March Madness Party

 

I had to let some time pass before i wrote this post.  I've been swimming in a pit of despair after Davidson's tragic loss in the NCAA tournament, and it was only recently that I surfaced for air.  The sweet taste of victory was prickling our tongues, and then, in an instant, it was gone.  Melodramatics aside, I really like the excitement and hoopla surrounding March Madness. Even though I stink at filling out brackets (probably because I pick schools based on my friends' alma maters), I have no problem watching hours upon hours of basketball come tournament time. 

Last weekend, my significant other and I hosted a March Madness-themed cocktail party.  We had some speciality cocktails (hence the origins of the evil simple syrup) and a bunch of basketball-themed snacks. 

We had "three pointers" with chorizo beer cheese.  

Three pointer. Duh. 

The beer cheese was actually supposed to be queso fundito, but I dumped an entire bottle of beer into the cheese before reading the recipe (which called for 1/4 cup).  Authenticity be derned, it was delicious!

Of course, all of the most exciting March Madness games are filled with turnovers. 

And the most exciting parties are filled with raspberry and brie turnovers. 

And perhaps my weakest effort, the SLAM DUNK. Meaning you slam dunk a carrot into some hummus. Mehhhhh….

White bean, lemon, and garlic hummus, that is.  I am avidly anti-chickpea. Gross.

You should steal these idea for a party this weekend!  The turnovers were so freaking delicious that I'm actually making them again tonight for a potluck that I'm attending.  It's super easy - just buy some pre-packaged puff pastry (cheap-o Pillsbury works fine here). 

Use your pizza cutter to cut the doug into squares, spread some raspberry jam on there, put a little cube of cheese right in the middle, and then fold the square in half.  I used an egg wash (a beaten egg and water) and then crimped the edges with a fork.  

I brushed the tops with the egg wash and then baked them for 15 minutes at 375 degrees.  Ooey. Gooey. Amazing.