Being from Italian descent, I grew up with polenta. And one of my fave dishes is creamy polenta with Bolognese sauce and generous sprinkles of Parmesan on top. SO yum!! So naturally, when thinking up delicious appetizers for our end of year parties , I turn to my Italian roots. And polenta usually figures in some shape or form, in the array of bite-size delights I serve time and time again... It's like bringing a little bit of Italy to my table :)
When it comes to desserts I'm a cake kinda gal. And no self-respecting party or family get-together should go without some form of cake - homemade, shop-bought...or my fav, a combination of the too! ;) That's why this super drool-worthy but mega easy Black Forest Gateau is perfection for Thanksgiving (or any other time of year!)
It seems you guys can't get enough of our Halloween Free Printable Photo Booth props - we've had over 1000 downloads since it featured in the latest issue of Bird's Party Magazine earlier this month alone!! So, I'm just stopping by to wish you a FUN, safe and Happy Halloween with our free printables ;) We'll be over on Instagram sharing behind the scenes and spooky ideas for all your last-minute party prep!
This year I'm inspired by all things Monster High for Halloween (mainly 'cause I have a little fan at home...). So much so, that together with some of my fave party and food bloggers; we put together a huge and totally SPOOK-takular spread in the Fall issue of Bird's Party Magazine - with decorated cookies, cake pops, cupcakes and sparkly party ideas inspired by the Monster High vibe!
Mantles are not just for Christmas... In fact, if you decorate nothing else in your home, then go for the mantle piece as its usually a focal point and can instantly feel festive, whatever the occasion. And Halloween is not different! So I've gathered a few ideas to help inspire your own spooky shelfies ;)
If you're looking for a BOO-tiful, kid-approved treat recipe for Halloween , this is IT! Easy to make, quick, 'scary' tasty and loads of FUN for all. Trust! Plus, it only requires two ingredients , which is a major bonus in my party book.
Italian food has a very special place in my heart due to my Italian roots. To me, it's more than food - it means love, comfort, family values, tradition... I still remember to this day, being in awe of my grandmother's pasta-making skills , in her kitchen cutting tagliatelle with a knife, dusting them with semolina and hanging them to dry on a broomstick made by my granddad!
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Truvia® but all photos and opinions are my own. Pumpkin pies are traditional and synonymous with Fall. But to keep things 'fresh' and a little more exciting, I always try to jazz up my traditional recipes with a little twist to bring'em bang up to date - like these dinky pumpkin pies! They're super easy and quick to make (and eat!) , look really cute and are therefore ideal for serving as a sweet appetizer or party food on Halloween, on Thanksgiving, or any other Fall celebration.
Editing a magazine is a lot like a baking a cake. Getting your tools ready, making a little mess in the process, but knowing that if you get all these different ingredients together in the right way, hopefully you'll create something drool-worthy at the end. You don't know how your recipe's gonna turn out until you get it out of the oven. The wait is also a little long, but it's all SO worth it in the end! ;)
Why buy when you can DIY - that's my motto in life. So naturally, I turned to my paintbrushes when creating this large wall art canvas for my new studio bar . I wanted something big, abstract and eye catching to hang as a focal point.
TGIF! And you know what Friday means? Happy hour, of course! And to test drive my brand new studio bar , we had to create a brand new cocktail recipe! This one is supper yum, and perfect 'transition' cocktail to take you from summer (and the warm days that we're still having. Yay!) into Fall. And we call it a 'Birdie' ;)
Have you noticed how almost anything tastes better on a stick?! Not sure if it's the novelty of seeing our yummy recipes in bite-form; or actually a scientific reason behind it. Whatever it is, pie pops are my new Fall favorites! They are perfectly practical for serving at parties. And can we just taking a minute to appreciate how cute they look? :)
If you follow me on Instagram , you'd have been sneak peeks of my summer studio and office makeover. Yeah, I basically spent a good chunk of my summer with a paintbrush in hand...and although it's far from finished, I'm celebrating each little 'victory' and taking pleasure in seeing some areas come to life - like my studio bar!
We're starting the week on a sweet note. Is there a better way?! I think not ;) Especially when it concerns one of my all-time favorite desserts: Crème Brulée! Seriously, I could eat it all day long. And so for the sake of variety, and keeping this classic up to date, I like to experiment!
Okay, so we're all settled now into a back to school or back to work routine. But are you like me, still on summer body-clock time, and feeling like "I need my pillow" every morning? Well, it may be we need something healthy and exciting to kick start our day!
This is quite possible, the easiest "pie" recipe I've ever made! Pastry and all. Well I say pie...but really, the shape is the typical French galette style. No fuss, rustic goodness. And that' how I like my pies! The most difficult part is waiting for it cook (and cool!) so you can start devouring ;)
Honeycomb balls are the new hot trend gracing the pages of the party blogs. You just can't miss them! Mainly because you can use them in your party or styling decor to achieve the "wow factor" without much effort or cost. Sure, they make great hanging decorations and garlands for birthdays, weddings, home decor...but today, 'funky' and 'unexpected' is the name of the party game. And here are my top favs to help inspire your next shindig!
It's the last few days of summer vacation for us, and we're determined to squeeze out every fun moment we have! Including celebrating the every day with family and friends. 'Round here we need no special excuse for a party ;)
