A Real Hip Hostess Giveaway ~ Winner!

We have a winner chosen by random and here she is:

Congrats to Sweet Prints!

We'll be sending her out a copy of

Reluctant Entertainer & the Pink Sorbet Apron!

Won't she be the hip hostess?

Thanks a bunch to all the lovely ladies that entered!

Bake-n-Blog

I'm a "joy of cooking" kind of girl. I can pretty much whip up a killer quiche, make a mean meatloaf, or serve up a soup to feed the soul. But I can't bake. I don't bake. Don't ask me to bake. Not unless it comes out of a box. So when I was invited by Staci Edwards of Staci Edwards Design to join her Blog-n-Bake challenge, my first reaction was: Bake cupcakes from scratch? Not in this lifetime. The Challenge: pick a cupcake to make from a list of heavenly treats from Ming Makes Cupcakes. Now Ming obviously knows her thing and her thing is amazing mouth watering confections that delight the senses. How could I dare even dream of doing this. But I did. OK Staci, you're on!

Picking from Ming's list of eye candy I went with
Cupcake #6

Banana Cupcakes with Maple Brown Butter Frosting

Ming Makes Cupcakes

Assembled my arsenal of ingredients.

Rounded up my Michigan maple syrup & found these eco-friendly baking cups.

Since I've heard baking is a science I measured out everything precisely.

Was happy to discover a little cooking was involved.

Put the little lovelies in their place.

Behold...we have Cupcakes! Now time to pretty them up.

Voila!!

Isn't it pretty? I'm so proud I may just have it bronzed!

I was pleasantly suprised to find baking from scratch is an absolutely joy! Now I get it and I'm a believer. There may be no stopping me now! The best part: they were luscious. A big bouquet of thanks to Staci and Ming for bringing out the baker in me!

A "Real" Hip Hostess Giveaway

Stunning tablescapes, beautiful buffets, dazzling desserts and to die for florals, are all come to mind when we hear the word: entertaining or party or hostess. We've all seen the pictures, in magazines, on TV and blogs. It's all so lovely, so elegant and so impressive. But unless you're Martha or an event planner, it's also probably perfectly unattainable.

We drive ourselves crazy aspiring to perfection, and in the process decide it's just not worth it.We all have our list of excuses... I don't have nice dishes, the carpet is dirty, I'm not a good cook, I'm just too busy. It's all just too intimidating right? But what being a Hip Hostess really means is opening our hearts and our homes and making a connection with all the family and friends we cherish.

Enter my dear friend, and real life Hip Hostess,

Sandy Coughlin.

I first met Sandy a few years ago when I came across her blog Reluctant Entertainer. I was immediately drawn to her! Her casual and heartwarming approach to entertaining really hit home with me. Now she has opened the door to real entertaining for real women with her new book.

"The Reluctant Entertainer"

Don't you just adore the cover? It's a perfect reflection of Sandy's understated elegance!

Taking "complicated and stressful" out of entertaining, her book guides us through all the elements of hostessing with inviting photos and recipes for serving up simple dishes, tips on easy meal planning, fun ways to engage your guests, even how to stock your pantry! All the while keeping it gracious and simple. Like I said...real life at home entertaining for real women.

Now for The Giveaway:

One of our lucky readers will be receiving a copy of "The Reluctant Entertainer" along with the pretty pink apron Sandy is wearing above. Our Pink Sorbet Aprons have been discontinued but we've saved the very last one just for this perfect hostess giveaway!

Here's how to enter:

• Leave a comment telling us why you would like to win. Are you a Reluctant Entertainer or do you know someone who is?

• For extra entries: Tweet this Giveaway on Twitter including @TheHipHostess and/or post on your blog and please leave a separate comment telling us you did.

• Giveaway ends Friday August 20th

• Be sure to include an email address if it's not on your profile.

Now if you just can't wait to get your hands on this Sandy's book no worries, you can buy it and even get a signed copy HERE.

Good Luck Ladies!

"Up North" Cherry Chicken Salad

Here in magnificent Michigan anywhere North of the middle of the mitten is "Up North" and that's where you'll find Michiganders going Cherry Crazy each and every July at the National Cherry Festival in the charming lakeside resort town of Traverse City.

visit.cherryfestival.org

See what I mean?

At nearly every local restaurant and deli you will find some kind of Cherry Chicken Salad on the menu. It's like a Northern Michigan Summer staple. After sampling my share and with all the house-guests we have in Summer I decided it was high time for this hostess (trying to be hip) to make this at home.

Served up as a sandwich...

or piled on a plate of greens from the very first bite, this just says Summer!

This recipe is a variation of many I've found. They're basically the same with a bit of optional ingredients here and there. So here's The Hip Hostess version:

UP NORTH CHERRY CHICKEN SALAD

Serves 6

4 cooked & diced boneless chicken breasts

1/3 cup dried cherries

1/2 cup diced celery

1/3 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

½ cup mayonnaise

2 tablespoon buttermilk*

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

*If you don’t have buttermilk on hand you can substitute

1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar plus enough milk to make 1 cup

*For this recipe I just added ¼ tsp lemon juice to the milk.

