Paula Does Pasta

Before I get started let me just say that this is one AMAZING sandwich. It’s right up there with my love for my strawberry nutella panino & that’s saying a lot. I originally featured this on bell’alimento & I liked it so much I’m going to share it with you here too ; ) Hubs & I were eating at Gigi’s one day & I was looking over all of his open face sammies on the lunch menu  when I saw the Monte Carlo (spotlight coming down & music playing now). After I read through all of the ingredients I knew I had to try it. Avocado, Fennel, Mint, Ham…I’m in!   (more…)

I was recently sent a complimentary trio of RIPE samples to take for a test drive. My trio included: Margarita, Sour Mix & Bloody Mary mixers. I must admit I was a little skeptical. Some of the ready made mixers I have tried in the past, well lets just say fell short of expectations so I usually rely on Mr. Mixology aka hubs to conjure up our cocktails.

It was easy peasy- just pour your mixer of choice & add the hard stuff ; ) Margarita was the first to go. Sadly she was a complete diva and didn’t show up for foto ops ; ) tee hee… Next up the sour mix, AGAIN totally high maintenance and shunned the bright lights of the camera so naturally I had a heart to heart with Mary and she agreed to have her picture taken. Isnt’ she pretty?  (more…)

So are you dying to know who won? It is a pretty nifty cookbook after all! Well since I don’t want anyone to flog me here goes…According to the ever so handy dandy random.org magic eight ball *drumroll please* the winner of the “Secrets of a Skinny Chef” cookbook is …     (more…)

I was recently sent a complimentary copy of the cookbook “Secrets of a Skinny Chef” by Jennifer Iserloh. I was immediately intrigued because well let’s just say I don’t usually trust a skinny cook. Just sayin. The cover is gawgeous & has two of my favorite colors lime green & red. It says right on the cover 100 decadent Guilt-Free Recipes. So of course I had to try one out and put it to the test. Those two words just usually don’t together in my house. Decadent & Guilt Free?   (more…)

I recently made Limoncello, which left me with 10 naked lemons. Naturally I didn’t want to chuck the lemons so I needed something to do with all that juice? In comes Lemon Curd. Ah, pucker up! This is lemony goodness in one of it’s best forms. I mean just look at the color. That alone brings me in to investigate & then the taste, well that’s just the clincher. Sassy sourness! Just lurve it. It’s simply sunshine in a jar.    (more…)

I am in LURVE with this product! It’s called the foodpod. It’s a boil/blanch/steam/drain/silicone pod! I know it’s a little crazy looking, but look what it does… (ehem click on the video)

Now, seriously, how cool is that? Yes, I’ve ordered my foodpod HERE & can’t wait to get it! Wonder what I’ll make first  in it? My head is already spinning with ideas.

What would you do with it?

I am so excited about Spring I almost can’t stand it! Spring is flowers, SUN and def refreshing drinks! I went to Washington DC last week with a friend of mine for a cooking class taught by one of my foodie friends… Pati of Pati’s Mexican Table (btw if you’re in the DC area you should NOT miss out on one of her classes, she’s a gem) and had the most amazing Mexican food Thursday night.    (more…)

Look at these little cuties! Don’t you just want to take a bite? I think that they’re the perfect sweet treat for your sweetie on Valentine’s Day! (& if you don’t have a sweetie no worries, more for you ; ) I mean, Red Velvet HELLO (other than chocolate of course) is the obvious choice for Valentine’s Day right? It’s RED after all LOL but this just isn’t any old Red Velvet Recipe nope, this is an incredibly special recipe to me (if you want to read the whole sappy story behind it head on over to my original post here) ! It’s my Grandma’s & after years of begging, pleading and throwing tantrums my Mom FINALLY gave me the recipe last year. See persistence does pay off. LOL

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So you’re having a Super Bowl party are you? And you want to make something that’s not what you’ve seen at every other Super Bowl party you’ve ever been to? You know what kinda heartburn food I’m talking about, the crockpot of Velveeta cheese dip, the bowls of chips, the little weenies in grape jelly, the potato skins, the trays of tums (cause you know you gonna need em), & on and on and on. Well you’re in luck! & I’m pretty confident that if you show up with these super bowls that not only will you be the only one with them they won’t last 15 mins either ; )

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I was in Atlanta last weekend at a fabulous Macaron class taught by the Macaron Queen herself, Tartelette (which I’ll be posting about over at bell’alimento very soon, patience my little pretties) and during one of our interludes between mixing & baking & noshing & chatting, I joined in on a conversation going on between some of the evah so fabulous girls …

I’m going to paraphrase but the conversation went something like (keeping in mind I shaunteed over mid conversation)…”Tyra can suck it”…(immediately I knew I liked this girl LOL) “other than her smizing”… Sma, who WHAT?… What the… SMIZING? Then I was let in on this new to me, but apparently not to anyone else word.. SMIZING…Apparently Smizing was made up by the intellectual genius Tyra herself & is her coined term for “smiling with your eyes” or SMIZING…To demonstrate this, we were given a crash course in smizing by the evah so lovely Jennifer (who has some of the most fabulous hair evah). She was working it! I only wish I had pics or a video because she had everyone in tears! (more…)