Entertianing Idea for New Years- ice cubes and ice molds

I was at a holiday party Saturday night, and I loved this idea for serving champagne or white wine which can easily be used for a New Years Eve party as well!

Fresh Peach Bellini

Have you ever had an Italian "Bellini" Cocktail?
It's an incredible drink made with fresh summer peaches and mixed with prosecco. (I made a virgin version too that I mix with seltzer for the kids).

The first time I was introduced to a beautiful Bellini cocktail was many years ago at the exquisite Bellini Bar inside of the The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas. It was a memorable cocktail and memorable experience!

Vegetable Kabob Appetizers- Vegetarian, Gluten Free and Easy

Which appetizer should you make for your next party?

These colorful appetizing vegetable kabobs make a great presentation, are easy to make, as well as easy to serve. In fact, they make a perfect finger food! Since everything is on the skewer, no additional utensils are needed. Just pick it up and eat it!

Spinach Artichoke Dip - Low fat, Vegan, and Healthy

Enjoy your favorite dip with lower fat and calories.
Spinach artichoke dip has always been one of my favorite dips. However, not only is it extremely caloric, it is also very high in not so good for you type fat. The typical artichoke and spinach dip recipe calls for a good amount of mayonnaise and parmesan cheese which tastes great but is a little too rich for my weight loss diet. 

Loaded Vegetarian Black Bean Nachos Are A Meal

Loaded vegetarian nachos makes a quick and easy meal or appetizer any night of the week!
It is easy to assemble and is both nutritious and delicious!

It calls for simple vegan ingredients like black beans, chopped tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, salsa, fresh herbs, and seasonings piled on top of one another on a bed of crunchy nacho chips! Sprinkle generously with grated cheese or vegan cheese and bake for just 10 minutes.

Watermelon Limeade is simply Blissful

There is no getting around it, this recipe for fresh watermelon limeade is an all natural beverage that is beautiful to look at and blissful to drink. I made my drink without alcohol, but you could easily add some light rum if you like and then call them cocktails. Whatever you choose, the finished product will be outrageously delicious!

Turn Your Pumpkin Into a Serving Piece + recipes

Turn your "mini pumpkin" into a serving piece in 3 easy steps!

Just slice off the top, scoop, and fill!

I simply took one of my mini pumpkins - the ones that sell for about a $1.00 in most supermarkets or road side stands-, sliced off the top ( this is the tricky part- see instructions below),  scooped out the seeds and filled the pumpkin with dip- turning my pumpkin into a pretty fall "serving piece".

I decorate my kitchen with all kinds of colorful pumpkins and fall squashes this time of the year. I usually have at least 4 or 5 of the mini pumpkins as accents on my shelves. This is the first time I ever thought of actually scooping one out and trying to use it !

I love this idea for a Halloween party, Thanksgiving dinner, Succot, or any fall party. If you entertain a small crowd, you could make one for each person at his/her seat, or for a larger crowd make a few and use them for appetizers accompanied by crudite, GF chips, apple slices, etc. 

My mini pumpkin photo is filled with a simple guacamole 
( mashed  avocado,  diced celery, lemon juice and Himalayan pink salt). Another guacamole recipe is listed below. 

No matter which filling you serve, the presentation will be festive and colorful!

Try One Of These Dips or Fillings

• Homemade Guacamole ( vegan) 
• Homemade Humus ( vegan) 
• Ranch Dressing
• Blue Cheese Dressing
• Greek Yogurt 
• Spinach and artichoke dip  
• black bean dip 
• Egg salad
• pumpkin butter spread
• cranberry sauce
• Cranberry Apple Chuntney ( vegan) 

Some of my easy and delicious GF pumpkin recipes: 
pumpkin pie 
pumpkin pudding bars 
pumpkin rice pudding ( vegan) 

Author: Judee Algazi from Gluten Free A-Z Blog
Prep Time: 3-5 minutes for slicing and scooping the pumpkin

Materials Needed:
A large chefs knife
1 mini pumpkin


How I sliced my mini pumpkin

Instructions: 
As easy as it sounds, it could be a little tricky to slice the pumpkin since the pumpkin is extremely hard. I used a large chopping type knife. I read about this on Pinterest, but it didn't give any instructions, so I had to guess. This is how I sliced it.

I couldn't cut it in one blow so I scored the pumpkin in a circle all around and then cut into it at one of the scored openings. When the knife was in the pumpkin, I then proceeded to use the knife to bang the pumpkin on my counter ( gently) until the pressure started to split the pumpkin. I then cut through and ended up with a clean cut. Good Luck!

DIY Craft: How I made my white Decorated Faux Pumpkins in the photo on the top of the page

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Party Drinks - Watermelon, Kiwi, Lemon

Frozen fruity party drinks are perfect for summer entertaining when we are looking for ways to beat the heat and quench our thirst. Watermelon, kiwi and lemon are three refreshing oldies but goodies that are easy to make and will make a great presentation at your next party or Memorial Day celebration.

