Last night we had our friends over for dinner. When I was planning the menu I wanted to do something that would be adult and kid friendly which always seems to be a challenge for me. I was trying to avoid taking the easy way out of it by ordering pizzas again so I came up with a better plan.
The menu that I came up with was a “Create Your own Pizza”. This was a fun way to interact with our guests and have fun. I ordered the dough from a local pizza place which made it very easy. I put out lots of pizza toppings such as pepperoni, pineapple, olives, ham, artichoke hearts, jalapenos, green peppers, mushrooms etc. Everyone made their own individual pizza and shaped it however they wanted. This was so much fun and I highly recommend this for a small dinner party!
The Menu:
Pizza
Salad
Appetizers:
Parmesan Breaded Artichoke Hearts
Marinara Cream Cheese Dip
Antipasto Platter
I LOVE fried artichoke hearts so I wanted to try a baked version of something similar. I was so happy with how this recipe came out. I never measure and I do things pretty haphazardly in the kitchen but I am going to do my best to give you this recipe because it was so YUMMY. I also made a marinara Cream Cheese Dip that was perfect for dipping the artichoke hearts and sliced french bread into.
{See recipes below}
Parmesan Breaded Artichoke Hearts
3-4 Cans Quartered Artichoke Hearts
(I used 2 bags of frozen artichoke hearts from trader Joe’s)
1 Cup of Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs
1/2 Cup of Parmesan Cheese
1 Teaspoon of Minced Garlic (optional)
4-6 Tablespoons of Italian Salad Dressing
Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl.
Spray a Cookie Sheet with Oil
Put on Cookie Sheet
Bake on 350 Degrees for 20 Minutes
Broil for 5 Minutes
{the measurements for this dish are my guesstimates, I never measure}
Marinara Cream Cheese Dip
1 Package of Cream Cheese, softened
1 Jar of your favorite Spaghetti Sauce
1 Cup Of your Favorite Grated Cheese
2 Tablespoon of Sliced Olives
Spread cream cheese into a baking dish. I used my pie baking dish.
Spread the cream cheese on the bottom of the dish.
Pour the Marinara Sauce on the top.
Sprinkle with Cheese and Olives.
Bake on 350 for 15-20 minutes
(I think that the dish would also taste amazing if you replaced the cream cheese for Ricotta Cheese or Cottage Cheese)
*Serve with Parmesan Breaded Artichoke Hearts & Sliced French Bread.
YUM!!
Erin @ How to Nest for Less - WOW, absolutely gorgeous! LOVE how you even let the kiddos help out
Thanks for linking up this week. I’m featuring you tomorrow!!
Lessons Learned: My Favorite Projects {February 24th} - [...] about a fab dining room makeover? Aimee from Mommy Babble painted over her red walls to create this (and even had her kiddos help out!). Just goes to show how [...]