Easter Brunch Recipes to Impress

 

So your eggs are decorated, and your Easter Lily is sitting pretty  - so now what? Time to plan your brunch! Easter is a time that should be spent with your family. Here are some easy brunch recipes that will cut down the amount of time you spend in the kitchen courtesy of She Knows. I’m going to be making the Raspberry Cheesecake Crepes!

Hello and welcome to Red Cocoa!

 

Remember what it was like on your first day of high school? The nervous anticipation you felt as you walked up the school. Wondering if you're wearing the right brand of jeans or if anyone would notice the burn on your forehead thanks to an unsteady hand as you curled your bangs that morning? As the nervous excitement tickled your insides you weren't quite sure what high school had in store for you but you knew on some level that it would be great! THAT is how I'm feeling today as I write my first post. Nervous excitement, yet a feeling of being terrified all at once. Exhilarating yet nauseating all at the same time. I've debated about writing a blog for quite a while. I've finally just decided to dive in and do the damn thing!

Here a few tidbits about yours truly. I have an enormous passion for entertaining and event planning. I have a level 1 Sommelier certification and I've recently received my Event and Meeting Management certification. I also have a major obsession with food and wine (hence the sommelier certification!). I'm also recently engaged so look out for a lot of posts and perhaps some rants on wedding planning :)
I will mostly blog about all of the things I am most passionate about described above but will also have random posts on interesting things I've stumbled on, cool places I've been or things I have seen.

Now for the burning question - why "Red Cocoa?"
The name 'Red Cocoa" was inspired by my love of - or somewhat mild obsession (depending on who you ask!) with all things Red Velvet. As an avid baker one of my favourite things to make and what is often requested of me is Red Velvet cupcakes. In addition to having a naughty sweet tooth that just won't quit - I appreciate things that are a bit unusual - a refreshing departure from the norm - and believe that all great events should follow this same logic.
I invite you all to join me on this scrumptious journey that is Red Cocoa! This blog is for you as much as it is for me so I strongly encourage you to stop by often and leave comments.

NOW LET'S RAISE A CUPCAKE! CHEERS!

 

Cupcakes for Champions!

I was feeling UBER proud of my bestie’s son and his recent athletic accomplishments I just had to bake him a few treats to munch on after his game. After tinkering with many chocolate cupcake recipes I’ve finally found the right one to ensure a moist, crumbly cupcake.

 

 

Easter Surprise Eggs



Photo courtesy of Not Martha

 

 

Looking for some creative Easter egg ideas for your upcoming Easter egg hunt? It doesn’t get any more fun than this. Not Martha has come up with a new take on an old favourite. Imagine cracking one of these open to reveal a tasty surprise! These little guys are great for all ages. I know I want one!

Photo courtesy of Not Martha

 

Easter - Wreaths aren’t just for Christmas anymore!

With Easter just around the corner why should the bunny get to have all the fun?

For some reason I feel so inspired by Easter this year! It could be the new Coffee Crisp mini eggs that I spotted at the grocery store or all the Easter Lilies I keep seeing everywhere. Whatever it is I needed to get in on the action. Therefore I decided to add a bit of décor to my home and make an Easter wreath!

I hopped over to my local Michael’s to grab all of the supplies I needed. 2 hours later – yes – I tend to go a bit nutty when surrounded by paint brushes, stencils, canvases and oooo is that a cupcake caddy???!!

Umm… I digress where was I again?! Oh yes I gathered all of my supplies in my black mesh Michael’s bag and proudly declared to the clerk that yes I was going to make an Easter wreath and it was going to be SPECTACULAR!  I wanted something that was relatively easy to assemble and that would give my black door a bit of pop and dazzle! Here she is!

Materials used:

• 12” Grapevine wreath
• Green paddle wire
• Pink ribbon
• 6’ Mini Easter egg garland
• Easter egg bouquet
• Purple tulips
• Glue gun

I started by wrapping the Easter egg garland around the right side of the grapevine. I used a glue gun to affix them in place, while leaving a bit of the garland loose at the bottom to use later. I used the green paddle wire to combine the Easter egg bouquet and purple tulips then used more green paddle wire to attached it the grapevine. I wrapped the excess Easter egg garland around the base of the bouquet and grapevine, and used a bit of glue to hold in place.

I finished it off with a pretty pink bow. Voila!
 

Total time – 1 hour while listing to some killer salsa ;)

 

If you’re a bit less ambitious and amped as me – I found these beautiful Easter wreaths on Etsy which are sure to leave your neighbours jealous.

