party food – Page 12 – Simply Delicious: The Cookbook Project

9-2: Mexican Fiesta

Jamie Martin Group 09: Ground Meat & Sausage, Section 2: Main Courses July 21, 2016July 5, 2020appetizers, black olives, broiled, canola oil, casserole, cheese, chili powder, chopped, dinner, dips, easy, egg-free, garlic, ground beef, ground meat, guacamole, inexpensive, lunch, melted, Mexican, minced, Monterey Jack, Mozzarella, nachos, party food, Pepper Jack, pimento, pinto beans, sautéed, side dish, snacks, sour cream, tacos, Tex-Mex, tomato sauce, tortilla chips, untested, yellow onions

9-2: Mexican Fiesta sounds exciting, but it’s really just poorly layered nachos. I know that they were trying to make it seem like a casserole, but all the good stuff that goes in tacos/nachos is basically layered in a pan and covered with a layer of chips on top. I think you’re supposed to eat it like a dip? 🌮

I like the touch of the Corona with a lime in the background of their picture, like all of a sudden that makes it a party. I can’t think of too many decent Mexican places that would serve something like this, but if you want something festive yet inoffensive for a party or a lengthy Netflix session, I suppose this recipe could get the job done. 🌶

8-11: Sirloin Steak Baked In Foil

Adam Martin Group 08: Beef, Section 2: Main Courses July 20, 2016October 18, 2020beef, beef bouillon, beef broth, black pepper, blanched, boiled, broiled, butter, chopped, deglazed, dinner, easy, egg-free, fairly expensive, foil pouch, garlic, gluten-free, julienned, lunch, mushrooms, pan-fried, paprika, party food, red wine, salt, sautéed, sirloin, steak, untested, vegetables, yellow onions

I have never cooked steak using the method in this recipe, 8-11: Sirloin Steak Baked in Foil, before and I probably would never cook them this way again. I like all the extra garnish, but it is a pain to cut and prepare that many vegetables for people to pick around to get to the main ingredient, the BEEF. 🐮

I used the red wine suggestion on the card, but I felt like I should have used beef broth to keep the beef-y flavor. This recipe also keeps a trend going, sticking with the foil pouch cooking method that Jamie used in the previous recipe on here, 6-25: Salmon-Filled Chicken Breasts.

15-1: Lemon Mousse

Jamie Martin Group 15: Cold Desserts, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods July 12, 2016July 30, 2020chilled, citrus, Cointreau, cold desserts, creamed, creamy, dessert, egg whites, egg yolks, eggs, fairly easy, fairly inexpensive, folded, fruit, gelatin, gluten-free, granulated sugar, grated, lemon juice, lemons, liquor, mousse, orange juice, oranges, party food, ramekins, snacks, summer, untested, whipped, whipping cream, zested

It took more than two years, but I’ve finally ventured into the last untouched dessert category – Group 15: Cold Desserts – with 15-1: Lemon Mousse. I’ve experimented with mousse before, both within this project and in my own cooking (here’s one of my desserts from my restaurant days), but I’ve never made this version. It’s simple, refreshing, and a good summer dessert. 🍋

This recipe is for lemon, but you could probably substitute orange, lime, or something else citrusy that’s similar if you want to get creative/different with it. This freezes/holds well, so you can make it even further in advance of the night before if you want. ❄

11-14: Tempura

Adam Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses July 2, 2016January 21, 2023all-purpose flour, appetizers, Asian, asparagus, broccoli, canola oil, carrots, daikon radish, dairy-free, deep fryer, deep-fried, dinner, egg whites, egg yolks, eggs, expensive, fairly hard, fish, fried, ginger, granulated sugar, grated, herbs and spices, hors d'oeuvres, Japanese, lunch, mushrooms, pan-fried, pared, party food, potatoes, rice, rockfish, saké, sesame oil, shellfish, shrimp, side dish, snacks, snap peas, soy sauce, sweet potatoes, turnips, vegetables, vegetarian, yellow onions, zucchini

This recipe, 11-14: Tempura tastes great, but the amount of prep is so arduous that I would rather pay a chef at a restaurant to make it for me.

Mixed tempura is my favorite starter dish whenever Jamie and I go out to a sushi restaurant. 🍣

13-2: Onion Tart

Jamie Martin Group 13: Vegetarian Dishes, Section 2: Main Courses July 1, 2016July 29, 2020all-purpose flour, appetizers, bacon, baked goods, black pepper, breakfast, butter, cheese, chilled, creamy, dinner, dough, egg yolks, eggs, fairly easy, flute, food processor, gift ideas, grated, Gruyère, herbs and spices, inexpensive, lunch, nutmeg, Parmesan, party food, pastry, pie crust, salt, sautéed, tart, tart pan, untested, vegetables, vegetarian, yellow onions

It’s hard to think of things to write about something you cooked awhile ago–a moment of honesty while I get my gears turning here. 13-2: Onion Tart is a great vegetarian (with a modification or two) option that satisfies everyone for any meal of the day. It’s not super exciting (which explains my inability to think of anything particularly interesting to say about it), but it’s definitely a pretty good fallback option if you’re in need of an easy, crowd-pleasing, inoffensive, yet impressive recipe.

