Red Pepper Cheesecake

Looking for a great appetizer to share with friends and family this holiday season? I just tried this new recipe last night and everyone at my gathering loved it! Do you have a favorite holiday recipe or tradition to share? Post it here!

Red Pepper Cheesecake
Courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis
Serves 4 to 6 people

Ingredients
1/2 cup ricotta cheese (4 ounces)
1/2 cup cream cheese (4 ounces)
1/4 cup goat cheese (2 ounces)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 egg
Pinch of kosher salt
1/2 cup thin strips of roasted red bell peppers
4 pitas
2 tablespoons olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup apricot jam
1 to 2 teaspoons hot water

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Wrap the outside of a 4.5 inch cheesecake pan with two layers of heavy-duty foil. Place the ricotta, cream cheese and goat cheese in a food processor. Pulse to mix. Add the sugar, egg and salt and pulse a few times until well mixed. Stir in the red pepper strips.

Pour the cheese mixture into the cheesecake pan. Place the cheesecake pan in a roasting pan. Pour enough hot water in the roasting pan to come halfway up the sides of the cheesecake pan. Bake until the cheesecake is golden at the edges and the center of the cake moves slightly when the pan is gently shaken, about 45 minutes (the cake will become firm when it is cold).

Transfer the cake to a wire rack to cool for one hour. Refrigerate until the cheesecake is cold, at least three hours and up to two days.

To make the pita chips, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cut the pitas into eight triangles each (like a pie). drizzle the pita with olive oil, and sprinkle it with salt and pepper. Bake until crisp and golden, about 12 to 15 minutes.

To serve, combine the jam and the water in a small bowl and stir until the jam is liquefied. Remove the cheesecake from the springform pan. Place on a serving plate. Drizzle the jam mixture over the top of the cheesecake. Serve with the pita chips alongside.

Are You Reading Water for Elephants?

The book selection for our February Bookies event is Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. We'll meet to discuss the book and other fun topics on February 27, 2010 at Mary Enwall's home. If you're interested in more details, or to RSVP, please email us at denveraoiialums@yahoo.com. Happy reading!

Eggs and AOIIs

Looking for something to do in the new year? Join your sisters for brunch! We'll meet at 11 a.m. on Saturday, January 9, 2010 at Steuben's (523 East 17th Avenue, Denver). Please RSVP to denveraoiialums@yahoo.com.

Holiday Party

Our annual holiday party is always cause for celebration! At 6 p.m. on Saturday, December 12, 2009, join us at Clara's home for food, fun and festivities. Bring a dish to share and a new garment (or two) for New Garments Always. For more information please email denveraoiialums@yahoo.com.

Jingle Bell Run

On Sunday, December 13, 2009, grab some friends and join the Rocky Mountain Arthritis Research Chapter at its annual Jingle Bell Run in Washington Park. Event details are at: www.jinglebellrundenver.kintera.org.

If you're interested in forming an AOII team, please email us at denveraoiialums@yahoo.com.

Join Us at a Happy Hour or Dinner Near You

We've started something new this year...monthly happy hours and dinners. We hope you can join us on the second Tuesday of the month! Please RSVP to denveraoiialums@yahoo.com.

Happy Hours

5 p.m. September 8, 2009
White Chocolate Grill
8421 Park Meadows Center Drive
Lone Tree

5 p.m. November 10, 2009
Rock Bottom Brewery
10633 Westminster Boulevard, Suite 900
Westminster

5:30 p.m. January 19, 2010
Katie Mullen's Irish Pub
1550 Court Place (16th Street Mall)
Denver

5 p.m. March 9, 2010
Siena at the Courtyard
333 Perry Street
Castle Rock

5 p.m. May 11, 2010
Delite
32 South Broadway
Denver

Dinners

6 p.m. October 13, 2009
Great Northern Tavern and Brewery
8101 East Belleview Avenue #C
Denver

6 p.m. December 8, 2009
Benihana (Flatirons Mall)
515 Zang Street
Broomfield

6 p.m. February 9, 2010
Deluxe
30 South Broadway
Denver

6 p.m. April 13, 2010
Indulge Wine Bar
1601 Mayberry Drive
Highlands Ranch

Annual Strike Out Arthritis Event a Great Success

The Denver Area Alums will donate about $300 to the Arthritis Research Foundation following another successful Strike Out Arthritis event. On Saturday, Nov. 14 about 30 Denver Area Alums, family and friends bowled for a cure at Splitz Bowling Center in Westminster.

Thanks to Joy Henika for organizing the event!

New Garments Always

Don't forget that we are always collecting new garments and/or school supplies for donation to those in need through the Denver Area Panhellenic. You can bring donations to any meeting throughout the year.

And the Rose Award Goes To...Enwall and Kentish!

The Denver Alums were beaming at International Convention when Mary Enwall and Veronica Kentish both received Rose Awards. The Rose Award honors alumnae who serve AOII solely because of their devotion to the Fraternity, its members and ideals. The award says thank you to loyal alumnae for their lifetime commitment of continuing interest, assistance and dedication to AOII.

