JuBella.com – Get Your Creative Dose

So, although I was on a hiatus from blogging, I can say that I was still steaming up a bit of creativity in the kitchen. I cook A LOT! At least 3 times a day, so I figure if I am going to spend that much time in the kitchen, then I better make it fun, creative, and special! I love plating up dishes, planning menus, and coming up with simple ways to make breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, drinks, and even snacks for our family of five exciting! So, I thought I would share a few pics of some of my favorite dishes that I have prepared & plated this summer. One fine day I hope to publish an e-cookbook…only time will tell.

I MUST plan our meals 2 weeks at a time or else my grocery budget goes out the window, plus knowing what I am going to prepare for dinner seems to take a huge amount of stress out of my day! So, with that said, I hope these photos inspire you to cook up something new on your next menu! Do you plan your menus or do you just figure it out as you go? What is something new that you want to try cooking?

Tomatillos: tomate verde: Similar to the tomato, tomatillos are crisp like a green tomato and tart. They are used in lots of Mexican dishes especially in sauces and salsas. They come sheltered in a sticky husk that must be removed and the sticky substance must be washed off. When grocery shopping, pick tomatillos with the husks/skin that are stuck tightly to the tomato. Here is a salsa blend that I love to go along with taco salads…

Tomatillo Salsa

6 Tomatillos, cut into large chunks
1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 C. Fresh Cilantro
2 tsp. Fresh Lime Juice
1 Clove of Garlic
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 Tbsp. Jalapeno Pepper, de-seeded and diced small
1 tsp. Honey

Blend all of the ingredients together. Toss in some diced roma tomatoes and 1/2 C. diced yellow onion. Serve with warm tortilla chips or on top of chicken or any of your favorite Mexican inspired meals!

Isn’t this pretty. I love the pungent color of red cabbage and when adorned with a little bit of ginger..she is oh so happy! So next time you want something outside of the normal lettuce based salad try a medley of shredded red cabbage in the raw, fresh ginger and shredded carrots drizzled with a sweet Asian dressing.

One of my favorite items to keep in our fridge are preserves. Not only do they taste great on toast and biscuits, but they make EXCELLENT glazes and marinades for chicken and seafood such as shrimp and salmon. One of my favorite flavors is that of apricot. You can add so much sweetness, gloss, and color by heating up the preserves and using a pastry brush to glaze your chicken as it cooks or by heating it up and marinating your chicken or fish for a few hours or better yet overnight. I also keep pear and strawberry preserves on hand for the same reasons, they are all delightful!

What inspires you to be creative in your kitchen?

There are many reasons why we hate going in the kitchen to cook dinner or even to prepare a snack. Here are five tips to get you on your way to being creative in the kitchen!

1. Clean Kitchen: This is the most important thing to remember. Having a clean kitchen will motivate you to actually want to cook.

2. The Decorative Kitchen: Adding some personality to your kitchen space really can effect how creative and inspired you are in the kitchen. This can be done inexpensively with magazine tear-outs, tea towels, decorative aprons, and so on. You will also want to stock your kitchen with creative and pretty cookbooks. Also, disguising all of your kitchen cleaning products such as sponges and dish detergent by using decorative bottles & containers can make the tasks of cleaning a bit more pleasurable.

3. The Refrigerator: When you go to cook, there is nothing worse than having to dig around plastic zip-lock bags and tons of tupper-ware to find all of your ingredients. Don’t forget that making the inside of your fridge pretty is just as important as making your entire kitchen pleasing to the eye.

4. Fresh & New Ingredients: We all have our basic items that we need to pick up from the market, but try buying just a few items if you can that has a packaging design that you love. Something that makes you feel special, such as: specialty teas in pretty tin cans, unique bottles soda or fresh juice. Also, make sure that your ingredients are fresh and beautiful!

5. Tools That Works: Last but most definitely not least, make sure you invest in quality kitchen utensils, cookware, bakeware, and storage containers. In the long run it will save you a lot more money if you buy quality first! Good tools will result in good food, and that alone will motivate you to want to experiment more in the kitchen!

I like to cook, and sometimes, I pause in the midst of flour on the counters, chocolate covered spoons waiting to be licked by the little one, water boiling over, bread in the oven, and soup simmering to its flavor, to take a few photos of my favorite foods that I try to prepare with love and creativity for my little family of 3!

If you are ever in Southwest England, let’s say somewhere around Exeter (which is the capital city of Devon county & is home to the lovely Exeter Cathedral), then why not entertain your taste buds by stopping by La BoCa! I love the decor of this venue(it’s 4 stories with 4 different restaurants) and the menu consists of Authentic Moroccan cuisine such as cous-cous, dolci, chicken, lamb, and vegetarian tajines, flalafel, stuffed vine leaves, hummus, and so much more! I am getting hungry just thinking about it! Yum!

