There can be few occasions sexier than a cocktail party; little black dresses, sparkly earrings, high heels safe in the knowledge that not a lot of walking will be required, too much champagne … Continue reading
10 tips to help plan a cocktail party
1 Plan your menu carefully – make sure you have things that can be finished and plated in advance as well as a few hot items that you can get out of the oven as the evening goes on. I usually work on the principle of 3 hot 3 cold and something sweet. Continue reading
The Wednesday Tipple – Planning a cocktail party – salmon canapés and a gin martini
The Oscars are approaching, which is a great excuse to throw a formal get out the best glasses cocktail party. I love to get dressed up, buy in vats of ice, and prink about in the kitchen with some canapé action.
When I graduated from cooking school I had a very short lived job making canapés for a catering company. I hollowed out trays of cherry tomatoes then, very carefully filled them back up again with pesto. It was not exactly fulfilling work. In fact, it felt like the living embodiment of one of my Aunty Jennifer’s favorite sayings; “life’s too short to peel a grapeâ€.
But in the privacy of my own kitchen, I do like to put together finger food and fancy things up a little. Continue reading
Posted in The Wednesday Tipple, Uncategorized
Tagged blini, brown bread, canape, cocktail, cucumber, gin, how to, lemon, martini, oscar, party, rosti, salmon, snack
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The Monday Treat – Milk and White Chocolate Popcorn
It’s Oscar Week, which brings out conflicting emotions: excitement to see the dresses, and guilt that I haven’t seen the movies.
This year has been worse than usual – I’ve only seen the 1. Social Network. Really enjoyed it. Couldn’t believe the actor playing the twin wasn’t a twin. Still. That’s not an impressive commitment on my part to experiencing the best that cinema has to offer.
So my heart was full of good intentions when my friends Wendy and Jess proposed a night out that involved a flickering screen and a vat of popcorn. Continue reading
Posted in The Monday Treat
Tagged 127 hours, black swan, chocolate, dark chocolate, justin bieber, king's speech, milk chocolate, oscars, popcorn, white chocolate
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This Dinner Will Get You Laid – Garden of Eden Aphrodisiac Pizza
Valentines Day, it seems, dropped like a stone into the lives of many of my friends with the ripples resonating into the week. Continue reading
Posted in This Dinner Will Get You Laid
Tagged aphrodisiac, arugula, fig, flatbread, goat cheese, Grace, honey, parma ham, pizza, rocket, Sara, truffle oil
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The Wednesday Tipple – Whisky Sours and shoe related guilt
I slid the parcel across the wooden bar and Julia swiped it into her open purse with one hand, while with the other, she lifted the last sip of her whisky sour to her lips.
“That hits the spot,†she sighed, signaling to the barman that she’d like another. “It turns out, since I had the baby my alcohol tolerance has gone way up. It might be nature’s way of helping Mothers cope with teething.†Continue reading
Posted in The Wednesday Tipple
Tagged bourbon, cocktail, lemon juice, sugar syrup, whiskey, whisky
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The Monday Treat – Nutella Bread Pudding
Have you heard about the phenomenon of Valentines break ups?
The office is a buzz with the topic, since we have in our midst a Valentine break up candidate in a moral dilemma.
He’s known for a few weeks now that his relationship isn’t going anywhere. And he’ll have to man up and do it and tell her. But thus far, courage has eluded him. This presents a problem;
Is it better to break up with a girl leaving her single and alone on Valentines, or lie to her and celebrate Valentines, then do a 180 and dump her a few days later? Continue reading
Posted in The Monday Treat
Tagged anti Valentines, bread pudding, brioche, croissant, heartbreak, nutella, vegetarian
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10 Valentines Breakfast in Bed Ideas
Yes it’s on a Monday. No, it might not be the most relaxed breakfast in bed of all time, but it’s worth taking the time to make an impression with these low effort Valentines breakfast ideas. Continue reading
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Tagged bacon, brioche, brunch, coffee, croissant, french toast, love, nutella, toast, valentine's, vegetarian
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This dinner will get you laid – 6 Menus for Valentines
Jonathan and I officially “don’t do†Valentines Day. We will not be taken in by cards with kittens on them, or by Snoopy-themed chocolates. No set price menus including duck, a chocolate dipped strawberry and a swirl of raspberry coulis for us. Oh no. We deliberately set out to eat Pizza Hut and drink beer.
But that still means he has to get me flowers, right? Continue reading
Posted in This Dinner Will Get You Laid
Tagged antipasti, bacon, candle lit, carbonara, champagne, chick peas, chocolate, chocolate pots, cocktail, cous cous, fennel, orange, pasta, picnic, pomegranate, prosecco, ragu, red snapper, romance, strawberries, tagine, tiramisu, valentine's
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