As bridal showers are not among the wedding customs in India, Anusha's shower would be not only the first one she'd ever attended, but the first as well for her mother,
"Nah, just make what you always make," insisted my nephew Randy, Anusha's intended. "You know, stromboli, green beans almondine, those little cupcakes - Anusha's never had your party food, I want her to taste it."
So the standard operating party food it was to be; however as a number of the guests were either vegetarian or did not eat beef, I left out the beef and leaned towards vegetarian.
Anusha's Shower Menu (See yesterday' post for pictures):
Ham and cheese stromboli
Vegetable and cheese stromboli
Pork roast in wine sauce
Mashed potatoes (to put the pork wine sauce over)
Oven-fried chicken off the bone
Hot rolls
Pasta in tomatoes, garlic, green onions and olive oil
Stuffed mushrooms
Vegetarian crispy egg rolls
Green beans almondine
Spinach sauteed with mushrooms, garlic and olive oil (The spinach was ultimately kind of a disaster. Though it was lovely and tasty when I took it off the stove, the spinach continued cooking from the heat of the chafing dish and after a while was over-cooked, wilted, and no longer appetizing except to hard-core spinachophiles).
Guacamole dip with chips
Veggies and dip, brought by Randy's Aunt Susie
Chips and pretzels
Cherry almond streusel pie
Cream-filled, vanilla-iced chocolate mini-cupcakes
Vanilla mini-cupcakes topped with pink rosettes
Hershey's kiss peanut butter cookies
Blueberry bars (These were a new recipe that I'd never tried before but were the hit of the desserts)
Chocolate- and white chocolate-dipped strawberries
Chocolate dipped pretzels
Assorted Dove chocolates
Soft drinks, lemonade, coffee, tea, and water
Randy's sister Audrey modeled as Jaya showed us how to fold, pin, and wear the sari.