Joanie Simon’s recipes for appetizers. Perfect for entertaining and parties.
I had a friend in high school who was Italian and her Mom’s specialty for birthday parties and sleepovers was stromboli. What is effectively an Italian turnover, filled with deli treats, is emblazoned in my memory as a favorite adolescent food memory. It’s also a festive party dish, perfect if you’re feeding a crowd. One […]
Arancini are balls of rice, stuffed with anything from cheese to ragu, then fried to a golden hue. They are a traditional Sicilian dish served in December for the Feast of Santa Lucia, commemorating the arrival of a grain ship to the island in 1646 during a time of famine. What does that mean to us? An […]
This non-traditional quinoa sushi appetizer has been a hit at numerous parties over the years. I promise, if you show up with these, you’ll be the talk of the potluck. No fancy tools needed, I show you in the video below how to make your own “sushi” rolls with quinoa and veggies. Quinoa Sushi Rolls […]
One way to simplify your holiday entertaining is with a cheese plate. Prep a platter and get on with the rest of your party! Sounds simple, but I know I was confused the first time I tried to put one together. That’s why I created the video below and a helpful Cheese Plate Checklist to help you […]
I had a single sweet potato hanging out in the miscellaneous produce bowl in the kitchen (currently being occupied by an acorn squash, a few limes, a tomato on its last leg, and a bunch of bananas, for the monkeys of course). He was a pretty large sweet potato and on the heels of my […]
This salad was inspired from my obsession with lighting berries. Yes, I’m weird, but hey, it’s my blog. I do what I want. As you can see, this salad has blackberries. They reflect light in such a ridiculously luxurious way, like light bouncing off a dozen mini mirrors. Look at them, aren’t they dreamy!?! This salad […]
I have been working with Traina Foods on a series of recipes featuring their Sun Dried tomato ketchup. Yep, you’ve seen this stuff before in prior posts and will see a few more before the year is out. It has been a wonderful experience working with them, for one, because the product is amazing. However, […]
***A variation of this recipe was shared on AZTV7 on 8/29/16. Specific instructions for that recipe are at the bottom of this post. Lots of firsts going on around here. First cooking classes, first TV segments, now a first live cooking demo. I was honored to be invited to cook in the demo kitchen at Williams-Sonoma […]
