First Annual Beer Tasting Party

Apparently rain doesn't stop a party from happening! I guess that's a good thing! We celebrated Husband's newest beer recipes with our First Annual Beer Tasting party this past weekend. I designed the invitation above.

I also made some rate cards so we could get a feel on which beers faired well. Although the majority of my work is graphic design, there must be a wannabe Martha Stewart hostess in me, because in two months, I will have planned, decorated and cooked for three parties. No, I am not a professional party planner! (Did you see our daughter's birthday/cupcake decorating party post?)

Also, most of what I do is DIY-created. Whether it be the decorations, the food, or the invitations (as seen above) we don't ever pay anyone to plan, shop, cook, decorate or clean for our parties. Oh but I wish...just kidding. Sometimes, the best part of it all is doing it yourself!

I think part of the planning is thinking about the color theme. I went with the earthy colors of browns and greens using baskets, wood frames and then a pop of sophistication with the glass and white stoneware. Again, all things we already have in our home.

We also used the hops that Husband grew this summer as decor in the three hurricane vases (Dollar Tree purchases btw, a few years back.) Who would have thought that hops could be so pretty? ;)

I did find these cool napkins we could use. Originally I was going to design my own, but why mess with that when these were available!

I also nabbed my kids' barely-used pencils from the last school year, put them in a beer glass to use with the rate cards.

Overall the party was a success! The beers and food pairing were all delicious, and nothing is better than spending a Saturday with friends and family!

(Party #3...planning a birthday/Halloween party for teenagers!)

A Quick "Hop" To Madison, Wisconsin

Although I am very much a planner, sometimes it's fun to be spontaneous. Husband is that kind of person who doesn't mind mixing it up a little. He pooh-poohed all my travel books and decided where we were going as we sat in our car. (If you are a Type A personality, this kind of thinking will kill you...and makes packing impossible.) As I wrestled with what direction, north, south, east or west, we ended up in Madison, Wisconsin where we did a lot of walking, a little shopping and of course some beer sampling.

Madison is as eclectic as any other big city, but since this is also a college town, it's filled with university students too. Makes us old people feel young, heh heh.

On State Street (the main drag) we cooled down with a pint of beer called "Hopalicious" from Ale Asylum and a vanilla cupcake from a local bakery. Yum. I don't know, I kind of like beer and cupcakes!

What's also nice about Madison is that it still has that midwest charm of a smaller city, but has enough in it to entertain the tourists, like art and music venues, a variety of eateries (from traditional bratwurst to Asian-fusion dishes,) state capitol tours, shopping and of course, some really great micro-breweries.

Which is why we had to stop at the new location of Ale Asylum, a craft brewery and "tasting room," which has a tremendous local following. What I like about this brewery is its "hoppy-edge." Everything from the taste of their beer, to the cool decor, this place definitely has it's own unique style. This isn't your typical brewery. You can eat there, lounge upstairs on their couches or sit outside in their beer garden and see how their hops are growing!

Most of our friends know that Husband and I are intent on creating beer and coming up with unique food pairings. It's our thing, in fact I'm in the process of designing the invitation for our beer tasting party that we're planning right now.

So if you're ever in Wisconsin, you won't regret your stop in Madison. Whether you explore the five lakes that surround the area or go just to taste the beer, you won't be disappointed.

There's No Place (To Paint) Like Home

A week away from home has (hopefully) made my family appreciate their mommy-chauffeur, a house that smells of crock-potted meals and soap in the shower. (Seriously, how can you shower without soap, kids?)

(A few little stops for treats to bring home: locally made chocolates, sushi for me and a sampling of craft beers for Husband.)

As the 80's Michael Jackson and Journey serenade me in the background, it seems I have returned to domesticity, beginning with paint.

Husband and I have finally started painting our entryway. As opposed to the latte-colored paint chip I was "instagramming" (trust me, this will become a word in the dictionary, just like "googling") two weeks ago, we ended up with "Tea Leaves," an earthy, sage green color, close to the green in this palette:

Our lake house is basically beige, which translates as incredibly boring and devoid of personality. So we had to fix that. (Also any paint color will hide drool marks from an English Mastiff.) Really.

