Let me share my adventures and stories in hopes to inspire you.

Shrimp cocktail with a twist I love Ina Garten, aka The Barefoot Contessa. One of biggest take aways from reading her cookbooks is to roast shirmp vs boil them for shrimp cocktail. What? Now, hear me out. I love the traditional steak house style shrimp cocktail with that sauce laced with horseradish as much as […]

A touch of Italy I love tomatoes. Cherry tomatoes are one of my favorites. I remember as a child being in the garden and pulling a ripe tomato off of the vine, wiping it on my pants and popping that warm burst of flavor into my mouth. I love all tomatoes but I do not […]

Scallops. Candy from the sea. My husband loves seafood. Being from New England he has eaten it all of his life. I, on the other hand, grew up where our ocean was corn fields and my grandpa would smoke fish a la Norwegian style. I don’t love fresh water fish, it is not my cup […]

The Italian Mac and Cheese There is something so comforting about a bowl of pasta with cheese. It can be mac and cheese like my childhood favorite or my adult favorite, Cacio e Pepe. I am not Italian but i have studied a lot about Italy and it’s food. It is not a surprise to […]

It’s football season y’all! Let’s throw a party! It’s here! My favorite time of year, fall. In my house we call it Clifford season from September 1-December 31. My husband’s birthday is mid-September and mine is in December so why not celebrate all 4 months, right? That is exactly what we decided to do when […]

Poppers – the perfect party bite I remember the first time I had my friend Izzie’s Jalapeno Poppers. We were at her New Year’s Eve party and the smell of spice and bacon floated across my nose. I had to have one. I put the first (of many) in my mouth and knew there was […]

Chili. It feeds my soul. Why is chili such a comfort food for me? I didn’t really grow up eating it, but I love it. There are all styles to choose from including with beans (don’t come at me Texas friends!). I love Chicken Chili, Three-Bean Chili, Silver Palates Chili for a Crowd and my […]

Ain’t no thing like a chicken wing I love a good chicken wing. For me it is the crispy texture that is a vehicle for blue cheese dressing that wins me over. There are so many varieties of chicken wings to choose from it can be overwhelming. I love the skin of a fried chicken […]

The perfect hand-held bite I don’t remember the first time that I had these little bundles of yumminess, but i do remember that I fell in love. Hot ham and cheese with seasoning? How can you go wrong? My uncle Tim was my mom’s brother. He loved to tease anyone and everyone. He had one […]

A surprising twist to a party staple I never would have thought of rosemary in guacamole. To me rosemary screams Italian or Mediterranean style foods, not Mexican. Oh boy, was I wrong. When we were in Cabo we went on a day trip to San Jose del Cabo (here is that blog post if you […]