first

May 22, 2015
At Home with Friends

2 comments

Cherry Walnut Chocolate Hermit Cookies

You might want to make this recipe first and immediately get the cookies into your freezer, just in case of a party emergency. This is a very sophisticated cookie. It has a dense chocolate cake like texture with walnuts, dried cherries and a kiss of Vandermint liqueur. You can serve it after a very elegant meal, […]

May 13, 2015
At Home with Friends

1 comment

DING-DONG! The Termites Are Gone!

Last year just before the Moroccan Feast was to take place, I had an infestation of termites in my living room. Termites are very common in California. They like to eat wood, as wooden frames in doors or windows or in my case carved wooden beams in my living room. We tried an organic approach […]

April 27, 2015
At Home with Friends

2 comments

Coconut Oatmeal Ginger Cookies

I always keep homemade cookies in my freezer for friends who drop by for a cup of tea or spur of the moment dinner guests. These are not your typical oatmeal raisin cookies. They are loaded with shredded coconut, crystallized ginger and golden raisins. They are dense, chewy and perfect with fresh fruit or dish […]

December 5, 2014
At Home with Friends

2 comments

Almond Cookies

If this recipe seems familiar, it should: It is basically the same recipe I use for the Pignoli Cookies, but without the pine nuts and lemon zest added. It’s important to realize that when you have a great recipe, you can tweak it in many ways  People who attended both parties had no idea that […]

August 11, 2014
At Home with Friends

1 comment

Apps & Alcohol Party

  The idea for this soiree came to me at the Summer Solstice Party. While we were sitting in the garden, having drinks and appetizers, someone said, “These appetizers are so good, we could just make a dinner of appetizers”. I thought, what a great idea, a dinner of all appetizers, drinks and of course […]

July 9, 2014
At Home with Friends

4 comments

Ice Cream Sandwiches

Remember the way ice cream sandwiches used to be? Two cake-like chocolate cookies sandwiching creamy dreamy vanilla yumminess. All that and wrapped in paper so they were easy to eat. What a perfect dessert! Sadly they are not like that anymore and I miss that. So I decided to create my own.  Since I could […]