Happy Mardi Gras! {Cucumber and Strawberry Finger Sandwiches}

Happy Mardi Gras everyone!  We had our lovely Lundi Gras brunch yesterday, and it was a riot.  We had about 25 moms and kids (not including my own clan), and it was loud, boisterous, and downright fun.

The king cake, despite having been baked Friday (by Frances' Bakery) and shipped overnight to us (by Yiayia), was delicious.

Nutella and Strawberry Jam.

Finger sandwiches hit the spot.  And I definitely hurt my fingers making 'em--I made about 120 right before the party.

Katie got buried in blocks, wrapped in beads, examined by physicians, and instigated lots of other pretend games, which may or may not have included "roasting" one of her classmates--we noticed the kids basting her. 

Tabouleh.

What a spread!*  Makes me want to invent time travel so that I can go back to the beginning  of the day to start again.

I made a crab salad that was fantastic (despite a few bites of shell and cartilage-that stuff is sneaky!), and the biggest hit of the party was the cucumber and strawberry sandwiches (pictured above in the lower left-hand corner).  Delicious.  Finger-lickin' good.

Cucumber and Strawberry Finger Sandwiches

adapted from Southern Living

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1/3 c mayonnaise

At least 1/2 cup chopped cucumber (peeled and seeded)

1/4 c chopped green onion or red onion

lots of basil, chopped finely

1/4 tsp salt

pepper to taste

sliced strawberries

1. Mix the cream cheese and mayonnaise together.  I mash it all with a spoon.

2. Add in the cucumber, onion, basil, salt, and pepper.  Mix it up.

3. Take your bread (I used white as well as pumpernickel and rye swirl bread) and put a light glaze of mayo on one slice.  On the other, spread some of the cucumber mixture.

4. Top the cucumber mixture with the strawberries and place the other piece of bread on top.

5. Smoosh the bread slices together.  Really smoosh it. Except don't crush the strawberries. It's really a nuanced smoosh. But you need the sandwich to be a unit so that the filling doesn't go flying across the room when you start cutting.  I might be speaking from experience.

6. Slice off the crusts and cut the sandwich into 3 or 4 strips.  Be quick and deliberate with the biggest knife you own. Don't dilly dally or be timid.  Own that sandwich! Show it who's boss!

*For those who are wondering where the jambalaya or red beans & rice is, just know that not every meal in New Orleans includes those dishes. Nor do we all say things like "I gay-ron-tee" while drinking loads of hot sauce, although I have seen plenty of locals drinking beer while doing things such as mowing lawns, cutting down trees with chain saws on sticks, and juggling bowling balls.  Anyway,  I served foods I'm used to seeing at Mardi Gras (although my finger sandwiches were a little unorthodox).   I also served champagne, but I think I was the only one who partook.  Protestant restraint?  Who knows.  The devil made me do it.