My First Mommy Blogger Party

Today was a first for me.  I attended and partially hosted a fabulous mommy blogger party on behalf of my client, Dreamfields Pasta.  It was officially hosted by Beth Aldrich/Real Moms Luv 2 Eat, in her gorgeous Oak Street condo overlooking Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline.  All I can say is WOW!  I'm gonna half to get me one of those some day!

Beth invited Chef Brian Schreiber of Ravinia to come in and demonstrate two recipes using Dreamfields pasta. (Ladies, he's adorable, aimiable, single and can cook! The perfect man.)  For those of you who don't know about this fantastic pasta, please go to http://www.dreamfieldsfoods.com/ for recipe and more information. It's a delicious pasta that serves up only 5 grams of digestible carbs and 5 grams of fiber per one cup serving!  Best of all, it doesn't have that gritty texture of whole wheat pasta, yet has the same amount of fiber.  Becuase of it's reduced carbs, it's great for people with diabetes -- yet tasty enough for the whole family.

OK, I'll stop with the PR pitch. :-)  But seriously, this is great pasta that worked perfectly with Chef Brian's recipes.  My favorite was the Roasted Angel Hair and Tandori Shrimp.  We roasted the Angel Hair in the oven for about 8 minutes before putting it in the boiling water.  I've never done that before and the results were awesome.  Try this recipe out as it's so easy and so delicious.  Emily and I are going to make this later in the week for the family.

Toasted Dreamfields Angel Hair Pasta with Oven Roasted Tomatoes and Tandoori Shrimp
Created By: Chef Brian Schreiber
Serves 4


1 box (13.25 oz) Dreamfields Angel Hair Pasta

For Roasted Tomatoes:
5 Roma tomatoes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
Salt and Pepper to taste


For Tandoori Shrimp:
1 pound medium peeled and deveined shrimp
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
2 teaspoons ground cardamom
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes
Zest of one lime


For Garnish:
Parmesan cheese shavings
Fresh basil, cut into thin strips
Drizzle of extra virgin olive oil


1.) Quarter and seed Roma tomatoes. Toss with extra virgin olive oil, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper. Place on a large, rimmed baking sheet. Roast at 375 degrees F 45 minutes.


2.) Bring four quarts salted water to a boil. While waiting, place pasta on large, rimmed baking sheet. Roast at 375 degree F oven about 5-8 minutes or until golden brown; let cool.


3.) For shrimp, toss peeled and deveined shrimp with extra virgin olive oil, ginger, cardamom, cumin, smoked paprika, chili flakes and lime zest.


4.) Cook toasted Dreamfields angel hair pasta in boiling salted water about 5 minutes, uncovered. Do not overcook.


5.) While pasta is cooking, drain shrimp. Pat dry. Cook in large, preheated nonstick skillet over medium-high heat just until cooked through, stirring frequently.


6.) Drain pasta; toss with Tandoori Shrimp and roasted tomatoes.


7.) Garnish with Parmesan, fresh basil and extra virgin olive oil.

Thanks again to Beth at Real Moms Luv 2 Eat! 

House Party Rocks

I just finished cleaning up from my first sponsored "House Party" and and totally impressed. This was sponsored by Calphalon Unison Cookware and Williams-Sonoma and it rocked!  So glad they found and selected me to host one of their parties.

House Party is a company that matches up consumer packaged goods with consumers that match their target demographic (i.e., people who like or should like a particular product or even TV show).  They ask about 1,000 consumers to host a party on a given day revolving around the sponsor's selected theme.  They provide all the props ( in this case TWO free Calphalon Unison non-stick fry pans and other cool stuff) and even a gift card to defray the cost of the dinner party.  In exchange, I promised to have a dinner party with about 10 friends and talk about the cookware.  That was easy.

The Unison pan lived up to the advertising:  Great searing qualities + a dishwasher-safe, non-stick surface.  All I can say is "Where have you been all my life?"  These are seriously the pans for me.

I was provided recipes for an appetizer, salad, entree and dessert. Emily helped with the appetizer and did a fabulous job garnishing the Grilled Bruschetta. We loved every recipe except for the Grilled Radicchio.  (No one liked it for that matter -- too bitter.)  Also, the quantity of the batter that is produced with the recipe for Lemon-Ricotta Blinis was WAY TOO MUCH. I have enough of these little pancakes to last me a month!  But they were yummy with the raspberry sorbet.

We even had a raffle for a Michael Symon cookbook that I received from the House Party people -- my buddy Liz won it in a drawing.

I was very happy to host this affair and hope to have the opportunity to do so again in the future.  It was fun and yummy - what more could you ask?

