Best TV Watching Appetizers

With many highly-anticipated television events on the horizon in the new year,  tasty finger food recipes are a necessity.  From the Superbowl to the Grammy’s to the Academy Awards, chances are you'll be hosting or attending a tv viewing party. Whether an informal sports gathering  or a fancy dinner party, these appetizers are reliable crowd pleasers!  Enjoy... Judy’s Baked Brie: A deliciously warm and sweet appetizer to compliment any party.  No one expects the "kick" provided by the honey mustard and ginger snap combination.  Mom … [Read more...]

Creamy Mashed Potatoes

Today was a perfect vacation day. Have you ever longed for a day where you never get out of your pajamas?  Where you (almost) don’t have a care in the world?  Where you really feel as though you’re off any sort of radar?  When I woke up and heard the wind howl and saw the rain cascading over my windowsill, I knew we’d have a day chock full of puzzles and baking and reading and dozing ahead of us. … [Read more...]

Chicken Fried Rice

This recipe is inspired from my Teppanyaki Be-the-Chef training at Benihana last month. Now that I've made chicken fried rice on a legitimate habachi grill at the restaurant, I've got the confidence to replicate the dish on my little 4 burner gas grill. Trust me, this dish is better than take out and can be served as a main course with the addition of chicken. The key to this rice is the integration of sesame oil, egg and day-old rice. I planned ahead and used a rice-cooker to cook the rice to peak fluffy perfection and stored it in … [Read more...]

Compost Cookies

I just participated in the 3rd Annual Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap. It’s an exciting program, hosted by Lindsay of Love and Olive Oil and Julie of The Little Kitchen, which brings together food bloggers from around the world “in celebration of all things scrumptious”. The premise of the program is quite simple. I baked delicious home made cookies and sent a dozen of each to three other assigned food bloggers.  In return, I received three dozen cookies from three separate food bloggers: Pecan Cookies from Cats and Commas; Date Pinwheels from … [Read more...]