Create My Event - Event & Party Ideas Blog

The Easiest, Most Delicious Frozen Yogurt, Ever.

Only three ingredients, three pieces of equipment and two hours from plain old yogurt to exquisite taste sensation. This recipe is so easy you'll want to make it every week. You can dress it up by adding fresh, frozen or candied fruit, toasted pistachios or other nuts but trust me: Try it naked first, your mouth will thank you for the pleasure.

Easy Frozen Yogurt

3 cups (1 large pot) plain yogurt.  (I use Liberté, from Wholefoods (2% lowfat) as it doesn't contain gelatin)
1/2 cup sugar (If you keep a vanilla bean in your sugar jar you don't even need the last ingredient)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix together the yogurt, sugar, and vanilla then place it in the refrigerator for an hour.
Pour into an ice cream maker and churn until set. (Mine took just 20 minutes)
Serve, or freeze until needed.

Light, easy, delicious, the perfect dessert or afternoon treat.

Spring Wallter Contest! It's Easy to Win!

Enter Here >

Easter Contest Winner!

Congratualtions! The winner of the 2Modern.com Easter Contest is:

Kelly Ashworth:
"I'm a horrible cook, but as a kid I loved decorating Easter eggs. On a whim, I nixed the messy dye pellets for my favorite shades of nail polish. Rather than a traditional tulip centerpiece for Easter dinner, my mom put my gloriously manicured eggs on display!"

Please Kelly respond to this post with your full name, shipping address, email address and telephone number by April 15, 2008. This information will not be published and will be kept private.

Thank you to everyone who participated! Check back often to Create My Event for more giveaways!

Congratualtions! The winner of the 2Modern.com Easter Contest is:

Kelly Ashworth:
"I'm a horrible cook, but as a kid I loved decorating Easter eggs. On a whim, I nixed the messy dye pellets for my favorite shades of nail polish. Rather than a traditional tulip centerpiece for Easter dinner, my mom put my gloriously manicured eggs on display!"

Please Kelly respond to this post with your full name, shipping address, email address and telephone number by April 15, 2008. This information will not be published and will be kept private.

Thank you to everyone who participated! Check back often to Create My Event for more giveaways!

Meatloaf

 
Making dinner is always difficult for a family of 6.  We are a blended family with
different palates to please but there is one dish that all the kids do enjoy and it is
simple to make and that is Meatloaf. 

· 2/3 cup old-fashioned oats

· 1/2 cup fat-free milk

· 1 pound 97% lean ground veal or 96% lean ground beef

· 1/2 cup chopped fresh spinach leaves

· 1/4 cup minced onion

· 2 large egg whites, lightly beaten

· 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish

· 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

· 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

· 1 clove garlic, minced

· 1/2 teaspoon salt

· 1/3 cup reduced-sugar or unsweetened ketchup (such as Heinz One Carb)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly mist an 8 1/2" x 4 1/4" x 3" nonstick loaf pan with olive oil spray. Set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the oats and the milk. Let stand for 3 minutes, or until the oats are slightly softened. Add the veal or beef, spinach, onion, egg whites, horseradish, Italian seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, and salt. With clean hands or a fork, mix well. Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan. Press into the pan, patting the top flat. Spread the ketchup over the top.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted in the center registers 160°F and the meat is no longer pink. Let sit for 10 minutes. Cut into 8 slices. Serve immediately.

Bon Appetit!!

Lynette P. Barkley, CEO for e2 (Elegant Events), a full service event production boutique, that produces 
spectacular events. She can be reached at 410-428-6076 or online at www.e2events.net

Blackboard Tags

Run, don't walk, to your local Pottery Barn! On sale now for $12.99, these mini chalkboard tags come in a set of six, chalk included. Available only in stores, grab a bunch of these sets and use them at your next dinner party. Hang them of wine bottles to let your guests know something about the wine your serving. Tie them around silverware and put your guests' names on the tag for a chic way to assign seats.

