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Tips For Hosting a Debate-Watching Party

partysugar — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 14:00:56 -0700

Last week the series of presidential debates began and tonight the saga continues with a showdown between vice-presidential candidates Joe Biden and Sarah Palin. It's the perfect occasion to throw an impromptu viewing party! Hosting a debate party is a great way to feel more involved in the election process. To help you quickly plan a fabulous fete, I've rounded up some tips and ideas. Get them now and read more.

Send a presidential themed evite to let friends know about the party.
Make sure there is plenty of comfortable seating and that everyone can see the TV.
Turn up the volume and put closed captioning on. When some of the crowd gets too noisy, dedicated debate watchers can read what the candidates are saying.
If you have a laptop and WiFi connection, set up the computer on a nearby coffee table and participate in CitizenSugar's live chat.
Play a drinking game by setting up rules like drink every time Palin says "small town" or drink whenever Biden uses the word "Scranton."
Download bingo cards and have guests play bingo. Give small bottles of liquor to the winners.
Create a patriotic atmosphere by decorating with red, white, and blue.
Before the fun begins and while guests are arriving, ask trivia questions about the candidates.
To be really official, register your event online.
Stock up on plenty of drinks and delicious snacks.
If your friends have different political views, establish a few ground rules when everyone arrives, so no brawls break out.

Have a tip to add to the list? Please share with us below!

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Come Party With Me: Election Night - Invite

partysugar — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 09:00:09 -0700

November 4th, 2008 is possibly the most important day of the year. Since it's such a significant night, no one should sit at home nervously waiting for the next president to be announced. I've joined forces with LibertySugar and together we're hosting a party at a neighborhood saloon called Elixir. Owner and master mixologist H. Joseph Ehrmann has assured me election coverage will be aired. This week I'm sharing my party plan, so you can steal my ideas and host your own political party! The big day is only a week away: invites need to be sent as soon as possible. To see how I made these email-able invites, read more.

To make a similar invite you need the following supplies:

image of the American flag
computer

To assemble the invite:

Start by creating a new document in Microsoft word. Drop and drag the American flag image into the document.
Insert a text box. Write out the details of the party. I used the font American Typewriter in size 12 to write:

VOTE
For an awesome election night party!

Official Invitation
Join PartySugar and LibertySugar
as they Barack the Vote

Tuesday, November 4, 2008
6:30 p.m.
Elixir @ 16th and Guerrero, SF

Patriotic Attire Encouraged

Since I live in San Francisco, I know the majority of my guests are Obama supporters. If you and your friends are partial to McCain change the text to say, "Join us as we Mac-attack the Vote." If your crew is a mixture of both sides, write, "Join us as we celebrate America."
Save the document as a PDF, crop it down to size, and send in an email. Alternately, save the image in an evite or pingg message, and send. For a snail-mailable version, print on thick, white cardstock and send in an envelope closed with an election sticker.

Let's Dish: How Did You Ring in Election Night?

YumSugar — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 09:00:53 -0800

Regardless of who you voted for, last night was a monumental night in American history. I wasn't feeling so well, so I watched history unfold at home with a beer, although in any other capacity I would've attended PartySugar and LibertySugar's election night bash.

How did you ring in the election? Did you tune in at a sports bar, or throw your own party? What was your election night drink of choice?

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Come Party With Me: Election Night - The Look

partysugar — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 09:15:04 -0700

For election night, go patriotic with the decor. Serve the food on modern, red trays. Since Liberty and I are hosting our bash at a local bar, the napkins and plates will be paper and plastic. Tie red, white, and blue balloons to the bar ends. Serve the drinks in Obama or McCain cups. Arrange a bouquet of red, white, and blue flowers. Hang a stars and stripes banner above the door, so guests know they are at the right bar. Put white candles in red glass votives and place them on the bar tables. When guests arrive, offer them a metallic star necklace.

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Come Party With Me: Election Night - Drinks

partysugar — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 14:00:24 -0700

Elixir, the bar where LibertySugar and I are hosting our town-hall style election-night bash, is offering guests a selection of drinking specials for the party. With fabulous names like "Bye Bye Miss American Rye," the menu will feature only American brands like Bluecoat gin, Square One vodka, and Sam Adams brew. I plan on ordering the "Red, White, and Night" a potent, sangria-like concoction made with vodka, red wine, and lemonade. To serve up this slinger at your own election-night soirée, get the recipe and read more.

Red, White, and Night
Inspired by Elixir

Ingredients

3 ounces red wine
1 ounce simple syrup
1 ounce fresh lemon juice
1 ounce vodka

Directions

In a cocktail shaker filled with ice combine the wine with the simple syrup, lemon juice, and vodka.
Shake for 30-45 seconds.
Strain into another glass filled with ice and enjoy!

Makes 1 cocktail.

