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Easy Entertaining: Yogurt Cucumber Dip

OMG Friday. This has been a looooooooooooooooooong week for me- but I’m excited for the weekend and especially the Oscars! Will you be watching?? I’ve been thinking about inviting a few friends over to watch so I tested out a few quick snacks to make. This yogurt cucumber dip is AMAZING if I do say so myself!  A little bit tangy a little bit sweet, crunchy and creamy all at the same time. Start to finish it took about 10 minutes to whip up- it is so easy!

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Yogurt Cucumber Dip

What you need:

  • 14oz Greek yogurt (I used Fage)
  • Zest and juice of one lemon
  • 2T chopped parsley
  • 2T chopped mint
  • Medium cucumber
  • Pomegranate seeds
  • salt and pepper

Put the yogurt in a bowl. Add lemon, parsley and mint. Peel the cucumber and scrape out the seeds using a spoon- chop to small cubes and add it to the dip. Stir everything all around and add salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a serving bowl and sprinkle with pomegranate seeds. Serve with pita chips.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend. What movies do you think will be the big winners? My money is on Silver Linings Playbook ;)


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Easy Entertaining: Bosc Pear with Goat Cheese and Honey

Happy Friday! We made it! Any big plans for this weekend??? Nick and I have a few parties I’m looking forward to and I heard there are some big football games this weekend? just kidding. I may not be the biggest fan, but its pretty impossible to avoid football when living in New England.

Today’s “easy entertaining” I discovered on Bon Appetit as part of their Food Lover’s Cleanse. So its not only easy- its healthy too! Who said that big foodie magazines only have difficult fancy recipes???? This one is so easy you may have already figured it out from the title of this post- or the picture.

pear-with-goat-cheese-and-honey

Bosc Pear with Fresh Goat Cheese and Honey

What you need:

  • Bosc Pear
  • 1 oz goat cheese
  • 1/2 T honey

Thinly slice 1 bosc pear, spread the goat cheese on each slice, drizzle with honey. Repeat. Serve.

If thats not easy peasy I don’t know what is! If you want to kick it up a notch, try adding some toasted hazlenuts or maybe a sprinkle of nutmeg. Change up the goat cheese with ricotta or blue cheese for different flavors. The pear provides a great canvas and I think the opportunities are endless!


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For: the well styled home and bar

Because a pretty home is a happy home. I hope you enjoyed yesterdays gift guide. Today I’m continuing with gifts for the home and bar in a variety of price ranges.

First up is this collection of gifts for the kitchen and table- which I think would make any cook or hostess very happy. I was especially excited about the Japanese grill. On a recent trip to New York City, Nick and I went to Takashi, and tried this method of cooking delicately sliced beef- it is so delicious and a unique culinary adventure! For the more novice cook, the Chef Set Meals are an easy foray into the kitchen- with just three ingredients you prepare deliciously inspired dinners. Or if you prefer not to cook at all- at least you know you can dress up take out by decorating the table with any of these other beautiful treasures.

For the well styled home

Rose Garden Tablecloth / Engraved Vines Copper Cocotte / Batik Olivewood Cheese Spreader | LEIF / Bodum Eileen French Press Coffee Maker 34 oz / Vela Candlesticks Rablabs / Fox Salt and Pepper Shakers / Korin Japanese Trading – Konro Charcoal BBQ Grill / Chef Set Meals / Waylande Gregory Red Bird Tray GRAMERCY CO. / Chocolate Dipped Orange Peels / Davenport English Platter, C. 1805

If you have been reading this blog for a while now, you may have guessed that I have a special place in my heart for the well crafted cocktail, and along with that comes the well styled bar! This past weekend I mixed up some Moscow Mules with my friends- but I wish I had had these copper Moscow Mule Cups- it makes the drink SO much better. I’m also in love with the tequila shot glasses- they are made from Pink Himalayan Salt!!!!! And if you need inspiration for a drink Mrs. Lilien’s cocktail swatch-book is a great visual recipe deck of some amazing libations.

