I thought with Labor Day approaching, along with the end of summer BBQs coming, a yummy steak might be fun to try. This reminded me of of an amazing recipe from my week at the Cordon Blue last fall. You may want to substitute the spinach for grilled corn on the cob, or another summer favorite, but hold on to this cream spinach recipe because it is awesome! I’ve often paired this meal with a delicious chocolate mousse, so I’ve included that here too. Take a look at this video for some great tips and techniques.
Steak Dinner
A Delicious Little Project for You
With the holiday weekend approaching and me preparing for houseguests, having my house filled with good food has been at the forefront of my mind this week. So, between graduations, travel and work, I squeezed in some time to make babbka – one of my favorite coffee cakes. Also called chocolate krantz cake, this is a huge crowd pleaser, so I thought I’d share it with you.
Celebrating Passover: tradition, food and community
When I was a young woman I was invited to my first Passover. So many things about this holiday struck me – the family spirit of the celebration, the rituals, the camaraderie and, of course, the delicious foods. One thing that has stayed with me since that first experience was that everyone there (adults and children) seemed to want to belong to this “community,” – a community of heritage more than religion – but they didn’t all know the prayers or songs, though they longed to.
Springtime entertaining
With Spring in full swing here in Southern California, and Easter just a few days away, I’ve been thinking about one of my favorite things — entertaining. As I’ve mentioned before, there are few things I enjoy more than hosting friends and family. Over the years I’ve experimented with all kinds of dishes, and along the way I’ve discovered a few favorites. One of my “go to” recipes for dinner parties is my lamb chops. Now I know that lamb can sound intimidating for some, but this recipe is super easy and is guaranteed to impress!
Getting Social and Walking the “Plank”
I thought there was a good chance I would escape social media altogether. My sweet daughter, Katie, has been gently encouraging me for a while to start a lifestyle blog; but up until a few months ago, I had never tweeted, Instagramed or Facebooked. In fact I wasn’t even interested in finding out what any of that meant. Boy, I didn’t know what I was missing!
Over the Thanksgiving holiday, my daughter (and two nephews) encouraged me to get on Instagram. They set up an account for me, and then, even after we’d parted, they continued to email and text me with corrections, tips and ideas. As I write this, it has been two months, and I have more than 2,100 people following me on Instagram—yippy! It is so much fun and a bit of an obsession to boot … I love the #tbt and #fbf … great fun!
Okay, so that’s how I came to the world of social media … but what about this blog? Let’s back up a little first…
Dining alfresco
Combine my very social nature and my love of cooking and what you get is an absolute obsession with throwing a good party. From small, intimate dinner parties in my backyard to bigger gatherings full of family and friends, I love to entertain. Planning the menu, staging the area, adding creative elements — I love it all!
Because of the amazing weather here in Southern California, I am fortunate to be able to host so many parties outside, and dining alfresco is an absolute favorite.
What’s the best party you’ve ever thrown and what made it so special?
My holiday recap
*As previously published on Hybrid Mom
I can’t believe another year has gone by. It seems like yesterday I was sharing last year’s holiday adventures with all of you. Crazy! All of my kids are older and my two oldest live away from home so the holidays are a great time for us to be together. It is so fun for me to decorate the house, have a fire going and something great smelling baking in the oven for their return. It felt so warm and welcoming and we were all so happy to reunite.
A couple of days later we headed on our annual road trip to Colorado for Christmas. This year we went a day earlier and stayed a day later, so it was a nice vacation. It really gave everyone (mainly parents) the opportunity to relax. We had the big group of extended friends and their families for Christmas Eve. The food was amazing and like always a few of the guys bring out their guitars and one keyboard and start singing songs. Before you know it everyone is singing. It is such a happy memorable night for all of us.