Good Dinner Mrs. Mellen

Sometimes you just want to shake things up. So tonight instead of a big Sunday dinner I opted for a casual, easy Bistro dinner.  It was so delicious and simple to make I have to add to my list of favorite quick meals. Mussels, cheese plate, steamed artichokes and french bread. Oh I almost forgot Stonewall Kitchen Fig and Ginger Jam. Mussels Two pounds mussels scrubbed and de-bearded,  I love P.E.I mussels, so sweet! 2 tablespoon olive oil 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 shallot, chopped 12 rainbow heirloom cherry tomatoes 1tablespoon chopped fresh thyme. 1tabelspoon chopped fresh basil 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano 1/4 cup dry white wine Saute olive oil, garlic and shallot for 5 minutes, don't brown. Add tomatoes and fresh herbs continuing to saute for another five minutes. Add wine,  cook on low for another five minutes.  Add mussels, stir, cover, continue cooking on low for ten minutes until until mussels open. Artichokes 4 sprigs parsl...

How do I start to write about my daughter Mandi's wedding.  One year and a half in the planing plus putting all my heart and soul into creating just the right wedding to fit the couples personality and the venue. The wedding had to be dramatic, classy, fun, young, traditional with a modern flair.  Wow!  A gigantic task but I was more than happy to tackle the project.   First, a little background: Mandi and Dan are two young actors living in LA pursuing their dreams of making it in the entertainment industry. Mandi is beautiful, bright, fun loving, wacky at times, with an iron will that can overcome all obstacles. Dan is handsome, smart, caring, the straight man to Mandi, so focused and supportive of their goals. Their love beautifully glows radiating out into the universe. Mandi and Dan met while attending Boston University with one of their special memories of their early romance attending the BU Ball at the Fairmont Copley Plaza. Having their wedding i...

I love to add fall fruits to my holiday stuffing to capture the smells and flavor of the season. My Savory Fruit and Nut stuffing combines apples, pears, and cranberries with toasty pecans.  A wonderful addition to my stuffing favorites. You can either stuff the turkey or bake to serve.  Savory Fruit and Nut  Stuffing 1/4 cup butter 2 cups chopped onions 1/4 cup celery 2 apples 2 pears 1cup fresh cranberries 12 cups dried bread cubes 4 eggs 2/3 cup chicken broth 1 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoon dried thyme or 1 tablespoon fresh snipped thyme 2 teaspoon dried sage or 2 teaspoons fresh snipped sage 1/4 teaspoon pepper 2/3 cup pecans, chopped and toasted In a large skillet melt butter over medium heat. Add onions and celery; cook about 5 minutes until tender but not browned. Add apples, pears and cranberries; cook for 5 minutes more until apples are tender. Remove from heat. In an extra large bowl toss together onion mixture and bread cubes. Let stand 1...

A sneak peek at my blog about planning my daughter's wedding, a year and the half in the making.  So worth all the time, effort, and care to make Mandi and Dan's wedding just perfect. The Bride: The Groom: The Ceremony: The Bride and Groom: The Wedding Party: The Reception: Happily Ever After: More details to follow!

Sunday Dinner a cherished Family Tradition As long as I can remember my family celebrated Sundays together feasting on delightful homemade food and baked goods.  My grandparents immigrated to American from Italy leaving their family behind.  No other members of their family left the mountains of Abruzzi to come here to start a new life.  Having just each other as soon as they started to have a family they began their Sunday tradition of bountiful family dinners.  My grandmother started cooking early in the morning before the family left for church.  On their return from Sunday Mass cooking started in earnest.  My Grandmother fried home made pizza dough then dusted each piece with powered sugar, to her grandchildren delight, for our snack until dinner was ready. Big vats of tomato sauce brimming with sausage, meat balls and pork ribs simmered on the stove.  My grandfather’s specialty pans of veal and peppers cooked in the ovens all ready for us as...

The Beautiful Bride     When my daughter got engaged I knew that her Bridal Shower would be an elegant Tea Party.  She and I have been going to high tea since she was a little girl continually finding wonderful tea houses to visit during our travels. Living in the Boston are I found the perfect venue in the Soiree Dinning Room at Upstairs on The Square in Harvard Square.  The whimsical gilded designed dinning room looks like Alice just fell through the looking glass! I found my dream location for a fanciful Tea Party. Next I went to work with my daughter-in-law Jackie to make the perfect invitations to compliment the look and feel of the Soiree Dinning Room.  We didn't need to look any further than The Paper Source with Nicole helping us pick out the perfect invitations to make.  Gold polka dot invitations mounted on hot pink paper with a hot pink envelope finished with a sparkly gold liner.  Bright, fun and beautiful! ...

I just had to shot out to the Peplum look.  So lady like, so elegant, so Good Dinner Mrs Mellen!  My style perfectly designed for my classic retro look with a flair.  So I have to admit I am going a little crazy with my purchases but I just can't help it! Oh I've bought two dresses, one Alice and Olivia, one Banana Republic.   Did I mention the three tops that I bought, one long sleeve black knit from Banana Republic, two short sleeve, one black, one red from Alice and Olivia.  I'm now on a hunt for a great little peplum jacket, I could do a whole wardrobe out of peplum.  I know enough! Obsessed much! What is it about the peplum that drives me to buy so many.  For me it is the classic lady like silhouette just fit my petite body type.  Anyone who is petite knows that fashion is not always flattering on petite woman. Let me just caution woman that the peplum isn't for everyone.  Use fashion sense and a good mirror to make sure you l...