Husband is a perfectionist when it comes to painting. And rightfully so, he's quite skilled with a roller. I however, am of the let's-just-get-color-on-the-wall, school of thought. At least we can agree on color. (Except for when I wanted our last kitchen "butter" yellow and the yellow chosen was so bright it looked like we were riding in a school bus every morning. Epic fail.) We now choose paint color together.

So we are painting right now while we have a little down time between swim practices and softball.

For more inspiring color palettes, check out my "True Colors" Pinterest board.

Oktoberfest Carrot Cake

Husband has been experimenting with making beer. I've been experimenting with making desserts to pair with his beer. It's a nice little combined hobby we share.

For Husband's birthday last year we sampled a nice bottle of craft beer called Three Philosophers Beer with Godiva dark chocolate and an award-winning Raspberry BellaVitano cheese by Sartori. Amazing combination.

As we continued to investigate flavors and food pairings, I knew I needed to find a good recipe for carrot cake that supposedly would go well with Husband's IPA.

I found a "healthy" recipe for Carrot Cake from Tiffany at Nature Moms Blog and adapted it a little using ingredients I already had on hand. My biggest issue with Carrot Cake is the amount of sugar in it, so this was an interesting alternative.

As I mentioned before, I originally made this to pair with Husband's IPA which has a fruity aroma and four different kinds of hops in it. But after taste testing it, Husband says this cake will go better with his Oktoberfest beer because of the applesauce in it. (Hence, the cake's name.)

Aside from the fact that I now need to come up with a different dessert recipe to go with his IPA, what I find really intriguing is the texture of the cake itself. Very hard to explain, extremely moist, somewhat dense, not sweet at all, but the cream cheese frosting makes up for the lack of sweetness.

Oktoberfest Carrot Cake

1 1/2  cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2  teaspoons baking soda
2  teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt

2 cups grated carrots

2 1/2 cups applesauce

1 cup skim milk
1 cup pancake syrup*

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 pkg light cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 - 2 cups confectioner's sugar (depending on how sweet you want frosting.)
1 teaspoon vanilla

*Original recipe called for real maple syrup, but I didn't have any, so I used what we

had in the fridge!

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray one 13x9 pan with cooking spray.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients and stir to combine.

3. Add the rest of the ingredients until combined. Pour batter into prepared pan.

4. Bake for approximately 40 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
Allow cake to cool before frosting it. Make frosting and spread over cake.

So maybe it didn't go with his IPA, but the pan is already almost empty. With or without beer, it tastes great! Enjoy!

When In Wisconsin...

...do as the Wisconsinites do?

Hey-Oh! Husband's Spring Break. Destination? Appleton and Green Bay, Wisconsin. Why? Beer

I always look forward to this time of year when we get a breather from running 3 kids in 3 different directions and instead get a little alone time that isn't dependent on a bedtime schedule.

We decided to work and play, which meant visiting some local microbreweries. I actually don't drink much beer, but I've been learning a lot about the brewing process since

I now have a brewery as a client.

I don't think taste-testing beer is that much different than wine. The characteristics are similar; appearance, aroma, taste/finish and how some foods mesh better with some beers, and others don't.

The one thing I do know is what I like, and I love to taste a beer that has a great deal of "hoppiness." This references the hops which provide an herbal, crisp, bitter palate cleansing effect to beer.

I've also discovered that there are possibly as many varieties of beer as there is wine! Fascinating!

Two years ago, we discovered Door County and thus began our wine tasting experience. It was one of the best times Husband and I had together.

I have to admit, I get a kick out of the beer names too. The beer pictured above is an IPA called "Hopasaurus Rex," one of the many favorites at Titletown Brewing Company in Green Bay.

These names come from the Stone Celler Brew Pub in Appleton, Wisconsin.

But enough of that, now that my week has come to an end, I guess I can relax a little and read the "Hunger Games" with the rest of the world.

Thanks to my eldest daughter who has gotten me hooked!

Have a great weekend!