work with.  Lisa even had take home boxes for food, cupcakes etc.  I had a great time.  As you can see it took me 2 full days to recover.  I meant to post this yesterday but I was so tired.  

This is where they were married.  Gorgeous. 

Nikki and Ben concocted this idea as a gift.  Each rose took 5 - $1 dollar bills to make.  You can click here for the directions. 

These delicious cupcakes were from Cupcake Royale in Bellevue.  

We all decided before hand to each pick a different one and cut into fourths so we could sample a few different ones.  I couldn't pick a favorite, they were all deish!!