 

How To Get Your Meeting's 'Sexy Back'

I’ve spent several years as a Coordinator for large global companies. Due to the many meetings that occur throughout the year it’s important to keep meetings fresh so that attendees stay tuned in and are not playing Angry Birds instead of being actively engaged! Here 4 tips to put the sexy back into your meetings:

Keep meetings interactive

How many times have you attended a meeting while the person at the front drolls on and on about X. It’s important for meeting attendees to feel involved. At my company we have employees across Canada so we incorporate web casts in our town halls meetings so that everyone can have the opportunity to attend. Why not have a live Twitter wall with a hashtag to your meeting so people can post and share their comments. We typically just have this screen off to the side and this has been a hit at our meetings!

If you have a smaller meeting have your attendees throw some pictures of themselves on a USB – the more fun and unusual the picture the better! Plug the USB in and have a random attendee (not the owner of the USB) use their imagination to try to come up with an explanation of where the photo was taken and what’s going on the photo. This is a great exercise for meetings where the attendees do not know each other very well or have just started working together. It will add a personal element to the meeting and allow attendees to get to know each other a bit more.

 

Have a Contest

Why not integrate your product or service into your events and offer a prize for the winning submission? It could be something that involves attendees interacting with that product/service. I work for a food company and one of the things we have done at meetings is to have employees send us a video prior to the meeting of them utilizing the product and to explain how it solved a meal time problem ie. you picked up your kids and their friends from soccer practice and on the way home you got a flat tire. You got home much later than planned so now need to make dinner in a jiffy. Enter how ‘product x’ helped with this dilemma. Show the winning video at the meeting and offer a fab prize. Nothing beats employee engagement and getting your attendees syked prior to the meeting.

 

Offer Unique Food at Your Meetings

Salami on rye, tuna wraps, and turkey sandwiches…YAWN. Who said food at meetings need to be boring?? Now more than ever people are open to expanding their palate and trying new and unique food offerings. Try to tap into fresh local food that are in season and have a little fun with this often overlooked important component. At one of our recent team building events I enlisted the services of Elle Cuisine.  Attendees could not stop talking about how tasty the food was! Her take on livening up a mixed salad was to add breaded goat cheese balls that had a tasty herbed breading coating. It was simply delicious!

A hole in one…I stumbled on this amazing company Glory Hole Doughnuts in Toronto who take doughnuts to the extreme! Some their unique concoctions include Banana Cream Pie, Black Forest, and Pretzel.

Who says you can’t play with your food?

 

 

Total Recall

As a planner after you’ve poured all of your blood, sweat, tears into an event you want to ensure that your attendees remember the content. One of the ways to ensure this is to have a game that sums up all of the content, or key content in a fun game. At one of our events we had attendees play a game of Jeopardy. We created a Powerpoint presentation in the style of Jeopardy containing some key takeaways from the event. Attendees were asked to answer Jeopardy style. Nothing like adding a bit of friendly competition to your meeting while finding a way to ensure that the content stays fresh as a daisy in the minds of your attendees.

 

What are some techniques that you’ve used to add a dose of sexy to your events??

Tables with Swank

Last year we saw this with Toms and now this trend has graduated to tables!

A trend I'm noticing more and more recently are dazzling tablecloths popping up at weddings and events.  Biz Bash has noticed this too and walks us through some events that have recently been bedazzled.


BET Honors Dinner Events by André Wells

If you only want to add a bit of dazzle try these sequined beauties on cruiser tables instead of main tables.

Venue Matrimony

Defined by Wikipedia, "Marriage (also called matrimony or wedlock) is a social union or legal contract between people called spouses that establishes rights and obligations between the spouses..." There is also one other VERY important contract to be considered and that is your venue contract.

For those of you that know me (and for those of you that I'm still getting to know) I am recently engaged. I've been stuck in Ground Zero for the past several weeks - Venue Selection.

To date we've seen about 6 different venues ranging from banquet halls and art galleries and everything in between. Here are some helpful tips on choosing a wedding venue:

Will you have a religious ceremony?

Hopefully you and your spouse to be have discussed your religious beliefs beforehand. If not this first step could make for an uncomfortable discussion, not to mention a rocky start to happily ever after!

Berkeley Church ~ Photo courtesy of Tara McMullen Photography

If you choose to get married in a traditional religious ceremony keep in mind that some religions require that the venue be your place of worship. If you and your fiancée have different religious beliefs consider tying the knot someplace neutral like an art gallery or banquet hall. If you still want to capture a religious sentiment then try a non-denominational venue such as Berkeley Church.

