How to throw the best (and easiest) Friendsgiving with Tony’s Fresh Market

Posted in Chicago, entertaining, Holiday, recipe by thechicagogoodlife

It’s that time of the year! My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving, but Friendsgiving is a close second. I love having my friends in our home, catching up and spending time together before the craziness of the holidays. But in reality, our home isn’t huge, specifically the kitchen. After years of hosting this annual tradition, my husband and I have somewhat gotten this hosting thing kind of figured out. I wanted to share some easy recipes and tips we have learned along the way, with some help with all the ingredients from Tony’s Fresh Market. They have some specials on turkeys, their produce is some of the best and I even got some of the table decor there. Best part of it all? You are just having your friends over, so it doesn’t need to be perfect! Some time spent together is really what it’s about.

I am sharing 10 tips along with our brunch Friendsgiving menu below. Welcome to cooking with the Good Life!

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Tips for throwing a kid friendly football party

Posted in entertaining by thechicagogoodlife

NFL is officially back! I actually love watching football on Sundays, one of the best parts of fall. The food, friends and watching my oh-so-sad Chicago Bears. Before kids, my Sunday Funday would be spent out at brunch with bottomless mimosas and greasy food, but time has changed all that. Now, we usually have families here with kids and a few less mimosas. But it’s still so much fun, I look forward to it every week.

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1Feb2018

Game on: A Kid-Friendly Super Bowl

Posted in entertaining by thechicagogoodlife

Super Bowl is one of my favorite events of the year, but you guessed right, not for the game. But for THE FOOD. Super Bowl food is the best. I took some classic Super Bowl recipes, fun hosting ideas and made them a little bit more kid-friendly. So whether you have a family or a party with kids, there is a little something for everyone to get you ready for the big game!

Setup
I love hosting. It’s one of my favorite things to do. But if there are a lot of people, especially with little ones, I need easy ideas for setup and clean up. I decided to minimize the dishes and use Solo Cup Products to make clean up easy and less complicated. They are completely disposable, recyclable and really durable. Once you are done with them, they can also be used for kids to write and color on them. It’s a win, win right?

Some fast and easy ideas are a snack bar, pigs in a blanket, tater tot skewers and individual 7 layer dip cups (because nothing says football more than dip).

SOLO has write on cups that are perfect to label the snacks. The kids can make their own snack bowls with lids. These bowls are easy for them to hold and whatever they don’t finish, the bowls serve as to-go cups. The small, clear cups are the perfect size for the individual 7 layer dip cups. Lastly, the paper plates are the adults for the skewers and other snacks. Don’t forget about the red and blue cups for the adult or kid beverages you serve. Plus, they add lots of color to your table.

Snack Bar
The best part of a snack bar is that you can customize it to your guests preferences. Since this is more kid friendly, the options are kid friendly, but even adults would enjoy them (I know I do!)

Snacks
Here are the snacks I used:

kid puffs
graham crackers
ring pops (everyone’s a champion!
M & M’s
pretzels
Doritos
blue corn chips

Pigs in a Blanket
This is an appetizer that everyone likes. You can definitely make them with recipes like this or you can buy them frozen, whatever makes your life easier! But either way, they are a great for kids and adults.

7 Layer Dip
These are perfect for a few reasons. The cups are very sturdy, so they are able to hold a lot without feeling too heavy. They are great size for those small hands and you don’t have to worry about any double dipping 🙂

Ingredients:

1 (16 ounce) can refried beans
1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning
1 cup guacamole or homemade guacamole
1 (8 ounce) container sour cream
1 cup chunky salsa
1 cup shredded cheddar or Mexican blend cheese (I used both!)
2 Roma tomatoes , diced
1/2 bunch of green onions, sliced
1 (2.25 ounce) can of sliced olives, drained (Optional- my son doesn’t like olives)
6 (9 ounce) SOLO cup plastic cups
tortilla chips (I like blue corn chips)

Instructions:

In a small bowl mix taco seasoning with refried beans.
Add about 2-2 1/2 tablespoons for each layer
- Layer 1: beans and taco seasoning
- Layer 2: sour cream
- Layer 3: guacamole
- Layer 4: pico de gallo
- Layer 5: cheese
- Layer 6: tomatoes
- Layer 7: green onions and olives
Garnish with one tortilla chip. Store in the refrigerator until serving and serve with chips. Makes around 6 individual dips.

super bowl kid friendly ideas using solo products. Snacks and food

Tater Tot Skewers
These are super easy to make and really fun to eat. You can eat them right off the skewer or add it to your SOLO plate. 15-20 minutes at 425 degrees, let them cool and add 4-5 tots to each skewer. You can add ketchup to the small SOLO cups for dipping.

So if you are inviting friends over to watch the Super Bowl or watching it with your family, enjoy the game, whoever is playing….most importantly, enjoy the food with a no fuss clean up.

Until next time,

Christine

This post was sponsored by SOLO cup however all opinions and experiences are my own!

20Jan2018

Getting Cheesy: National Cheese Lover’s Day Party

Posted in entertaining by thechicagogoodlife

Let’s be honest, who doesn’t love cheese? It is one of my favorite things to eat and create some really fun dishes with. Since cheese is always such a hit, I decided to throw a cheese party for my friends (and for my son because it’s his absolute favorite). And why not a MAC N’ CHEESE BAR?! I have a few vegetarian friends and this would be perfect. Everyone can customize their own mac n’ cheese bowls and we can celebrate National Cheese Lover’s Day!

Setup

Since the holidays, I have been kind of entertained out. Over doing the dishes, the clean up, etc. I also have a toddler running around, so something fast and easy is preferred. I decided to minimize the dishes and use Solo Cup Products to make my clean up easy and less complicated. They are completely disposable, recyclable and really durable. I knew this would be the best option, but still keeping my party looking right.

They have write on cups that are perfect to label all the toppings. It looks clean and organized in your setup. Everyone can make their own mac n’ cheese bowls with lids Whatever they don’t finish, the bowls serve as to-go plates. Lastly, the paper plates serve for meat and cheese platters. It’s perfect and fuss-free.

Mac n’ Cheese Bar

And for the best part: the MAC N’ CHEESE. Honestly, you could make it from scratch or get a pre-made box. Whatever makes your life easier. From scratch, I like recipes like this. But you can grab a box and totally add in your own ingredients. I took a box of mac n’ cheese, added mild cheddar cheese, bread crumbs and baked it at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. It turned out DELICIOUS!

Toppings

Cheese is so versatile. It can be paired with so much. Here are the toppings I used:

hot dogs
salumi
bacon bits
cheeze its
broccoli
spinach
jalapenos
green onion
cubed cheese

Extras

The more cheese the better right? For an appetizer, I made a meat and cheese plate with salami, cheddar and pepper jack cheese with pita crackers. Really, anything would work; spinach artichoke dip, cheese dip, etc.

For the drinks, the best wine to pair with macaroni and cheese all depends on how fancy and cheesy your mac and cheese is. With a regular, old-fashioned recipe, you might just want a simple glass of white wine. An unoaked Chardonnay might be your best bet for an original recipe or even a dry Riesling. If you got a little fancy and added truffles to your recipe, champagne pairs perfectly. No wine drinkers? Cider pairs well with cheese too.

A party that will please everyone with an easy clean up? To go cups already set!