My friend’s John and Irene have an online wine store (Topochines.com) that sells Croatian wine as well as wines from a few other countries. The wines are always unique and from off the beaten path wineries. I had sampled some of the Croatian wine and knew that I needed to introduce these wines to others in Charleston. I decided to put together a wine tasting and invited some of my wine pals to partake. Happily, I ended up being 15 folks who heeded the call. It turned out that we sampled a total of 12 wines: six Croatian wines, four…
Leave a CommentTag: Appetizer
Recently I had a couple of situations when I needed to make an appetizer for a party or event. The ask came up last minute, and so I needed to scramble to find something that would be quick and easy. I have two quickies for you. Sandwiched between the recipes, I figured that some of you may still have some shopping to do for your mom. I have a few affordable wine gifts for your last minute Mother’s Day shopping. Easy Appetizer: Velveeta Sausage Dip I am sure that everyone has seen a recipe like this one. My sister really likes to…
4 Comments…When There is No Time Last Friday, Gary and I had our neighbor and dear friend Natalie over for Happy Hour. It had been months since we had some quality time with just her. But On Friday, the planets aligned and we had nothing on our schedule, and she was kid and boyfriend free. Now don’t get any ideas her kids are amazing, and we love them like our own, and we like her boyfriend too, but we were craving some “Nat time.” So the three of us got comfy in our three season room (aka Church of the Screened in Porch)…
Leave a CommentThis past weekend Gary and I had two couples over for dinner. I had several recipes I wanted to try and needed a few guinea pigs. Enter Bryan & Craig and Shawn & Michael. For me, this was an all-day affair as I just decided what yo make on Friday morning and I needed to get to the store asap. But my Friday was a hot mess with a wine delivery by UPS that I had to sign for so I could not leave the house until it arrived. And that was at 4:30p and I had to pick Gary up at…
3 CommentsIf you have been following me for very long you have quickly learned that I love cheese and bread. I can never get enough of either. And they both are perfect with wine. While I do not eat it often the epitome of this pair is fondue. But I never eat fondue because it is a big pain in the butt and can be very messy. Decades ago at a party, had an appetizer that was a baked cheddar bread bite that was amazing and I have never forgotten it. I never was able to find a recipe so it…
2 CommentsLast Sunday, we got together for Happy Hour with our fave neighbors Michelle and Natalie. Michelle hosted at her house which was perfect because both families of kids could all play together in another room and toys were aplenty to keep them occupied. I volunteered an appetizer to help out. I have been daydreaming about making a gruyere and caramelized onion tart, but I was too exhausted from Saturday’s wedding to deal with and make a crust so I decided that Bisquick biscuit bites would be the way to go. For some reason using Bisquick for a drop biscuit is acceptable in my brain…
2 CommentsToday was our neighbor Natalie’s mother’s birthday, and her parents were in town. Gary and I have grown close to Nat and her parents, so she invited us over for happy hour to start the celebration before they had dinner. I promised to make a couple of appetizers, and of course, we would bring a bottle of wine. We were prepared to stay for an hour or so and then allow the family to have a dinner celebration. Appetizer Platter I knew I wanted to “bring it” since Natalie always makes such fab appetizers to bring to our house. It…
1 CommentYears ago when I lived in Chicago, there was a natural foods store that competed against Whole Foods and for what ever reason that is where I shopped for my organics and natural foods. They had this incredible spread made with sun-dried tomato and some cheese as well as other ingredients, and it was so incredibly good. A container of this spread was always in my fridge. The flavors were intense and rich and creamy and absolutely delicious. Then Whole Foods bought this chain of stores, closed them all and the spread disappeared, never to be seen again. I know it…
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