And the winner is...

And the winner is....well you can check your local paper or the Internet to find out who were the winners for the 2013 Oscars but for me the true winners were two of my sisters. Their creativity knew no bounds with this Red Carpet event. 

Here are some DIY ideas for your next themed party. 

This is a creative use for tux and wedding dress boxes from the dollar store. The heads at the top of the boxes represented some of the nominees. Each photo was secured on to the box with double stick tape at the bottom of the photo. Can you spot Sally Field? Or how about Jennifer Lawrence?

These carnival ticket tape bowls are by far the most creative DIY craft I have come across in years. Each bowl is made with just one package of tickets from Office Depot or Office Max. The tickets come in a variety of colors.  Remember all the Mod Podge glue projects from the 70's and 80's ? That is the glue used for the final application to hold the bowl shape.  

http://modpodgerocksblog.com/2011/04/carnival-ticket-bowl-with-glitter.html

this is the link to the very easy detailed directions and it is a Pinterest project 

Roast Beef Spiral Appetizers

Cook's notes: These appetizers were very easy to put together and make 16 using the ingredients below.

I used a basil Dijon mustard which gave a little kick to the flavor.

Ingredients:

1/2 LB. deli roast beef (use a high quality brand)

Swiss cheese slices

Bibb lettuce

Dijon mustard

Flatbread

this product comes in different flavors-I used Italian Herb

Directions:

Lay one soft crust on cutting board and brush lightly with mustard over the crust

Assemble on the soft crust: 2 slices of roast beef, Swiss cheese slices and 2 pieces of Bibb lettuce

Roll tightly and cover each log with plastic wrap and refrigerate. You will have 4 logs. To serve cut each log into fourths for 16 spiral appetizers..

Revised Spinach Puffs

Cook's notes: This recipe was recently posted from Bon Appetit magazine 2012. I made several adaptations so posting my revisions. The other Spinach Puff recipe was made in a regular size muffin pan. I chose to make mine smaller in a mini muffin pan. This recipe makes 16 appetizers. While working with one sheet of puff pastry keep other one wrapped and chilled till ready to use

Ingredients:

• 1/2 of a 10 oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry with paper towels and then let dry out some in a colander.  The spinach needs to have moisture out otherwise filling will make puffs soggy.
• 3/4 cup Swiss cheese but crumbled Feta or Gorgonzola works
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/4 cup minced onion
• 1 TB. olive oil
• 1 tsp. dried dill
• 1/2 tsp. garlic (from a jar)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 box frozen Puff Pastry thawed (you will use a sheet and a half)

Directions:

• In a bowl add spinach  and next 6 ingredients. season with salt and pepper. 
• In a small bowl whisk 1 egg and fold into spinach mixture-reserve other egg
• On a floured surface very lightly roll pastry sheet just to press together perforations-cut int three strips and then cut other direction forming squares
• Press each square into muffin tin pressing into bottom and up sides.
• add a heaping teaspoon to each pastry square
• Fold pastry over filling pressing corners to meet in center
• Whisk other egg with 1 tsp. water-use a pastry brush to lightly coat tops of the puffs
• Puffs can be made ahead but cover with wax paper and chill
• Bake 400 for 17 minutes watch on the last minute so puffs do not overcook
• Cool on a wire rack

Side note: I was side tracked on Red Carpet events so grown-up Macaroni and Cheese will be posted next  time