Since her initiation in 1966, Mary had served our Fraternity at many levels: Rush Advisor, Chapter Advisor, Alumnae President, Regional Director, Regional Extension Officer, Nominating Trustee and District Alumnae Specialist.

Since her initiation in 1992, Veronica has served AOII as Alumnae President, Chapter Advisor, Chapter Relations Advisor, Recruitment Advisor, Collegiate Network Specialist and Collegiate District Administrator.

Congratulations Mary and Veronica!!!

Fabulous Founder's Day

Mark your calendar now for our Founder's Day celebration, "Paradise Found." It will be a brunch from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday, February 20, 2010 at the Doubletree Hotel at Highway 36 and Sheridan Boulevard in Westminster. The cost is $25. More details will follow in our winter newsletter and here on our blog (Don't get the newsletter? Email us at denveraoiialums@yahoo.com).

Be sure to bring a panda for our Panda Project for the American Juvenile Arthritis Organization. Or if you forget, you can purchase a panda at Founder's Day.

Are You a Hostess With the Mostess?

We are looking for members who may be interested in hosting a future event. If you are interested, please contact Stephanie at denveraoiialums@yahoo.com.

March Event

We're sorry to announce that our March event was cancelled. Please stay tuned for plans for our next educational event. 

Fulfilling the Promise

There's a new link on the AOII website called "Fulfilling the Promise." It is a site intended to provide educational opportunities for women of all ages -- members and non-members alike. It will address current topics of interest, have interactive quizzes and provide insights from AOII members. Be sure to check it out the next time you log on to the AOII site.

Congratulations to...

Lisa Lutz on the birth of Hailey Pearl Lutz on August 26, 2008! 

Alexis Ball on the birth of Oliver David Ball on December 29, 2008!

Ethnie Groves on her recent engagement!

Founder's Day a Great Success!

On November 8, sisters gathered at the lovely St Julien Hotel in downtown Boulder for our Founder's Day celebration. After a delicious brunch was served, Past International President Ginger Bands entertained us with a humorous and inspiring speech. She then answered questions from the audience about our rituals. Congratulations to the lucky sisters who were winners in our drawings. Roses to Dana Berry for planning such an elegant and enjoyable event! 

Learn the Acronyms

CDA: Collegiate District Administrator 

This staff position oversees the collegiate chapter operations in the district and works on a team of five collegiate specialists in addition to the Beta team. 

ADA: Alumnae District Administrator

This staff position works with alumnae chapter operations and any alumnae specialists. 

CS: Collegiate Specialists

Five volunteers that focus on the following areas: service, values, leadership, marketing and finance 

AS: Alumnae Specialist

Volunteers that work with all the areas in district alumnae chapters

These positions function differently than our current ANS/CNS and AND/CND roles. Everyone works together in a team atmosphere to work with the chapters in our district. Simply put, the CDA and ADA handle the operational aspects and utilize the specialists to provide enrichment. 

A New Structure for AOII

As you may have read in the recent To Dragma, Alpha Omicron Pi is testing a new regional structure for collegiate and alumnae chapters. The pilot program began in the 2008-2009 academic year. The test chapters were organized into a Beta District, which has eight alumnae chapters and 11 collegiate chapters. AOII has now added a second Beta District and we are excited to be included in as part of it. Other alumnae chapter included in the Beta 2 District are Rocky Mountain (CO), Lincoln (NE), Kearney (NE), Omaha (NE), Minneapolis/St. Paul (MN), Madison (WI), Greater Kansas City (MO), St Louis (MO) and as of January 31, Central Iowa. 

The Executive Board appointed four Denver Area Alumnae to positions for the new Beta 2 District. Veronica Kentish will direct operations as Collegiate District Administrator. Clara Tomsula will be a Collegiate Specialist in Service and Kristal Watson will be a Collegiate Specialist in Leadership. Mary Enwall will supervise six alumnae chapters as an Alumnae Specialist. Congratulations to Veronica, Clara, Kristal and Mary! We are proud to have chapter members representing our district. 

Friendship Circle

Do you have special news to share? A new baby? A marriage? A job promotion? Well, we want to know all about it! Email your news to us at denveraoiialums@yahoo.com. We'll publish it here and in our newsletter. Congratulations!

Referrals needed

If you know a young woman who is heading off to college, AOII would like to know about her. We gather information to send along to AOII chapters to help them prepare for recruitment. These "Member Information Forms" (MIFs) are used as letters of recommendation to help our chapters recruit quality candidates. It is especially important to inform them about a legacy who is going through recruitment. To get a copy of a MIF, please email us at denveraoiialums@yahoo.com. Thank you for ensuring a successful recruitment for AOII!

Your email...do we have it?

Calling all AOIIs! Do we have your current email address? If not, please let us know by emailing denveraoiialums@yahoo.com. We want to be able to effectively communicate with you and we're looking to cut down on the paper we send out -- saving trees and our alumnae chapter money.

Strike Out Arthritis!

On Saturday, February 21, about 46 of us bowled to "Strike Out Arthritis!" The fourth annual event was a lot of fun and a great success -- we donated about $500 to the Arthritis Research Foundation. Joy Henika organized the event this year. Great job Joy!

Click here to view pictures from the event.