Friday Night Fun Dinners

Friday nights should be full of fun; They're the end of a hard work or school week. There should be a celebration of sorts, namely in the form of some kind of equally as fun supper.Forget the meat loaf and sensible sides. Live a little , from starters to dessert.

For decades families have celebrated Friday night with pizza. They're still doing so.Nothing beats a fresh from the oven pie, rich with tomato sauce and gooey mozzarella cheese. There are still pizzerias that make home deliveries  however home chefs can also make their own. Many pizzerias will sell just plain dough to be baked at home.If you're adventurous  you can definitely create a fun version using everyone's favorite toppings. There's nothing wrong with a chicken pepperoni mix or onions and steak. Seafood lovers can put crab and shrimp on theirs to create a pizza de frutti e mare. Vegetarians can use soy mozzarella  as well as fun veggies such as onions , broccoli and peppers. Even edaname or soy beans can be sprinkled on top. You can also make mini pizzas as starters as well as inside out ones. This last is made by  putting a spoonful of tomato sauce and olive oil  along with a  ball of mozzarella on a rolled out piece of dough . Cover with another piece of pizza dough and bake until golden.For an entirely different spin try spring rolls. They can be bought or made and be stuffed with all sorts of fun fillers. Try baby shrimp and cabbage together  or  minced pork and red peppers. Have dishes of soy , duck and hoisin sauce  on the ready for dipping.

If you've had a staid Friday night dinner then go wild with dessert. Chocolate fondue is a great ender, plus it brings the family together as everyone go for some communal dipping. Have bowls filled with  cut up strawberries and bananas for something healthy and for something wicked think marshmallows, along with  cubed brownies and pound cake.You can also try a caramel fondue by melting caramel  and dipping in apple slices and even pretzel rods.Even though it's January , ice box cakes can still rule.A favorite and easy one to make the night before is the chocolate log, made with chocolate wafers and Cool Whip. Banana pudding cake is another neat Friday night dessert. Again this is simple to construct ,especially when you use instant vanilla pudding.Make Jello stained dessert squares for a party like ending. This involves first making three or four different flavors of Jello in Pyrex pans,  then cutting them in cubes and then mixing them in a blend of unflavored gelatin and condensed milk.The result are confetti colored squares of glistening jewel like squares. If this is too much for you, then stick with the tried and true sundae bar. Have two or three kinds of ice cream with different toppings and syrups along with Reddi whip.

Celebrate TGIF with Friday fun dinners and desserts. You and especially the kids will appreciate a visit to a  culinary party. It's the end of the week. Have fun!!!!!!