for the well stocked bar

Caneel Bay Bar Cart – Turquoise / Royal Cocktail Coaster Set / Jimena Pitcher / Birch Bark Straws / RABLABS Bottle Opener / BARNES & NOBLE | Mrs. Lilien’s Cocktail Swatch Book by Kelley Lilien,… / HIMALAYAN SALT TEQUILA GLASSES- SET OF 4 / Morris-Kitchen Ginger Syrup / Art Deco Glass Decanter & Four Cordial’s by Boom at 1stdibs / Hex Champagne Bucket / Old Dutch Copper Moscow Mule Mug 428 / Best Year Wine Stopper Rabbit


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Easy Entertaining: Smoked Salmon Pinwheels

TGIF! This was a long week for me so I’m especially happy to celebrate the weekend! I think the word pinwheels definitely conjures up an image of a summer party- but trust me that these ones made from smoked salmon are great all year long! I think they qualify perfect for easy entertaining, because not only are they delicious, but they look SO fancy and impressive for very little effort. Trust me that they would make a perfect snack for a holiday cocktail party or just a fancy breakfast at home!

Smoked Salmon Pinwheels

Smoked Salmon Pinwheels

What you need:

  • 1 package smoked salmon
  • 4 oz cream cheese (trust me and don’t get anything but philadelphia- whipped makes things easier if you can find it)
  • Chopped green onions
  • Juice of 1/2 a lemon
  • Salt and Pepper

Carefully open the package of smoked salmon and gently lift out the thin slices. Arrange the slices on a piece of plastic wrap (its easy to do this if you wrap a plate in plastic wrap first). A lot of them are folded up in the package so make sure to have a SINGLE layer. The idea is to cover as much surface area as possible- with a slight overlap on the edges of the smoked salmon pieces. Its kind of like making a quilt of salmon.

In a small bowl combine the cream cheese, chopped onions and lemon and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Stir vigorously until creamy and all combined.

Now, scoop the cream cheese onto the salmon and gently spread it all around until every bit of salmon is covered. Don’t make the layer too thick- I did this and next time I will be much more careful. If you have extra cream cheese that’s OK- use it for something else, but trust me to not overdo it.

Starting at one end of the salmon begin rolling the entire thing up like a sleeping bag. Don’t do it too tightly or all of the cream cheese will squeeze out. It’s kind of like making sushi. Wrap the salmon/ cream cheese log in the plastic wrap and stick it in the fridge for minimum an hour and optimally, overnight.

When you take the log out of the fridge, cut pinwheels about the width of your pinky finger with a VERY sharp knife- its easy to keep things together if you put toothpicks all the way through the log and then cut between each one. Serve and enjoy!


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Easy Entertaining: Mini Mushroom Tarts

Everyone loves the ease of frozen hors d’oeuvres but a lot of times they can fall really flat on flavor. So this week I decided to try an experiment in creating my own mini treats from scratch… well…. not total scratch because I had some frozen puff pastry nearing expiration in my freezer and that is what inspired this recipe. (who makes puff pastry themselves anyway???) But the rest of the recipe IS- and let me tell you that you can TOTALLY tell the difference between delicious caramelized mushrooms and onions with gooey goat cheese and those Trader Joes imposters.

Active time for this was probably 20 minutes, so I’m convinced that the extra “work” was manageable enough that I’m never going back to the frozen version again.

Mini Mushroom Tarts

What you need:

  • Frozen puff pastry
  • 4tbs butter
  • one yellow onion
  • 1 pack baby portobello mushrooms
  • One egg
  • Herbed goat cheese (or plain with your own blend of chopped up herbs)

Defrost the sheet of puff pastry (this takes about an hour or so pull it out of the freezer and THEN run to the store for ingredients)

Thinly slice onion and mushrooms and place in a small pan on medium heat with the butter. Cook until the onions are amber colored and caramelized- about 15 minutes. Meanwhile roll out your puff pastry and cut into circles about the size of the O of an OK hand gesture. Arrange on a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Take the mushrooms and onions off the heat and let cool for a minute or so. Transfer to a bowl. Beat the egg and then stir it into the mixture.

Place about a tablespoon of the mushroom/onion/egg mixture on each puff pastry circle and then add a bit of the herbed goat cheese.

Bake for about 10-15 minutes at 375.

easy!!

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