Print recipe with images | without images

Come Party With Me: Election Night - Dessert

partysugar — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:00:36 -0700

To keep things easy, serve a no-mess, no-utensil dessert on election night. At LibertySugar and my party, we'll be offering guests sugar cookies! Not just any sugar cookies, I plan on decorating the cookies to look like CitizenSugar's checked box symbol. I'll roll out Paula Deen's classic sugar cookie dough and cut out squares.

After baking the square-shaped cookies, they'll be covered with white frosting. Blue frosting will be used to outline a box shape and red frosting to make the check mark. Feel free to great creative and decorate with your favorite patriotic design! For the recipe, read more.

Sugar Cookies
From Paula Deen

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon pure almond extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
Granulated sugar
Royal Icing, recipe follows

Directions

In a bowl, cream together the sugar and butter, then mix in the egg and vanilla and almond extracts.
In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, and cream of tarter; mix the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture, then cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours, or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Divide the chilled dough in half and roll it out on a lightly floured pastry cloth to a 1/4-inch thickness.
Lightly grease some baking sheets.
Cut the dough with a floured cookie cutter; sprinkle with sugar.
Transfer the cookies to the prepared sheets and bake for 9 minutes.

Makes 5 dozen cookies.

Royal Icing:

3 egg whites
1 (1-pound) box confectioners' sugar
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
Food coloring, optional

In a medium bowl, combine egg whites, sugar, and cream of tarter. Beat at low speed with an electric mixer until blended.
Increase mixer speed to high, and beat 8 to 10 minutes, or until mixture holds a peak.
Cover with a damp cloth when not in use. Separate into bowls and add food coloring, if desired.

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Campaign-Themed Food: Our Top Votes

YumSugar — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 05:30:43 -0700

With the presidential election less than two months away, the whole country's been talking, breathing, and sleeping campaign politics. It's only natural, then, that we've been eating up campaign politics, too - and boy, is it tasty. We had some tough choices to make, but these treats get our top votes.

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Farmers Target the White House

YumSugar — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 03:00:41 -0700

Last month, right before Slow Food Nation, PartySugar helped harvest the newly planted Victory Gardens in downtown San Francisco. Apparently the success of the public garden was so strong that various groups are taking the matter to the White House - both metaphorically and literally.

Several organizations are campaigning for the next president to create a garden on the White House lawn. TheWhoFarmMobile has been on tour throughout the United States spreading the word and encouraging participation.

Eat the View has drafted a White House Food Garden petition online, and is even holding a "lawn sale," where buyers can purchase (symbolic) parcels of White House lawn ($10 each) that will go toward the edible garden project.

Seeing as the future president will have a lot on his plate, I'm not sure whether this proposal will prove successful, but I intend to follow it. I think the president growing an edible garden would set the tone for the rest of the country. What do you think of the venture? Do you see one candidate being more open to the project than another?

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Barack Obama, Former TV Food Critic

YumSugar — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 11:15:59 -0800

Now that America has become familiar with President-elect Barack Obama's political agenda, the country has taken interest in the soon-to-be president's personal quirks and preferences. A clip surfaced of Obama on Check Please! Chicago, a Chicago series that features locals reviewing restaurants. In the August 2001 episode, the then-Illinois state senator raves about Dixie Kitchen, a Southern-, Cajun-, and Creole-influenced restaurant in his South Side neighborhood of Hyde Park. In the clip, Obama sounds surprisingly . . . well, just like us. "It's not gourmet cuisine, but that's not why I go to the Dixie Kitchen," he says. "What I'm looking for is food that tastes good for a good price." Yet his introspective nature is already evident, when he admits the johnnycakes are "dangerous," so "I've learned from my mistakes." Watch the clip when you read more.

I'm also somewhat surprised that Obama - famous for his healthy eating habits - chose to feature a restaurant like Dixie Kitchen. I myself have been to the North Shore outpost of this restaurant, and must admit that it's not exactly healthy fare (although the fried green tomatoes are delicious).

Watch the clip below and share your thoughts. Are you, too, fascinated by Obama's ordinary lifestyle?

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Laura Bush Prepares to Return to the Kitchen

YumSugar — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 11:15:48 -0800

First Lady Laura Bush can host opulent diplomat dinners, but can she still stir the pots? As the first lady and her husband, President George W. Bush, get ready to move out of the White House next month, they're looking forward to returning to the humdrum of everyday life. For her, this means getting back into the kitchen. "I haven't cooked in 14 years," she told Fox News Channel's On the Record. Perhaps the first lady could use a refresher course on how to peel shrimp or some simple tips on one of the most basic cooking skills: scrambling eggs. "He can't even remember what it was like, and neither can I," she admits. "This will be interesting."

What advice do you have for First Lady Laura Bush as she attempts to polish her rusty cooking skills?

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