Simply Delicious notes that this recipe is French and that this version comes from the Alsace region of the country. I found a few other takes on that version scattered around the Internet, but give or take some bacon and Gruyère cheese, they’re all relatively similar to this one. 🍷

17-27: Nut Cookies

Adam Martin Group 17: Baked Goods, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods June 30, 2016November 8, 2020all-purpose flour, baked goods, brown sugar, butter, cookies, creamed, creamy, easy, eggs, fairly inexpensive, gift ideas, hazelnuts, parchment paper, party food, rye flour, snacks, untested, vegetarian

17-27: Nut Cookies are tremendous. My mother certainly never baked cookies like this. She is into the traditional chocolate chip variety only. 🍪

This was my first time baking with rye flour, which we had left over from when Jamie made 17-37: Holiday Cookies. 🌰

17-26: Breakfast Crescents

Adam Martin Group 17: Baked Goods, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods June 28, 2016November 8, 2020all-purpose flour, baked goods, breads, breakfast, brunch, crescents, dairy-free, dough, egg-free, gift ideas, granulated sugar, kneaded, lunch, party food, proofed, salt, snacks, vegan, vegetarian, yeast

Baking is still new to me, so I took this recipe, 17-26: Breakfast Crescents as another chance to experiment with yeast again. These crescents taste very much like a loaf of bread, just in crescent roll form.

This is just a simple bread recipe where you roll the dough into crescents.

13-5: Onion Focaccia

Adam Martin Group 13: Vegetarian Dishes, Section 2: Main Courses June 26, 2016October 28, 2020all-purpose flour, appetizers, baked goods, breads, dairy-free, dough, egg wash, eggs, fairly easy, fairly inexpensive, focaccia, garlic, granulated sugar, green onions, Italian, kneaded, lunch, minced, olive oil, party food, proofed, red onions, revisited, salt, sautéed, side dish, snacks, vegetables, vegetarian, yeast

Jamie made this dish previously, without documenting the process, and I really enjoyed the bread. I took a shot at making this dish to practice using yeast to make a dough.

My final dish was not circular like a pizza, it was easier to flatten the dough into a square like a flatbread.

17-33: Coconut Coffee Rolls

Jamie Martin Group 17: Baked Goods, Section 3: Desserts & Baked Goods June 24, 2016September 13, 2020all-purpose flour, baked goods, breakfast, butter, coconut, coffee, creamy, dessert, dough, egg-free, fairly hard, fairly inexpensive, favorites, gift ideas, granulated sugar, grated, icing, kneaded, melted, milk, muffins, party food, proofed, salt, snacks, untested, vegetarian, yeast

Here’s some easy breakfast or snack rolls to make that can get super addictive. 17-33: Coconut Coffee Rolls don’t necessarily need to be consumed with coffee if that’s not your bag, but they do pair nicely for a morning pick-me-up. 🌴☕️

I’ve made coconut rolls before, but they were somewhat different (17-67: Coconut Crescents) and I used those as part of my 2015 holiday gifts. Most of these rolls didn’t even make it out of the house–usually I try to distribute the majority of the baked good products of this project to my friends and family to avoid eating all of it ourselves.

1-4: Ham and Cheese Sandwich

Jamie Martin Group 01: Hot & Cold Appetizers, Section 1: Appetizers & Starters June 23, 2016December 24, 2019appetizers, basil, broiled, butter, Cheddar, cheese, cooked chicken, dinner, easy, egg-free, French, fried, Gruyère, inexpensive, lunch, melted, pan-fried, panini, parsley, party food, salt, sandwiches, smoked ham, snacks, tarragon, tomatoes, untested, waffle iron, white bread, yellow mustard

Hope you’ve been enjoying my husband/co-writer Adam’s posts–he’s having fun writing them. I’m a bit behind on my own posting, so this is one I “cooked” a while ago. 1-4: Ham and Cheese Sandwich is exactly what it sounds like, hence the quotations around “cooked”–it’s basically a grilled cheese with ham in it.

As in 2-24: Parisian-Mushroom Salad, this is a French recipe somewhat simplified–the running theme throughout much of Simply Delicious. The croque monsieur is indeed a well-known French recipe, and lots of different takes on it exist out there.