I love sending and receiving “real mail.” I could spend a fortune at stores like Kate’s Paperie and Papyrus. In a recent attempt to de-clutter my life, I decided to be more resourceful when it comes to more frivolous occasions such as Valentine’s Day. So, instead of running out to buy cards, I dug through my drawers for blank writing paper and leftover ribbon. I decided to sit down and make a few handmade {with love} Valentine’s Day cards for my family and friends. It brought back fun memories of making cards when I was a child and hopefully all recipients will enjoy the homemade sentiment.
Categories: Holiday
Tagged: cards, ribbon, Valentine's Day
February 4, 2010 · 1 Comment
More fun details from New York’s (or in this case New York/Los Angeles) fabulous hostesses for you! I love finding out my friend’s secrets, tricks, challenges, recipes, etc. and how they entertain in their own homes. This week I asked my very best friend, Kelly (who is a native New Yorker, but now splits her time between New York and LA) to share her tips. She nicely took time out of her busy recording schedule to fill me in. Here’s what she had to say…
KELLY LEVESQUE, RECORDING ARTIST (Due Voci):
A great trick to have up your sleeve is a dessert that is part of your family’s heritage. This way you can serve a yummy dessert but also (and maybe most importantly) have a story that goes along with it! My mother is Peruvian and at family holidays we usually have one dish that has a Peruvian flair. My personal favorite is a cookie called Alfajore; they are bite size and delicious! Although the original recipe takes over four hours to prepare, I have a recipe to create this amazing dessert in an instant – while appearing to your guests that you slaved in the kitchen for hours!
Ingredients:
1 (Pillsbury) Refrigerated Pie Crust
1 Can of Dulce de Leche (Nestle)
1 Box of Powered Sugar
Directions:
- Lay out the pie crust
- Take a shot glass (yes, I said a shot glass) using it as a cookie cutter to cut out circles
- Bake on a cookie sheet (400 degrees) until the crust is a light golden brown
- Let the cookies cool
- Place the dulce de leche in between two cookies
- Roll the cookies in Powdered Sugar
To make the cookies look elegant and irresistible place them on a silver tray!
Keep an eye out for Kelly’s new project: www.duevoci.com (official website launches February 14th!)
To see the first part of this series (with tips from CITY Magazine’s Renee Lucas and Dtangled’s Alexa, click HERE!)
Categories: In New York · Uncategorized
Tagged: dessert, Due Voci, easy entertaining, entertaining tips, Kelly Levesque
Honestly, I am not so into the Superbowl this year ~ no New York teams. That’s not to say I’m not going to use it as a great opportunity to see my friends and throw a party. What else do you need on Superbowl Sunday besides chili and beer to make the guys happy? Let’s spice it up a little though:
Whole Foods Bowery has a fabulous beer room! If you haven’t been, definitely check it out. They have over 1,000 choices plus at least 6 beers on tap. For my gathering, I am chosing all local breweries and picking up a few growlers as well! If you are not in New York check out the local beer selection at your beer store. Fun, new beers are a great conversation starter for your party.
Feed a crowd, make a big pot of chili. I am spicing it up with a recipe for Spicy Chili Con Carne.
Ingredients
2 large onions, chopped
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 carrots, sliced thin
3 pounds boneless beef chuck, ground coarse in batches in a food processor or by the butcher
1/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon crumbled dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried hot red pepper flakes
two 8-ounce cans tomato sauce
1 1/4 cups beef broth
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
a 19-ounce can kidney beans, rinsed and drained (or black beans!)
2 green bell peppers, chopped
Directions
Cook the onions in the oil over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until they are softened, add garlic and carrots, and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute. Add chuck and cook over moderate heat, stirring and breaking up lumps until it is no longer pink. Add chili powder, cumin, paprika, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Cook mixture, stirring, for 1 minute. Add tomato sauce, broth, and vinegar, bring the mixture to a boil, and simmer it, covered, stirring occasionally for 1 hour, or until the meat is tender. Add the beans, bell peppers. Salt and pepper to taste and simmer the mixture, uncovered, for 15 minutes, or until the peppers are tender.
Serve with cornbread or cheese biscuits ~ game on!
