And so it went last Friday as we all assembled to enjoy a light-hearted afternoon of food, friendship and of course some liquid "libation." We started our celebration with a simple Pomegranate-Champagne cocktail, followed up by Chilean Sticky Chicken and Tomato Salad. The afternoon was capped off by my favorite Cranberry/Apple Casserole with vanilla ice cream. As you can imagine there was great fellowship and they all rolled up their sleeves to wash the dishes. With this kind of help, any cooking endeavor is a cinch!!!
The unique part of this meal was that I had to have everything done or ready to be prepared prior to attending my Friday Pilates Power Hour. This added a little twist to the normal prep time but by planning for a quickly assembled main course I was able to pull it off with no stress at all. My thanks to the wonderful Pilates Princesses for all their help and their friendship. It has been so special getting to know them this year and we plan to continue these get togethers in the coming months.
I'd like to share the recipe for the Pomegranate-Champagne Cocktail which was shared with me by another dear friend, Mary Beth. It is a wonderful starter for a brunch, lunch or dinner.
Pomegranate-Champagne Cocktail (8 servings)
4 cups crushed ice
2 cups pomegranate juice (I use POM brand)
1/2 cup ginger ale
1/4 cup brandy
1 (750 milliliter) bottle of champagne or sparkling wine
Combine the first 5 ingredients in a pitcher. Pour about 1 cup of the desired mixture into each of 8 glasses. Garnish with pomegranate seeds if desired.
