Hidden Valley Ranch It Up Party

I got an exclusive offer from Crowdtap to host a Hidden Valley Ranch Party. They sent me a box full of goodies to get the party going!

In the box came :
A X"Team Ranch" shirt,
A full sized bottle of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing
13 packets of Hidden Valley Ranch  Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix,
1 Party insert with activities and coupons
And these nifty little plate dip holders.

These individual dip cups are so adorable. They are so clever! You simply slide it on the plate, and pour whatever dip you want. Now no one has to deal with germs, and everyone can double dip! This is awesome for any type of party.

I started my party by cooking chicken wings in my crock pot. Then as my party goers each brought some ingredients as to what they thought would go great with ranch! We had baby carrots, asparagus,  mashed potatoes, salad, breaded chicken, and steak!

Crock pot Spicy Ranch Wings

Ingredients:
About 25 chicken wings
23 oz bottle Franks Hot Sauce (Half a bottle needed)
One packet of Hidden Valley Ranch
Fresh cut basil

1. Place your clean chicken in the crock pot, and cook on high for 2 1/2 hours.
2. Remove pot from the crock pot, and drain juices from the pot. 
3. Pour half the bottle of hot sauce, basil, and the packet of Hidden Valley Ranch. Carefully mix thoroughly, as the chicken may be tender. Return to the crock pot and cook for another half hour.
4. Set your oven to Broil on HIGH.
5. Carefully move each piece of chicken from the crock pot onto a nonstick pan. The chicken will definitely be tender and will be falling of the bone. Place in oven for 8-10 minutes
6. Chicken is done! You can drizzle the rest of the hot sauce if you like them extra spicy.

The wings were done just in time for my guest to arrive. The ranch tasted great with the wings. 

We then moved on to cooking the potatoes as that would take the longest.

Ranch Inspired Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients

3-4 pounds of Idaho, russet, or red potatoes (we used a variety)
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons butter
1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch packet
Salt
Basil

1. Wash and peel your potatoes. Evenly cube your potatoes 1/2 inch to an inch thick. 
2. Boil potatoes and add salt.
3. After potatoes are done boiling and are tender, remove from heat and drain the water.
4. Add heavy cream, and butter. Mix well. Then add a packet of Hidden Valley Ranch and the basil. Mix thoroughly.  
5. With a smasher, smash all the big pieces of potatoes. (I like my potatoes with little chunks, so I mash very softly) Mashed potatoes are now done!

The mashed potatoes were a hit! Everyone loved them. It was my son's favorite dish from that night.

We then cooked the carrots. I used a recipe that came in my party insert. Here is a picture:

This was the least favorite of the night. I'm not a fan of baby carrots so I can't say for certain why these weren't that great, but I have a feeling that it was the brown sugar. I need to try a different recipe to see.

We then made the asparagus. We had 1 bunch of asparagus. We boiled them in 1 cup of water, 1/4 cup of lemon,  4 tablespoons of butter, and the packet of Hidden Valley ranch. I prefer crispy asparagus, but they tasted great. There weren't any left by the end of the party.

We made a salad because all parties need a good salad, right? We also breaded chicken breast. One of the ladies did this so I don't have the recipe. But she told me, she just added the Hidden Valley Ranch packet to her usual recipe. It tasted great! The only thing I would have done differently was to cut the chicken into strips before cooking it.

My friend was in charge of the cubed steaks. She simply rubbed the meat with the ranch before cooking it instead of other rubs. This was my favorite dish of the night. It tasted amazing! I will definitely be making this myself.

I'm so glad I had this chance to be part of the Ranch Team. It was such a fun experience trying new recipes that I wouldn't have thought of before.

What do you think would taste great with a packet of Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix? 

Connect with Hidden Valley

Website (they have great recipes on there)

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I received products for free in return for hosting a party and reviewing a product. All opinions are my own and products were tested and/or used.