Risotto Dance

What's Cooking Guys?

When I first starting working as a chef, one of the things I dreaded cooking was risotto because I thought it was going to be so complicated. I was about 17 and I was working at Sandy Lane Hotel.

 One night for a big gala, we had to make a massive vat of risotto. Now I am pretty small, I could literally fit into the pan we were cooking it in. So the chef who was teaching me how to make it said in his thick Italian accent, " no worries, just risotto dance." The risotto dance is the way you stir the rice to create that creamy, luxurious consistency. He made it so easy and fun!

 And so I learned to make one of my favorite dishes. And I want to share the recipe for a butternut squash risotto with you today.

Butternut Squash Risotto 

Serves 3-4 Dinner portions Or 6 Appetizer Servings 

4-6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
4tbsp butter
1 small onion (finely chopped)
1 cup butternuts squash peeled and diced - approx 1/2 inch cubes
1 cup of arborio rice
1/2 cup white wine (preferably dry)
1/2 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

Method: 

1-Warm the stock and keep on hand. In a heavy bottomed saucepan, melt 3 tbsp of the butter and cook onion until translucent.
2-Add the rice and cook for about 2 mins to give the rice a slight toast. Then add the wine and stir constantly until wine is absorbed.



3-Add a few ladles of stock; just enough to barely cover the rice. Cook over medium heat until stock has been absorbed. Continue cooking and stirring rice; adding a little bit of stock at a time, cooking and stirring until it is absorbed.


4.After about 10 mins add the butternut squash.Continue cooking until the rice is tender, but still firm to the bite.
 During the last minutes of cooking, add remaining tablespoon of butter and Parmesan. The rice should have
 a fabulous, creamy consistency. Season to taste. 

We served ours with a slice of roasted chicken, a sprig of basil and some herbed oil.

Hope you enjoy! 

Have a delicious day

Come to this wedding with us!

Hola Luvs!

So a weekend ago we set up a cupcake tower at a wedding at The Crane Resort, in St.Phillip. I always wish I could take you guys with us, so... I did. Please bare in mind that I was on 3 hrs of sleep so I was slightly goofy.. tee hee. Hence the singing. Here is a quick video of the set up.

So here are some close ups of the cake and cupcakes.

The cupcakes were dessert for the cocktail reception, the flavors were - Bellini, Chocolate Baileys and Apple Pie. 

 The theme of the wedding was motorcycles. Which was super cool, when we were leaving some guests arrived on their bikes:

Oh! And the favors were motorcycle themed cupcakes by us =)

and mini bottles of rum in treasure chests

The hotel is gorgeous, its right on the beach. We have done a few weddings there now. 

I love it there... 

Alrighty everyone, hope you enjoyed the trip to The Crane. We loved having you. 

See ya later.. and have a yummy day!

Cheers to Dads!

I love holidays. So of course I was excited that this Sunday was Father's Day. My dad is a huge part of my life and I know I'm honestly blessed to have such a great dad. He even works some events with us. So I love to spoil him on Father's Day.

We were also busy with orders. Check out the goodies we made, our clients totally loved them.

So we made these coffee break packages for dad, which included:

- Coffee mix
- Hot Chocolate mix
- 1 Coffee Mug
- Marshmallows
- 1 Cupcake
-1 Greeting Card

Our other package was our custom cupcakes. The flavors were orange and chocolate. The toppers were sports, business and tool inspired. 

 Here are some carpenter cupcakes for a special order,

Now they are all boxed up and ready to go!

Those were so much fun to make.

As for my dad and grand-dad we had a little beach outing. It was nice and relaxing.

 I think I'm going to do a blog soon with some tips to make planning a picnic easy and hassle free. So stay tuned. 

Cheers for now! 

Hoping all of you dads had a delicious father's day!