Studio 5: Easy Outdoor Entertaining

Life can get pretty fast paced and one the best ways I know to sloooooooow it down is to share a beautiful summertime evening with friends & family.

The term "dinner party" can be intimidating. It sounds formal, but it's not. It sounds like you have to have "Martha Stewart" skills, but you don't.

Today's Studio 5 segments are all about tips you need and a 4-course menu that can help you create a successful dinner party this weekend...or the next...or the next. But don't wait too long because before you know it, our still warm summer evenings will be too cold to eat outside. Please watch the segment below, but also visit the Studio 5 website for more great ideas and detailed recipes.

It was certainly a challenge to come up with a 4 course meal I could demonstrate in 8 minutes, but in the end I relied on my own advice. Simple, fresh & seasonal.

I don't have the greatest garden; but I still managed to get a crop of carrots, beets, herbs galore and most importantly, tomatoes. I drove all the way to Salt Lake to track down some of my favorite heirloom tomatoes plants. I crave these all year long. There simply isn't anything better than a fresh garden tomato.

If you don't have a garden, then visit your local farmer or farmer's markets for some exceptional produce. Bon Appetit!

P.S. Foreign words for today's segment. Yes, I know I used those alot today. But sometimes they are just too perfect not to share.

Amuse Bouche (French): to amuse the mouth. Basically, it's a little something you can pop into your mouth and it makes it happy :). These happy sweet & salty treats do just the trick.

Mis-en-place (French): To put in it's place, or simply to prepare the ingredients (chopping, measuring etc...) in advance to streamline last-minute cooking. This is a life-saver at a dinner party!

Heisse Liebe (German): Literally translated, Hot Love. I think Darin blushed a little. It's a lovely, simple and elegant dessert that is often served in German cafes. I know it sounds almost too simple, but try it. So delish!

P.S.S. Our Sneak-Peek winner for today's segment is Brooks Wynn! So many of you were pretty close on this one, I ended up doing a random draw on the comments that were the closest. Congratulations Brooks! Your prize is a collection of summertime paper craft supplies! I'll be in touch!

snowy spring photo op

I know I should be peeved that it snowed in April, but this morning, with the sun slicing through the branches, making every color brilliant and every snow crystal sparkle, I felt blessed. I ran to find my uggs and my camera and spent a good hour taking pictures, getting wet, cold and enjoying this late winter gift.



I measured...8 inches of fluffy, heavy, perfect for snowmen snow. Amazing.



My Pear tree is half-way through blooming. The snow was so heavy it kept falling on me while I was taking pictures. I should have taken a picture of me, I was quite a sight!





My precious Rhododendrons were almost completely covered. I took a few pictures and then rescued them from all that snow. They are pretty sensitive plants and really don't belong in Utah, but if you baby them enough you'll get some show.



Just planted Renunculas and Yellow Pansies in my garden on Monday. Luckily these are super hardy flowers that seem to flourish with a cooler spring.



I replaced a dying tree in our front yard last year with a plum tree and was a little worried it may not survive the winter. It made me very happy to see it's beautiful pink blossoms pop out! It lives!



I've been working on my wee vegetable garden for 6 weeks now and just the other day planted the rest of my seeds and transplanted a few hardy herbs, hope they make it!






My Hyacinths and my Forsythia bush are on the downside of blooming, but what color they have left really pops with all that white snow around them. They almost look good enough to eat! Little flower ice pops!




The first tree I planted when we moved into this home 13 years ago was a Crimson Cloud Hawthorn. Somewhat obscure, but my Mother recommended it. She grew up with many of these trees in North Germany. I'm so glad I followed her advice. It's a tree that just keeps giving. Beautiful bark and bones for the winter, delicate and pretty white and pink blossoms in the spring, nice shade in the summer and crimson berries in the fall. It looks pretty good dressed in snow too!



Well, there you have it, a little tour of my garden. I hope you enjoyed seeing a little of what I saw this morning.

Zucchini Cheese Quiche

I can't believe my first 'real' post will be about zucchini, but it's what's happening here in the Neal Household tonight.

If you have a garden, you probably plant zucchini and if you've planted zucchini you probably know how unpredictable they can be. One day they are tiny, little thumb-sized fruits and the next day you could hollow it out and float in it. This year, I've really been trying to keep in touch with my plant, catching the fruit when it's that perfect 1 1/2" circumference.

Didn't quite make it today, as you'll see, but close enough for my all-time FAVORITE zucchini recipe that I've been making for 20 years. Zucchini cheese quiche. Nothing fancy, but really delish, everyone in the fam loves it, it's great as a leftover and the best part is it uses all that zucchini in the garden.

So, here ya go...my first recipe for the blog.

Two 8” zucchini cheese quiches

Two 8” frozen pie crusts…or if you have time, make one!
6 small zucchini (or a large pan full of sliced zucchini...remember it will reduce in size as it cooks)
1 C. Chopped onion
3-4 cloves of Garlic, chopped
*Saute garlic and onion in olive oil and/or butter. After a few minutes, add sliced zucchini. While this is cooking down (cook until zucchini is a nice bright green color) mix in a bowl:

4 eggs, beaten lightly
8 oz. Gruyere cheese (or your favorite swiss), shredded. You can use more if you like it more cheesy.
1 Tbsp. Dijon Mustard
2 Tbsp. Fresh oregano (Thyme works well in this too) or 1 Tbsp dried herbs
Freshly ground pepper and Kosher salt (to taste)

Allow zucchini mixture to cool down and then mix with cheese/egg mixture. Cook at 375 F. for about 30 minutes or until top is golden.

My little additions to make a little zestier, warmer quiche: Add 1 tsp red pepper flakes and a few grinds of my new favorite spice, Grains of Paradise.

Notice the bright green color? Take it off the heat and let cool.

How did I get those slices to thin? One of my top 3 kitchen gadgets...my mandolin!