Optional ingredients:

1/3 cup diced apples

1/3 cup diced pears

¼ cup green scallions

¼ cup fresh parsley finely chopped

Directions:

This is so easy breezy; just mix the cooked chicken, dried cherries, celery, nuts, and any optional ingredients. Add the milk and mayonnaise and toss well. Keep in the fridge until nicely chilled. This recipe can be made a day ahead, in fact it’s even better the next day. Serve as a main dish salad on a bed of fresh greens, or as a sandwich on a croissant, or whole grain bread. This also makes a super summer appetizer when served on crackers or crostini.

By the way, just wondering.... do other states use the phrase "Up North" too?

What's your Salad Style?

The Hot (and I mean HOT!) Summer weather we've been having up here in the North Country has got me into Summer salad mode and searching for some cool, new salad recipes. Which got me to thinking about all the different ways to serve salad...

Pottery Barn

Adhereing to the "play it safe" policy that simple is always best, salad has always been served at our house on chilled clear glass plates a la restaurant style. Now that's for guests, for everyday salads it's in a salad bowl & then onto the dinner plate. Like I said, I like simple.

My french mother-in-law always serves the salad last! Right after the main course but before dessert. And always, always with a plated arrary of cheese. I guess it's french thing. After a few years and lots of meals at the in-laws I started to follow her lead, I mean after all... she was french! It seems the French have it right when it comes to serving salad. A fresh plate of greens with a bit of brie after a meal is surprisingly refreshing and our guests seem to love this reverse approach to serving salad. One more culinary tip to thank my mother in law for.

After scouring the net for fresh looks for salad plates, decided it's time to ditch the clear plates for awhile and branch out a bit. Check below to see all the slick salad plates I found and let me know what you think! Click on the pink links below each photo for where to find.

Truly the Finest

You can't go wrong with clean and white.

Crate & Barrel

What about a fresh fruit salad on these?

Pottery Barn

Adore this natural look.

West Elm

These are so transitional, can see them in Winter or Summer.

Dining Rooms Direct

Lovely for a ladies luncheon, don't you think?

Amazon

Salad or Sushi would both work here.

Amazon

Loved the pop of red on this one.

Target

Wouldn't these look smashing with yellow linens?

Amazon

Would love see these on a red checked tablecloth.

Anthropologie

I'm such a sucker for Shabby & Chic, when I came across these I fell head over heels.

So... here are my new Salad Plates. Aren't they dreamy?

What's Your Salad Style?

How do you serve salad at your house? Individual bowls? One big salad bowl? On a plate? Do you serve with the meal or as a separate course?

Just like Mom

Celebrating Mother's Day

with a Hip Hostess Apron Giveaway!

We Have a Winner!

Picked by Random.org List Randomizer

A Big Bouquet of Congrats to

Kristen!

She's got a Paper Doilies Cafe Style Apron

coming her way.

List Randomize

There were 26 items in your list. Here they are in random order:

Kristen said...

Timestamp: 2010-05-03 23:42:01 UTC

Thanks to all who entered, it was such a joy hearing all your comments.

One day we look in the mirror, catch ourselves saying something, or find ourselves doing something and suddenly it hits you... I've turned into my Mother! It's inevitable. It just happens. Mother Nature sees to that. Though we way may not readily admit to it, or whether it's big or small, we all carry a part of our Mom within us. With that thought in mind...

To get in on the Giveaway:

• Please share a comment on what you do just like your Mom. Is there a phrase you use, a dish you serve, the way you make your bed? What ever it is we'd love to hear it.

• Winner will receive any Apron on The Hip Hostess menu, so let us know which one would be your pick!

• Be sure we have an email address to contact you.

Giveaway ends Monday May 3rd at 6:00PM so we can ship off the apron to the winner in time for Mother's Day.

Winner must reply by Tuesday 9:00 AM or another winner will be chosen.

Whether we know it or not...

there's a piece of our Mom in all of us.

What better day than Mother's Day to celebrate & embrace that!

In case you want to treat your Mom, or yourself...

Use Promo Code LIKEMOM at check out for 20% OFF!

They're Hip & They're Here!

Introducing...

Cafe Style Aprons

We're all worked up about our latest fashion meets function Cafe Style Aprons! Designed with the working girl in mind you'll find these neat little numbers are up to the task! Whether you're a gardener, a crafter, a sewer, a vendor or one chic chef, we think you're going to adore our latest look in workwear!

We're serving them up in 4 irresistibly mod prints: Tea Garden, Black Pearl Swirl, Paper Doilies and Blonde Martini. With prints this pretty you may just decide to pick one up for your next role as Hip Hostess! Which would be perfectly appropriate and we wouldn't mind a bit!

See all the pretty prints HERE

Oh, did we mention Promo Code CAFE will get you 20% OFF your order?
Consider it mentioned.