As you know, Sunday was Matthew’s first birthday and we threw a small party for him. The following is the food that we served to our family that came from near and far to celebrate with us.
Prepping the salad
Organic english cucumber
Removing the seeds
Organic cucumber and organic red pepper
Mixed greens, arugula, pea shoots, cucumber, red pepper, strawberries and avocado dressed in homemade balsamic vinaigrette
I used the following simple dressing on this salad. The recipe makes enough dressing for two big salads.
Balsamic Vinaigrette
1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar, no sulfites added
2 Tbsp 12-18 year old balsamic vinegar, no sulfites added
1 tsp dijon mustard
sea salt and pepper, to taste
Combine in a mini blender and process until combined. Store in the fridge.
Asparagus
In the grill basket
Watermelon
Thickened agave syrup for frosting
Separating eggs for the frosting
Marshmallow frosting. Simply egg whites + agave syrup + vanilla bean paste
This marshmallow frosting was amazing! I wish that I could share the recipe for it and the banana cake that I made; however, they were taken straight from The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook
Hors d'œuvres
Then it was time to fire up the grill!
Chicken and beef kababs from Whole Foods
The spread inside… watermelon, salad, asparagus, kebabs and SunChips.
The spread
Keeping the kebabs warm
Beverages
Time to sing Happy Birthday to Matthew and blow out his first candle!
Banana cake with marshmallow frosting
Taking a nibble while we sang Happy Birthday
Frosting!
Later we lit a fire, roasted marshmallows and made s’mores.
Milk chocolate, 71% cacao dark chocolate and 85% cacao dark chocolate
I chose this brand of crackers because they are whole grain and sweetened with natural sweeteners (honey + molasses)
S'mores
What is your earliest memory?
I was three years old and my Grandma Malcolm was sharing pineapple with me. She passed away shortly thereafter and it is the only memory that I have of her.
Everything looks amazing!!
Thanks, Lesley. It was one of the simplest, easiest and delicious meals I have made for a crowd.
Aw, love this post! So sweet! All the food looks incredible. Love your gorgeous, bright photos! 🙂
Thank you, Jen. It was such a fun day! I love having all of our loved ones over and feeding them delicious, healthy food.
Wish I could cook like you do! You seem to make it look so easy to cook clean (!) for so many people!
Love your new blog, it’s like visiting another world..love all the pics you share..
Happy B-day, Matthew, little pumpkin!
Thanks, Kristen. This actually was one of the easiest and tastiest entertaining meals I have ever made. I am definitely going to emulate this simplicity every time that we have company.
Allan did an amazing job on the new blog design. I am completely in love with the new style. I should probably post about it on the forum.