These light and delicious hors d’Oeuvres only take a few minutes to assemble. Theyare perfect to tray pass or as part of a stationary appetizer display.
Cucumber rounds, sliced thin – I like the Persian Cucumbers
Smoked salmon
Creme fraiche
Fresh dill
Lemon slices
Simply place a few slices of salmon on the cucumber rounds. Add a dollop of creme fraiche and garnish with dill. It’s important to use high quality smoked salmon and fresh dill. Sprinkle dill on your platter and serve with sliced lemon. Enjoy!
Killer Shrimp has returned to Marina del Rey – with an expanded menu and a wonderful view.
If you have missed their mouth watering shrimp cooked in an indescribable sauce of garlic and spices you will not be disappointed. The shrimp come three ways – with pasta, with rice or in a large bowl covered in the sauce. The bowl of shrimp in sauce is the most flavorful but keep in mind you will need to peel these.
While the last Killer shrimp was strictly shrimp – the new restaurant has added appetizers and several entrees such as steak, salmon and lobster tail to the menu. Their New England clam chowder is amazing and unlike most versions, it’s loaded with tender clams.
Killer Shrimp only takes reservations for parties of six or more and the wait is presently long. If the wait is too long – the lounge area has a great view of the Marina and offers open seating. The appetizers and all three versions of their shrimp are available there. Pryor Events are fans of Killer Shrimp.
The entrance on Admiralty Way
Killer Shrimp over rice
My personal favorite – shrimp in a delectable broth, served with bread for dipping.
I recently had the pleasure of taking part in a cooking class with a friend at Sur La Table. The location at The Grove offers regular classes. While I have taken classes before, this was more fun as we moved from station to station during the evening andactually took part in the preparation. We learned techniques from several chefs. We began with Gruyere Fondue. We each savored the hot, gooey cheese on chunks of fresh bread. I could have eaten that for dinner. We learned how to cook Crispy Flattened Chicken with garlic mashed potatoes and black eyed pea succotash. The recipe is Ben Ford’s, the chef and owner of Ford’s Filling Station. We learned that the secret to the crisp skin and moist chicken is is brining the chicken over night. For dessert we made tiny pine nut cookies.
While the food cooked we were given an opportunity to shop to our heart’s content. The store manager pointed out all of the tools we had used in preparing the meal and where we could find them. After shopping we sat down to a delicious meal. It was a fun evening – the only disappointment was the huge amount of butter used in the chicken and vegetable dish. If I ordered this in a restaurant I would feel good in knowing I was eating something healthy and that clearly was not the case. The good news is that I made the chicken at home with much less butter and it was still delicious.
https://pryorevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/wedding-planner-los-angeles-logo.jpg00Julie Pryorhttps://pryorevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/wedding-planner-los-angeles-logo.jpgJulie Pryor2011-08-26 14:19:002011-08-26 14:19:00Cooking can be Fun
Temperley London is a wonderful, intimate boutique on Melrose Place focusing on contemporary British fashion. English women in the know such as Pippa Middleton and Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge have been dressing in Alice Temperley’s unique creations for years. Lucky for us, we no longer have to fly over the pond to indulge. In addition to Temperley’s dynamic collection of evening wear, the boutique on Melrose Place has a room full of Bridal Gowns. Temperley releases a new Bridal Collection twice a year. I had the pleasure of previewing their newest Bridal Collection.
A few of the newest dresses in The Temperley London Bridal Collection.
The lovely lead sales specialist, Jennifer Murphy displaying one of Temperley’s newest Bridal Gowns.
A sophisticated wedding gown that feels very Royal
This Egyptian inspired Gown features a back that is quite dramatic.
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Enjoy a delicious meal and support Culinary Students at Bistro 31 in Santa Monica The wonderful open kitchen where chefs in training perfect their craft.
One of the entrees on the Bistro 31 current menu – breast of chicken with goat cheese red bliss mashed potatoes and spinach
A wonderful summer salad consisting of heirloom tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, sweet watermelon and a delicious soy-ponzu vinaigrette
If you follow my Blog you will notice that I enjoy trying unique restaurants. One of my current favorites is Bistro 31 in Santa Monica. It is run by the International Culinary students at The Art Institute of California. The students cook, serve and run the front of house. The food is very good and the prices are quite reasonable. The emphasis is clearly on quality and not quantity. The servings are small and there are not many choices. Personally, I prefer small amounts of good food rather than huge amounts of mediocre food. They do not serve alcohol but you may bring your own wine. Their schedule is determined by the school calendar. They are currently open for lunch and dinner on Tuesday – Thursday. The restaurant is just off 31st Street and Ocean Park. There is lot parking and they validate. Pryor Events thinks Bistro 31 is wonderful! View their site at http://www.bistro31.com
https://pryorevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/wedding-planner-los-angeles-logo.jpg00Julie Pryorhttps://pryorevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/wedding-planner-los-angeles-logo.jpgJulie Pryor2011-08-15 00:31:002011-08-15 00:31:00Dinner Created by Culinary Students
Neal’s Yard Dairy in London is a rare treat. If you enjoy cheese it’s almost worth the long flight just to savor their astonishing selection. There are locations in Borough Market as well as Covent Garden. They often have wonderful cheese tasting events – pairing cheese with other local delicacies. Try to visit The Borough Market location when the incomparable market is in full swing – Thursday, Friday or Saturday. There’s nothing quite like it.
