Mashed Potato Balls

Mashed potato balls with hot sauce

One night I was laying in bed and wondered how I could make the mashed potatoes into an appetizer.  I love mashed potatoes and cheese so, I thought I'd fuse them into a tasty ball.  I roll the balls in seasoned bread crumbs and then bake them the balls a give a nice firm shell. Once baked I serve them with a spicy sauce to kick them up a bit.

Lasagna Shells

Lasagna Shells

I'm all about finger foods and lasagna is one of my favourite meals.  I got tired of cooking it in a big pan and then having to cut it and it getting messy.  So, I just decided to make a compact version in a neat little shell that I could easily pick up with my fingers.  No mess, no need for knives.  Just two quick little bites.

Filled shells is nothing new, but this version bursts with a savoury spinach meat sauce and is loaded with a three-cheese blend.  This is a complete meal all on it's own.

Birthday Formal Dinner

Last weekend I had the honor of catering a 40th birthday party.  The event was a formal dinner at the host's home for a group of 15 people.  My main focus is appetizers parties so this event was going to take more effort and planning.  I was confident in my food but I was nervous about everything happening at the right time. My biggest concern was serving warm, fresh food (I hate serving my food when it gets cold).  I wanted my food to be warm but not dry so I told the host it was very important for us to stay on schedule: appetizers at 5pm, dinner at 6pm.  We stuck to that time!

The host selected zucchini bites, chickpeas bundles, and island skewers for appetizers for the guests to enjoy before dinner.  I had 2 servers offering these to guests.   They did a great job making sure all the guests were satisfied. 

Servers with appetizers

Dinner started with the serving of butternut squash soup and mango salad.  The main course consisted of a choice of 2 meat selections (salmon, goat, jerk chicken), rice and peas, grilled vegetables dressed with balsamic vinegar, and plantain rolls.  Dessert was  my famous "bullet cake".  I got great compliments on the meal and service. 

My bullet cake

I'm glad the night went as planned and the host was happy.  I had a great time and it was good to see people's reaction to the flavours in the food.