My First Hurricane Wedding!

If you live on the East Coast or watch the news then you know this weekend the East Coast experienced a Category 1 hurricane; "Hurricane Irene" was her name! She was a pretty nasty young lady breaking down trees, causing tornadoes, flooding entire communities and made it life threatening for many. 

However in the midst of all the chaos that this hurricane brought, LOVE also flooded the guests that attended the wedding of Mr & Mrs. Sandy & Terrance Tripplet on Saturday August 27th at the beautiful Brigalias! Having never experienced a hurricane I agreed to assist Isis of POSH Events, LLC the Wedding Planner for this beautiful couple along with Malakeia another Assistant Consultant that also works for POSH Events, LLC. 

We started the detailed set-up earlier in the day. The wedding took place towards the later afternoon/evening hours and it wasn't until around 8:45 that Hurricane Irene decided to pay us a visit. Due to the weather the reception did have to end a little early. None the less, the guests invited by Mr & Mrs Tripplet experienced a beautiful ceremony and gorgeous reception which included heart-felt toast, romantic decor & atmosphere, amazing food and a lot of shared laughs and thank-you's!

Once concluded, we left everything as is blowing out only the candles to assure the safety of the building and all the staff & guests safely drove home. Being that I never experienced a Hurricane Irene, it was quite scary going home. However, as I got in the car I said "alright God it's me and you, get me home safely" and I drove close to the wheel with my blinkers on, my phone off and God on my side! The winds were strong and the rain was coming down hard, but miraculously I made it home in 20 minutes; with only wet clothes to remind me of my travels since I had to park away from my home due to the flooding blocking me from driving through! 

I love doing weddings and when LOVE is real, strong, and pure nothing can stand in the way of it being shared with others, not even mean ol' Hurricane Irene!! :-)

Check out some pictures taken by Malakeia:

All decor provided by Isis of POSH Events, LLC

 

My first hurricane wedding was an experience I would never forget and absolutely worth it to see the couple so happy and filled with love! 

Did you also experience a Hurricane Wedding, if so please share!! :-)

Love Bite #10: 3 Course Romantic Dinner!

Hello, today I actually thought pretty hard about what I wanted to write about regarding Valentine's Day. So since I love food and absolutely love to eat food, and even more cook food, I thought why not do it on cooking a romantic 3 Course Dinner for two! I found some amazing recipes and will be doing a dessert that I saw on Rachel Ray! So get your pen's ready and let's create some magic for Valentine's Day in under an hour and all for just under $30.00 for two!!

Love Bite #10: 3 Course Dinner for Two!

1st Course: Ceaser Salad with Cucumbers!

(My loves favorite, you can change this to make your significant other happy.)

$7.50 for two!!

You will need:

1 head of romaine lettuce

1 bag of crutons

2 cucumbers

1 bottle of ceaser dressing

1 container of parmesan cheese

Directions: Take your head of romaine lettuce and rinse it, roll it up and cut it into nice bite size pieces. Take your cucumbers, rinse them, peel them and slice them to liking. Place both the romaine lettuce and cucumbers into bowl and pour bag of croutons over top. Pour in bottle of Ceaser dressing and put a lid on the bowl and shake so the dressing mixes into all the ingredients. Depending on your time this can be made first and stored in the fridge or made second to last for absolute freshness! When served shake parmesan cheese over salad enjoy with a nice drink!

2nd Course: Pepper Crusted Filet Mignon w/ Light Mashed Potatoes & Sauteed Mixed Vegetables

(More recipes like this one can be found at www.delish.com/recipefinder) 

$16.00 for two!!

"Pepper Crusted Filet Mignon"-$7.00

(Prep Time: 15 minutes, Cook Time: 6-10 minutes)

You will need:

2 (5 to 6 ounces each) filet mignons (about 1 1/2 inches think)

Course salt and very coursely ground pepper

2 tablespoons of olive oil

Red Wine Sauce:
1 cup of red wine
2 tablespoons of butter, cut up
Course Salt

Directions: Season filets very generously on both sides with salt and pepper (especially pepper), patting in firmly. Heat oil in a small skillet over medium-high. Cook filets until desired doneness, 3 to 5 minutes per side (depending on thickness) for medium-rare. Remove strings from filets, and serve with Red Wine Sauce, if desired. 

-To make Red Wine Sauce: Place wine in a small saucepan; boil until reduced to 1/4 cup, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat; add cut-up butter, and swirl pan until butter is melted and sauce is thickened, about 1 minute. Season with coarse salt.

 "Light Mashed Potatoes"- $4.00

 (Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes)

You will need:

2 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 tablespoon of butter

3/4 teaspoons of salt

1/2 cup fat-free half-and-half, warmed

Directions: In 4-quart saucepan, combine potatoes and enough water to cover; heat to boiling on high. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 8 to 10 minutes or until potatoes are fork-tender. Reserve 1/4 cup cooking water; drain potatoes. Return potatoes to saucepan. Mash with margarine and 3/4 teaspoon salt. Gradually add warm half-and-half, continuing to mash potatoes until smooth and well blended; add reserved cooking water if necessary. Transfer to serving dish. Makes about 4 1/2 cups.

 "Sauteed Mixed Vegatables"- $5.00

(Prep Time: 1 minute, Cook Time: 10-15 minutes)

You will need: 

1 tablespoon evtra virgin olive oil

1 small shallot, minced

4 cups of mixed froxen vegetables-corn, carrots, green beans

1/2 teaspoon dried dill or tarragon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Directions: Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallot and cook, stirring, until softened, about 1 minute. Stir in frozen vegetables. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Stir in dill (or tarragon), salt, and pepper. 

3rd Course: Waffle Brownies Topped w/ Fresh Strawberries & Cool Whip

 (Visit www.rachelrayshow.com/food/recipes for many more desserts like this one. This requires a waffle iron.)

$7.00 for two!!

 

(Prep Time: 5 minutes, Cook Time: 10 minutes)

You will need:

1 box of brownie mix

2/3 cup of vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 container of Fresh Starwberries

1 container of cool whip

2 teaspoons of sugar

Directions: Rinse strawberries and cut off the leaf part, slice in half and add a sprinkle of sugar, let sit until ready for use. Preheat waffle maker to medium-low. Prepare brownies according to mix directions, omitting any water or milk. Pour 1/2 cup of the mixture per square in the waffle maker. Bake for 10 minutes. Once baked, open waffle maker and turn off the heat. Let brownies sit until slightly cool, about 3 minutes. Add fresh strawberries and two scoops of cool whip! (Cool whip can be supplemented for two scoops of ice-cream!)

Be sure to visit tomorrow to read about "Love Bite #11: Creating the Mood!"

With LOVE,

Love Bite #7: Romance!

Since Valentine's Day is 1 week away, I decided today's blog post should be about Romance! Every blog post this week will be about and surrounding Valentine's Day! 

Love Bite #7: Romance!

 What Is Romance?

Thanks to wikipedia this is what we have:

Romance is the pleasurable feeling of excitement and mystery associated with love, romance usually implies an expression of one's love, or one's deep emotional desires to connect with another person.

A few ways to Express your "Romantic Side"!:

Romance can be expressed by either person within the relationship.

*A candle-lit dinner for two.

*Waking up to breakfast in bed.

*A weekend getaway to a nice resort.

*A homemade dinner & dessert after the kids have been put to bed.

There are so many endless and creative ways a couple can be romantic with each other. It can be big or small, but most importantly it should be sentimental towards your significant other. 

With Valentine's Day only a week away, think of a creative way to show our romantic side towards your special person! 

With LOVE,