The time has come to say goodbye and good luck to Jake as he begins the next chapter in his life with the United States Navy. Throwing a big party is a lot of work. I’ve had enough of them to know that there are certain things that will make or break a party; the food being the biggest component. Hellmann’s Mayonnaise helped make my son’s going away party a huge success. Because when you want your favorite recipes to make a big impact on your guests, you want to use only the best ingredients available, and Hellmann’s Real Mayonnaise is truly the best.
Like most family events, I had the challenge of throwing a party for a variety of ages. We decided that a bonfire would be perfect for the kids Jake’s age. So I began the event at 4:00 PM with adults and family friends for dinner. Then Jake invited about 50 of his closest friends to come around 8:00 PM to set the place ablaze. Now, I had to figure out how to feed two completely different groups of people not once, but twice. Knowing the kids would not want to sit down to eat (they would be too busy partying for that) I decided to start the evening with a catered fiesta for the adults and then around 9:00 PM I would set out a buffet of finger foods for the kids to munch and run.
I quickly enlisted all of my friends to make their favorite appetizer and dip to bring to the party. Because I am a Hellmann’s Ambassador and Real Foodie, I asked that they bring their favorite family recipe that uses only Hellmann’s Real Mayonnaise, after all that is the best and I only wanted the very best for Jake’s party. I purchased an inflatable “ice table” which was perfect and a must have for any party. You fill it with ice and then place your cold food on top. That way you don’t have to worry about the dairy items getting warm and you can leave your dips out all day. It worked great!
We had everything from your typical spinach dip to fancy BBQ dip made with Hellmann’s Reduced Fat Mayonnaise. The adults who hung around for the bonfire fun all picked at the appetizer table for a couple of hours, but by around 10:30 the teenagers descended upon that table like locust. Chips were flying as they devoured every last dip and piece of food on that buffet. I had not one leftover drop. My plan had worked and thanks to Hellmann’s Real Mayonnaise, the party was a big hit!
When a mom is faced with her child leaving the nest for the first time it’s incredibly hard. You always know that the day will come, but you think you have nothing but time. Time is the one thing that is never on a mom’s side and that day will be upon you sooner than you can ever prepare for. All you can do is hope that you raised them right, armed them with good life coping skills and the wisdom from mistakes you yourself have made. It’s funny when you are young and you watch as your mom and grandma cook for the family parties. Hellmann’s was always a staple in our home, and now I understand why. I think when you are cooking from the heart you only want to use what tastes best for the people you love the most in this world.
