Gavin Nicholas Martino

Great Grand~ Pop Armando
Dom & Carrie (Momma & Papa)
Nonna & Pop Pop


The baby was all smiles ... dressed in a beautiful Irish Linen Christening Gown and ready for the big day .
We arrived bearing food for the party afterwords .. some great antipasti and a few items for nibbling.. .the Prosecco was chilling as so apparently was Gavin... not a peep out of him as we passed him around for hugs and kisses and lots of pictures. His big brother Finn was very excited too ! lots of people in his house and a big party was in the making !
We drove to the beautiful church of St. Thomas in Glen Mills and gathered around Father Pete as he talked and joked with us .. it was a wonderful ceremony ... a ceremony that celebrated a new life and a new beginning . As Father Pete held up the baby and sang .. little Gavin smiled .. not one bit afraid !
We were all so proud & happy to be together for this very special day !

OUTDOOR CELEBRATIONS

Outdoor Celebrations

Summer is here and with the warmer weather comes outdoor entertaining. Here are some great recipes to make your parties fun and delicious. Great do ahead recipes for a colorful and flavorful way to entertain !


Blue cheese Coleslaw

2 cups coleslaw mix } combine in a bowl & toss with dressing
1 cup shredded carrots }
1 cup shredded purple cabbage }

1 cup Hellman mayo } whisk together & gently toss with cabbage
2 Tbsp grain mustard } mixture and crumbled blue cheese
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar }
1 tsp celery seeds }
Salt & pepper }
1 cup crumbled blue cheese


Greek Pasta Salad

1 LB of pasta cooked , drained & cool
1 cup grape tomatoes
3 cucumbers , peel , seed & dice
1 red onion diced
1/2 cup feta crumbles
1/2 cup imported black olives

Dressing

6 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 Tbs. lemon juice
1 tsp dried oregano
Salt & pepper

~combine ingredients for dressing and toss with pasta & veggies

T~Ball

My life is a little different now that I have 5 grandsons ...my house is full of baskets and boxes of toys.. Tractor Trailers.. Dump Trucks... Firetrucks .. Monster Trucks .. Race Cars .. small cars .big cars .. you name it- any type of transportation there is ~ I have .My past interest in sports has been only that .. an interest in passing .. but now we watch Hockey ,Baseball, Basketball, Nascar~ ( always loved that ) I now know the names & scores of all of these teams ..

Hundreds of wiffle balls litter my back yard .. I have about 8 plastic bats along with a orange cone that we use as a batting T... so we can practice when the weather is nice .. with the arrival of spring comes softball or T-Ball season .. so we are off to watch these little guys play T- ball .. it is so much fun .. some of these kids are no higher than my hip and the bat is bigger than them ! they hit the ball and run to 3rd instead of 1st .. they are in the field playing with the dirt instead of watching the ball .. but not Christopher ... he is Ryan Howard at bat .. pointing to the sky where he wants to hit the ball .. nodding his head at us when we wave and shout .. he is serious .. and he is all business on the field .. 5 years old and he plays like a professional on the Phillies Team !
The Defenders !!! we shout and wave .. scream encouragement and buy $1 hot dogs for dinner !
Sports are a wonderful way for kids & parents to enjoy themselves .. .. there are about 5 playing fields where we go and everyone of them is full with kids .. playing ball , laughing and having fun .. along with their parents and grandparents .. it is a fun place to be ! For the whole family !!

MOTHERS DAY LUNCH

Every year we celebrate Mother's Day in my garden ! with mouthwatering food .. great music and the company of someone special .. we get together to enjoy this special occasion. This has been an on~ going tradition for the past 10 years ..Family , neighbors ,friends & clients gather together to celebrate that someone special in their lives .. After almost two weeks of rain the sun was shining and the breeze was blowing .. it was a fabulous sunny day .. tables set with wild flowers filled the yard ..The promise of a delicious lunch shared with friends , laughter and happiness for a beautiful day .. it was a day to celebrate.. a day to relax and enjoy.. a day to be in the company of loving and caring women ! I hope you enjoyed your Mother's day too !

SHOPPING WITH SUSAN

This is a trip we take every Spring .. when the weather is warming and our thoughts turn to cooking and family celebrations .." Shopping with Susan" .. that's me ! is a fun day !

We start off here at my house around 9 in the morning .. we climb into a roomy van .. with my husband Clint as our driver and we're off !! We make several stops and they are all place where I buy my ingredients for catering and for my cooking classes as well as food for my family .. you get to shop where I shop .. small family owned businesses where everyone is friendly and the food is phenomenal .. service is above and beyond and freshness is a requirement .

