Butter Cup Menu

{ DIPS, CHIPS, & DRESSINGS }

{ PICK-ME UPS }

 

{...CONT. + PLATTERS }

{ BREAKFAST & BRUNCH }

{ ONE DISH MEALS }

{ ENTERTAINING }

{ SALADS }

{ BOXED LUNCHES }

cupcakes

Who doesn't love cupcakes? Me. That's who. I am not a huge fan of sweets, but... and that's a big but... I think I am pretty darn good at knowing what makes a good cupcake. Not too much icing. Plenty of butter. Fresh ingredients. Real vanilla. And they have to be cute. Cuteness is essential. I am doing a party this coming weekend with three different types of cupcakes, so more pictures to come.

Easter Caramel Cupcakes

Strawberry Brownie Cupcakes

bonnie's bun in the oven

Last weekend we had a baby shower for my dear friend and business partner, Bonnie Cross. I made lots of mini or "baby" finger foods. They turned out really cute. I think she was happy! I know her belly was thrilled. Ha.

box it up please!

Long time no see. Whew - I have been so busy catering up a storm! I want to get better about sharing pics and recipes, but I can't make any promises. :) Today I prepared my first box lunches for a ladies luncheon. They turned out so well, and I wanted to share a few pics. The menu is below also. They ordered Turkey & Brie sandwiches with pasta salad, and Roasted Veggie Quiches with spinach salad. Everyone also got a brownie cupcake with strawberry frosting.

faux fried hearts

Long time no see! I have not posted anything in a long time, but I have made a resolution to post a lot more often this year. We shall see! Look for many new posts in the next few weeks.

This is a super easy new appetizer that I have been making lately. I got the idea from Southstreet, a Nashville favorite. They serve fried artichokes with their fried calamari and serve with a side of warm marinara sauce. It is so yummy! I don't fry these chokes at all. Instead, I simply coat them with a combination of seasoned Italian bread crumbs and parmesan cheese.

I created an assembly line. I drain a can of quartered artichoke hearts. You can also use whole chokes and quarter them yourself. The smaller they are, the better they will taste. I always try to get whole chokes that are 10-12 per can. You can also get the frozen variety. The important part is making sure they are not soaking wet. I roll them in a clean dish towel after they are drained.

Then, one by one, I roll them around in the bread crumb & cheese mixture. Lay them on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Bake them in a 375º oven until they begin to brown, roughly 15 - 17 minutes.

Serve with a little warm marinara or a spicy aioli sauce. So easy and simply wonderful!

Pizza Party

My sister and I had such a great time making our perfect pizza for dinner the other night. We rolled out pizza dough very thin and topped it with sauce, Italian spices, extra virgin olive oil, red pepper, Canadian bacon, mushrooms, zucchini, onion, broccoli, goat cheese, parmesan, more chrushed red pepper, and a little sprinkle of EVOO on top! Bake at 425º until brown and bubbly! My secret tip is to always use parchment paper. Your pizza will not stick and less clean up.

It was sooo good!

Yummy dinner followed by a night of karyoke at Springwater.
Good stuff!

accidentally in love with this salad

Say goodbye to old, boring tunafish, and say hello to my new favorite quicky salad. It is so yummy! I know it seems weird, but it is so good!

I start by juicing 2 lemons into a large mixing bowl, and whisk in a couple of hefty tablespoons of good dijon mustard. Then whisk in a few tablespoons of olive oil. Add fresh black pepper, a little crushed red pepper, and Italian seasoning if you have it. There's your dressing.

Next, drain one can of white tuna and add that to the bowl. Also drain & rinse a can of chickpeas/garbanzo beans (I'm pretty sure they are the same thing), and add those to the bowl. Dice 2 small celery stalks, 1 zucchini and one small onion all very fine. Add those to the bowl. Stir everything to combine and serve it over spinach leaves. Let me know what you think!