Party with a Purpose: VSA Alabama Acoustic Soup

I had such a good time judging the soup-off for the 5th Annual Acoustic Soup in my hometown of Birmingham, Alabama! Great soup, great music, and a wonderful cause... VSA Alabama.  

We've been talking about how much fun hosting a SOUPer Bowl Showdown for Super Bowl Sunday would be. Well, tonight's party was just that! Eighteen top restaurants and caterers battled it out for best soup. Here was the lineup:

 AVO: Laksa, B&A WAREHOUSE: Potato Ham, BARKING KUDU: French Roux Gumbo, BISTRO PROVARE: Roasted Corn Chowder, BISTRO V: Chicken Andouille Gumbo, CENTURY RESTAURANT AT THE TUTWILER: Roasted Chicken Gumbo, CHEF U: Kohlrabi Ham Hock Soup, CRAZY CAJUN: Seafood Gumbo YaYa, JACKSON'S: Roasted Tomato Soup, LITTLE SAVANNAH: Chocolate Soup, LUCY'S COFFEE & TEA: Cheatin' on Winter Pea Soup, MAFIAOZA'S: Pasta Fagioli, MICHAEL'S STEAKS & SEAFOOD: Tequila Lime Chicken, OLEXA'S CAFE:Tomato Basil Bisque, TRATTORIA CENTRALE: Creamy Mushroom, WYNFREY HOTEL: Spicy Italian Lentil and Grilled Butternut Squash

My partner in crime for the night was my friend and rockstar cheesemaker, Tasia Malakasis of Belle Chevre. You've probably read some of my recent ravings about her deliciously yummy breakfast spreads. Anyway-- we got to sample every single soup at least once! And some, we had to try twice. We really took our job seriously... it was so difficult to select a winner because there were so many excellent soups!!

THE WINNERS! 

I had my favorites narrowed down to a top five going in to the final judging: The Wynfrey Hotel's Spicy Italian Lentil, Michael's Tequila Lime Chicken, Crazy Cajun's Seafood Gumbo YaYa, B&A Warehouse's Potato Ham, and the Chocolate Soup from Little Savannah topped my list. Tasia had her own favorites. We compared notes and decided that we could not name just one! Our winners:

JUDGE'S FAVORITE: TEQUILA LIME CHICKEN by Michael's Steak & Seafood

HONORABLE MENTION: CHOCOLATE SOUP by Little Savannah

BEST TABLETOP DISPLAY: Olexa's Cafe, Cakes, & Catering

Guests were given a guitar pick when they arrived to vote. The soup with the most picks won the audience favorite.   

AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARD: Wynfrey Hotel's SPICY ITALIAN LENTIL SOUP

VSA is a wonderful organization; they are dedicated to serving children and adults with disabilities and chronic illnesses through the arts. They provide therapy through art to many individuals, schools, hospitals, and other organizations. The national organization was founded by Jean Kennedy Smith and offers visual arts, drama, creative writing, drumming and rhythm, creative movement, music therapy, and art therapy programming. It's a wonderful cause and I am thrilled to have been asked to be a part of it all.

***Big shout out to Michael, Tiffany, Tiffany, and Megan for the wonderful experience!

Visit the VSA Alabama website to see all they do for those with disabilities.

Martie Knows Parties: Host a Souper Bowl Showdown

We are getting ready for Super Bowl Sunday; February 6th will be here before you know it! Who are you pulling for? Packers or Steelers? Who's going to win it all ?

Host a SOUPer Bowl Showdown!Take the competition to your party, too! One of my favorite party themes is where everyone brings their favorite dish for a SHOWDOWN! Who doesn't think their BBQ, or gumbo, soup, or ribs are the best?? When it is chilly outside, a soup buffet is really the perfect foundation for a party. Warm, comforting, affordable, easy to serve, easy to prepare in advance….. What’s not to like about soup?

We're going to be featuring great soup recipes all month for our big SOUPER BOWL SHOWDOWN! 

You can host your own SOUPER BOWL SHOWDOWN for Super Bowl Sunday, it's simple!

Invite your friends over to watch the big game and issue the SOUP SHOWDOWN CHALLENGE. Ask everyone to make a big pot of their favorite soup for the competition and bring printed copies of the recipe to share. (or you can email all of the recipes after the fact)

Number all of the entries as they arrive if you want to keep them anonymous. I usually ask guests to bring their soup in a crock pot so it stays warm; it's easier to transport that way, also.

Vickie's Golden Cheese ChowderYou supply the beverages, crusty bread, crackers, and a condiment bar of mix-ins and toppings: croutons, bacon, different cheeses, sour cream, green onions, chives, Tabasco and other hot sauces, etc. 

Provide ballots and ask guests to vote for their favorite soup and award prizes for the winners! Kitchen gadgets are always a fun prize. Or a huge ladle "trophy" that changes hands each year.

WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE SOUP? JOIN IN ON THE SOUPER FUN! FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK!

TRY ONE OF THESE SOUP RECIPES!

MARTIE'S ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP

JEAN'S FAVORITE REUBEN CHOWDER

BLP= BACON, LEEK & POTATO SOUP

DON'S BLACK BEAN SOUP

TERRI'S BRUNSWICK STEW

VICKIE'S GOLDEN CHEESE CHOWDER

MARTIE'S SECRET CHICKEN & SAUSAGE GUMBO

Celebrate Spain's World Cup Win with Summer Sangria, Tapas, and Paella!

Spain's win in the World Cup yesterday inspired me to plan a weekend get-together with some Spanish flair. I love almost everything to do with Spanish cuisine and love tapas (little dishes) for almost every party theme. You can do a variety of hot and cold tapas and just graze all night, in fact!