Categories: Recipes
Tagged: beer, chili recipe, entertaining, superbowl, Whole Foods
February 2, 2010 · 1 Comment
Images {left –> right}
Casablanca: Humphrey Bogart & Ingrid Bergman, Dessert, Moet & Chandon Champagne Imperial Rose, Graffiti in New York, Toile, Grace Kelly, LOVE Sculpture in NYC by Robert Indiana, The Eifel Tower, The Red Shoes, Roses, Fashion Week 2009, La Perla, mannequins in Front of Hugo Dalton Art, Conversation Hearts, Breakfast at Tiffany’s Audrey Hepburn & George Peppard, Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Charlotte Moss Collection for Halcyon days, White Babies Room, Cupcake from Sugar Sweet Sunshine in New York.
Categories: Holiday
Tagged: new york, Fashion Week, Casablanca, Humphrey Bogart, Moet & Chandon, Grafitti, Grace Kelly, LOVE Scuplture, The Eifel Tower, The Red Shoes, Roses, La Perla, Hugo Dalton, Conversation Hearts, Breakfast at Tiffany's, Audrey Hepburn, Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet
January 29, 2010 · 1 Comment
Flûte or coupe? How do you toast with your bubbly?
Lately, I have seen champagne coupes popping up all over the place. In the past few weeks I have started my morning with a brunch bellini at Freeman’s, clinked with friends during après work cocktails at Clover Club and sipped the night away at Boom Boom Room, all with champagne coupes.
About two years ago my husband and I went on a wild hunt for our very own set of champagne coupes, we simply love their style. They were impossible to find. We were about to give up when my Grandmother saved the day, passing her gorgeous set down to us. Lately, I have seen these beauties pop up everywhere, gaining popularity. New trend? I think so!
The champagne coupe (sometimes called a champagne saucer) is believed to have been modeled on the breast of Marie Antoinette. Many aficionados consider this type of glass “inappropriate” for the current style of very dry champagnes, versus the sweeter champagnes popularized when the coupe came into popularity in the 1930s (post prohibition). Its broad surface area (as opposed to a flûte) means that the champagne quickly loses its signature carbonation. But, honestly I feel more fabulous drinking out of a coupe!
Categories: Its All In The Details · Uncategorized
Tagged: Boom Boom Room, champagne, champagne coupe, champagne saucer, Clover Club, cocktails, Freeman's
Chinese New Year, what a fabulous, festive occasion! February 14, 2010 marks the start of the year of the tiger. Sounds like a pretty great occasion to celebrate; let’s throw a party!
Chinese New Year is one of the most important of traditional Chinese holidays reflecting many fascinating ancient myths and traditions and representing themes of happiness, longevity and wealth. It is not uncommon for people to spend money on presents, decorations, clothing and food to celebrate this momentous occasion. It is also the tradition that families thoroughly clean their house to “sweep” away any ill-fortune, hoping this makes way for good luck to come.
The Chinese New Year tradition is a great way to reconcile forgetting all grudges, and sincerely wish peace and happiness for everyone. Sounds good to me!
One of the very first events I worked in New York was a benefit and party after a performance of Broadway’s Flower Drum Song. My boss sent me downtown to Pearl River Mart to pick up a few items for the event. It was my first time to the store and even in its old grungy location (it has since moved to swanky Soho), it was love at first sight. This weekend I took a trip (with my camera) to one of my now all time favorite, New York “go to” stores, Pearl River Mart, to pick a few items for my Chinese New Year party. If you have never been you must run there! It is an amazing source for excellent gifts, décor and affordable home goods. If you are not in NYC, no worries, you can order online!
A few ideas for your Chinese New Year Party:
Lanterns pack a big punch! Just a few hanging from the ceiling will set the mood (individual lanterns range from $5 – $12).
Chop sticks are a cheap and easy way to create a fun feel. The possibilities are endless when choosing which to pick, most are under $1.
Asian Noodles in boxes (here’s where your chop sticks come into play!)
Pot Stickers (click here for the recipe that I have used many times and love)
Homemade Fortune Cookies (they are way easier than you would think!)
Ingredients
- Nonstick spray
- 2 egg whites
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
- 1/2 cup superfine sugar
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 tablespoons water
- Pinch salt
- Fortunes written on strips of paper
Directions
Position an oven rack in the center of oven. Preheat to 400 degrees.
