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It’s spooky season! KATU Afternoon Live had me back again to share my entertaining tips for my favorite holiday, Halloween! Watch my segment to see simple tips on making a Halloween charcuterie board and spooky Halloween cocktail that is sure to catch your guests eye!

Tips for a Spooky Halloween Cocktail Party:

Whether you are hosting a quick get together for the adults while the kids are out trick or treating, or you are putting together a teen Halloween party with mocktails, these tips are sure to win over even the most frighteningly picky of party guests to have a howling good time. (I know… terrible, but Halloween is just made for puns!)

  1. Grazing Boards: Charcuterie boards (for those who eat meat, cheese boards for cheese only crew, or snack boards for those who like to mix it up) are ALL the rage for a reason… people can make snacks to their tastes and liking!

They can also be catered to different dietary restrictions. Note: Do not put meat and cheese on a board with fruit and nuts and say that it is vegan friendly because it has vegan-friendly foods… that does not cut it. You CAN make a vegan snack board that is completely filled with items that your Vegan friends and family can graze on. I’d recommend putting it on the other end of the table than the meat items or on its own, just to be a bit more accomodating and avoid contamination if possible. Same goes for any allergens! 

Links marked with an asterisk

How to make your Halloween grazing board more spooky: 

      • Use dark fruit and vegetables on the tray to pair with your meat and cheeses. Add in some dark chocolate for a fun sweet pairing to a tasty soft cheese like brie.
      • My favorite cheeses for a halloween cheese board or spooky charcuterie are Blue Cheese, a bright yellow Gouda, and white cheddar.  A good way to add to the creepy appeal, and tastiness!, is by adding goat cheese balls rolled in black sesame seeds, poppy seeds, or fresh herbs. Oh, and don’t forget the famous cream cheese, cheese stick, and prosciutto meat hand with a clever trick!  (I bought my cleaver cheese board knife on Amazon*!)
      • Add a meathead! I did this YEARS ago for a halloween party and have been perfecting my meathead game for years. (haha!) The trick to making it look super creepy (and keeping things food safe) is first adding a layer of saran wrap over a plastic halloween skull and covering it with a bit of cream cheese. Add in some roasted bell peppers for an extra creepy layer! Finally, pull off strips of prosciutto and lay onto the skull, dipping into the crevices and making sure the eyes and teeth stay clear of the meat. After covered put the meathead in the middle of a dish with tasty charcuterie and olives. My son likes to say, “this guy has a bit of meat on his bones!”
      • Add olives and peppers. Seriously, do it.

2. Decorate with things that creep you out! I am not a big fan of gore or scares. But, things that give me the heebie jeebies… spiders, rats, bugs, snakes, skulls, ghosts, vampires, witches, that is my jam. I like to decorate with layers of textures and lights.

3. Make a cocktail extra eerie with eyeballs! Use a 1 inch sphere ice tray* and blueberries to make the coolest little eyeballs to FILL your glass with to pair with nearly any cocktail. I paired it with a Booberry Eyeball (blueberry highball) cocktail.

What are your Halloween go-tos!?

 

It’s always a fun time when I get to share my tips on KATU’s Afternoon Live! But, this particular day was extra special because I got to share the episode with two of my favorites— Marlynn from Urban Bliss Life and Teagan from The Enloe Group. It was like a mini-reunion backstage!  As usual, I packed a bunch of ideas into a tiny segment, so I talked FAST! But, all of the recipes are available on my blog (linked below). And, it is worth watching if even for the cool chip bag hack!

Visit KATU Afternoon Live to Watch My Summer Sipper & Snack Recipe Segment!

On the spot I share how to create your own chip serving containers out of chip bags, run through assembling two “salad” chip dips, and assemble a tasty pitcher drink perfect for your summer BBQs.

Get the Summer Sides and Summer Pitcher Cocktail recipes below:

A great twist on a traditional chips and dip recipe, eat your salad with your chips! This Italian Salad Chip Dip recipe is completely customizable!
This creamy and cheesy Jalapeno Corn Chip Dip Recipe is bound to be a crowd pleaser at your next BBQ!
Summer pitcher cocktail good for next BBQ

Oh, and my friends Marlynn and Teagan? Don’t miss out on their spots either!