Better Late Than Never

Just because I've become a "C and E" Catholic doesn't mean I'm also turning into a "C and E" blogger!  But it sure looks like it, since the last time I posted was around Christmas and now I'm finally getting around to posting about my Easter Lamb Cake.  Oh well, as the title of this segment says, better late than never.

This was the second year in a row that I attempted to make, bake and decorate a lamb cake for Easter dinner.  And while the end results were acceptable, I will say that it took some finagling to get there.

As always, I ran over to my mom's house to pick up her 50-year-old metal lamb cake mold.  That thing is so study and heavy I'm confident it will survive a nuclear attack!  Knowing that this mold works best with a firm cake, my 10-year-old daughter and budding chef, Emily, and I went to work looking for a good pound cake recipe.  I used the one from the Betty Crocker Baking for Today  cookbook I received from a friend and former client, Mary Bartz (who was pretty much "Betty Crocker" for much of her career).

According to my mom, the proper way to make the cake is to pour batter into both halves, bake them separately and then assemble the two sides with frosting and toothpicks. However, I recently read an article in which an expert from Wilton Enterprises suggested to only fill one half with cake batter and tie the two halves of the mold together to form one solid cake.  A co-worker, Jessie, tried it that way and had great success.  I, unfortunately, tried it my mom's way and had to really work at leveling the two halves in order to get them to stick together.  Half of the lamb's head even broke off and had to be surgically attached!

Once Emily and I got that taken care of, we whipped up some homemade frosting and started decorating.  It's wonderful how frosting can cover up a multitude of mistakes -- kinda like a good makeup foundation.  Chocolate chips made the eyes and we gave him/her a red ribbon scarf to complete the project.  And while our lamb may not have looked like a perfect creation, no one seemed to mind when they were eating it.  Seriously, it was delicious and I will do it again next year . . . with a few minor alterations!  Heck, this could also work for baby showers, birthday parties for 4H meetings.  Use your imagination and have fun.

Ten BEST Holiday Songs

OK, yesterday I listed my 10 least favorite holiday songs . . . now it's time for my all-time favorite melodies.  These are the tunes that make my Christmas year after year.  How many are on your list too?

10.  Another Old Lang Syne by Dan Fogleberg:  Who can't relate to this misty-eyed tale of bumping into a old flame on Christmas Eve? 

9.  Christmas Island by Jimmy Buffet: I find myself humming this non-traditional holiday tune from Thanksgiving to Christmas Eve.  And while I prefer a white Christmas, I'd love to hang out with Jimmy on Christmas Island one of these days.

8.  Chipmunk Song: All I want is a hula-hoop too, Alvin.

7.  Hardrock, Coco and Joe/Suzy Snowflake/Frosty the Snowman:  For any kid growing up in the Chicagoland area in the 19060 and 70s, you couldn't escape these black&white treasures that would air on Ray Raynor or Family Classics.  If you hear a giggle as he turns to go, it's Coco, a snowball, and Joe!  Brilliant low-tech videos!

6.  Anything by Harry Connick Jr:  His classic crooning and jazzy undertones make any holiday song swing.  Sorry Michael Buble, you've got nothin on Harry.

5. Christmas Song by Nat King Cole:  Smooth, warm and absolutely beautiful.  Everything that the holidays represent and more.

4. Santa Claus is Coming to Town by Bruce Springsteen:  OK, I admit, I'm a die-hard Bruuuuce fan and feel he can do no wrong.  But this version of this holiday classic is truly classic Bruce.  It made it cool for other rock-n-rollers to do their own holiday tunes, but no one does it better than  the Boss.

3.  It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year by Andy Williams: Who can't sway and twirl and smile whenever this song is played. Even my sons had to dance whenever I put this song on years ago (although they would never admit that they did -- too bad I have it on video.  Ha!)  Andy does it like no other! 

2.  Anything from Charlie Brown Christmas by Vince Guaraldi:  This soundtrack is rich with memorable, treasured renditions of holiday classics. I still can't resist doing the Peanuts' dance during "Linus & Lucy" -- and have taught it to my daughter to keep the tradition alive.

And my FAVORITE holiday song is . . .

1. All I Want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey:  Emily and I break out in instantaneous song and dance whenever this hits the airwaves.  It's a perfect Christmas rock ballad that will live on for a long time, thanks to it's prominence in one of my favorite holiday movies, Love Actually.

Honorable Mentions: These songs are also my favorites but just didn't make the top 10.