“La BoCa consists of 4 floors where you can experience the exotic. You can share an authentic tajine, cooked in traditional terracotta pots & served to your table straight from the oven, as you dine in the sumptuous Hareem on mounds of cushions under beautiful silk awnings. No party is too big or small for the Latin Quarter Grill and private function room. From corporate meetings to private parties La BoCa will provide a unique experience in authentic surroundings that will make any gathering a memorable one. On the Ground floor there is El Hamra where you’ll feel like you have been transported to the heart of North Africa, with traditional belly dancing you will also be entertained whilst enjoying your meal. After you have finished your meal you can relax downstairs in Club Maroc with an exquisite Cocktail whilst listening to live Jazz, Flamenco guitar or resident dj’s. Run by the same team who brought you the ever popular Al Beb in Torquay you are sure to have a wonderful time, and look forward to your next visit with anticipation.”

Happy Friday everybody! I thought that I would end the week with a few images from my recipe journal. I started this journal as a way to keep lovely images of food to inspire me with my own dishes that I fix at home for my family. Usually the images consists of desserts because I have quite the sweet tooth! Most of these images & collage are from the Fabulous Donna Hay! I love that magazine…the photography and food styling alone just makes my mouth water.

I would like to know, how do you all find inspiration for the meals and desserts that you cook at home? Do you have recipes that have been handed down to you from family? How do you keep your recipes written down, on pretty recipe cards, or do you jot them randomly on notebook paper? Sorry for all the questions, but I am curious to know how others find inspiration for your meals!

I hope this will inspire someone to create a special meal or yummy treat! Have a lovely weekend everybody and I will be back Monday with a couple of creative interviews and fresh new posts. I am off now to go play in the sandbox with the little one! Thank you all so much who come by to visit JuBella…she just loves your company!

featured Products: 1.Oval Stoneware Basket: Williams-Sonoma,

2.Mario Batali Dutch Oven:Crate & Barrel,

3.Lisette Placemats & Napkins: Crate & Barrel,

4.Pasta Sauces: Dean & Duluca,

5.Wallpaper Plate by Pop Ink: French Paper,

6.Red Kitchen Aid: Williams-Sonoma,

7.Red Colander: Storehouse,

8.Tea Revives You: Keep Calm,

9.Typhoon Red Timer: Storehouse,

10.Sprinkles Red Velvet Cupcake Mix: Williams-Sonoma,

11.Emile Henry Ruffled Cakestand: Williams-Sonoma,

12.Red Melamine Bowls: Williams-Sonoma.

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If you are ever in need of entertaining ideas, then the lady to go and see is Entertaining Extroidionaire Jenn Sbranti. She’s The Hostess With The Mostess and her website & blog serves up some of the yummiest entertaining ideas, products, and recipes! Jenn took a few minutes to “entertain” us with some of her favorite inspirations for hosting a great party, as well as some insight on how Hostess With the Mostess came about.

JuBella.com: What was the inspiration behind creating hostesswiththemostess.com, as well as your blog & what things would you like to achieve though them in the future?

Jenn Sbranti: The idea behind hostesswiththemostess.com started when I personally felt the need for a resource like this but wasn’t able to find it. I’ve always loved planning and throwing creative parties, so when my friends starting hitting the era of bridal showers and baby showers, I was excited to host a lot of them myself. I started to search extensively online for cool partyware and creative ideas – but rather than finding “idea” websites – all my searches kept landing me at online stores that sold the same frilly or cheesy-looking partyware designs – painted baby booties and cartoon teddy bears for baby showers, old-fashioned wedding bells or “fancy” floral patterns for bridal showers, etc.

My personal taste is much more on the modern/contemporary side – and I just wasn’t finding that type of inspiration despite hours of searching. I turned to books next, but there didn’t seem to be a lot of great books relating to baby/bridal showers either – and some of the cool ideas that I did find in books were hard to recreate because it wasn’t clear where to find the elements pictured or they were way too expensive.

So, being a graphic/web designer and a big believer in what an amazing, accessible information source the web can and should be, I started thinking that I should try create a resource like this myself. After talking to a lot of others about the idea, I genuinely felt the need for an online resource where people could go to get inspired about party planning and not only find actual ideas that are unique and stylish – but also be directed on where to find the things they need. Planning parties and get-togethers should be a creative and fun experience for the host or hostess, and not overly stressful as it seems to often become. “Hostess with the Mostess” sounded like a fun, memorable name for a company… so, fully expecting the domain name to already be taken, I still decided to check it out just in case. Lo and behold it was available! So my husband and I decided that it must be fate, reserved the domain name and trademarked the name on the spot – and decided to go for it!

