Don't Forget Cocktail Time.

The PR Girls (and friends) came out in force last night for the first time in months (summer plans keep us all busy, after all), and it was as fun as I always remember it being. We didn't play any games this time, but that was probably because we all had so much to catch up on otherwise with each other. Our hostesses put on a great evening, and when the 10PM hour rolled around, many of us were reluctant to leave and head home, we were having such a nice time.

For those of you who aren't familiar with our Girls Nights, let me fill you in. The Girls Night appeal is equal parts A) the wine and B) the food. Oh and you know, that whole comradery-girl time thing with a fab group of ladies. And maybe a board game or two. If we are feeling crazy. 

Side note: For the life of me, I can't find the video-spoof I wanted to show here about Sandra Lee (did YouTube remove it?) going on and on and on about Cocktails (this one is close). If you have ever watched her show, you know that in every episode, Sandra puts time aside at the end to make a clever theme cocktail. It doesn't matter if it's Passover or Labor Day or First Sunday of the Seventh Month of the Year day. Sandra Lee drinks. Sandra Lee would be proud of us ladies, as we do similarly when we all get together. It isn't a Girls Night without the wine.

Being the busy time of year that it is, our group still always manages to put on a grand feast of heavy appetizers, and last night was no exception. I, however, failed to plan for last night's soiree until, oh, about 6:30 on my drive home. For a 7PM-ish event.

Sandra Lee to the rescue again.

Part of what I have learned from Sandra Lee (aside from how to be a lush, ahem) is how to pull together seemingly-random ingredients and make "homemade" dishes out of prepared items right from the pantry and maybe a quick, inexpensive trip to the store. As I racked my brain in the car, I knew that I already had leftover peppers and onions from our Sunday sausage hoagie dinner.

Then I started thinking about easy-to-prep meals ... and landed on pizza! But naan-pizza, since naan is already cooked. Done. Naan topped with roasted red pepper hummus, goat cheese, and the caramelized pepper and onion mixture. Here are the only leftovers from the evening, and the Blackberry sadly doesn't capture the colors very well:



Quite fantastic, if you ask me. And the "pizzas" took 6 minutes to prepare, including the few minutes they spent in the oven.



Rustic, cozy, inexpensive and easy. Semi-homemade with Katherine. Can someone please pass me a glass of wine?