Blog Party#31: Fried Food Frenzy---The Round-Up

Welcome to another Blog Party!



We got a slow start on this one...invitations went out late, and it's a small crowd tonight. But that works out well, as I'd already designated this one as 'unconventional'.

Tonight, we're abandoning the formality of a traditional cocktail party, and getting cozy.

We're all finding a comfortable spot on the couch, or one of the chairs, and popping in the appropriately-titled...and terribly funny... A Bit of Fry & Laurie.

Um...get it? Fry? Please tell me you get it.



Don't worry; I've got my retro-looking radio/CD player going in the kitchen, too. Just in case we need to do some last-minute frying. And what could be more perfectly perfect than the soundtrack to Fried Green Tomatoes?



And of course, I had to include a favorite of mine, Saturday Night Fish Fry by Louis Jordan.





We're looking at a lot of fried foods tonight, so we'll need napkins. Sure, I could have gone completely czah, but I'd much rather use these adorable happy hour napkins, instead!



And as I don't want any of you to ruin your clothes with grease stains, we can all pile our fried goodies into these cute little baskets!




Now...let's talk about that fried food!

First up, it's Lysy with some gorgeous Latkes. Way to get creative; I'd never think of adding artichoke or beet!
(tell the Scientist not to give up just yet; I'll email you my favorite latke recipe next week...they're to DIE for). Thanks for braving the oil for us, Lysy!




Judith arrives next, and she's fried up two treats for us tonight! First, a lovely latke-like Zucchini Patty, then Quinoa Cakes with Zucchini Ragu. But what really got me was her Spiked Caramel Apple Cider. I don't even drink alcohol, and I'm tempted!
Fantastic Judith; thanks for coming!




The latke is a popular dish tonight, and you're going to love the ones Michelle made for us...welcome, Michelle!
But first, she's trying to loosen us up with her Buck's Fizz, we'll have to wait till later to see how effective it is! And now for those dietary-restriction-free Potato Latkes with Caviar & Creme Fraiche...I could make a joke about us getting latke-d out, but seriously, I don't think that's possible.
Just fabulous, Michelle...glad you could make it!





Holly's the next to arrive, and despite having just met, I adore her already, if only for her blog name!
I gave up meat and fish twelve years ago, and one of the few things I still crave is shrimp.
One look at Holly's Coconut Shrimp with Red Pepper Jelly makes me glad I have some faux shrimp in the freezer; I just have to try these!
Holly's not much of a drinker, which is fine...plenty of water here, trust me. But bringing along that Cream Soda just made you a friend for life. That's one of our favorite brands, too!
Nice job, Holly...thanks for coming.




Here comes Cakelaw!
Keeping things fried & almost good-for-you, Cakelaw cleans out the veggie bin to give us some lovely Mini Vegetable Fritters...yum!
She also manages to class up the place a bit with her pretty pink Cosmopolitans; fantastic, as always. So happy you could come!





Lat through the door, but never late, it's MK99. Who still has one of the best blog names. Sorry, I can't help it.
Taking us down the 'sweets' road, MK99's got some beautiful Churros for us! Can't wait to try them.
And I think the idea of an Orange Mojito is long over-due; great job!
And thanks so much for squeezing us in this month!



Of course I had to add a a few things to the mix. First up, some wonderful Deep-Fried Smoked Mozzarella in Phyllo, with Marinara.



Crisp phyllo, soft & smoky cheese, nicely balanced by the tomato sauce. It's easy to eat too many of these.

Next, super-simple Fried 'Pizza' Mini Ravilolis.



Tomato sauce & cheese-filled ravioli, quickly fried till crisp. Totally pop-able.

Somewhat sweeter, a Pennsylvania Dutch recipe from a cookbook that used to belong to my Grampa; Ob'l Puffers (Apple Fritters).



A thick & sticky batter, thinly sliced tart apples folded in and dropped by spoonfuls into hot oil. Fried till 'done', and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. It's a bit like eating doughnuts.

And finally, simply because I couldn't resist, Mini Funnel Cakes!



Also from the PA Dutch cookbook; a simple dough is run through a funnel and drizzled into the oil, into something resembling a circle, and connected by 'strands' of batter. Fry till golden, top with powdered sugar.

Come on...it's fried dough. What else is there to say?

And to cut through all the grease (although I kept the heat high & consistent, so very little oil was absorbed), some nice & sparkling Pink Lemonade.




Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm desperately craving fruit. Or carrots. Something green, perhaps? We definitely fried till we couldn't fry no more, that's for sure!

Excellent contributions, as always. It was nice to just sit around and chat, wasn't it? And tomorrow, we all hit the treadmill, or bike, or whatever form of exercise equipment you most favor.

And when you're done working off the calories from tonight's party, you'll want to swing by here to learn what our theme for March will be!! I know, I know; unconventional, remember?? But it'll be a good one, I promise. And next month's theme really encourages playing with your food, one of my favorite past-times.

Thanks to everyone who made it tonight, and I hope to see you all back here next month!




Tagged with: Food and Drink + Blog Party + Events + Appetizers + Cocktails + Canapes + Parties + Finger Food + Mocktails + Frying + Blogging