SUMMER SANGRIA

You need to do this early in the day or even the day before you want to serve. This is a white wine sangria and there's no real need to measure. Chop up summer fruits: slice lemon, lime, apple, pear, cherries, strawberries, oranges; use whatever you have. Put these in the bottom of a large container. Add 2 tablespoons sugar over the fruit so they start to release their juices. Add 1/4 cup brandy and a bottle of dry white wine. Squeeze in the juice of one orange and one lemon. Allow to sit for at least 2 hours but longer is better. When you are ready to serve, transfer into a pretty pitcher or dispenser filled with ice and pour 1/2 bottle of club soda over the top for a refreshing fizz. I always keep some of the fruit on reserve and fill glasses with it for garnish. So pretty!

Or try this last minuteSangria recipe from MyRecipes.com.... it's really good and very fast!

COLD TAPAS SUGGESTIONS

Head over to your local Whole Foods or other quality market and look for Spanish olives, Manchego cheese, and Serano ham or chorizo.... these will be the perfect starters for this casual party theme. Put these out on a cutting board or serving platter with a fresh baguette. Try these ideas-- no real recipe necessary for most of them; they are very simple. But let me know if you need a specific recipe.

Aceitunas Alinadas: Marinated Spanish Olives

Salmón Curado: Cured salmon with dill sour cream on toast points (just add fresh dill to sour cream)

Berenjena Con Queso: Chilled grilled eggplant and goat cheese

Patatas con Alioi:  Garlic potato salad (add roast garlic to mayo before mixing)

Tortilla Espanola: Spanish omelette of potato and onion (really good recipe from MyRecipes.com)

Bacon Wrapped DatesHOT TAPAS SUGGESTIONS

Gambas Al Ajillo: Grilled shrimp with garlic lemon butter (make a garlic butter and drizzle over)

Champiñones: Stuffed Mushroom Caps (use your favorite recipe or this one for Sausage & Gorgonzola)

Queso De Cabra: Oven Baked Goat Cheese (serve with garlic bread)

Datiles Con Tocino: Roasted Bacon Wrapped Dates (my favorite!!)

Seafood and Chicken PaellaHere are a few of my favorite Paella recipes... if you want to serve a main dish. Personally, I love an evening of grazing with several substantial tapas dishes but men usually love a hearty main dish. Try one of these:

Seafood and Chicken Paella This one gets 5 stars on MyRecipes.com from viewers! It's great.

Kathy G.'s Spanish PaellaMy friend Kathy's paella is wonderful!

Tyler Florence's Paella recipe is also very good.... if you like his recipes, try it instead.

Hope you enjoy a night celebrating Spain! It's the perfect excuse to throw a party.

Straight from Bobby Flay: Coconut Thai Shrimp

Bobby Flay was one of the headliners when we presented our workshop on entertaining at the Metropolitan Cooking & Entertaining Show in Atlanta. Now, the reason that's important is because Chef Flay sent over one of his signature dishes for us to use... his fantastic Coconut Thai Shrimp. It was a perfect addition to our island-inspired Pirate Party! His creative presentation worked perfectly with our party design. He used a coconut nestled in a bed of salt (meant to look like sand)for serving... super creative and perfect for our party theme! Since I've gotten several requests for the recipe, here you go.... A big thanks to Iron Chef Flay!

Bobby Flay's Coconut Thai Shrimp

• 1 can unsweetened coconut milk
• 3 Thai Bird Chiles, minced
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 2 pounds large shrimp, heads on
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS:Combine coconut, chiles, garlic, cilantro and lime juice in a shallow dish. Marinate shrimp in mixture for 1/2 hour. Season with salt and pepper and grill about 3 minutes on each side, or until just cooked through.

You can stuff the coconut with rice. I have a friend, Fred McGuire, who is an awesome cook... in fact, Fred taught me much of what I know about cooking for a crowd on a budget! Last summer, Fred made this wonderful pineapple rice dish that would be perfect for this menu. I recreated it using coconut milk and fresh pineapple... Here's the recipe:

Dr. Fred's Island Pineapple Rice

1 1l2 cups Jasmine Rice, uncooked

2 cups Pineapple juice

1/2 cup Coconut milk

1/2 t. salt

1/2 cup diced pineapple

1/2 cup canned mandarin oranges, diced (optional)

Dash soy sauce

In a saucepan, add the coconut milk, pineapple juice, and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, add the rice and reduce the heat to simmer for about 15 minutes. Don't be tempted to open the lid.  Turn off the heat and let it stand for 10-12 minutes. Add the soy sauce, diced pineapple, and orange. Fluff with a fork and serve. 

Read all about our Cayman Island inspired Pirate Party and get the recipes we previewed at the Atlanta show!

Martie Knows Parties on MyRecipes.com: Midnight in Paris Brunch

Photo Courtesy Arden PhotographyDo you know I am the go-to party girl for the great folks at MyRecipes.com? We love their site-- if you haven't used it, try it! MyRecipes.com is a party planner's dream come true. In addition to one of the largest recipe collections on the web, they have a lot of tools and articles to help you. All of their recipes are tested by the Southern Living kitchens so you know you can trust them, and many of them are rated by readers, too. You can use their menu planning feature to help you with a menu for your next party. It really makes planning easy!

Check out our latest Martie Knows Parties video and menu: Midnight Brunch in Paris! This is a wonderful party theme for this time of year. Reuse your holiday lights and decorations-- add a few simple menu items like a delicious savory quiche and some bubbly and this party practically hosts itself. Get the how-to and the whole 411 on the Martie Knows Parties hub at MyRecipes.com

WATCH THE HOW-TO VIDEO NOW

Special thanks to Arden Ward of Arden Photography for the beautiful photography for the Paris brunch video and slideshow.