Healthy Eating and Entertaining

Healthy Eating and Entertaining

I love to entertain and host parties -- my sister and I both do. I am pretty sure we got this desire and love of party planning from our mother. My mother is the ultimate Martha Stewart and filled my childhood with gorgeous birthday cakes, each took hours to make and would match the party theme of our choice, fun nights of staying in and enjoying all our favorite comfort foods or our family hosting an amazing holiday party where there was so much love and thought behind each place setting, wreath she handmade or dessert that came out of the oven at just the perfect time. For me, the love of party planning came from these special memories. Seeing how wonderful it is to bring all your closest friends and loved ones together and create an ambiance that brings everyone together in such a unique, loving and special way -- an experience that I was so fortunate to experience throughout my life.

My sister and I have also begun to try and tailor those wonderful comfort foods to fit a healthier lifestyle. In this post, I included my sister and my first attempt at a "skinny" pina colada made with coconut milk, fresh pineapple, coconut, bananas and a splash of fat free half and half. A fresh ceviche (my favorite after time spent in Mexico) and a coconut shrimp and spicy apricot and jalapeno dipping sauce. Healthy entertaining -- loving from the inside and out!

Oh, how I love Cupcakes!

Oh, how I love Cupcakes!

This post includes cupcakes that my sister or myself made for several different fun events. The first are butterfly cupcakes I made for spring by hand drawing the individual wings with two types of chocolate and placing them into the iced topping and then icing the bodies of each butterfly. The next crown cupcakes I made out of fondant and then iced for a first birthday party with a prince theme. My sister made some fun bright cupcakes for an ice cream promotional event and placed each one in a cone so they looked like soft serve ice cream. Finally, the last cupcakes were made for a fun girls' night in -- focused on healthy eating -- so they had a zucchini and chocolate chip cupcake topped with an orange zest frosting. These cupcakes were so moist, healthy and absolutely delicious -- the fresh orange and zucchini were just the perfect addition to a traditional cupcake!

Sex and the City Party/ Girls' Night Out

Sex and the City Party/ Girls' Night Out

This was a fun "Girls' Night Out" event that I put together around the release of the Sex and the City 2 Movie in Durango, CO. I rented out a suite in a downtown hotel and set up four drink stations -- one for each of the four characters of the show -- each with a drink that matched the character's personality. Carrie of course was a cosmo, Charlotte a spin on a wine spritzer, Samantha -- a delicious "blonde bombshell" pineapple martini and Miranda was a more serious Big Apple martini. Each guest received a "goodie bag" with a raspberry mini bottle of vodka, a lipstick candy, pink jelly beans and the Sex and the City soundtrack.

The room was filled with pink flowers, cupcakes and jelly beans along with some yummy apps. Once we had a few cocktails and appetizers, we headed across the street for sushi and then next door to watch the movie (sneaking in a little extra champagne for all the girls to enjoy). A great night and a fun way to get your favorite gal pals together!!