My first dinner party

Last night, I got to throw my first dinner party. Now, I've had tons of people over before but never have I provided seats for them all to sit on. It was Dan's birthday and his wife Renee wanted to throw him a party. Zeb and I offered to host since their apartment is a bit on the small side. Renee and I set up two long card tables together and then decorated them in a fishing theme. There were candles everywhere and I got to use all of my new wine glasses. We had Grilled Tilapia with Mango Salsa and Curry Couscous (Rachel Ray's 30 Minute Meals 2, pg. 221). The incredible thing about this recipe is that it is so colorful and delicious but there's very little fat. I think I used only a couple tablespoons of olive oil total and I tripled the recipes. Definitely different from what we're having tomorrow on Super Bowl Sunday. Renee and I made the salsa the night before and managed to have everything ready when people showed up. Now that's a first for me. Usually, when I invite people over for dinner at 7, we're not eating until 9 at the earliest. And we made food for 10! It was a great party. For dessert, Renee and I made Dan's favorite, strawberry shortcake. The strawberries were huge but they weren't that sweet so we sliced them up thin and marinated them in sugar and a bit of lemon juice overnight. We used the Bisquick recipe for the biscuits and then topped them with vanilla ice cream, strawberries and fresh whipped cream sweetened with sugar and vanilla. And with Dan and Renee's help, Zeb and I got the house back into shape in no time.