On a half sheet tray, spray a nonstick spray. In a medium bowl whisk egg whites until foamy. Add flour, sugar, almond extract, water, and salt to egg whites, beat until smooth (about 30 seconds). Pour or spoon 1 tablespoon of batter and spread with the back of a spoon into a thin 4-inch circle. Repeat on the other half of the sheet, making only 2 cookies per sheet tray. Bake the cookies on middle rack of oven until golden brown around edges, about 8 minutes. Remove from oven and working very quickly, with an offset spatula, remove cookie from baking sheet and place a fortune in the center of the round. Fold to create a half circle. Bend pointed edges of cookie toward each. This should be done quickly since the cookie will become hard and brittle within 10 seconds. Let cool.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: affordable entertaining, Chinese New Year, entertaining, entertaining at home, fortune cookies, happiness, lanterns, party, Pearl River Mart
I keep a photo archive of all the events I have worked on throughout the years. On this cold Friday in January, I perked up a little when I came across this spring 2006 photo from a women’s luncheon in Central Park. We were struggling with not having enough space on the table and trying to move swiftly through the lunch (nobody likes a luncheon that drags on). So, we decided to scrap a traditional dessert and instead have the centerpiece be the dessert. Cookies, candies and petit fours it was!
Here’s to a sweet weekend! xx
Click HERE to see more from the vault.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: centerpiece, Central Park, cookies, dessert, luncheon
The Pineapple is a Symbol of Hostpitality
Not to brag, but…. I happen to have some pretty fabulous friends here in New York. I thought it would be fun to ask them about how they entertain in their own homes. The questions were loose. Do they have any tricks up their sleeves? Challenges they face? Something they always make? Serveware they always use? Or any other insightful hints..
I think we can learn a lot from each other (I was just talking a few posts ago about collaboration). I will be posting a few of my friends home entertaing responses each week , starting with these two darlings:
Renee Lucas, Executive Editor of CITY Magazine :
Don’t be caught unprepared for guests who happen to be in the area and stop by with little notice. I like to keep the house stocked with an assortment of Illy or Lavazza espresso, as there is something welcoming about the smell and sound of coffee being brewed. I have a set of antique Italian espresso cups and saucers that my grandmother gave to me. Each is a different bright color of the rainbow, and although they have been passed down for years, they are modern looking and always a talking point. To accompany this, keep fresh artisan chocolates in the house. Companies like Compartes Chocolatier hand-paint their truffles and the unusual flavors like maple and wasabi are both interesting and fun. With no cooking required, it’s an easy way to entertain on a minutes notice.
I absolutely love cooking and having dinner parties! My boyfriend and I usually tackle three or four courses. However, we don’t have a dining room table so when we have lots of people over we throw a bunch of food on the kitchen island and the coffee table and let people wander around. Disco music + cheese platter + good bread + a lot of champagne is a trick I learned from my Brazilian friends. Impossible not to have a good time!
Regardless of whether I’m hosting an intimate dinner or a group, I always start with a signature amuse-bouche-style small dish that everyone can enjoy. My signature dish in the summer is my version of a refreshing pea shoot salad that I first tasted at ñ in Soho. In the winter, I like to start with my mom’s recipe for leek soup. I serve it in tiny bowls so it’s almost like a hot drink.
For special occasions, I use Christiane Perrochon ceramic dishware that my boyfriend’s mother gifted me – www.christianeperrochon.com . I would never use them at a party though; they are too precious. Instead, I bluff with look-alikes from IKEA; I like the flat plates and bowls from the Dinera series.
I also have a winter and summer scent scheme to keep the apartment fragrant and not overpowered with food when we cook. I love Diptyque and have blogged about it a bunch: http://dtangled.com/2009/11/03/merchants-of-everything . In the summer I love Diptyque Pink Roses and Figuier; and in the winter it’s Feu du Bois or Foin Coupe since we really wish we had a working fireplace!
Categories: In New York
Tagged: Christiane Perrochon, CITY Magazine, Compartes Chocolatier, Diptyque, dtangled.com, entertaining, entertaining at home, entertaining tips, Illy, Lavazza, Soho
Located in the former landmark, the Williamsburgh Savings Bank {for now!}, the Brooklyn Flea is not be missed! Open on Saturdays and Sundays, the market is a fabulous source for vintage everything: furniture, textiles, clothing, jewelry, antiques and much, much more! Hungry? Don’t worry, the lower level has delicious local fair. The Red Hook Lobster Pound even has a booth! Check out the flea in this amazing location through March. In April it moves back outdoors ~ Saturdays in Fort Greene and Sundays in DUMBO. This past Saturday I headed over there with a friend to browse. Here are a few things that caught my eye…
