Shower Time!

Saturday was exhausting! I think I am still recuperating!
The big hit of the day was the cake, made by a friend of mine. Isn't it amazing?
Next up was the BL-Tea Sandwiches. I'll post the recipe at the bottom.


Look at the detail. You can see the stitching.


Yum-Sangria! Hiccup. I may have gotten a bit buzzed at the shower--that's a first for me!


The fruit bouquet my boyfriend got for the occasion. Awesome!
BL-Tea sandwiches. Half on marlbe rye and half on mini-wheat.

Cucumber sandwiches in the middle and chicken salad on the sides. I was disappointed in my chicken salad. I think I've lost my touch.

The other punch--orange-y, pineapple-y. I bet it's good with vodka.


Tortilla roll-ups

And the recipe, with my edits in red.

B-L-Tea Sandwiches

1 1/2 pounds of thick-sliced hickory-smoked peppered bacon (I didn't use peppered bacon. I used thick cut though and made more like 2.5 lbs)

24 (4 ounces) sun-dried tomatoes (I used a 16 oz. jar of tomatoes packed in oil, drained and patted as dry as possible. I then didn't have to soak them in hot water because they were already nice and soft).

1 cup homemade or prepared mayonnaise (yeah, I don't do the homemade!)

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

24 1/4-inch-thick slices of rye bread

6 ounces lamb's lettuce (mache) or other baby lettuce leaves, enough to make about 2 loosely packed cups

1. Heat the oven to 375F with the rack in the center. Arrange the bacon strips in a single layer without touching on 2 baking sheets and bake, one at a time, in the oven for 10 minutes each. Remove and drain off the fat.Continue to bake until the bacon is crisp, another 10 minutes. Drain and let cool on paper towels. Crumble the bacon into small pieces, about 1/2-inch each. Set aside.
I cooked it in my cast iron stove top in 3-4 batches. I cut it up before hand too.

2. Meanwhile, heat 3 cups of water in a small saucepan until almost boiling. Place the sun0dreid tomatoes in a medium bowl and cover wih the very hot water. Allow the tomatoes to soak until they are soft, about 20 minutes. Drain, pat dry, and finely chop. Combine the tomatoes and the mayonnaise. Season generously with salt and pepper. (Hmmmm....think I forgot to add salt or pepper. Oops.)

3. Spread each bread slice with the mayonnaise mixture. Generously sprinkle half the bread slices with the bacon. Arrange the mache over the bacon, sprinkle with pepper, and top with the remaining bread. trim the crust. Slice each in half and serve. (oops. I only put the mayo mixture on one side of the bread. Like it matters :-) )

Makes 2 dozen.

From Martha Stewart's Hors d'Oeuvres Handbook (Clarkson Potter, 1999)