As mentioned in a previous post, I’ve made a pork themed meal for my husband’s birthday for several years running now. Its always fun to come up with a different concept each year and think through the recipes for each of the courses. Last year’s surprise party was so much fun that I decided to do a scaled down version for a small group of … Continue reading Menu Planning: Toby’s Backyard Birthday BBQ
Several weeks ago, we hosted my cousin over for an Oscar party and I wanted to do a spread of finger foods that we could nosh on while we watched the awards show. I came up with an idea for mini twice baked potatoes that were a big hit. I made these again for Easter to go with the Yogurt-Marinated Leg of Lamb, but made … Continue reading Mini Stuffed Potatoes
We had our neighbors over to watch the Super Bowl and I wanted something easy, so we could all focus on the game (and the commercials!), and didn’t require lots of time in the kitchen for me. Plus, it had to be adaptable and appealing to both adults and teenage boys. I came up with a make your own pizza bar and it worked out … Continue reading Menu Planning: Super Bowl Sunday
Our sweet, funny little man just turned 2! We hosted a party at our house for our friends and family and had a few of Oliver’s friends over too. I love using literary themes for kids birthday parties as there are so many personal touches you can make with them. Last year, I picked “Brown Bear, Brown Bear” by Eric Carle for his first birthday … Continue reading Little Blue Truck Birthday Party
Every year around the holidays, we always get together with my aunt and uncle, who live close by, and my cousin, who is down visiting her parents from New York. Each year, the food and company are amazing and we usually exchange foodie type gifts, which are always welcome! In November, my dad had brought out some frozen brook trout he caught in Illinois and … Continue reading Menu Planning: Seafood Paella, Baked Trout, Braised Cabbage and Raspberry Jam Tart
On our recent trip to the Dominican Republic, several of the restaurant buffets at our resort served up massive 4 foot wide pans overflowing with seafood paella. The paellas were beautiful to look it, but the flavors were a little underwhelming and the seafood was a bit overdone. I wanted to recreate a paella dish when we returned home and use our paella pan that … Continue reading Seafood Paella
A bit late getting this up, since we’ve already moved in to full on Christmas prep, but wanted to share a post about our Thanksgiving. This year, we have much to be thankful for. Healthy family, happy home, new opportunities and a table full of delicious food to eat. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite days of the year, as its surrounded with food and … Continue reading Menu: Thanksgiving 2015
Another Harvest Party is down in the books! I always love putting this party together, but this year was special as we had our awesome family, neighbors and friends over to celebrate the start of this blog, and the beginning of this new adventure for me. It was a lot of work, but I’m thrilled that the food I selected turned out so well! Below … Continue reading Menu Planning: Harvest Party 2015
Several months after Toby and I started dating, we took a trip to visit his extended family in Hong Kong and spend some time on our own in Beijing. It was a great trip to visit his family and see lots of sites, and importantly, eat lots of delicious food! And what else does one do in Beijing but eat Peking duck? Over the course … Continue reading Duck Tarts with Asian Plum Sauce
A few months back, I borrowed a copy of Ina Garten’s “Make It Ahead” from our local library to get some ideas for entertaining that can be made ahead with little fuss right before serving. Overall, she had some recipes that looked great, but I only found a few recipes that fit what I was looking for. One of those recipes was for a Truffled … Continue reading Truffled Chicken Liver Mousse
Half Pint Garden 