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Come Party With Me: Impromptu Concert - The Look

partysugar — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 10:57:31 -0700

Last week I helped plan an impromptu concert in Spain. We started prepping on Tuesday when the venue was secured. After the flyer distribution, the most important part of the planning process was finding a stage. Luckily, one one was discovered quickly and set up the morning of the concert. A huge oriental rug was placed on the stage for a festive hippie look. Fun lighting was created in the form of a big disco ball. Other necessities involved guitar drink stirrers for the whiskey cocktails, a paella pan for the rice, and black napkins and plates for serving. Simple white votives were placed in glass holders to create a warm glow. Tons of plants and lots of pretty Spanish plates were on the walls, which added character to the entire setting.

To take a look at a brief video of the show and check out my complete gallery of photos from the event, read more

View 23 Photos ›

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Come Party With Me: Impromptu Concert - Drinks

partysugar — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 13:13:13 -0700

What to drink at a concert after party? The answer is sublimely simple: whiskey! Before, and during the show, offer a variety of bottled beers, but afterwards celebrate a successful performance with something a little stronger. This is exactly what I did when I helped host a concert for the Spanish group Cargados Band. The beer supply was exhausted before the concert was over, so the crowd switched to sipping simple whiskey cocktails. Carmen at Ayesta served a variety of whiskeys - Jameson, J&B, Dyc, Chivas, Jack Daniels - straight up or with Coke or 7-UP. Don't forget to offer the option of still and sparkling water and tinto de verano for those who don't drink hard alcohol. For the whiskey recipes, read more

Whiskey & Coke
From Drinks Mixer

2 oz Whiskey of your choice
8-10 oz Coca-Cola

Pour whiskey into large glass filled with ice.
Add coca-cola to fill glass. Stir lightly.

Serves 1.

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Whiskey & 7Up
From About

2 oz Whiskey of your choice
8-10 oz 7Up

Pour whiskey into large glass filled with ice.
Add 7Up to fill glass. Stir lightly.

Serves 1.

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Come Party With Me: Impromptu Concert - Menu

partysugar — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 10:03:13 -0700

Last week, while in Spain, I helped my buddies plan a concert and after party. The main event was the concert, but after the show we chowed down on a delicious cheesy stuffed pork appetizer and a hearty rabbit arroz - a dish that is similar to a paella. I spoke with Javi, the sous chef who created the pork rolls, and he gave me both of the recipes! These dishes would work wonderfully at a Spanish themed dinner. To see how they are made, read more

Red Pepper Stuffed Pork Rolls
From Javier Navarro Rivas

4 boneless pork loin fillets
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup chopped Piquanté Peppers (jarred sweet pickled peppers) or chopped jarred piquillo peppers
4 sweet dill pickles, chopped
1/2 cup chopped Spanish onion
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
6-8 slices Spanish goat's milk cheese
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
salt, pepper

Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium high heat. When hot add the peppers, pickles, onion, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are soft 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, pound the pork fillets flat between two pieces of saran wrap.
Remove the vegetables from the pan and add the pork fillets, seasoning with salt and pepper. Sear quickly on both sides cooking through but not completely.
Once the pork has cooled enough to handle, spoon 2 tablespoons of the vegetable mixture on top of the fillet.
Roll and secure with toothpicks. Repeat with remaining pieces of pork and the rest of the vegetable mixture.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Place the pork rolls, seam side down in a small glass roasting dish. Cover with the cheese slices.
Bake in the oven until pork is cooked through and the cheese is bubbly and crispy, about 15-20 minutes.
Remove garnish with leftover sliced red pepper, chopped parsley, and fresh black pepper.

Serves 4.

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Rabbit Paella
Modified from Ayesta
Image Source

One 2-1/2-pound rabbit, small chicken or chicken thighs, skin and fat removed
2 tablespoons slivered blanched almonds
1 1/4 cups canned asparagus (drained and rinsed), reserve the liquid
About 5 to 5 1/2 cups chicken broth, canned or homemade
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons minced parsley
1/2 teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika (pimenton)
1/4 teaspoon crumbled thread saffron
1/8 teaspoon yellow curry
Kosher or sea salt
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 red pepper, diced
2 portabello mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 medium tomatoes, finely chopped
2 1/2 cups imported Spanish rice (bomba preferred) or Arborio short-grain rice

