Settlers of Catan – Buffet style serving with style
For me, though, I just fell in love with those bowls, no matter how long the food is intended to be left out! I started imagining all the different food combinations I could put together into a buffet style spread for parties.
Or heck, when there were 6 of us in the house and the kids brought over friends, that was the food equivalent of a party every other day, ha! So it could’ve been fun to have Hawaiian haystack toppings or taco night spreads in dishes like these. Ooo, or for pizza nights where I’d let everybody build their own topping combinations. I’d definitely want the small ones for something like that, though (like shown in the one with jam/butter/cheese). And a sundae bar with all the fixins! And…. ok, you get the idea. My thoughts on them are endless.
The best part is, they’re super cheap. Instead of spending 12 bucks a pop on real dishes, they used weight boats that you’d find in a lab…..$16.95 for 100 of them! Yes, a hundred of them, so for an arrangement like the Catan board, you could have 5 different spreads (19 hexes per board) and just toss them out after each time without breaking the bank. That sure beats washing them, too.
Click over to KO to see the breakdown of the sizes used/recommended (the medium one actually holds 2 full cups of goodies, so beware!).
They’re going to be flimsy, but I think stacking them side-by-side might give them a bit more stability. So long as you’re careful, I don’t think it’d be a big deal anyway. What’s the worse that can happen? A few grapes spill out on the table? Or some salsa gets a little messy? Oh noes….it’s the end of the world!
Pizza pancakes – When sweet dishes go savory
Pizza pancakes are pretty self-explanatory, but in case you’re not sure what you’re looking at…. those are Bisquick mixed with standard pizza toppings like pepperoni, sausage, and mushrooms, fried until cooked like normal pancakes, and then topped with marinara/pizza sauce and cheese.
This may be a brand new concept for some people, but if you’ll remember, I’m already acquainted with adding meat to waffles when my sister makes them for our dog. He’s never complained before and considering he’s the pickiest animal I have ever met (and then some!), I know they must be good. :P
As for the pizza ones, I’m a fan of using pizza toppings/flavorings in/on vehicles other than a pizza dough crust that takes at least an hour of rising time. I like quick and easy, ya know? So tortilla pizzas (like Hello Kitty, to boot), crockpot pizza, pizza biscuits, and even pizza zucchini appetizers are all fair game.
I’m not really feeling the pancakes specifically, though. I’m sure they taste great, but I kind of prefer the “set it and forget it” style for pizza alternatives, so standing over a griddle, making dozens of pancakes (as if I ever make just one, pfft), doesn’t exactly sound that enticing.
I do love one of the suggestions in the comments, though. One of her picky eaters used them as a lunchable style snack, microwaving them the next day with sauce and mozzarella in between. To think of them as quick snacks for any time is actually a great idea!
French toast apple and sausage muffins
So anyway, if you want to make your own, the recipe is below. I highly recommend checking out the link for a picture tutorial and some tips for how to change up the flavor. Take note that I made 24 of these or two full muffin tins worth. The recipe below is for a single pan (12 cups):
French toast cups
- 12 slices of bread – If it’s starting to go stale, great!
- Whatever ingredients you usually use for french toast. For me, roughly 5 eggs, a bit of milk. You may also use cinnamon, nutmeg, etc, too.
Apples and sausage filling:
- 2 cup diced apples
- 2 cup breakfast sausage (I usually make my own, using a mix of ground pork and ground turkey so it’s healthier)
- 1 cup butter
- 6 Tbs brown sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
Using a large cup or jar lid, cut circles out of bread slices about 3 inches in diameter. Mix eggs and spices together. Dip bread circles in egg mixture and shake off a bit.
Press bread circles into the muffin pan, bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 12 – 15 minutes, until brown.
While bread is in the oven prepare breakfast sausage. In another hot skillet melt butter, stir in brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla. Add apples to brown sugar mixture and cook until apples begin to soften and sugar mixture caramelizes. Combine sausage and dripping with apples, stir. (This is how The Noshery did these steps. I did it the opposite. Browned the sausage, drained, and then fried the apples directly in the grease left by the sausage, and mixed it in a bit sooner so the flavors could combine.)
Fill french toast cups with apple and sausage mixture and enjoy. You can drizzle them with maple syrup or any of the apple syrupy drippings if you find they’re not quite sweet enough.
The kids loved them as is, though, and they reheated well the next day, too. I don’t know about freezing them, but I could imagine it working considering I freeze and reheat all of the ingredients on their own at other times, including the french toast. If you try it, please let me know how it goes.
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