Once we started actually getting into planning and developing the site, we realized what a huge undertaking it was going to be and that the timeline wasn’t going to exactly happen “overnight” like we wanted it to – especially since we had to keep our “day jobs” in order to pay the bills and get the startup capital we needed. So we thought that starting a blog might be a good way to reach out to people and start getting some buzz going while the main website was being developed. Never did we expect quite as warm of a welcome as the blog received – and of course we couldn’t be happier about it! Without the blog, we wouldn’t have had an audience to reach out to when the website launched – and it’s opened up a lot of other doors as well.

The first stage of the website finally launched in April 2007, and we have so much more we want to do with it and add to it – including things like message boards, interactive party planning tools, wish lists for our fabulous finds and fabulous gift sections, and even online invitation functionality. Our goal is to have a full-fledged interactive party planning resource that is extremely stylish, loaded with visual inspiration & imagery, and extremely helpful information.

JuBella: Favorite 5 on-line shops/boutiques for hosting gifts?

Jenn Sbranti: www.wrapables.com, www.wishingfish.com, www.redenvelope.com, www.patinastores.com, and www.perpetualkid.com

JuBella: In your opinion, what are 5 key elements one must haves to host a
memorable party?

1. A Theme – even if it’s as simple as a color theme or theme based on the type of cuisine you’ll be serving such as an Italian dinner or afternoon BBQ. Having a theme to guide you makes it easier to make decisions regarding partyware, decorative accents, and food & drink options – and it also creates a more festive atmosphere for guests – giving them the feeling that they’re at a “special” event.

2. A Signature Drink: whether alcoholic or non-alcoholic – a signature drink with a creative garnish adds a fun element to the party and is a great opportunity for a cool beverage display.

3. Good Lighting: I’m a sucker for white twinkle lights and break them out all year long for outdoor parties – not just around the holidays! Colorful paper lanterns, candles, disco balls (when relevant) and dimmed lights are great for controlling the party “mood” as well.

4. Food & Drink “Stations”: Rather than having all of your food and drinks in one place, create a few smaller stations around the room – to encourage mingling and movement – and stop potential traffic jams!

5. Great Music: that coordinates with your theme – keeps the festive energy up and the party going!

JuBella: Could you share with us one of your favorite recipes for casual
entertaining?

Jenn Sbranti: This appetizer is going to seem ridiculously simple but it always gets devoured first at get-togethers:

Sesame Cream Cheese & Crackers:

Ingredients: 1 cube cream cheese, soy sauce, sesame seeds, & water crackers.

Directions: Place cream cheese in the center of your serving plate. Pour soy sauce generously over the cube. Cover thoroughly with sesame seeds. Serve with water crackers. Done!

JuBella: Favorite books & magazines about entertaining?

Favorite books: Simple Stunning Weddings by Karen Bussen, InStyle Parties from InStyle Magazine, Easy Entertaining by Darina Allen, and Celebrations from Real Simple.

Favorite Magazines: Real Simple,Cooking Light, and pretty much everything from Martha Stewart Omnimedia – especially the Weddings, Living, Everyday Food, and Kids magazines

JuBella: What are some of your favorite flowers and/or arrangements for the
dinner table?

Jenn Sbranti: Tight bunches of flowers are always best for the dinner table – and make sure to keep them low if you plan to leave them on the table during dinner. I love china mums, button mums, and gerbera daisies – or gorgeous cymbidium orchids – either stemmed or floating in clear glass bowls.

JuBella: What has been one of the most unique gifts that you have given or
received thus far?

Jenn Sbranti: For father’s day I’m actually giving my dad a personalized steak branding iron. This is a fun, unique gift for someone that loves cooking and grilling. You can have one created with your loved one’s initials or a full monogram, using 2-3 letters.

JuBella: What do you love most about the art of entertaining?

Jenn Sbranti: The chance to be creative – especially when there’s an out-of-the-ordinary theme – and the reaction from guests when they come in and are excited about what they see.

JuBella: Thus far what has been your favorite table setting that you have
styled?

Jenn Sbranti: I love Hawaii and anything tropical – so the http://www.hostesswiththemostess.com/themes/bridal_showers/love_in_paradise/ “Love in Paradise” table setting is probably my favorite so far. It can be used for a bridal shower, engagement party, or an anytime celebration if you just take out the “LOVE” letters. I feel like there’s a good mix of both modern style and elegance here – and it’s the perfect setting for a good Mai Tai!

JuBella: Share with us your favorites of the following:

Dinner: Fancy: http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/miso-salmon-with-cilantro-salsa Miso Salmon or http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/001681seared_ahi_tuna.php Seared Ahi, Cranberry/Walnut Spinach Salad, warm French Bread with butter, & Grilled Asparagus. Casual: Chicken Enchiladas.

Dessert: Kimo Pie (a Hawaiian favorite!) or Strawberry Shortcake.

Beverage: Cocktail: Red Wine or Margarita on the Rocks Mocktail: Strawberry Lemonade.

Appetizer: Fancy: Bacon-wrapped Scallops, Casual: Pigs in a Blanket or the Sesame Cream Cheese mentioned above.