 

Budget and Amount of Guests



Photo courtesy of Impressions are Everything

Another important consideration (arguably your top consideration) is your budget which is almost directly tied to your number of guests. Will your wedding be reminiscent of a William and Kate affair or will it more closely resemble Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz’s four guest (yes you read that right) ceremony? Before signing on the dotted line ensure that you understand what is included with the cost of the venue. Most venues will include the cost of tables, chairs, and flatware however there are sometimes many hidden fees or items that you will be on the hook for. For example some venues allow you to bring in your own DJ however they may charge you for a ‘plug in fee’ which can range anywhere from $100 and up.

Ensure that the venue you choose can comfortably accommodate the amount of
guests you will have. If the venue seats 100 but you have 90 attendees that may not leave enough room for the dance floor. The cost of your reception venue can be about 50% of your overall wedding budget (including food). Make sure that you and your fiancée are on the same page when it comes to how much you will spend on a venue. Sit down and have a frank discussion about who each of you will invite and what your maximum budgeted amount is. A good rule of thumb to add 10% to your total budget to account for any unforeseen incidentals. Many websites now offer downloadable budget templates. Take advantage of these templates to keep you on track.

DO NOT live outside your means! Just because your parents think that should invite Auntie Meg whom you haven’t seen since you were 3 days old does not mean she gets an automatic invite. I will get more in depth with budget and invitee etiquette in a later post…


Location, Location, Location…

If you live in a major city such as Toronto or New York, consider having your ceremony just outside of the city to save on costs. A venue even just 2kms outside of a major city may allow you to realize significant savings.

A popular trend for the adventurous or even budget conscious is a destination wedding. Lush, tropical locales can make for a stunning backdrop to your big day. As a bonus it acts as a built in honeymoon! Some popular destination wedding locations include Cancun and the Mayan Riviera. Up and coming locations include Aruba, Turks & Caicos and Jamaica. This will be a day and time in your life you will want to remember so this is not the time to book a 2 star resort!

Remember to keep in mind where your guests will be travelling from. Although this is your day if at all possible try to keep in mind the geographical location of your guests so that those you really want to be there are able to be included.

What is your theme or what type of wedding do you want?

When you picture your wedding what is the first thing that comes to mind? Whatever it is – go with it! As you consider the 5 senses – sight, taste, touch, sound – consider how these play into your vision. Do you see an elegant white tent, complete with drapery and beautiful natural light? Perhaps you smell freshly cut grass and the great outdoors – if so a romantic gazebo or a vintage barn wedding could be the thing for you.

Time to get crafty…get your hands on any wedding magazines you can. Cut out some pictures that you are instantly drawn to. Start a scrapbook and place all of your photos in your special new place. Don’t trust yourself with scissors? There’s always Pinterest. Sign up for a free account and start browsing by theme, color etc. The sky is the limit and I guarantee minutes will turn into hours! Whether you choose to scrapbook the old fashioned way or digitally pay attention to any themes that emerge.

These tips above are just a few tips to keep in mind when selecting the backdrop for your big day!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

 

As mentioned in my first post I have somewhat of a mild obsession for all things red velvet, especially red velvet cupcakes. The joy that I feel while eating as well as making them is indescribable <wiping drool off my face>.  I’ve been asked to make red velvet cupcakes numerous time for birthday parties, bridal showers etc etc. Therefore I found it fitting that my first recipe post should pay homage to this scrumptious treat!

Although it’s said that the reaction between cocoa powder and baking soda gives these cupcakes their red color, I personally like to just add red food coloring. Buttermilk is a must to create a moist texture. If you don’t have buttermilk on hand you can just add either 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to 1 cup of milk. Allow the mixture to stand about 5-10 minutes before using. If you can, use eggs that are at room temperature as they mix better with the batter and allow baked goods to rise more easily. Finally, there is no other icing more fitting to top this masterpiece then a nice smooth, dreamy cream cheese frosting. Now let’s get to the fun part! Here is one of my favourite red velvet cupcake recipes courtesy of Paul Deen.

 

The Wonderful World of Food and Wine

According to a new study on Canadian drinking habits consumers bought an average of 22 bottles of wine in 2011, up from 13 in 1995, (found the Bank of Montreal's special report on the Canadian wine industry).

Now let's face it – wine and food pairing can be a daunting task. Especially if you are the one throwing the party. This is why I appreciate our friends over Wine Folly who have put together an easy to follow wine and food pairing chart. Think of this as “Wine and Food for Dummies”.

Photo courtesy of Wine Folly.com

Now get up, dust off your shoulder and get that wine goblet ready!
 

