YummyPages

my co-worker asked me for some thoughts on what to do for her event. she has been preparing for her big launch party for her menswear brand, Fifth&Brannan , and i was flattered when she asked for my assistance in how to pull off her event. so, while we were playing with some ideas, she mentioned that in addition to the cheese pairings Cellar360 was offering with the Sledgehammer wines, she wanted something chocolatey and sweet. the first thing that popped in my mind were cakepops...they're easy, portable, fun, impressive favors! she asked if i was sure and i assured her that i would love to contribute however possible to help her with the launch. that meant a total of 200 cakepops, wrapped and finished with a tied strip of fabric straight from her line. these help make them look more distinguished and approachable for her target market...sophisticated, preppy men. if you ever want to attempt this, it takes 3 batches of cake and frosting. CHOCOLATE CAKEPOPS posted on the f...

one afternoon, i got a phone call from my best foodie, regina , with a proposal to lunch at Cyrus ...a two michelin star restaurant in healdsburg. last year, she and friends went to the french laundry and have decided to make this an annual tradition to eat at pretentious, michelin-starred restaurants. i was fortunate enough to be invited, as their fifth foodie wasn't able to attend...lucky me! i will say that this was my first taste at a michelin star restaurant and will NOT be my last. cyrus has become my gateway drug to the true beauty of food and if these are the standards required to achieve this highly acclaimed recognition, then i can't wait to visit them all. at $130 for an 8-course meal, this was worth every penny! canapés : we started with five tastings to get out palate ready for the meal. bitter - ball of radish and other accompaniments, salty - baked clam & powdered chorizo, sweet - a burst of a sweet liquid (i can't remember), sour - citrus tart, and u...

the first time i tried san francisco's  san tung 's dry fried chicken wings, i was stunned in pure amazement. i am a traditional buffalo wing type of girl and don't typically do the sweet glazes (which is funny since I have a serious sweet tooth). but, when i tried this crunchy, glazy, sweet & spicy wing, i was in heaven...yes, these will be added to my list of things to eat on my last days on earth. when you go to san tung, you have to expect major delays to find a seat since everyone comes here for these tasty morsels and the other delicious chinese food they serve up. you can tell when a place is good when it gets over 2000 yelp reviews and hold a solid 4 of 5 stars. the internet is a great resource when you have a craving, but it's other bloggers who can make something from scratch to replicate one-of-a-kind recipe that really amazes me. DRY FRIED CHICKEN posted on melonoat on december 27, 2010 WINGS 3 qt vegetable oil 2 c cornstarch, divided 1 1/2 ...

i have been to the hawaiian islands four times, three of the four were in waikiki, honolulu. i am not one who likes to fully get away from it all, i guess. i like people and being around those experiencing a new culture. if you are visiting hawaii for the first time, go to waikiki...the gateway drug to a getaway that's close enough to home. this trip was different from the others, in that the purpose was to finally celebrate my marriage with a honeymoon. we got married a couple years ago, but ran out of money after the wedding was all said and done. then planned to go for our one-year anniversary, but our dear kitten got very sick and our honeymoon money went to save his life. then, i made my 2011 new year's resolution to enjoy MORE of everything i love...pampering, family & friends, and traveling...and new foods, of course! so, hawaii here we come and we're hungry! AMERICAN AIRLINES FIRST CLASS BRUNCH i've mentioned this before, but a perk to being part of an...

it all started with a search for a new banana bread recipe for my very ripe bananas. as you may know, i actually already had a recipe i found which started the yummypages blog, but every time i made it, i felt like it still wasn't right. so, as i searched, i was intrigued by a recipe for monkey squares...banana bread base with brown butter frosting. when i was looking for a recipe, i was to start baking at 9pm, so i wasn't about to get complex and i was very happy to see that this recipe could easily turn into a loaf, so i went with it! what i realized when i was mixing the components was that the addition of wet ingredients made a huge difference in overall moisture. the original recipe calls for sour cream, but i only had plain yogurt, which is a perfect substitute and it also called for butter, which i was limited to. so, the substitution of canola oil brought the moisture level up a little more. i hope you enjoy the two recipes in one. MONKEY SQUARES posted on the girl ...

the main table with the all the L goodies one of the reasons i find new recipes to try is that i need them for the parties i plan and/or host. so, i thought it'd be inspiring and fun to add posts about the parties i've put together, along with the food i contributed. i've done a couple baby showers at work and birthdays, of course, but this one party was a little more special for me. it was a bridal shower for my boss, who i've also been hired as the day-of wedding coordinator. she got engaged in august, but i had been secretly brainstorming way before that. i wanted this to be perfect, as i knew it would be my pièce de résistance! first things, first...how do we surprise her? people in the office are well aware that when i'm gone for a period of time, there is a party decorating session happening. so, i schemed with my other boss to fake a sickness. i was really worried that she would not be fooled since i never, never call in sick. but, this worked like a ch...

(photo coming soon) the search for lettuce wraps began with the L-themed bridal shower i was throwing for my boss, but it was also for my personal needs. i may or may not have mentioned this before, but i have been trying to be more health-conscious and choosing to wrap meat in lettuce instead of tortillas is taking a step in the right directions. the "sweet & spicy" part of the recipe was what made me choose this one over others i was considering. and, it didn't hurt that this seemed really easy to make...which it is! the marinade was great and i'd use this for anything really, but this was simple and just what i was looking for. SWEET & SPICY BEEF LETTUCE WRAPS posted in le petit brioche by christa on july 20, 2011 1/2 c soy sauce 1 T brown sugar 1 T sesame oil 1 1/2 T sriracha chili sauce (optional or to taste) 1 c green onions, finely chopped, plus more for topping/garnish 2 t garlic powder 1 t ginger powder juice from 1 small lemon 2 lbs flank...