Grace's Birthday Party: Nachos and Cupcakes

We went to Houston for my granddaughter's birthday. Grace was in favor of cupcakes so I made 3 types: Chocolate fudge with cinnamon and chocolate buttercream frosting (with Callebaut chocolate!), Buttermilk with cream cheese and sprinkles, and a gluten free chocolate with chocolate fudge frosting. Grace and her friends helped with the frosting and decorating and they had a blast. My daughter, Helen, is on a gluten free diet and she was happy to have some tasty cake. For the gluten free cake I used a mix from Central Market, and for a cake mix it was really good. When I left Houston I placed the remaining cupcakes in Helen's freezer and she told me later she enjoyed them the entire week and planned to serve some to her friends this weekend.

For the family and friends meal on Saturday we had nachos. This seemed like a versatile choice given the varying dietary challenges. I made a vegetarian chili with tofu, guacamole, cheese sauce, pico de gallo, beef, and chopped a lot of fresh vegetables, and we just piled the ingredients on some thin corn tortilla chips. Everyone seemed to enjoy the spicy chili, the fresh vegetables, and the spicy pico de gallo. I loved the idea of the "gourmet" nacho buffet for a family gathering with so many different preferences and will definitely use do it again soon.