Cut the rabbit or chicken with kitchen shears into pieces about 2 inches in size. If using thighs, leave whole. (Discard the bony tips of the rabbit legs.) Sprinkle all over with salt.
Toast the almonds on a cookie sheet in a 350-degree oven until lightly brown, about 4 minutes.
Combine the liquid from the asparagus with the broth to make 5 1/2 cups.
In a mortar or mini-processor, mash to a paste the garlic, parsley, pimento, saffron, curry, almonds and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Mash in 1 tablespoon of the broth. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place oven rack in the lowest position. Keep the broth hot over the lowest heat.
Do this next part of the preparation in a large skillet. Heat the oil and saute the rabbit or chicken pieces over high heat about 5 minutes (do not fully cook). Remove to a warm platter.
Add the onion, mushrooms, and pepper to the skillet and cook slowly until the vegetables are slightly softened. Add the tomatoes, turn up the heat and saute 2 minutes more.
Scrape the vegetables and oil into a 16-inch paella pan. Stir in the rice and coat well with the vegetable mixture. Add the reserved mortar mixture and stir. Then add asparagus and rabbit or chicken. Pour in 5 cups of broth, bring to a boil then simmer without stirring for 10 minutes. Taste for salt and correct seasoning.
Transfer the paella to the oven and cook an additional 10 to 12 minutes, or until the rice is almost al dente.
Remove to a warm spot, cover with a tea towel and let the dish rest for 5 to 10 minutes until the rice is fully cooked.

Serves 6.

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Come Party With Me: Impromptu Concert - Invites

partysugar — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 13:08:15 -0700

Last week, while I was enjoying vacation time in Spain, I ended up planning a party. Actually it was a concert for the rock group, Cargados Band. A concert was scheduled, but I realized that the all male group was in desperate need of an event planner, personal assistant, and organizer. The first thing on my list of things to do: make a flyer announcing the concert. To see how I turned a photo into an ad for a concert, read more

To make a flyer similar to the one you see here, you will need:

computer
image
a Photoshop type of program that allows you to alter images
a printing store such as Kinkos I used Don Folio

To assemble the flyer:

Start by choosing your base image. Antonio, the singer, and I spent two hours searching for images on the internet. Cargados means weighed down and when pronounced with a Spanish accent, band sounds like van the plural form of the verb to go. With that in mind, we looked for pics of buses that were filled with people, alcohol, cigarettes, etc. While I could see a cool picture in my head, I could not find one anywhere.

Feeling desperate I browsed my personal pictures. Earlier that day when I was leaving my best friend's house, I stumbled upon an interesting scene. Bottles and bottles of beer were broken on the street and I stopped to snap a few pictures. In the end, we thought it was perfect and we decided to use this image as the basis for the flyer:
Drag the image into Photoshop and cut it down to size. In our case, we cropped it so just the broken bottles were visible.
Next, we changed the coloring and the shading of the image to give it an orangish hue.
Then the we added the text in bright blue large, block letters (font: Jazz Let). Here's what it said:

Concierto Cargados Band
domingo 9 de septiembre en ayesta a las 21.00
(en la ribera junto a plaza potro)

colaboran: taberna paco acedo, dedi artesanta, yumsugar, rave mayorista, ayesta, el diablo, fruteria hnos navarro, dori y por supesto A.C. Zona Libre.

Translation: Cargados Band in Concert
Sunday September 9 @ 9:00pm in Ayesta
(on Ribera Street next to Potro Plaza)

collaborators: taberna paco acedo, dedi artesanta, yumsugar, rave mayorista, ayesta, el diablo, fruteria hnos navarro, dori y por supesto A.C. Zona Libre.
When we were satisfied with the color and look of the flyer, we burned it to a disk and ran it over to our friend Jorge at Don Folio. He printed the flyers out on large glossy paper. When finished, we took them and plastered them all over town.

For more details on the amazing concert plan, stay tuned all week!

What's Yummy This Week - YumSugar Weekly Recap

YumSugar — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 09:30:22 -0700

Entice friends with a Summer dish of mussels in a saffron cream sauce.
See what it's like to be a barista behind the counter at Starbucks.
Party shows you how to bring the portable party to an outdoor concert.
Save money on tools and pit olives and cherries our way instead.
We had mixed feeling about Doritos's new flavor, Late Night Tacos at Midnight.
Feast your way through an array of tapas in Cadiz, Spain.
When it comes to wine, do you know your red grapes from white grapes?

What's Yummy This Week - YumSugar Weekly Recap

YumSugar — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 12:03:18 -0700

The Emmys are tomorrow night, find out what the stars are eating afterwards.
Happy Jewish New Year! Now you can learn all about the symbolism behind Rosh Hashanah food.
FabSugar helped us scope out the backstage treats at Alice + Olivia, and tipped us off to the trendy Pop Burgers everyone's noshing on.
Rachael Ray is looking for the next celebrity chef.
Speaking of celebrity chefs, Anthony Bourdain was a guest judge on a surprising new episode of Top Chef.
And while we're on the topic of Top Chef, check out our quick chat with season two winner Ilan Hall.

If fried dough sounds too sinful, give baked doughnuts a try instead.
This week I opted for old school flavored nilla wafers and banana ice cream sandwiches.
Party went off to Spain and ended up planning an impromptu concert. Take her tips and you can do it too!
If a foreign adventure is not in your future, how about making room for a chocolate one.
Love a great steak? How about one that's been made into a wig?
Test your knowledge on milkshakes and apples!
I love corn chowder! Here's a beginner and an expert way to make it.
And finally, I'm not crying, I'm just making a lasagna... for one.