These wonderful shop owners are waiting for us.. Prosciutto .. cheeses , olives breads .. in our first stop with just filled cannolis ready for us to taste .. on to the pasta store .. we get a tour of how fresh pasta is made ... filling ravioli right before our eyes and we buy them right off the press ! Then onto the butcher .. a small store run by a father and son .. they do so much business that it is double park heaven .. a South Philly thing ! .. meats cut and trimmed right before your eyes .. ground meat to die for and steaks to make your mouth water ! Laughing and joking along with compliments to all the beautiful women put us all in a good mood as we head to our last stop .. a small little Italian import grocery store .. tucked away on a corner .. you would not even know it was there .. we are welcomed with a platter of cut imported Italian cheese and home made supersaudes& salami, fragrant olive oils and crusty Italian bread for dipping .. luscious olives and imported cakes and cookies from Italy .. Italian music plays in the background as we sample all the Goodies and load up the van with our purchases ..

We are off to Lunch .. a typical red gravy restaurant ..complete with Frank Sinatra pictures . The food is fresh and good and we relax with a glass of wine and enjoy a wonderful lunch .. reliving our day ..planing our dinners and laughing and sharing stories ..

It is a wonderful day filled with fun, food and lots of laughter .. join me in one of my day trips .. it will be an experience yo won't easily forget !

CHESTER COUNTY CULINARY TOUR APRIL 2009

It promised to be a gorgeous day .. the skies were blue and the sun was shining .. we had an early start so after a light snack of fruit,cookies& juice I gave everyone a canvas tote bag and we piled into the shiny white van ready to start our culinary adventure of Southern Chester County .

With Clint as our driver the ride to Chester County was a smooth one .. I gave a little bit of information to everyone about where we would be going and who we would meet.

Our first stop was a Mushroom farm. This is the largest grower of specialty mushrooms in the US it is run by the 3rd generation family and has been in operation since 1927.. We toured the mushroom houses and our guide gave us fascinating information on how each type of mushroom is grown .. we even got to taste a mushroom straight from the soil ..

At the end of the tour we were able to buy mushrooms of all kinds & everyone took advantage of this great opportunity .. mushroom boxes filled the back of the truck that was following us with ice in coolers to keep our purchases cold !

Next was a visit to a local farm where Jack Hill makes his wonderful concoctions of jams & jellies from fruit grown on his property.. we watched as he and his Amish helper cooked small batches of jam with real sugar to make his award winning jams & jellies .. this retired man whips up the most delicious jellies you will ever taste.. we sampled some and bought lots !

On to a nearby farm where Tom & Barbara run a Sheep Dairy with pasture- raised lamb. They also manage 25 colonies of honeybees & along with fabulous lamb sausage we sampled their wonderful honey and old world cheeses. Tom answered some questions and gave us insight on what it takes to run a small family farm .

Our next stop was a wonderful Boutique winery ... where we sampled some astonishing blends and sampled local artisan cheese & chocolates. This small 7 acre winery is set in Avonadale and run by the same family for 5 generations. All the grapes are harvested by hand to produce some of the areas best wines .

Needing a little nourishment we headed to lunch . We dined in a local restaurant owned by a young couple who uses local produce for some great American dishes .We ate in a private dining room savoring our meal and sharing our enthusiasm for this culinary adventure .

On our last stop of the day we headed into Lancaster County where we were privileged enough to visit a local Amish Dairy farm close to milking time ! We toured the barn and watched as the cows came in from pasture ~ we bought raw milk and brown eggs along with vegetables put up by his wife .. we were followed around by 3 beautiful blue eyed children with bonnets.. it was a real experience.

Join me on my next culinary tour of Southern Chester County .. it will be an experience you will not forget !

LOCAL CULINARY ADVENTURES

I am always looking to do something new and interesting with my business ... I have been in the food business in one way or another since 1983 .. yes you read that right .. it surprises me too to think I have been cooking or thinking about cooking for that long .. as I always say time passes very quickly in life !! Especially when you are having fun!
The cooking classes I teach are wonderful but I am always trying to add a twist to make life & food more interesting .. to inspire and make people want to cook for their family & friends .. to think about food in a new way !
So this winter .. I started to think about taking a Food Inspired Tour of Chester County .. a land .. not too far away .. of rolling hills, scenic farms , Amish buggies ,a land rich in agriculture and full of beauty .. only a short beautiful drive from here.
Clint & I have been taking leisurely drives to Chester County on our days off .. just exploring .. finding antiques shops and farmers markets.. brown eggs and rich & tasty mushrooms, affordable colorful flowers .. fresh milk & cream and luscious produce.
I want to share this beautiful countryside with my clients ... so this Spring I am offering a LOCAL CULINARY ADVENTURE to Chester County .
Yesterday Clint & I went to visit all the farms & people we will be visiting this Saturday .. it was a great day .. our schedule is crammed with stops to visit a Mushroom farm that has been in the same family for years .. quite an operation ! You will never look at mushrooms the same way again ! We will talk to a retired man who makes jams & jellies with the fruit growing on his farm and has won awards for the interesting concoctions he dreams up .. a bee keeper with fabulous local honey for sale .. an Amish Dairy farm where we will take a tour of his farm and buy fresh milk & eggs .. a wonderful boutique winery .. we will have lunch in a restaurant owned by a young couple that cook with all local & organic foods from the area .
It promises to be a fun filled special day .. and I will be sure to post pictures .. look for the next Local Culinary Adventure to Chester County .. and join us to see how food is grown and produced and gets to your table !