It’s #DerbyWeek!
Growing up in Southern Indiana, The Kentucky Derby has been a staple in my life every Spring. Something about the old fashioned pretty party atmosphere just appealed to me. We ALWAYS watched it on tv, and made bets on who we thought would win with FANCY prizes like “no washing dishes for the rest of the week”!😁 When I got older, my parents would often go to Derby Parties, and as a college student, I even worked parties for parents of the kids I watched in daycare, carefully crafting finger sandwiches and filling plates while pastel-clad guests in flowy hats drank mint juleps (which I DID NOT understand the appeal of at the time 😄 When I moved to South Carolina, I took my Derby love with me, being the ONLY PERSON who got excited for the week, threw mini-parties at my little apartment, and when I married and had my own kiddo, we picked our favorites and made those fancy bets together.
And I’m SUPER excited that I get to share Derby Week with all of you this week! I’m going to be Backside at Churchill Downs Thursday Morning (or Thurby, if ya don’t know), at Oaks on Friday and The Derby on Saturday! So make sure you’re following me on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/MJOntheairYo/ and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/mjontheair/ for lots of pictures and more!
MEANWHILE, I thought I’d share some of my favorite recipes for you to #DerbyAtHome, so let’s get started with the #CucumberSandwich recipe I learned working my first Derby Party! It’s super simple and VERY tasty – it’s become my go-to for most potlucks or get togethers.
MJ’s Cucumber Sandwich Recipe:
- 1-2 nice-sized cucumbers (sliced 1/4″ thick)
- 1 pkg cream cheese softened
- 1 packet dry ranch dressing mix
- 1 loaf soft white bread
- 1 glass/biscuit cutter *Find a glass/biscuit cutter that’s slightly larger in diameter than your cucumber slices
Use your glass or biscuit cutter to cut circles out of the center of your bread slices. (You can also just buy those teeny loaves of bread and skip this altogether, but I like cutting the crusts off.
Mix cream cheese and ranch dressing until smooth.
Peel your cucumbers if you choose. I personally like to stripe the cucumbers by leaving strips of the peel for color. Slice your cucumbers evenly, making little circles. You can go fancy with a mandolin or processor or just by hand. I like to make the slices about a 1/4 of an inch so it’s not biting into a chunk o’cuke, but not so thin that you don’t get that crunch.
Spread the cheese mixture on bread, top with cucumber slice & another piece of bread.
That’s it!
Store in fridge until serving