Neal’s Yard Dairy at Borough Market. The cheese is classified by its origin – cow, goat or sheep. Tasting is encouraged so don’t be shy.
If you can not make it to London – no worries. This is the NYD selection at my local Whole Foods.
The colors in this centerpiece are soft and yet vibrant. The Hidden Garden added great texture to the flowers. My client’s two favorite colors are brown and pink and we incorporated those colors into all aspects of the decor.
While adding fresh fruit was popular a few years ago it’s rarely seen anymore. I like that these flowers have just a small touch of green apples.
This is the first Blog I have ever written on breakfast. The Griddle Cafe in Hollywood is truly deserving of praise. Imagine a restaurant that serves breakfast that’s so amazing it’s worth getting out of bed on a Sunday morning for. Even if that means waking up extra early to avoid the inevitable line. The Griddle is the type of place you would find while traveling and wish it was in L. A. They are open for breakfast and lunch and private parties in the evening. The Griddle is located on Sunset Boulevard, just West of Fairfax Avenue. Their extensive breakfast menu features many wonderful items. The gigantic, fluffy pancakes are legendary. A few of the mouth watering flavors include Banana with brown sugar baked bananas, bluberry-sourcream with powdered sugar, pumpkin pie filling with whipped cream, red velvet and honey-cinnamon rolled oats. Their ham steak is as big as the plate it’s served on and very delicious. The Griddle’s version of Eggs Benedict is a layer of seasoned potato skins with poached eggs, ham and housemade Hollandaise sauce. The Hoagie Omelette with sausage and the perfect amount of mozarella cheese is so delicious that you will eat it long after you are quite full. For lunch they offer tasty soft tacos , great sandwiches such as shrinmp b.l.t. and many kinds of burgers and salads. I like that you can order breakfast or lunch at any time. Alex, the host is absolutely delightful. Plan on your breakfast here lasting well past dinner.
https://pryorevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/wedding-planner-los-angeles-logo.jpg00Julie Pryorhttps://pryorevents.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/wedding-planner-los-angeles-logo.jpgJulie Pryor2011-07-19 03:21:002011-07-19 03:21:00The BEST Breakfast in Town
Summer salads are always a treat. When they are made by Good Gracious Catering they are an extra special treat. They combine the freshest ingredients and wonderful seasoning to produce absolutely delicious food. Their motto is “We embrace the seasons and all of their offerings. We choose to provide menus filled with the freshest local produce, local sustainable seafood and organic meats and poultry. Our cuisine is all prepared in house from scratch using the finest ingredients”.
Pauline Parry, the President and brain of the business was gracious enough (sorry, I couldn’t resist) to provide us with two wonderful summer recipes. You will need to experiment a bit with quantities. Enjoy!
The salty and sweet combination of this Summer fruit Suprise is a winner! The recipe is below
Watermelon and Strawberries with Balsamic Vinaigrette
Seedless watermelon, cut into chunks Large and small strawberries, cut or whole – depending on size Feta Cheese cut in small chunks Fresh blueberries Balsamic Vinaigrette – recipe follows
Mix fruit and feta together gently. Add a handful of blueberries and drizzle with balsamic vinaigrette.
Balsamic Vainagrette – 1 Tbl Dijon Mustard, 1 cup balsamic vinegar, half a cup lemon juice, 3 Tbl. garlic, 3 cups olive oil, salt & pepper to taste. Blend everything in a Cuisinart except the oil. Slowly add oil to emulsify. Haricot Vert, Artichoke, Orange Pepper & Sweet Pea Sala
Fresh peas (or frozen if you must) Hericot vert Baby artichoke Orange peppers Champagne Dressing
1.Blanch Haricot Vert beans in boiling water for two minutes. They should cook but keep their color.
2. Drain hot water from beans and place in cold water with ice to stop the cooking.
3. Take fresh peas from their pods – cook in boiling water for one minute or defrost frozen peas
4. Roast baby artichokes that have been soaked in marinade (recipe follows). Roast until tender, about a half hour at 400 degrees. Cool and cut into quarters. You can cheat and buy marinated artichokes in a jar.
5. Cut tops off of the peppers, take out seeds and julienne.
6. Toss all vegetables with Champagne Vinaigrette (recipe follows)
Vegetable Marinade
6 cups Chardonnay white wine 1 and a half cups red wine vinegar one half cup cup Dijon Mustard one half cup minced garlic one eighth cup paprika one half cup each of rosemary and thyme 12 cups olive oil & salt & pepper to taste
Measure all of the ingredients except oil into a large “sour cream” bucket. Whisk by hand. Slowly add oil, stirring to emulsify.
This recipe will yield one and a half gallons! Use it on chicken, fish and meat. Be creative.
Champagne Dressing
1 Tbl. minced garlic 4 Tbl Dijon Mustard three quarters cup champagne vinegar 3 cups olive oil & salt & pepper to taste
Blend everything in Cuisinart except oil. Slowly add oil to ingredients to emulsify.
