Hi friends!

Ahh it’s almost the weekend!  And you know what that means…  Well, actually, you probably don’t know what that means.  It’s almost Alexis’ birthday!  That’s right, my very own big sister is just days away from being 2_ years old.  It will be a celebration indeed.

Not related to Alexis’ birthday, I had a happy hour last night.  Our friends Dan and Erik came over and watched most of the (very disappointing) A’s game with KC while I slaved in the kitchen.

And by slaved, I mean I threw together a cocktail and two appetizers in less than an hour.

I made a version of Giada’s apple thyme martinis and paired it with mini caprese salad and ricotta stuffed new potatoes.

Let’s start with the drinks, shall we?

Very attractive, yes.

Making these is pretty simple.  I made a thyme simple syrup by combining 1/4 cup of sugar with 1/4 cup of water and 2 sprigs of thyme on the stove.  I heated this up until it boiled and the sugar was completely dissolved, then removed the thyme and let the mix come to room temperature.

I combined the thyme simple syrup with 10 oz. vodka and 14 oz. unfiltered, unsweetened apple juice.  I chilled the mixture, then poured it into glasses and garnished it with slices of green apple and a sprig of thyme.

I originally added less apple juice to this, but it tasted like VODKA to me (which is not really ok with me when it’s vodka bought on my budget…) so I added more juice to the mix.

I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I really despise sweet drinks for the most part.  Sadly, this cocktail was no exception.  I really wanted to like it; I mean, look at it.  It looks like I should like it.  But, no.  I hate appletinis, and I really just couldn’t get on board with these either.

Dan and Erik downed their drinks, so I guess they were good enough to finish by their standards.  Thanks boys!

Ok, food!

These little bites are pretty darn easy to make, and both are seriously yummy.  They were a great pair together, as the cold, light caprese salad bites balanced out the warm, saltier, and heavier potato bites.

Let’s start with the caprese.  All you need for these is small tomatoes (cherry, grape, etc.), fresh mozzarella (I use ciliegine because it’s already bite sized), some fresh basil, and toothpicks.

For mine I cut the ciliegine mozzarella in half, skewered it on a toothpick, skewered a small piece of basil, and one of my heirloom grape tomatoes (from TJ’s).  Then repeat, repeat, repeat.

These little babies take a minute to put together, but they’re a perfect party food — easy to eat with no mess!

Once I had everything skewered, I drizzled the bites with olive oil and salt and pepper, and it was all ready to eat.  Fresh and delicious!

On to the potatoes…

I got this recipe from the latest issue of Everyday Food.  I saw it and thought, “I have to make those.”

My intuition was right — these little potatoes are supremely delicious.

Alright the how-to: I used a pound of teeny tiny potatoes from TJ’s (yes, that’s literally what they call them there.  You can use new potatoes or small fingerlings), I tossed them in olive oil, coarse salt and pepper, then wrapped them all up in a foil packet (basically, throw the potatoes on a big piece of foil, then crumple the edges together to form a sort of foil bag).  This went onto a sheet pan and into a 450° oven for 35-40 minutes.

While the potatoes were cooking, I combined 8 oz. (half a container) of ricotta cheese with 2 tbsp. finely grated parmesan, the zest of half a lemon, and salt and pepper.

When the potatoes were done, I cut a slit in each of the potatoes, popped the sucker open (basically the way you do with baked potatoes), then stuffed it with a little of the ricotta mixture.

Oh my goodness, I can’t say enough about these little potato bites.  They’re salty and creamy without being too heavy… ah, potato bliss!  I could’ve eaten the whole plate of them.

The perk of this pairing also, is everything is vegetarian and gluten-free — perfect for picky appetites.  Yum!

Alright, well I hope to have another pairing this weekend; but given the birthday festivities that are on the horizon, I’m not sure it’s in the cards.  I’ll do my best!

Hope you guys have some fun weekend plans of your own.  Hopefully it will be nice weather so we can all go OUTSIDE! 🙂