Chapter 2 page 366 - Independence Day eat-fest: photo edition

So, be honest, did you get your EAT-ON this Independence Day??????  Raise your hands . . . don't be ashamed!  I certainly did my fair share of eating.  Today was my family reunion (it's been held on the 4th of July @ noon for like the past 50+ years).  We certainly don't have a big family and the attendees are all my mom's cousins.  Today, in the crowd, was my mom's aunt and uncle who just celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary.  Can you imagine being with your spouse for 70 years?  I certainly can't!  Additionally, there are only 3 "older" generation people left (the couple I just spoke of and the wife's twin sister).  The twins are going to be 90 and still going strong.  Unbelievable!  They are incredible people and I truly enjoyed spending a little time with them today!!!!

This family reunion is a carry-in and rotates locations between the 10 cousins annually.  This year, it was at my mom's house.  Because my mom had to do all the cleaning and party planning, I prepared the side dishes on behalf of our family.  Oh my goodness - they were FABULOUS.  I invite you to "get your eat on" now with me . . . (you may need a napkin!).

I made a pizza salad - ever done this - AWESOME!  Layer lettuce, turkey peperoni (I used mini pepperonis - boy, those are sure cute and petite!), shredded low fat mozzarella cheese, sliced black olives, sliced (but I chopped) mushrooms, chopped green pepper, sliced cherry or grape tomatoes, a few croutons (you can skip this for calorie sake), and top with a light drizzle of fat free Italian dressing.  YES - it tastes just like a pizza without all the calories and fat! 

Doesn't that look delicious . . . get close, smells good, huh! :)

Side view: so you can see the layers - I used a pretty short container so you could really get all the different components.

I also created a second "thing" because of the inspiration I got from Kimberly @ Healthystrides lunch the other day.  Click HERE!  I'll wait - seriously, YOU.HAVE.TO.GO.CHECK.OUT.HER.LUNCH.PIX!!!!  Alright, so after seeing that, and getting a little inside info that Kroger had their own brand of garlic and chive hummus that was dreamy and on sale, I gained inspiration for another dish to bring to the party.  Kimberly had a hummus plate (for 1 person) so I expanded it and created a hummus station.  This kind of thing takes planning so here's the "practice lay out":

The basic layout - making sure it looks as cute as I know it will taste. 

In case you didn't know what all the "parts" are - fun, huh!

 Here's the "official" party set up - looks really fun doesn't it (you can click on the photo to enlarge it)

 So the general concept was:  grab a piece of grilled pita whole wheat pita bread, spread either red pepper hummus or garlic chive hummus on it, then top with any of the veggies you want (feta cheese, black/kalamata olives, red olives, quartered cherry tomatoes, red/yellow/orange pepper, thinly sliced cucumbers, or red onions). 
Here is one of my mom's creations - YUM!

And one of my creations . . .

 Thanks Kimbelry @ HealthyStrides for providing the inspiration and Kroger info!!!  May not be the most "authentic" Independence Day food, but it was sure DEL-I-CIOUS and I have ZERO guilt for getting my "eat on"!

What do you bring to carry-ins?

Happy Independence Day!!!!