Turning Twenty-Forest...

The year flew by like a sparrow in the sky,

I was 23, but I'd rather have been a tree

Now I'm turning twenty-forest

no idea what lies before us....

Hi, friends of the forest.  It's been an incredibly busy week for me, with my mom coming in from out of state for four whole days.  I've been partying with friends, visiting with family, and just having a great time catching up with everyone.  My birthday party was on the 27th, and my mom surprised me with this cake she ordered for me...I loved it (even though some people would snark that it's not organic enough) because it inspired me with the words "Enter the forest" and "Celebrate Today" reminded me of my favorite Grass Roots song "Live For Today".  The extra decorations are from Sweet Estelle's Baking Supply

My mom put together a custom 6-pack of craft beers for the party.  My favorite was the Humboldt Brown Ale brewed with hemp!  

I was excited to showcase several recipes I had been developing this month.   For snacking, I made a forest swamp with a guacamole bog, pretzel logs and broccoli trees.  I added a cracker and pretzel log cabin for scenery..

I love this wrapping paper.  I always keep these things for crafts since they're too nice to just throw away...

Stuffed mushrooms with spinach and cheese...The best thing about this menu was all the ingredients were similar, so I only spent 10 bucks on all the food!  Broccoli, pretzels, cheese, mushrooms, and spinach were the most used ingredients.   Not pictured: broccoli cheese nuggets.

This mushroom tart was made using Havarti cheese, mushrooms, spinach leaves, and  green onions encased in a pastry.  This tart was such a hit that our friend Sean gobbled it up within the first 15 minutes of the party!  I can't wait to make another for a dinner at home...