• White Christmas by Bing Crosby as well as the version by the Drifters
• This Christmas by Wham
• Jingle Bell Rock by Hall & Oats
• Sleigh Ride by Leroy Anderson
• Christmas Waltz by Frank Sinatra
• Merry Christmas Baby by the Carpenters

10 Worst Holiday Songs EVER!

OK, I admit it.  I'm a TOTAL holiday music junkie that tunes into WLIT-FM (Chicago) on the first day they start playing Jingle Bell Rock all the way through Christmas day. . . and have done so as long as they've been broadcasting wall-to-wall holiday music.  So as a self-proclaimed expert, I feel it is my job to inform the world which holiday songs rock, and which ones should roll away to the island of Misfit Toys.  Today, is my review of the 10 WORST holiday songs on the radio.  Trust me people, avoid these at all cost!

10. Mannheim Steamroller:  What is the appeal of this techno-babble called music?  It sounds cold, harsh and boring -- everything that Christmas is not! Seriously.

9. Anything by Diana Ross:  You've got the pipes, honey, but not the sincerity.  I'm not feeling the love in any of your holiday songs, so stick to Motown, please.

8. Anything by Johnnie Mathis:  Bland, contrived and just plain bad.  Wasn't he a punchline in the 70's -- why are we still listening to him today?

7.  Wonderful Christmastime by Paul McCartney: Sir Paul -- what the hell happened here?  Were you going through a bad patch with Linda when you composed this loser?  Considering I've been in love with you since I was 6 years old when I demanded, and got, the Beatles Colorform play kit and lunch box for Christmas, I'll let this slide.  But please, no more attempts at Christmas kitsch!

6.  Christmas Shoes by Newsong:  OK, it's a touching song, mind you.  But who the hell wants to cry every time they hear about momma looking pretty when she meets Jesus tonight? Yes, I admit that I do. It's Christmas, not Cry-fest. 

5.  I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus by the Jackson Five:  OK, does anyone else think it's creepy whenever Michael says "I'm gonna tell my dad!"? Knowing what we know now, this song should seriously be taken off the air.

4. I Want To See Christmas Through Your Eyes by Gloria Estefan:  Sorry Gloria, you can surely do the conga but I just don't care to see Christmas through your or your child's eyes.

3. Any remix with a dead person: While novel, it's just wrong to have living people weasel their way onto a dead person's hit and make it into a "new" duet.  Yes, I'm talking to you Natalie Cole and Cyndi Lauper!

2. Dominick the Donkey:  Where the hell did this song come from?  I never heard it as a child and I sure as heck don't want to jiggidy-jigg (hee-haw hee-haw) as an adult. 

And the winner of the WORST holiday song ever is . . .

1) I Want a Hippopotamus For Christmas:  All I want is ear plugs and a shot gun when I hear this one!  Bah humbug.

Tomorrow (or whenever I can get around to it) I'll post my top 10 FAVORITE holiday songs.  In the meantime -- do you agree or disagree with my choices?  Any more songs to add that I may have forgotten?  Chime in please.

Midnight Madness

This Thursday night (or should I say Friday morning) I joined the legions of Twihards in celebrating the debut of New Moon, the long awaited sequel to the 2008 blockbuster, Twilight.  Being a  self-proclaimed "cool mom" I hosted a pre-movie movie party complete with vampire-worthy cupcakes, red apples and of course, lots of high-energy beverages so that we could stay awake for the 12:03 a.m. showing of the movie.  Take note of the cupcakes as they hold special significance for the evening. How?  Well . . .

• They were red velvet cupcakes (red for vampires and velvet for Edward's velvety smooth voice)
• White frosting to depict the pale pallor of the Cullen family's complexion
• Silver cupcake holders that sparkle, just like Edward in the sunshine
• Fork decorations to pay homage to the town in which the Twilight saga takes place, and
• Photos of Edward and Jacob (natch) that are placed in the fork prongs to depict vampire fangs.

I wish I could take credit for all this creativity, but alas, I saw this on theTwi -Crack Addict blog.

The evening was fun, we all stayed awake through the pre-party AND movie, and no one went home disappointed.  All in all, a great late night out. . . probably not to be copied until June 29/30 for Eclipse.

Twilight Addicts: This Is Your Brain On RPattz - Tonic

Twilight Addicts: This Is Your Brain On RPattz - Tonic

This explains it all! I knew I wasn't a freak.

Can't wait for the Twilight Double Header tonight. First, my group of self-proclaimed "cool moms" will start off the evening watching Twilight at my house, then progress to Keresotes 16 for the midnight show. I'll try to take pix of the party to share. Only about 12 more hours to go-- FINALLY!