Brunch Bridal Shower

After a wonderful sister dinner on Friday night celebrating Meredith, it was time to celebrate my youngest sister, Adrienne, on Saturday!

If you’ve been reading for a while, then you know that Adrienne is getting married soon (in just 6 weeks!!!) to Paul.  We’re so excited and happy for them, and we wanted to do something to help them get started on their journey together!  Meredith and I, along with Paul’s sister, sister-in-law, and a friend hosted a brunch shower on Saturday!

Do you know what is great about hosting a brunch shower?

Mimosas…

and Bloody Marys!

We had a Bloody Mary bar with 2 types of vodkas: regular and pepper-flavored.  The pepper-flavored vodka was so great—added a bit of a kick to the drinks!  We had toppings like olives, celery, and pickled okra to top them off.  I opted for all three in mine!  I love a Bloody Mary with a whole salad on top.  :)

On to the food…

Pumpkin muffins made by Meredith…

fruit skewers made by Emily…

 

mini quiches… not homemade… but delicious.  (Why reinvent the wheel?)

My contribution: grits!

I had never made grits before this week.  Well, unless you count the individual instant grits packets with cheddar and other flavors.  I don’t count those.  I really wanted to make real grits (i.e. NOT instant).  I had mix-ins on the side: green onions, bacon, and a mix of sharp cheddar and monterrey jack cheeses.  I thought that the grits turned out great!  (I’m not just saying that… I actually did hear some compliments on the grits!)  My secret to making the grits really creamy was adding in cream cheese right as they were getting close to being ready. 

I have to be honest… I was pretty nervous about making these grits.  I did a practice run on Thursday night to make sure they tasted good!  Yes, I had grits for dinner on Thursday night! 

My (Amateur) Grits Directions:

I used a ratio of 5 cups of water to 1 cup of grits.  First, boil the water.  As the water comes to a boil, add salt.  I added a heaping 1/2 tsp. of salt for every dry cup of grits.  (It was probably closer to 3/4 tsp.)  I talked to several people (and consulted Paula Deen) and the word is, if you don’t salt the water well, you’ll never get the grits salty enough later.  And they need the salt for flavor.  After the water comes to a boil, add the grits slowly.  I found that a whisk was really helpful to keep the grits from sticking together.  As soon as the grits are in water, you can reduce the heat down and let the grits simmer.  You really need to stir them every couple of minutes, to keep them from clumping and to keep them from sticking to the pot.  As they are close to being done (they’ll be thick), add in butter and cream cheese.  You can also add a splash of skim milk or half and half.  I made about 24 servings, so I used a whole stick of butter.  But for just one cup of dry grits, probably 1/4 stick would do if you’re going to add in other ingredients later.  I added about 1/4 block of cream cheese for every cup of dry grits.  Once the butter and cream cheese are melted and the grits are creamy and smooth, you are ready to serve them.  You can add in all sorts of toppings to make them delicious, including cheese, bacon, extra butter, green onions, sausage, shrimp, gravy, chopped tomatoes, diced ham, and more!  Everyone in the South likes their grits in a different way, so no matter what you put on them, you can’t go wrong!

Reader Question:  Do you like grits?  How do you cook them?

It was a fun shower and Adrienne (and Paul) got so many nice things for their kitchen and their house.  How fun! 

Adrienne, Me, and Meredith

The hostesses and the Bride: Meredith, Rebecca, Adrienne, Emily, and Me (not pictured: Kate)

 

Adrienne, Mom, Me, Meredith

By the way, if you are wondering what Sadie did during the party…

she enjoyed a bunch of fruit skewers…

and then…

She just curled up on the coach and passed out.  She slept through almost everything!

Did you know Ryan and I are celebrating our 10-year anniversary in just two weeks?  It’s fun to think back to this time ten years ago.  We were busy preparing for our wedding.  I’m excited for my sister as she and Paul start their journey together!