Tip of the Week - Patricia Mendez
Keep Checking Back for Entertaining Tips from Patricia Mendez
Patricia Mendez has catered and coordinated special events in the Los Angeles area since the early 1990s and now teaches “Easy Entertaining for Beginners,” a cooking class for novice hosts and hostesses in Torrance, California. She is the author of Easy Entertaining for Beginners, a multiple award winning book, including the 2009 Recipient of the Mom’s Choice Award.
Halloween Entertaining Tip - October 26, 2009
Purchase 1 large and 1 smallish pumpkin. Set up this fun and festive treat at your Halloween party. No more than 1 hour before serving, skewer bite-size pieces of fruit on bamboo skewers. Sprinkle with lemon juice to avoid turning brown. Draw a spooky or silly face on the pumpkin and stick skewers all around the top to resemble hair. Hollow out a smallish pumpkin, wash and dry well. Prepare dip in advance and when ready to serve spoon into pumpkin and place next to large pumpkin with fruit skewers along with a bowl of gingersnaps for a delicious autumn treat.
- 1 package (8 oz.) 1/3 less fat cream cheese, room temperature
- 1 can (16 oz) pumpkin
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 cup light whipped topping
- 1 package purchased ginger snaps
- Skewered fruit kebobs, apples, grapes, pears, sprinkled with lemon juice.
In a mixing bowl, mix softened cream cheese with pumpkin, powdered sugar and pumpkin pie spice. Fold in 1 cup light whipped topping. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Serve with skewered fruit kebabs and ginger snaps.