August Pig Out Party

It's my favourite potluck party time again! Once again, it is a gathering with fellow food bloggers, most of whom I have met up with from previous bloggers meetups. 

This August POP (Pig Out Party) was initiated by Eelin and Jane. Food-wise, there seemed to be more sweet goods this time round. As with any potluck party, a must bring along item would be extra food containers, for there would always be excess food leftover from the the party. 

Deciding to venture out of my comfort zone, I volunteered to bring a savoury item along in addition to a Devil's Food Cake. This savoury item is none other than salsa, which is foolproof enough to be prepared by anyone without much culinary experience. Simply dice the require ingredients and flavour with a bit of salt and pepper. Voila! The dish is complete. Because of the tangy nature of the salsa, it helps to boost one's appetite and is an ideal choice for parties and potluck. 

Without much further adieu, lets take a look at the gorgeous spread of mouth-watering food. Pardon me if some pictures are badly taken. I was in a hurry to get my mouth working on the food than be concentrating on taking good photos, hence some pictures are not well-focused. 

Red velvet cakes by Cathy from Cathy's Joy

Portugese egg tarts by Jane from Passionate about Baking

Durian puffs by Jane from Passionate about Baking

Green tea almond blondies by Doris from Tested and Tasted

Pizza by Bee Bee from Honey Bee Sweets

Fried fritters by Josephine from Sugar & Everything Nice

Madeleines by Jess from Jess Kitchen

Chocolate friands by Jess Jess Kitchen

Chocolate meringue cake by Doris from Tested and Tasted

Tau suan by Esther from Baking on Cloud 9

Salsa (to go along with chips) prepared by me.

Devil's Food Cake prepared by me. The frosting did not turn out smooth as I has overbeaten the frosting since I was making it in a rush. 

The food items above are incomplete, as I have missed out on some of them, namely:

• Chwee Kueh by Edith from Precious Moments, 
• Bread pudding with vanilla sauce by Eelin from The Batter Baker 
• Baileys ice cream, chocolate ice cream and tuna potato patties by Grace from Kitchen Corner. 

I can never have enough of potlucks like this. Am looking forward to the next one already,which I do so after every potluck. Hopefully, it need not be a long wait till the next one comes along.

Salsa (recipe adapted from the internet)

Serving size: 7-8 persons

Taste and texture : Tangy, slightly spicy and refreshing due to presence of mint.

Equipment and materials:

• Knife
• Fork

Ingredients:

• 1 can 14.5 ounce diced tomatoes. 
• 2 jalapenos, seeds removed and finely diced. (I used pickled jalapenos)
• 1/2 green onion, finely diced
• 4-5 sprigs mint, coarsely shredded using hands
• 1 tbs lemon juice
• a bit of salt to taste
• a bit of black pepper to taste 
• 1/2 clove garlic, finely diced

Making the Salsa:

Preparing tomatoes - Drain the tomatoes well and reserve some of the liquid. (I squeezed the tomatoes lightly to remove the juices). Dice the tomatoes finely. 

Mix all ingredients together - In a medium bowl, mix diced tomatoes, jalapenos, green onion, mint, garlic and lemon juice. Mix well with a fork. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add a little of the drained liquid if desired to moisten the mixture. Chill salsa before serving.