June Foodie Round-up: BiB finalists and football food

With June already in full swing, it’s going to be an exciting month. Not only does it promise plenty of summer sunshine (fingers crossed!), but the world is waiting for the Football World Cup to start, and of course we have BritMums Live just around the corner!!

Congratulations to those Food Bloggers that made the BiB’s finals – A Mummy Too, Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary, My Golden Pear, Super Golden Bakes, The Crazy Kitchen and Taming Twins – getting this far is a fantastic achievement in itself. I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at BritMums in the very near future – and of course finding out who the winner will be!

Like it or not, there’s going to be a lot of eating in front of the television over the next few weeks, as most of the World is gripped by football fever. Thankfully it’s summer though, so there will be no bowls of soup or stew being thrown about the living room in celebration or commiseration – instead big sharing plates make for great summer social eating! Dig in and either enjoy the games, or the freedom to do something else whilst the rest of the family are addicted!

Let’s start with some dips shall we? Get out your biggest bowls, pile them high with pitta bread, crisps or pretzels – and try your hand at a few of these…  Diary of a Sauce Pot’s Aubergine & Feta Dip, The Gingerbread Mum’s Beetroot and Yoghurt Dip, Mess Make’s Food’s Chipotle Sweet Potato Hummus and My Kitchen Witch’s Taramasalata – it might not look that appetising to make your own but the results will be well worth it.

Onto the “main course” sharing plates next. How about these boneless Spare Rib Chops from Things we Make?   You could make them with rice as suggested, or stack them high!    Reluctant HouseDad’s Brazilian Rump Steak Kebabs are not only topical, they sound delicious, as do The English Kitchen’s Best Barbecued Frankfurters!  Incidentally, Fishfingers for Tea has a beautiful Homemade BBQ Sauce that you might find useful! Lavender & Lovage’s Chilli, Garlic and Lime Salmon Parcels wouldn’t take long on the barbecue either. Chocolate and Beyond has a great recipe for Sweet Potato and Black Turtle Bean Burgers, and Vegetarian Dad’s Seared Aubergines, Courgettes and Peppers with Lemon and Garlic would go down a treat as well. If you want something to share that’s slightly different, how about Pizette Bianche from Rose Cottage or big slices of Mediterranean Quiche from Mari’s World?

Now for some salads on the side, starting with a topical one from Brazilian Food with a Twist – a Brazilian Roasted Pepper Salad, I also really like Made By Margie’s Summer Salad with Parma Ham, Mozzarella Nectarines and Baby Salad Leaves, or The Yes Chef’s Carrot Kohlrabi and Coriander Salad.I would probably just make all three!

Got to have a few sweet things to prop up sagging energy levels – a lot of the matches will be late night ones after all!  What Claire Baked’s Oven Baked Cinnamon Churros would do the trick, as would a few big squares of Pe De Moleque – Brazilian Peanut Brittle, again from Brazilian Food With a Twist…   Not Brazilian at all, but I have made this Rhubarb Meringue Cake four times these past few weeks, and I promise you it’s a crowd pleaser!

Next month will be all about Global Food, what new foods did you discover on your travels over the summer?    Got any new favourites?  Add them to the linky below!

Finally, I couldn’t leave you without a recipe for the most famous Brazilian cocktail of the lot – a Classic Brazilian Caipirinha!  Enjoy the games, and I hope to catch up with a lot of you in London for BritMums Live very very soon!