Hop over to Whole Foods or Barnes & Noble to check out my piece and the insanely delicious-looking recipes. I’m thinking of trying the Peanut Butter S’more Cookie Sandwiches (dipped in chocolate!) this weekend…

In dire need of some R, R & R–Rest, Relaxation and really good wine. Looks like I’ll get that–and a fab summer veggie feast–this Friday at the beach.

New York Daily News: Full Plate

P.S.–Isn’t this photo gorge? Colleen Duffley our friend, and cookbook photographer, took this shot of my cousin Steven’s organically grown zucchini, squash and baby Japanese eggplant.

We’re throwing a BBQ for 50 over the holiday weekend! Are we crazy to squeeze this in between photo shoots? Probably. I’m just hoping Baby Parker can amuse herself in the punch bowl.

The deets:

Where: “Studio B” @ Alys Beach (fyi-Alys is one of the most gorgeous locales I have ever seen in my life. The architecture of Morocco, Greece and Antigua merge to create a dramatic little community overlooking the sugar-white sand dunes and emerald waters. Oh I’ll stop waxing… Just click on the link!)

What: “Kick Butt BBQ!”

Hands-On Cooking Demo and BBQ Lunch w. Food Network “Chopped” Champion and Cookbook Author(s), James Briscione & Brooke Parkhurst

When: Saturday, July 3rd; 1pm

Cost: $50/Adult, $15/Children

Gourmet BBQ Extravaganza Menu:

-Chilled Crab Salad in Cucumber Cups
-Slow-Roasted Pork Butt Soft Tacos With All the Fixins’
(Spicy Avocado Crema, Red Cabbage Slaw, Fiery Mango Salsa)
-Grilled Shrimp in Smokey Tomato Sauce
-Southern Fried Corn Salad
-Grilled Peach Ice Cream Sundaes

You don’t know Alys Beach or “Studio B?” Check out the websites!

www.alysbeach.com

www.studiobthebeach.com

Avocado, oranges, fennel and mint–I need you.

Because it’s been a doozy of a week. Because final cookbook edits are due in seven days. Because shot lists, prop lists, grocery lists, hair, makeup and wardrobe must be finalized for a cookbook shoot 1,500 miles away…

New York Daily News: Full Plate

Parker Lee, at Scribner HQ, surveying the stacks and preparing to submit our final, edited cookbook manuscript… I think she wants a trip to Disneyworld for putting up with us and our deadlines.

It’s nice to get in the kitchen and just think. Chop the cabbage, rib the peppers, cube the peaches and think. Time slows down… As a mother, the days are long, the years are short. Where are the quiet, thoughtful moments that play out like symphonies?…

New York Daily News: Full Plate

“I will take my first step for this pork sandwich…”

New York Daily News: Full Plate

In “Belle In The Big Apple,” I write:

Twenty-five, twenty-five…there was something that made it the year of singular beauty and opportunity. It was supposed to be the time when my profession, my sentiments and my social circle formed a flawless sphere–a shape as perfect as a hen’s egg.

Boy was I naive.

Flash forward to the present–I’m obsessing about eggs but only because my 1 year-old daughter loves them and they keep her from having an afternoon melt-down…

New York Daily News: Full Plate

A moment like this gets me through the rainy Wednesdays…

We didn’t make it to Cannes this year. Parker says she prefers the Winkles to Woody Allen, Rainbow Bright to Ridley Scott.

So while we’re homebound (…tied to the apartment, tethered to three dozen plastic toys and bottles of chilled Vitamin D), I’m watching Euro-based movies On Demand (”8 1/2,” “To Catch A Thief,” “French Kiss”)  and eating our delicious, Mediterranean-inspired h.o.d.’s.  My and Jamie’s Dip Duo: Feta & Sundried Tomato Tapendade and Roasted Eggplant, Tahini and Basil Dip. 

These are going in the book, so I can’t list them here. Email me if you’d like the recipes!