Come Party With Me: Little Girl's Birthday — Menu

by partysugar 5

When hosting a child's birthday party don't go gourmet. Instead serve crowd pleasing kid's food like pizza. Be sure to have an easy snack on hand for kids who may be hungry during the kindergym games and festivities.

Crunchy vegetable sticks with a cheesy ranch dip will hold off hunger pains until pizza time. Serve both plain cheese and pepperoni pizza on paper plates with lots of napkins. To get these recipes, read more.

Vegetable Sticks with Cheddar Ranch Dip
From Sandra Lee

1 cup sour cream
1 cup cheese dip (recommended: Tostitos Salsa con Queso)
1 envelope (1 ounce) ranch dressing mix (recommended: Hidden Valley)
1 container (14 ounces) pre-cut carrot and celery sticks

1. In a medium mixing bowl mix the sour cream, cheese dip, and ranch dressing mix with a wooden spoon. Set aside.
2. Place the veggie sticks on a serving plate in 2 piles.
3. Place the dip in small serving bowl. Dip freely!

Makes 2 cups.

Cheese Pizza
From Martha Stewart

4 cloves garlic, unpeeled
One (28-ounce) can plum tomatoes, drained, and crushed by hand
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
6 fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
All-purpose flour, for dusting
Pizza Dough, recipe below
1 pound part-skim mozzarella cheese, shredded

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wrap garlic in a piece of parchment-lined foil. Roast until soft, 20 to 30 minutes. Let cool, and squeeze cloves to remove pulp.
2. In a medium bowl, stir to combine roasted garlic, tomatoes, 1 tablespoon olive oil, oregano, and basil. Season with salt and pepper; set aside.
3. On a pizza peel dusted with flour, place one-quarter of the dough. Using your fingers, begin to flatten and push dough evenly out from center until it measures about 12 inches in diameter. Crimp edges to form a rim. Sprinkle one-quarter of the mozzarella onto dough. Spoon 1/2 cup of the tomato mixture over mozzarella.
4. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over high heat. When very hot but not smoking, reduce heat to low. Lift pizza peel and, using a slight jerking motion, slide pizza about one inch back and forth on the peel to loosen it. Slightly tilt the peel, and slide the pizza off the peel, centering it in the skillet. Cover skillet, and cook until pizza is golden on the bottom, about 10 minutes. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

Makes four 12 inch pizzas.

Pizza Dough

1 cup warm (110 degrees to 120 degrees) beer
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons coarse salt
1 1/2 ounces fresh yeast
2 3/4 to 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk to combine beer, 2 tablespoons olive oil, sugar, salt, and yeast. Fit bowl on electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, mix until incorporated, 1 to 2 minutes. Slowly add flour, and mix until dough is fairly stiff, about 10 minutes.
2. On a lightly floured work surface, knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Brush the inside of a large bowl with remaining tablespoon olive oil; transfer dough to bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, and leave in a warm place until dough has doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.
3. Punch down dough, and transfer to a clean surface. Using a bench scraper or sharp knife, divide dough into quarters; keep covered with plastic wrap.

Makes enough for four 12-inch pizzas.

Pepperoni Pizza
From Kraft Foods

1 prepared pizza crust (12 inch)
1/2 cup pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce
1-1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 pkg. (6 oz.) pepperoni

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Place pizza crust on baking sheet.
2. Spread crust with pizza sauce; top with cheese and pepperoni slices.
3. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until cheese is melted and crust is golden brown.

Serves 6.