Your guests are sure to love them :  Frozen Watermelon Frosty , Frozen Kiwi Mojito or Middle Eastern Lemonade- with or without alcohol . These thirst quenchers are made from natural fruit and other healthy ingredients and are real crowd pleasers!

Albert Waiting for his kiwi mojito in his Pennstate Tee

Frozen Watermelon Frosty   -
This easy drink calls for frozen watermelon chunks. I cut up my watermelon into bite size chunks and then freeze in baggies overnight. The next day you can enjoy the most refreshing drink ever!!Alcoholic or virgin, it tastes great both ways. ( more ingredients in the recipe)

                                         Click for recipe: Frozen Watermelon Frosty 



Frozen Kiwi Mojito  ( plus a tutorial on how to grow and dry mint)- We adore the mint in the mojitos and adding kiwi is an unusual twist on a common drink. Easy, fun, gluten free ,different, and tasty.

                       
                                                        Frozen Kiwi Mojito

Middle Eastern Lemonade -
This recipe is an old family favorite.With lots of fresh lemon, maple syrup and a secret ingredient, it will dazzle your guests. It's non alcoholic , but I'm sure you could spike it to make a hard lemonade!

                             
                                                   Middle Eastern Lemonade

I would love to know if you try them or plan to try them. Please leave a comment..

I'm sharing on Weekend Cooking at Beth Fish Reads where anyone can share a food related post. 

Is alcohol gluten free? 
Go to Celiac.com for a comprehensive list of gluten free alcohol, wine , and even beer. 

Like my recipes? I post lots more ; Follow me on Pinterest Gluten Free A-Z  and Twitter .

Hummus Bruschetta Appetizers

These simple hummus bruschetta appetizers are absolutely delicious, can be made in minutes, and are of course gluten free. I got the idea at a wedding that I recently attended. Who would have thought to combine two favorites on one piece of ( well they used toast); I used gluten free rice crackers. It's a mix of Middle Eastern and Italian.

To make the appetizer, simply use your favorite brand of store bought hummus (or make your own), your favorite brand of store bought bruschetta ( or make your own) and assemble on your rice cracker by first spreading the hummus and then topping it with the bruschetta mixture. If you want  to make your own bruschetta  just,chop  fresh tomatoes, garlic, cucumber, onion and basil very fine and mix with some olive oil, and a gluten free vinegar or lemon juice.  If you have gluten free bread , toast some and make your appetizer on rounds of toast.

Want an appetizer that is fast, but fabulous for a party ? This is it!

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This recipe has been linked to the following blog carnivals-
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Stuffed Pepper Appetiser

This is a raw stuffed pepper appetizer. It's like eating your crudite and dip in one bite. 

If you are trying to eat the recommended 5-9 fruits or vegetables a day for a healthy supply of antioxidants, this recipe will give you a full day's supply! 

The filling contains celery, carrots, fresh parsley, fresh lemon juice, fresh cilantro, raw walnuts, raw cashews, blended and then stuffed into a mini red pepper. And then its topped with a fresh salsa made from sun dried tomatoes, sweet yellow tomatoes, soaked raisins, and fresh basil. Talk about antioxidants!

It is a healthy recipe made from all raw foods. It is delightfully seasoned and very satisfying. It is so healthy, its hard to believe how tasty it is.

The mini peppers are totally sweet and are available in a bag, with a combination of red, orange, and yellow peppers. They are colorful, cute, sweet and appealing. In addition, if you don't use all the filling to stuff the peppers ( it makes a lot) , the filling is a great dip on its own to eat with crudites or corn chips!

When I finished stuffing the peppers for this post, I put some of the filling in a bowl with some chips for my husband, and he just about licked the bowl clean.

*** I purchased the walnuts and cashews at Trader Joe's which tends to be a little more reasonable.

I got a bag of these sweet mini peppers at BJ's; However, Trader Joe's and most supermarkets have them too.


Aren't they cute?

                                     Wash, cut off tops and slice in half lenghtwise.

Ingredients for filling
1/2 cup raw walnuts, soaked at least 4 hours and drained well
1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked at least 4 hours and drained well
1/ 4 cup fresh parsley
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 med carrot, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
Juice of 1 large lemon
1/2 cup water
Seasoning: I used four good shakes of Trader Joe's 21 Salute ( a no salt spice mix)
otherwise: garlic powder, onion powder, or onion flakes, pepper, salt, cayenne, or any spice you like.

Place all of the ingredients in a Vitamix or strong blender or food processor. Mix until well blended. Taste and add extra spices if desired.
Spoon filling into the cavities of each pepper half and set aside while you make the salsa

                   Assemble peppers . Fill each 1/2 mini pepper with the nut and vegetable filling,

 
           Top each pepper with a spoon of my fresh  sundried tomato salsa recipe Serve as appetizer.

                   Eat immediately or refrigerate for about 2 hours. I think it tastes best the next day!