Go the extra mile and add more chalkboard details with chalkboard paint. For a shower, play a game of Jeopardy! Paint small 5X7 heavy paper boards (frame them in something pretty if you want - sans glass cover of course) and let guests use them to write out their answers.

For more chalkboard chic ideas, check out Modern Vintage.

More Easy Indian Dinner Recipes

Last week I gave a menu for a complete but quick and easy Indian dinner. Today another recipe from that menu: Simple Fried Fish. This takes minutes to make and uses little oil and no breadcrumbs or batter making it a light and relatively low-calorie dish, especially when pared with Gujerati Carrot Salad.

Ingredients

2 lbs firm fish fillets (cut into 2-3-inch pieces)
1 tbsp chopped fresh ginger
4 cloves garlic
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt
1 tbsp ground coriander seeds
1 tbsp ground cumin seeds
1 tsp ground cayenne pepper
6 tbsp vegetable oil

Method
Blend together ginger, garlic, lemon juice, salt, coriander, cumin, cayenne and oil in the blender to form a fine paste.
Marinate the fish pieces into the paste for about 20 minutes in the refrigerator.
While the fish is marinating, make the Gujerati Carrot Salad.
Heat two tablespoons of the oil in a frying pan. Fry the six or seven pieces of fish at a time for 2-4 minutes depending on thickness. Do not overcrowd the pan. Transfer to a paper towel covered plate to drain. Repeat until all the fish is cooked.
Serve the fish hot with warm Naan bread and Gujerati Carrot Salad.

Gujerati Carrot Salad.

Ingredients

5 carrots
1/4 tsp  salt
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp whole black mustard seeds
2 tbsp lemon juice

Method

Peel and grate carrots into a serving bowl. Sprinkle salt over and set aside.
Heat oil in a small frying pan. When very hot, add mustard seeds. They will begin to pop in a few seconds, at that moment pour oil and seeds over carrots. Add lemon juice and toss.
Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to a day.

Recipes serve 4.

Adapted from Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cooking

Getting To Know You

Moving to a new neighborhood, means making new friends. I had clients who recently moved, that loved to throw parties. They wanted to know the best way to get to know all of their neighbors.  Fortunately, all of their neighbors had moved from other states and were in the same boat. Everyone was in need of an icebreaker.  Solution to the problem…”A Backyard Soirée”.  The backyard was converted to a cocktail setting with Japanese lanterns and fiery colored linens. There were two conditions given to the invited neighbors 1) was for them to bring their favorite libations and 2) was for them to pick a number out of a fishbowl that corresponded to where they would be seated.  Unbeknownst to the invited guests, the place seating was not in numerical order thus everyone sat next to someone with whom they were not familiar. The couples were seated across from each other as opposed to beside each other. Thus, the “getting to know you” factor was built in to the soirée.   The event was catered and the menu consists of:  shrimp cocktail, grilled vegetable salad, tomato mozzarella caprese, grilled filet mignon and chicken cordon bleu, and petite patisserie.

                                                                                                                                

            

It definitely turned out to be a beautiful evening; the neighbors have gotten to know each other, have become friends and look forward to the Annual Backyard Soirée.

The moral to the story; when in need of an icebreaker in the summer, a Backyard Soirée always fits the bill.

Lynette Barkley is Chief Events Officer (CEO) of  e² (elegant events), a Full-Service Event Production Boutique that produces spectacular events from Corporate to Weddings/Receptions

to Private Soirees. She can be reached via telephone at 410.428.6076 or online at www.e2events.net.

e²events...making Your Event Spectacular! *

Easy Indian Dinner

Being British but relatively young, my traditional comfort food is not Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding but curry. Having lived out of the UK for most of my life I've had to learn to make Indian food myself and Madhur Jaffrey has been my guide.
A couple of times a month I make Indian inspired dishes, but what I really like to do is invite a few friends over, play some Indian pop music, decorate the table with colorful paisley print linens and candles and have an full Indian meal. For these parties I try not to make the same dish twice, which is really difficult because some dishes,  Lamb Rogan Josh or Sour Chickpeas for example, are so good guests clamour for them, but a few weeks ago I did an all-new menu and every dish was a winner.

