Wisconsin Trip Part One--Bridal Shower

My trip to Milwaukee was short, cold and tons of fun. It was mostly a working vacation--I co-hosted a bridal shower for my niece--so the first three days were spent preparing for the party. The plan was that I would make the food for the party and the other co-hostesses (my other niece and the MOH) would do desserts and decorate and all the rest of the party planning tasks.
I arrived Wednesday morning on the red-eye, and after a nice breakfast my dad and I hit the stores and bought all the provisions I'd be needing. I'm sure glad I dressed warmly--it was cold (in the 20's) and super windy. At least we didn't have to worry about the food getting too warm as we went from store to store.
With the pantry stocked, Thursday and Friday were spent prepping the food. Sous chef Dad helped out on Thursday and on Friday my sister played hooky from work and helped me.

 
I had looked forward to using some great Wisconsin cheeses--this one was used in the Prosciutto and Gruyere Pinwheels.
I needed to grill these peppers and give the sates some grill marks (they would  finish cooking in the oven at the venue). It was about 40 degrees outside. Hey--at least the sun was out, and if I stayed close to the grill, it wasn't all that bad.

The theme of the shower was "Martini Party", so I wanted to make things that were finger foods and easy to eat.

Marinated Mozzarella, Roasted Red Pepper and Olive Brochettes

Pecan and Goat Cheese Marbles
Smoked Salmon, Avocado and Horseradish Spirals
I hit the West Allis Cheese and Sausage Shoppe and got this nice assortment--Stravecchio (a Parmesan-type), aged Gouda, smoked Cheddar, and Buttermilk Blue. I brought the dried fruits with me from California.
Spanakopita
Crudite with Roasted Red Pepper and Feta Dip
Everybody loves shrimp cocktail
In addition to these items, I also made curried chicken sates with peanut sauce and teriyaki beef sates.

My niece Allyson was in charge of desserts. She made these awesome strawberry shortcakes.
She also made plain cheesecake and turtle cheesecake. MMMM
In honor of the bride, a recent UT grad, she made these longhorn cookies.
Everyone had a great time. We laughed, played games, opened gifts, and of course--drank some martinis! Later that evening, we went out for the bachelorette party. This had an 80's theme, so we all wore our best leg warmers and had a blast.

(if anyone wants the recipe for the sates or spanakopitas.....let me know)