A Wine & Dine Themed Wedding Shower

So we've never hosted a wedding shower before and I have to say - it was a lot of fun.  Charlie and I offered to throw my friend Lauren and her husband to be, Zan, a Wine & Dine Wedding Shower for their crew in Chicago.  Emphasis on the wine portion of the evening.

Here is a picture of part of the spread.  I wanted to do small bites so people could talk and mingle and enjoy their beverage of choice.

So maybe I took this cutting board a little too literally but I thought it was just perfect for the charcuterie platter.  I piled on some prosciutto, sliced big chunks of pepperoni, and also served peppered salami.  I found all of theses goodies at the grocery store.

Nothing goes better with wine than cheese.  I went to our local wine depot where they have a beautiful cheese selection.  I told them what wine I was serving and they helped me pick some killer cheeses.  I wanted two semi soft and two soft so I ended up with these:  Cabra Barracha (Spanish), Delice De Bourgogne (French), Tallegio (Italian), and a Sheeps Milk Gouda (Dutch).

Heart toothpicks.  Yay.

So I remember the first time Lauren told me about ham salad.  I was horrified, that is, until I made it for her birthday a couple of years ago.  It's SO good.  I'll post the recipe soon.

These little bites of love are wild mushroom ragu cups, finished with black truffle oil and truffle salt.

These are the brie, sour cherry preserve, and fresh thyme puff pastry bites.  I posted this recipe awhile back.

I stole this idea from my mother in law.  It's difficult eating a salad when it's more of a cocktail party, so why not turn caprese salad into a fork and plate free dish by threading them on a stick?  Check out this link for more details.

Because the shower started at 5pm, I thought it was important to offer some warm items as well.  On the left, cheese and crab stuffed mushrooms, and on the right, chicken and water chestnuts wrapped in bacon.  Yum.

To break it up a bit, we served a veggie platter with homemade blue cheese dressing.

Yum. 

Decorating for a couples shower was more difficult than I thought.  I decided to just make our condo look warm and inviting with candles and fresh flower arrangements in a fairly gender neutral color pallet. 

 Here is a picture of the bar - we were sure to include plenty of options so people could help themselves.  We ran out of booze.  I don't know how that's possible but that's ALWAYS a sign of a good party. 

 We wanted guests to feel pampered upon entering our condo so we served each of them champagne with fresh red raspberries.  These went quick. 

 I'm so obsessed with their invitations that I had to feature them somehow, so I propped it up on a lamp stand and highlighted it with a candle and a couple of giant pearls and bling. 

I made about 5 arrangements total - all different sizes.  This was just eucalyptus and ivory mikado roses.  Fresh flowers and some candles go a long way and can be a cost effective way to make your home warm and welcoming for a special occasion. 

It's sort of difficult to see in this picture, but we hung white paper garlands diagonally from the ceiling to emphasize the warm, romantic feel. For a pop of color, we hung some bright lanterns above the window. 

Thank the lord someone brought dessert. And this wasn't just any dessert, they were the most delicious, amazing macaroons filled with vanilla bean butter cream.  HOLY COW.  I'll get the recipe, don't fret my pets. 

Lauren's BFF from home served Cafe Patron in chocolate shot glasses with the macaroons.  We tried to coordinate the shot taking with the 20 people that were here, but it didn't go well.  It was late.  We had been drinking. 

Here's a close up. I didn't have any mint, so I just used some fresh basil as a garnish. 

The bride and groom received some amazing gifts, one of which were napkins.  They decided they would try it on as clothing instead...see what I'm saying?  Fun shower.  Congrats Lauren & Zan - getting more and more excited for the big day.  Stay in love and stay hungry! 

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