baby shower

Inspiration: National Strawberry Day!

Its National Strawberry Day! Here's some inspiration for strawberry themed weddings, bridal showers, brunches and more!

s1Keep your bridal shower menu fresh and fruity with strawberries!

s2

 A strawberry theme is perfect for a summer outdoor wedding.

swedding

Strawberries themes also work well for formal indoor weddings. Place jars of fresh jam on each table setting for charming (and delicious!) wedding favors.

sbrunch

And who doesn't love brunch? Start your day off an a sweet note with strawberry smoothies and parfaits.

stable

Sweets tables are a growing trend and guest favorite. Whether you're hosting a birthday party, wedding or brunch a sweets table is a must!

Here are some fun and easy recipes to get the party started!

Strawberry Mimosas:

Ingredients: strawberries , champagne.

Directions: puree the strawberries in a blender or food processor. Pout puree into a glass and top with champagne.

Strawberry shortcake parfait:

Ingredients: 1 large angel food cake (plain), 2 pkg fresh strawberries( frozen is fine), 1 tub of cool whipped topping, strawberry mousse.

Directions: Make strawberry mousse according to recipe, Blend one pkg of strawberries to make puree (I used pulse for this), and the other pkg cut strawberries in half, put aside. Cut angel food cake into three sections. Layer bowl first with one section of angel food cake, (w) topping, strawberry puree, mousse, and a layer of cut strawberries

Strawberry Tart:

Ingredients

For the filling:

  • around 1 pound of fresh strawberries, rinsed and dried
  • 1 Tablespoon sugar
  • 8 ounces cream cheese (room temp is easiest to work with but mine was chilled)
  • 1 1/2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Directions

Remove hulls from strawberries and slice them in half. Put them in a bowl, sprinkle them with sugar, gently mix them and then set them aside. Meanwhile, prepare the crust:

For the crust (adapted from David Lebovitz)

  • 6 tablespoons (3 oz) butter
  • 1 tablespoon oil (I usually use canola but this time I used coconut oil)
  • 3 tablespoons water
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1 cup flour
  1. Preheat oven to 400°
  2. In an ovenproof bowl (such as a Pyrex) mix first five ingredients. Put the bowl in the oven for around 15 minutes (the edges will be brown and the butter will be bubbling).
  3. Carefully remove the bowl (it will be very hot) and quickly mix in the flour until it forms a ball of dough.
  4. Place the dough into a 9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom and spread it around with a spatula. When it is cool enough to handle, press it into bottom and sides of the pan with your fingers. Prick the bottom of the dough with a fork around ten times and bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

While the crust is baking, place the cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla in a small bowl.  After around 30 minutes, there should be some liquid in bowl of strawberries. Drain it into the cream cheese and mix everything together. You can do this by hand, but a mixer or hand blender will be faster and make it smoother.

When the crust is cooled, spread the cream cheese mixture onto the bottom of the tart. Arrange the strawberry slices over the cream cheese and chill. Slice and serve.

That’s it! Enjoy!

2013 Trends: Baby Shower Event Planning Themes

Everyone loves a great themed party and baby showers are no different. Lately, moms-to-be have gotten very creative with celebrating thier bundle of joy with creative themes. Huggies put together a great list to make your shower stand out from the rest. Check out a few of my favorites...

star light star bight

1. Star Light, Star Bright: Have each baby shower guest wishing on a star with dream catcher crafts, silver hanging stars and dreamy white hot chocolate.

mom's diner

2. Mom's Diner: Order up something special for mom’s baby shower and serve mini milkshakes and buttermilk pancakes to the sounds of 1950s rock ‘n’ roll hits.

ahoy baby

3. Ahoy Baby!: Get guests inspired with a treasure trove of nautical baby shower novelties. Sail away with pirate punch, sailor cap decorations and seashell accents.

camp

4. Camp: Make baby shower planning an achievement with a retro beverage station, lanterns and scout badge cookies.

Bling it on

5. Bling it On Baby: Make all that glitters gold for mom’s memorable day with a bedazzling for baby station, mini glitter cakes and apple cider for an extra touch of celebration.

For a full list of Huggies Baby Shower themes go to: http://www.punchbowl.com/huggiesutm_source=eBlast&utm_medium=email&utm_term=NA&utm_content=NA&utm_campaign=huggies_2

Happy Planning!