Let the Party Planning Begin

My daughter "Jai" will be 13 years old in September, since Asa is only going to be one year old this year - I decided he would have his Carnival themed party next year. I ran an idea by my lovely daughter and she is totally excited about having an "Indian Sari/Henna Party Soiree"

This chic birthday bash will boast bright colors, tasty treats, beautiful floral centerpieces, floating candles everywhere, soft music and I am even going to treat the guests with henna designs of their choice. I already have TONS of candles, votives, cylinder vases, frames for table numbers, white platters and much more from my wedding, the baby's shower and other weddings I have done for friends etc. I went online to start my search and I am sooo excited about what I found - take a look and let me know what you think...

I found both of these beautiful Saris online at sarijewels.com - I can just see "Jai" all done up with her jewelry and tastefully made-up face. Since yellow is such a lovely color on my daughter, I thought maybe something in yellow would look amazing on her, pink is the color for the event however and I do love this white and pink floral combination.

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I love the subtle progression in color on this cake-

                                                                        

I will let Jai decide on the number of tiers- I simply must show her this cake, it      would be soo cute with "bling" all over the place.

Something frosty to drink will be much appreciated in such warm weather -

Totally smitten with this table and I have cylinders in all of these sizes and votives, I have the candles too - just need the flowers! (YAY!)

An invitation similar to this style will go out to her guests

I have apothecary jars just waiting to be used again, I cannot wait to recreate a sweets table like this for her.

Mini everything possible will be served

I'm sure the guests will enjoy this- so will I...

                                                              I am already having soo much fun planning out "Jai's" special day - The hard part is over, now to get to the fun part and plan - plan - plan. I will definitely keep you all posted. 

Chicken with Shallots

I decided to give this recipe a try - I have been making a lot of chicken lately, thank goodness there are soo many options to go with .

Chicken with Shallots

source: Barefoot Contessa "How Easy Is That" cookbook by Ina Garten

4 Boneless- Skinless Chicken Breasts (I bought bulk skinless breasts, so I am using those)

Kosher Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper

3 Tablespoons Vegetable or Canola Oil (I am using vegetable)

1/2 cup dry White Wine

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (3 lemons)

1/4 cup minced shallots

3 Tablespoons Heavy Cream

4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) Unsalted Butter diced at room temperature
(I used 1 stick of butter and chopped the shallots for more texture and sauce because my chicken breasts are skinless and may dry out)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

Season chicken generously with salt and pepper
Heat oil for two minutes on medium high heat

Place chicken in skillet plump sides down and cook on each side for 5 -6 minutes without moving chicken (or until skin is golden brown)

Turn breasts plump side up and roast for 12-15 minutes until chicken is cooked through

 Meanwhile in a medium saute pan, combine:

Shallots

Lemon Juice

White Wine

 Cook over a medium high heat until liquid has reduced to two tablespoons

Add cream

Add salt and pepper and bring to a full boil turn off burner and,

add in diced butter and swirl in pan until incorporated

sprinkle over chicken and serve 

How Easy Is That? 

This is truly an adult palette pleaser, the chicken is moist, the flavors are incorporated yet you can taste each component added to the dish independently. Please let me know if you try this recipe. I served the chicken with lightly seasoned smashed potatoes and mixed vegetables.

A Craigslist Must Have

Craigslist is a favorite of many friends of mine, I have only purchased once from the site, I got a heck of a deal on a glider cradle for my son for 50.00 and when I got the cradle home, I looked up the retail price... $300.00 - Whats more, the couple never used it! 

Needless to say I was pleased - Now I have my sights on something else... I hope to purchase these two lovely pieces:

Gorgeous Solid Wood Desk and Matching Credenza. Great Preowned Condition. Asking $280 for both pieces. Call or text if interested. 

Desk 83.5x42x29

Credenza 87x20x29

I can just see these two wonderful pieces of furniture painted either white or something exciting like teal or even a shade of tangerine. What would I be doing with such large furniture you might ask?

Very shortly, I will be decorating my very own office space, I am going into business with another young entrepreneur, I am so excited about my business venture and praying I make a difference in the lives of the clients I hope to service very shortly. I am sure this desk and credenza will help me think clearly and creatively.

Wish me luck on the purchase, I hope the seller still has it -

Red Velvet Cupcakes (My first attempt)

Happy New Year Everyone!

First, let me thank each and every one of you for following my blog - I started a blog in hopes of sharing a bit about myself, and learning from others and I am pleased to say, I have been able to do that. 

Since the holiday season was a whirlwind for me, I was unable to blog as often as I would have liked, I did however, bake pretty much every tree days or so.

(who knew taking a picture of a cupcake was soo much work)


Directions
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

For the cake:

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour

2 teaspoons Dutch process cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

2 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk

2 ounces red food coloring

1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the frosting:

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter or margarine, softened

1 pound box confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium bowl or on a piece of waxed paper, sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk. Beat in food coloring and vinegar, then add vanilla.

Bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Turn out onto a rack to cool.

For the Frosting:

In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese and butter. Beat in confectioners' sugar until fluffy. Beat in vanilla.  Use frosting to fill and ice cake.