Quickie

Sometimes a quickie is the perfect ending to a long day. As we all know, the success to good one involves a pinch of creativity and a dash of open-mindedness.

Quickie of the week:

Toasted Butternut Squash Ravioli in a Balsamic Glaze with Chicken Apple Sausage and Roasted Asparagus (all topped with honey roasted almonds).

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Ooooutrageous

The Butternut Squash was pre-made and frozen in my freezer from Whole Foods. It's a great staple to have on hand.  The apple sausage can also be frozen, but I happened to have some in my fridge left over from making chili. And the same goes for asparagus. Instead of using a brown butter sauce which is very popular for ravioli, I just drizzled on a thick balsamic glaze (found in the Italian section or specialty stores) which saved me a lot of fat.

PC: WineKitz.com, Cravingideas.com, thecnj.com

Gearing up for Thanksgiving

 Turkey cupcakes-the newest Thanksgiving staple. 

Left to right: Martha Stewart, Family Fun, Bright Ideas, Family Fun, Bake Space, Betty Crocker.
The Celebration Shoppe

Last Minute Dinner Party

Yesterday around 4 PM, my husband and I decided to host a couples dinner at our house at 8:30 PM... Luckily with the help of good groceries and Chelsea Market, we were able to pull it off with flying colors and had a perfect night with our friends.

Appetizers:

Cheese Plate (served on a lazy susan) with Manchego, White Cheddar, Brie, and Parmesan with fresh green grapes and fig jam

Accompaniments: sliced baguette, Carr's crackers, Italian breadsticks, and Rice crackers
Meat plate: Sweet and hot soppressata, proscuitto and pepperoni

Other: Trail mix by the new nut place at Chelsea Market

Drink: Red Wine (few different kinds of Cabernet)

The decor:

Fresh flowers from Gramercy Flowers at Chelsea Market. I made a bouquet (and wrapped two leaves around the inside of the vase) for the appetizer table and purchased some extra roses to make mini bouquets for each place setting.  I also purchased the most adorable lotus votive candles that I lined down the table.

Notice the mini bouquets-they add the perfect splash of color to the table and allow

everyone to see each other easily-unlike large flower arrangements.

Le Menu:

Iceberg Wedge: with chopped onion, tomato, blue cheese and low fat bacon. My husband prepared the bacon per my blog (with a dash of brown sugar thrown into the oven for 15-20) and we threw it together with a wedge of iceberg lettuce, fresh blue cheese, tomatoes, onion and a balsamic vinegar (next time I plan to make blue cheese dressing from scratch)

Entree:

Filet Mignon with Potato Kugel, and Roasted Asaparus

Dessert:

Brownies (from the box) served in ramekins with low fat vanilla ice cream

Other:

My favorite steak knives: Wusthof Steak Knives. I registered for the Ikon Blackwood, but I'm sure the other varieties are just as good. (They're just more expensive because of the handle).

Food images: Food & Wine, Whole Foods, PMSMeatsRI, Williams-Sonoma, reallynatural.com

Hostess with the Mostess

Hostess gifts are a must when someone invites you over for the holidays. The purpose of the gift to show your appreciation for the invitation and meal, so try to find something thoughtful that the host/hostess would enjoy. It does not need to be expensive. In fact, that would defeat the purpose of the holidays/invitation.

Of course you can take the wine route-everyone loves a bottle of wine... or flowers-the only thing here is if you expect them to go on the main dining room table you have to make sure it matches the hostess's decor/theme.

I happen to love the following gifts and think most entertainers would agree with me:

1) Pottery Barn Cloisonne Bottle Stoppers (I think that anything with colorful dragonflies and butterflies is gorgeous) $19.00/set of two

2) Decorative Hand Soap for the guest bathroom: Three Wise Monkeys and Three Little Pigs (I own the piggies and love them!) Can be purchased at one of my favorite French Home Stores: Bon Maison

$20.00/set

3) Cuisinart 3-Cup Mini-Prep Food Processor .(Love that they're in color)! $39.95/piece

4) French themed Cookie Tin (in red or blue): These are a wonderful gift because the tin can be reused. If you're ambitious, fill them with homemade cookies/brownies/blondies (or s'mores) or else go to your local bakery. ($15-$25.00) Also purchased at Bon Maison

5) Glass Trifle Bowl filled with your favorite trifle recipe(Peach and Berry Trifle)

$21.95 + ingredients

Happy Holidays!

Pig image: Vintage Weave, monkeys: nothingandeverything, Trifle image: trendir, bon maison, sur la table, pottery barn

Who you calling Shrimp?

Stir-Fried Ginger Shrimp with Brown Rice

This dish is extremely easy to prepare (the stir-frying process is under 10 minutes) and is equally delicious as it is healthy. 'Pretty good' is all I have to say.

You can also add a few of your favorite veggies-I added asparagus.

 Whatever you end up doing, (please) do not get rid of the onion and celery since they truly complement the meal.

Note: Have your fishmonger devein and peel the shrimp to save you the hassle (and your appetite).

Bon Appetit!

Recipe: Cooking Light

Les Salades

Here are some tasty salads I I just added to my cookbook:

Brussel Sprouts Salad with Toasted Hazelnuts and Parmesan (they serve something similar at one of my fave's: Morandi)

Mediterranean Salad with Proscuitto and pomegranates (I omit the fennel)

Winter Greens with Goat Cheese Croutons and Black Olive Vinaigrette (I omit the anchovies)

And some wonderful serving pieces:

Michael Aram's Coral Reef (I own this in white)

Atticus Madison Bowl with tongs:

Nambe:
 

***I actually sell these through my business if interested

101 Cookbooks, Epicurious, Bon Appetit, & Fine cooking, Michael Aram, Atticus and Nambe

Chili Chili Bang Bang

There's nothing like a hearty bowl of chili to warm your heart and soul and on a cold Winter (or Fall) night. Wanting to try something new yet healthy, I decided to try a new recipe by Cooking Light and it was delish!

The recipe: Beef, Black Bean, and Chorizo Chili
Toppings: Fresh avocado, chopped onion, crushed tortilla strips and low-fat cheese

I cut the recipe in half since I was only cooking for two and reserved the leftovers for lunch this week. I also served it with organic corn bread and used skim milk and corn oil rather than whole milk and vegetable oil. As for the chili, I used half turkey meat/half ground beef + sliced chorizo and used a ground cocoa mole powder and added fresh red peppers.

Finally, I was able to use my adorable Apilco Lion's Head Soup Bowls from Williams-Sonoma and feel like I should invest in a few more since I'll deifnitely be serving this meal at my next group or family dinner.

Williams-Sonoma is my home away from home.