Britta's Bridal Shower is only 10 days away!!! Wow, time sure does fly! Doesn't it seem to go especially fast during the last few weeks of summer? We have been on vacation in Minnesota and the weather is too glorious and my newest nephew too precious to spend too much time on the computer. I had planned on posting shower tidbits everyday, but have not been able to pull myself away.
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Today, I just wanted to share a little bit about the shower menu and few of the key things we are doing to make it a "Bought.Beautifully" menu :). Here is the menu:
As we were deciding on the menu, we knew we wanted delicious food but we also wanted it to be quick and easy to pull together (all of the host will be arriving the day before the shower!) Of course, we also wanted to take the bride's culinary tastes into consideration and finally we used the following guide lines when creating the menu:
1. Use Fair Trade ingredients whenever possible
We strive to buy Fair Trade whenever there is a fair trade alternative and always choose Fair Trade on: coffee, sugar and chocolate. Watch this quick video as to why Fair Trade matters.
2. Use Organic fruits & vegetables whenever possible
There are many reasons to buy organic, but our main reason is that organic farming is healthier and safer (less exposure to poisons and toxics) for the workers planting and harvesting the fruits and vegetables.
3. Local ingredients when possible
We want to support local economies, reduce green house emissions from transporting products long distances, and we love knowing where our food comes from!
I have been testing recipes to find the best options. We live in a small town in Wyoming, finding rare/different/Fair Trade ingredients is often impossible or prohibitively expensive. I typically have to buy most Fair Trade ingredients online. However, last week we made a trip to Montana and stopped at Costco. I couldn't believe the Fair Trade and organic options they had and at awesome prices!!!!!! I found Fair Trade sugar, chocolate chips, other random bars/treats, and many great organic dairy options, cheeses, fruits and veggies.
The entrée for the evening will be a Strawberry Spinach Goat Cheese Salad.
I made the salad last week to test it out. It is delicious! Although I am still looking for the perfect vinaigrette, one that is not too strong but compliments creamy goat cheese and sweet strawberries? Any one have any suggestions? Please share with me in the comment section.
Strawberry Goat Cheese Salad:
It is so easy, just adjust quantities to how many people you will be serving.
~ Spinach or mixed greens - from your garden or farmers market or the store
~ Strawberries
~ Goat Cheese
~ Grilled Chicken - cooled and shredded
~ Candied Almonds - I used this recipe, it is not too sweet and super easy to make.
~ The perfect Vinaigrette...Any suggestions? I think I will try this one next.
Mix everything together and enjoy!
Stay tuned for the next recipe - Cindy's Homemade Fair Trade Caramel Sauce....YUMMMMM!
Also, if you are interested here are a few more links about Fair Trade:
FairTrade Resource Network - A slew of information