chocolate cake...

with a few {or maybe an entire box} of candles.

Perfect for Mom's birthday celebration earlier this week. Isn't she cute?!

Dinner, tissue paper flowers, streamers, balloons and close family...

I took on the responsibility of making dinner and about an hour before everyone was about to arrive, I was crossing my fingers everything turned out - since there were hardly any left overs, I think it was a hit!

Summer Corn Soup

with Cremè Fraîche and Crostini

In my mind, I imagined using sweet corn straight from the cob, but since we aren't quite into corn season, I used the frozen variety for now.

1 bag frozen corn

1 can creamed corn

3 cups chicken or vegetable stock

1 quarter sized drizzle of olive oil

1/4 c. carrots, chopped

2 small shallots, chopped

2 teaspoons garlic, chopped

1 cup milk or cream

generous salt and pepper

Combine frozen corn, creamed corn and stock in a Crock Pot on LOW (I'm sure you can use a pot on the stove, but Mom has all these fun things I haven't had the honor of owning quite yet!).

Heat oil. Add shallots and stir gently until translucent. Add carrots and garlic for a minute or two. At this point, I pureéd the shallot, carrot and garlic mixture with about a cup of the corn mixture. It made it a bit thicker and creamier, although I don't think it's necessary. From there, I added a bit of cream to make it silky (it was a party after all!).

Finished with a dallop of Cremè Fraîche and drizzle of basil infused olive oil. To make Crostini, you can use any kind of baguette, thinly sliced, brushed with olive oil and lightly toasted. I served mine in stemless martini glasses....because I felt like it!

Mixed Greens with Roasted Apple Balsamic Vinaigrette

with Pears, Candied Pecans & Crumbled Goat Cheese

Okay, so I lied.

I didn't use "mixed greens", but it sounded romantic, didn't it? I used what I had, which was a head of Romaine, and it worked well too.

Roasted Apple Balsamic Vinaigrette

This recipe was adapted from a salad I loved very much from The Plantation House - I never officially learned how to make the dressing, but this is how I imagined it to be and was happy with the result.

1 medium apple, any variety, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

1/2 c. balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

salt & pepper

1/2 c. olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake apples until soft all the way through and slightly golden brown. Set aside.

In a blender (or food processor) blend vinegar, honey, mustard, salt and pepper. Slowly drizzle the olive oil in blender (I drizzled about a quarter of the amount at a time and blended really well in between each addition). Add baked apples. Blend until smooth. Toss with greens, top with pears (or apples), goat cheese (or blue) and candied pecans.

I'll be back soon with recipe for Roasted Artichoke, Garlic & Ricotta Ravioli and Portabella, Prosciutto & Parmesan Ravioli in a light cream sauce with fried sage...

oh yes, and the most important part....

the recipe for this beauty (not a beauty because I made it, but because it's chocolate and anything chocolate is beautiful!!) will be on it's way shortly!