Watch Marlynn’s Segment on KATU Afternoon Live!

Marlynn made two amazing pasta salad recipes— a BLT Pasta Salad & Filipino Mac Salad. (Does she look familiar? She should! You might recognize her Instagram @UrbanBlissLife where she shares travel and food tips, cookbooks, or her episode on Andrew Zimmern’s Family Dinner!

Watch Tegan’s Segment on Afternoon Live for Tips for Selling Your Home!

Tegan is the best at what she does! And, I know… because she and her husband are also the ones who helped me buy my home! (I am a bit biased, understandably!) She is one of the most creative and fun people you’ll ever meet with the most genuine heart. You can see it in all that she does, from her work with The Enloe Group, to her Instagram @TeganEnloe, to her American Dream TV Spots.

Do you know what I couldn’t have predicted in a million years when I was thinking through the potential roadblocks for hitting my goals last year when working on my 2020 blogging plans? A global pandemic.

TL;DR: This year had me down and out, but I’m excited to be back blogging again. I have a list of things I plan on sharing including some home projects and Covid-safe celebrations. I’d love to know what YOU wish to see in my upcoming posts… cause, after all, this blog is for you! Please take a moment to fill out this SUPER short form to let me know what you want to see!

It has been nearly a year since my last post. I stopped posting around March 16th which was a week after lockdown began for me. At the time I even hired a few people who had lost their jobs due to the lockdown with full intentions of continuing my work here. Thing is… my day job is in healthcare.

These rolling 12 months have been some of the hardest working months of my life. Harder than 4 jobs and full-time college courses. Harder than changing careers. Harder than going back after having a baby. And, me… I had it good compared to others in my field.

After sometimes 70 hours of looking at computers for my day job—often dealing with things like Covid restrictions, angry online commenters, fear for coworkers, etc.—the idea of looking at a computer for my own work felt almost impossible. But, even when I got around the gumption to open my laptop I’d sit there and stare at a screen not knowing what to write.

This year it felt like work to celebrate.

This blog has always been a space about celebration in one way or another. Even though I knew people would want to have ways to celebrate safely, things to cook for a family, ways to connect over the internet… I knew that those would be good and appropriate things to write about. I just couldn’t celebrate.

Finally though, finally I see a bit of light at the end of this long tunnel. I don’t know what my head will do with this year and how it will translate in this blog. For now though, I thought I’d share a few highlights from the year that I hope to share in more detail over the next few months.

Coming Soon: Home Projects

Being at home and unable to stare at a computer any more than I already was… I did a lot of home improvement projects! We made improvements in several spaces this year and I am proud of our DIY spirit and the overall results. Recent home projects include:

Shared Kids Bedroom

shared kids bedroom with mural

Front Door Update

painted front door

Family Room/ Multipurpose Room

yellow painted playroom with desk area

Home Gym

home gym

Coming Soon: My Society 6 Shop

I’ve been using art as a coping mechanism my entire life. This year it has become essential. I’ve started putting some of my recent designs into a Society6 shop and am working on a few more fun projects. The Society6 Shop is live, but I plan on sharing more of my work this year.

society6 shop screenshot
Jenni Bost’s Society6 Shop

Coming Soon: Food and Cocktails

Girl’s gotta eat. With the entire family home all day, every day I have for sure been cooking up a storm of recipes. From seasonal drinks to weeknight eats, I plan to share my favorites.

gin and curacao cocktail with peaches

Coming Soon: Tips for Safe Celebrations

While there is light at the end of the tunnel we are looking at possibly years of needing to be safer in our celebrations. Even when the world goes back to normal I hope that some things like Zoom parties stay around occasionally so that we can celebrate with people that are too far to get together in person. This year we did zoom parties for birthdays and (when it was allowed) very small outdoor, socially distanced get togethers with friends.

individually wrapped snacks and beverages
lego cake in a cup and kazoo

While there is plenty to share, I really don’t want to share things unless it will be of use and interest to you! So, please take just a moment to fill out this very short form as to what you’d like to see out of A Well Crafted Party in 2021!

Thank you… and, here is to a better 12 months than the last!