On the plate clockwise from top left: Naan Bread (Wholefoods carries the best), Okra with Tomatoes, Chana Dal, Raita, Fried Fish. Also served: Gujerati Carrot Salad, Garlic pickles and Mango Chutney.

The entire meal took an hour to prepare and just over an hour's cooking time.

There isn't space here for all the recipes, and they are all easy to do but Okra and Tomatoes is super fast and also makes a great side dish for grilled fish or chicken.

    Okra with Tomatoes

    1-1/2 pounds fresh okra
    6 T. olive oil
    6 cloves garlic, minced
    2 medium-sized onions, peeled and diced
    7oz can diced tomatoes
    1 teaspoon ground coriander
    2 teaspoons ground cumin
    1/4 teaspoon turmeric   
    1-1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
    Freshly ground black pepper
    Juice of half a lemon

Wash, top and tail okra. Heat the oil in a 10- to 12- inch skillet over a medium flame. Put in the garlic and onions. Stir and fry until onions turn translucent, turning the heat down if necessary. Put in the okra. Stir and fry for another minute. Now put in all the remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Cover, turn heat to low, and cook gently for 15 to 20 minutes or until okra is tender.

The recipe for Chana Dal can be found at modernemama.

Another great thing about Indian cuisine is that it's vegetarian-friendly; substitute the fish dish for fried eggplant and you still have a satisfying, well-balanced but meat-free dinner.

Recipes adapted from Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cooking.

Handbag Caddy

Personal Gift giving has always been traumatic, both to the gift-giver and the recipient. Yet when you see the perfect gift for a friend in need, it’s not as painful.  I always want to give a gift that no one would ever think of giving, is definitely unique, and would actually be utilized, and not re-gifted.  A wonderful, yet inexpensive gift, that I stumbled upon during Christmas is perfect for women who go out to dinner and have to place their purse, either on the floor, or another chair.  If you are like me, you hate the idea of putting your Kate Spade or Michael Kors on the restaurant floor, as some floors can be dirtier than others. Before I let the “cat out of the purse”, let me first ask you to ponder where you put your purse when you go out to a busy restaurant…on the floor or on the table?

Here it is ladies; I discovered the “Handbag Caddy”. Let me tell you, it is the best invention ever!

 

                                  

          

The Handbag Caddy is a very easy to use item; you just slide the rubber base over the table’s edge and hang your purse on the sturdy chrome hook.  Your purse is safely protected and held by gravity.  It’s so small; you just put it in your purse when you leave the table.

The Handbag Caddy is not only used for your purses, but can also hang umbrellas, backpacks and shopping bags up to 5 lbs…how great is that!!?  So, if you have a dilemma about what to give a girlfriend… check out the Handbag Caddy, it’s an ideal gift.  I’ll bet your girlfriend has never heard of it…. And better yet, your gift will always be used and never re-gifted.

Parisian Sweets

Here's a dessert that's been around for a while now but has yet to get the attention it deserves. Yes, it's the Macaron! And no, we are not talking shredded coconut here.

These Parisian treats, two domed cakey-cookies sandwiching a sweet gooey filling, are made in a variety of flavor combinations. They can be as traditional as chocolate cake with chocolate ganache or as innovative as  coconut cake with passion fruit jam center. 

Colorful and sweetly charming like cupcakes, Macarons make for great party and wedding dessert. They look chic displayed on tea-stands and precious when packaged as favors.

Order them online at L'Espicerie. If you're in NYC, check out Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery in the Time Warner Center and, if you're in Beverly Hills, stop by Paulette's Macarons.

Hungry for more? Please check out my daily blog, Modern Vintage's posting for more on this delicious treat. (Btw, I am thrilled to be one of Create My Event's guest bloggers! I hope you enjoy this posting and look forward for more to come!)