There really are just a few basics you need to know…

Acidity in wine pairs well with foods high in fat as well as foods that are sweet. Acidic wines should be paired with foods that are of a lower acidity so that the wine doesn’t taste flat. Try Sauvignon Blanc, a dry Riesling, or Chianti. The great thing is that most acidic wines go well with many dishes.

Bitter wines are best balanced with sweet foods. One word that best describes bitterness in wines is ‘tannins’. Tannins come from the skins, seeds and stems of grapes and the longer the wine is kept in contact with the skins is the higher it will be in tannins. This mostly applies to red wines. These types of wines, typically red, are best paired with hard cheeses and red meat.

 

 

 

Sweet wines pair beautifully with spicy foods. Try fruity, low-alcohol wines such as Riesling and Gewurztraminer. I love to pair Gewurztraminer with some spicy jerk chicken! Sweet wines also go great with desserts. Just be sure to choose a wine that is slightly sweeter then the dessert.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are a few wine & food pairing suggestions:

Steak – Full-bodied red such as Cabernet, Bordeaux

Chicken – Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc or a lighter red such as Burgundy or Grenache

Fish – Light medium bodied whites such as Pinot Grigio, Chablis

Pasta (red sauce) – Pinot Blanc, Chianti, Zinfandel

Pasta (white sauce) – Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay or Viognier

Salads – Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Grigio

Seafood and shellfish – Crisp, acidic wines such as Sauvignon Blanc or Sparkling Wine

Now with all of this said I personally like to pair my wine with whatever food is most dominant on my plate. If your beef is slathered in in a delicious creamy sauce then pair to the sauce not the meat. Wine should enhance and bring out flavours in your food!

At the end of the day wine is meant to be fun so drink what you like and be very merry!

Is Your Room Layout Killing Your Meeting?

Meeting planners often struggle with determining the best room layout for their meetings.

Theatre, Hollow Square or Half Rounds? How is a planner to determine the best layout? Let the objective and content of the meeting be your guide. Biz Bash recently tackled this topic and some great insights to share.

Photo: Courtesy of Renaissance Tampa International Plaza

 

What room layouts do you like best for your meetings?

Over the Rainbow

Okay so maybe you didn’t find a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow on St Patty’s Day.  Instead maybe you found a nasty hangover thanks to those pub crawls that sound like such a good idea at the time.

I found my rainbow over at the Pint Sized Baker in form of her oh so adorable Rainbow Cookies! I will definitely be make these for the next kid’s birthday party I attend!

Whoa Baby! Caramelized Onion & Mushroom Brie Grilled Cheese

Okay so you know about my obsession with all things red velvet, but really, to be honest, I have an obsession with food in general. My fiancée often makes fun of me and how elated I am when trying a new recipe or discovering a new food.

Grilled cheese is one comfort food I have a hard time saying no to. One of my girlfriends has the same weakness! Hi Abby J When you think about it – you really could eat grilled cheese at any time of the day. Breakfast? Sure. Lunch? Absolutely. And dinner? Add some vegies or some soup and it’s a meal baby! Here is one scrumptious grilled cheese from BS' in the Kitchen meant to be gobbled to last drop. This would pair quite well with a nice glass of Chardonnay!

Whoopie!

Okay I promise – this blog will not be about all things Red Velvet – but I just had to sneak these morsels in somewhere - Red Velvet Whoopie pies. These little beauties are great if you don’t want to commit to making a whole cake or if you just want a little nibble. For the recipe check out BHG.

 

 

Cheesy Quinoa Mac & Cheese

I am always looking for ways to incorporate this superfood into my diet. Quinoa is one little power packed grain that is often overlooked. If you’re a vegetarian this is THE perfect way to incorporate some protein into your diet. If not this grain is still one you should get to know. Just a ¼ cup provides half the recommended daily dose of iron. This recipe from Around the Table shows us how to revamp mac and cheese quinoa style!

Meetings: Industry Predictions for the Year Ahead

 

When I think about meeting planners who have pretty much seen and done it all, one of the first people that come to mind is Les Selby (CMP, CMM), who sits on MPI’s Communications committee with me. Les is truly a visionary and always has a unique perspective. Here are his industry predictions for the year ahead.

What are some of your predictions for the meetings/events industry for 2013?

Havin' a Ball

 

On a Saturday night you’ll find this place crammed with young hipsters looking for a break for the club scene. But who said that the bowling can’t be a fun day time romp? The Ballroom which opened in 2011, provides the perfect backdrop for a team building event and even has a private room on the second floor that can be used a meeting space if you’d like to do a lil business before pleasure. Don Douloff recently wrote an article for Meetings Canada breaking down this fun, crowd pleasing space.