Joan's On Third

I've been to LA countless times... how is it that I have never been to Joan's on Third?  Joan’s on Third is a family owned and operated Gourmet Marketplace, Café and Full Service Catering and Event Planning Company. Their gourmet marketplace reflects their passion for delicious food, beautiful décor and sophisticated service.

Crisp Rosemary Flatbread

I just came across this recipe from Smitten Kitchen for Rosemary Flat bread.  It looks Divine and I can't wait to try it on Superbowl Sunday!

Crisp Rosemary Flatbread
Adapted from Gourmet, July 2008
Nothing could be easier than making this cracker, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t tell people you slaved all day over it because they’re going to be impressed, really impressed, and I see no reason not to milk it.
I think you could easily swap the rosemary for other herbs, such as thyme or tarragon, or punch it up with black pepper or other spices, but personally, I like it just the way it is here.
1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon chopped rosemary plus 2 (6-inch) sprigs
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup olive oil plus more for brushing
Flaky sea salt such as Maldon
Preheat oven to 450°F with a heavy baking sheet on rack in middle.
Stir together flour, chopped rosemary, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Make a well in center, then add water and oil and gradually stir into flour with a wooden spoon until a dough forms. Knead dough gently on a work surface 4 or 5 times.
Divide dough into 3 pieces and roll out 1 piece (keep remaining pieces covered with plastic wrap) on a sheet of parchment paper into a 10-inch round (shape can be rustic; dough should be thin).
Lightly brush top with additional oil and scatter small clusters of rosemary leaves on top, pressing in slightly. Sprinkle with sea salt. Slide round (still on parchment) onto preheated baking sheet and bake until pale golden and browned in spots, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer flatbread (discard parchment) to a rack to cool, then make 2 more rounds (1 at a time) on fresh parchment (do not oil or salt until just before baking). Break into pieces.
Flatbread can be made 2 days ahead and cooled completely, then kept in an airtight container at room temperature.

My Wedding - The Big Finale The Cookie Bar!

The finished product!  A cookie bar with special sweets made by my friends and family!

I even covered the bakery tissue box in the patterned paper.

Tags were created for each jar.

My cousin made homemade marshmallows for the hot chocolate.

I also made recipe books for guests to take home.

The bakery bags that I had hand stamped!

The table was stunning!

My Wedding - The Cookie Bar Preview

I always loved the idea of having a coffee and cookie bar at the end of the evening for guests to take with them on the road.  So I asked my very best friends to each bake a couple dozen cookies that we could put in jars as guest leave for the evening!  I'll share the finished product tomorrow.

I was inspired by these two versions but wanted to give the idea my own twist!

First off was making a stamp in the likeness of the peony.  I printed out my artwork and traced it  Printmaking Block Material that I purchased online from Nasco then I carved the pattern out of the block, rolled on my pink paint and stamped them onto bakery bags!

At the time I still lived in a studio apartment in midtown and space was tight!

My mother collected and cleaned jars and I made personalized cookie tags for each one.

My husband's favorite baseball team is the Mets so my sister made dozen's of Mr. Met cookies as a surprise!

A couple of days before the wedding I got together with my childhood girlfriends for some sangria and cookie making!

Each girl made their own specialty cookie!

Eggnog Popsicles

I'm thinking of making the eggnog popsicles that were posted at Goop!  Now all I need to do is find a popsicle mold in December!  

Yield: a dozen popsicles

• ½ pound cream cheese
• 1 ½ teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 ½ teaspoons nutmeg
• 1 cup sugar
• pinch of kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons brandy
• 2 tablespoons bourbon
• 2 cups heavy cream whipped until just stiff

Beat the cream cheese in a standing mixer or with a whisk until completely smooth. Thoroughly stir in all of the remaining ingredients except for the whipped cream. Fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Fill popsicle molds with the mixture and allow to set and freeze for at least two hours (if you don’t have popsicle molds, you can use paper cups and popsicle sticks). The texture will be semifreddo-ish.

Allie's Bridal Shower Circa 2003 - Take 1

I wanted to share with you some pictures of the first ever bridal shower that my family threw together!  It was for my sister Allison and the wedding biz was just starting to pick up steam! Here are a few pictures taken pre home renovation and pre-digital camera (think I took better pictures before I went digital)!  Will share more tomorrow!

My beautiful sister surrounded by her bridesmaids

Traditional bridesmaid cake

'A' cookies as a take home for guests

Specialty cocktails always a must!

Dessert Table!

Lunch is served!  All food done by my mother!

Cotton Candy - Success!

This thing is fantastic!

Cotton Candy Machine

My $50 cotton candy machine from Best Buy just arrived!  Can't wait to try it out and see if it would work for MCNY!

My Moroccan Bridal Shower - The Food

My mother studied Moroccan cookbooks - to make delicious and authentic food for the shower.

Katie's Bridal Shower - Part Three

In no way can take credit for the food, when my family produces events I'm always decor and creative collateral. My mother, sister, aunt and cousins made the food for Katie's bridal shower it was truly fantastic - below are some pictures.

Chicken Skewers

Drink Area was set-up with different kinds of teas!

Luau Salad

Molten Chocolate Brownies

Dessert Bar

Hibiscus Decorations on Cupcakes

Coconut Cheesecake Bars

My mother made chocolate monkeys that hung from her fruit sculpture!