Few things are more fun to me than having a casual night in with the girls. We're talking yoga pants, gossip, wine, and of course... food!
The fun of it all comes from the comfort of knowing that you don't have to get dressed up and spend a lot of money to have a blast. When I have the girls over, I like to keep a casual and cozy ambiance and make it special with the type of food I serve.
I know it can be tempting to order pizza (which is ok every once in a while), or open up a bag of chips and a jar of salsa and call it a day. But with little more effort than it takes to decide on thin crust or pan, you can throw a pretty nice little shindig without the help of Pies-to-Go.
Tonight, I'm having a few girls over for what has become known around here as "Wine & Grey's Thursday", and I'm putting a little Italian spin on the menu. Since Steve is out of town on business, I'm going all out with the gluten-filled products that I rarely indulge in anymore! Of course, if you're trying to keep it a little healthier, you can swap out the carbs for something a little more figure friendly. Here's my menu:
- Kalamata, Green Olive, and Artichoke Heart Antipasti
- Rosemary Focaccia
- Pasta Caprese
- Drunken Berries over Almond Sour Cream Pound Cake
That's amore, folks. 😉
Usually, I keep the options a little more "snacky", but since I've invited everyone over around dinner time, I chose some heartier selections.
Hungry yet? Well, I'm going to keep you in suspense over the savory recipes, but with Valentine's Day just around the corner, I'll share my dessert recipe in case you're looking for something sweet to share with your sweetie!
Drunken Berries over Almond Sour Cream Pound Cake
Ingredients
- 1 Pound Cake
- Assorted berries I bought blueberries & strawberries
- Limoncello Italian Lemon Liqueur
- Whipped Cream
Instructions
- Follow directions for pound cake recipe. When cooled, cut a few slices (about 1 inch thick) & cut into cubes or desired sized pieces.
- In a small bowl, combine berries & a few shots of limoncello. If you don't want to use limoncello or can't find it, I'm sure a few tablespoons of lemonade concentrate diluted with a little water would probably have the same effect, though your berries won't really be "drunken" if you take this approach. 😉 Let berries "marinate" in the refrigerator (when we're talking fruit it's actually called mascerating, but who needs to be all fancy?) for up to a few hours.
- In a dessert cup or other pretty vessel (martini glass would be nice!), place a few pieces of cubed pound cake.
- Spoon berries over pound cake, making sure you get some of the limoncello from the bottom of the bowl for it to soak up into the cake.
- Top with whipped cream.
While this may look and even sound very luxurious, you'll see that it's actually "Fake Out Fancy"... but you don't have to tell your girls how simple it was to put together. 😉
Salute to a comfy Girls Night In!
