The Casual Gourmet » Food

A Night at the Museum!

Olive — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 18:51:37 +0000

Back in February when winter was so gloomy, the girls and I sat around the office thinking wouldn’t it be a great idea if we could have a party for ourselves.

The next question that we asked ourselves was; hmmm who should we invite and where should we have this fabulous party we were thinking about? We immediately thought of Liz Hunter and Abigail at the Cape Cod Museum of Art, not only for their amazing space but because of their central location. We picked up the phone and immediately called them. They loved the opportunity to be involved in our fun little adventure. Next as we sat around thinking about who we would like to see and spend some time with, we thought it would be great to invite our fellow wedding professionals; people who we love but we never have time to see as much as we would like during the height of the season, since we are all so busy running around trying to exceeding our client’s expectations.

Crudite Garden and Mini Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

: Tomato Soup Sips which accompanied the Mini Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

Cape Cod is home to an incredibly vibrant group of wedding professionals. Most of whom, like us, are small business entrepreneurs both creative and hard working. Once our guest list was made we sent out invitations to every florist, caterer, dj, photographer,tent company, planner and venue location etc. that we knew. Almost immediately along with loads of rsvp’s we received lots of offers for help and donations. Dyane from Be Our Guest offered beautiful linens, Tony from Undercover Tent provided the chiavari chairs and tables and Becky from Rentals Unlimited brought in incredible lounge furniture.

Linens, Tables and Chairs

Our dear friends Meredith Fancy from Fancy’s Flowers, Patrice of Patrice Milley Florals and Abigail from Designers Touch all provided beautiful flowers. And our good friends Brad and Kathy from the Dennis Inn brought in mini chicken pot pies that were to die for. The first drink of the night was provided by the Cape Cod Chamber and Fancy’s Florist and we finished with the biggest hit of the night – the glitter bon bons from Bedazzle My Bon Bons.

Fancy Flowers by Meredith

Bedazzle My Bon Bon

More Bon Bons

On the night of the big event over 150 of Cape Cod’s most talented and creative wedding professionals showed up to mingle, eat and share fun tales of our many wedding adventures. Recording everything was the very talented Amy Dykens and my good friends and colleagues Christine and Andy of Bello Photography.

Here are a few more pictures of our friends and extended Cape Cod wedding family having a great time.

Saying a few words!

Frank & Helen Coombs

Matt and Jodi Steight of Cape Cod Valet

: Marty Brummel of Prestige Valet & Jamie Bohlin of Cape Cod Celebrations

: Allison Liset of Elegant Engagements, Karen Rood and Lyndsay McNiff of Wynchmere Harbor

: Carolyn Tarr from Highfield Hall with Mark Abdelnour & Ben Philbrook from Chase Canopy

: Rev. Faith Lavendar & Laurel Hartman of Cape Codder Resort

: Cyndi Swan of Lady Slipper Stationary & Cathy Dennehy of Bella’s Blooms

: Lyndsey McNiff & Karen Rood from Wychmere with Meredith & Art Fancy from Fancy Flowers

Sneak peak at our Cocktails & Connections event

Sofia — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 19:57:19 +0000

Here is just a quick sneak peak at the cocktail party the Casual Gourmet hosted last night at the Cape Cod Museum of Art in Dennis. It was a great way to bring together 160 + members of Cape Cod’s wedding industry under one roof to chat, drink, eat & connect. We just wanted to take a moment to say thank you to all of our gracious friends that helped create such a wonderful and successful event starting with the Cape Cod Museum of Art and their staff, Dennis Inn/Treats Catering, Rentals Unlimited, Be Our Guest, Undercover Tent & Party, Fancy Flowers by Meredith, Patrice Milley Floral Designs, Designers Touch, Guaranteed Fresh, Sysco Boston, Lady Slipper Stationery, Bedazzle My Bon Bons, Pick-a-Pack, and of course our friends at the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce.

A big kiss and XOXO to Abigail from Designers Touch. More pictures and details to come. Stay tuned!!

Photo courtesy of: Ralphphoto.com

Starting from Top Left: Mary (Casual Gourmet), Kathy (Treats Catering), Sarah (Casual Gourmet) Christine & Andy (Bello Photography), Desiree Spinner Events, Tom (Studio 280 Photography)

Bottom Left: Dave (Casual Gourmet), Olive (Casual Gourmet), Wendy Northcross (CC Chamber of Commerce), Amy Riley (Painted Light Photography)

Gingerbread house with a Cape Cod Twist!

Sarah — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 21:35:18 +0000

Check out this amazing Gingerbread House our amazing bakers have come up with, Cape Cod Inspired of course!

Its a Gingerbread Lighthouse!

Here at the Casual Gourmet we are gearing up for Christmas. While Christmas orders are keeping the phones busy in the office, the bakers have been keeping busy by preparing our beautiful gingerbread houses. This year Marcy and Barbara are building a new gingerbread house for Heritage Museums & Gardens. Below you will find step by step pictures and the process behind the Gingerbread Lighthouse.

The Gingerbread Dough was mixed and then Rolled out into thick slabs.

the walls and the basic structure of the lighthouse were cut out of the dough

all the pieces were then laid out to bake

once the pieces came out of the oven, Marcy began to decorate them with Royal Icing

the roof for the structure was cut out of gum paste with a cookie cutter

the pieces were then layered together to form the roof

the entire gingerbread house sat on cookie base

Rice Krispy Treats were used to give it a 3D look to the water and the rocks on which the Lighthouse sat on

The lighthouse was then filled on the inside by the same rice krispy treats to give it a more sturdy base

icing was spread all over the base to give the effect of snow

Whats a Lighthouse without a Lightkeeper? a smaller house next to the Lighthouse for the keeper was built.

Barbara puts the finishing touches on their beautiful work of art

and Voila the final product!

The Lighthouse was taken to Heritage Museum and Gardens to be displayed during their Gardens AGLOW exhibit. The Lighthouse was also featured in the Cape Cod Times.

Thanksgiving is in the Air!

Sarah — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 21:29:26 +0000

Pies are Baking, Turkeys are Roasting and the Thanksgiving Orders are piling up. Have you placed your order yet?

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday and here at The Casual Gourmet it’s part of our tradition to provide you and your loved ones with a hassle free and delicious Thanksgiving Dinner, leaving you with plenty of time for family and football. And as we gear up for this most American of a holiday we thought it would be fun to pass onto you some interesting and quirky facts about Thanksgiving.

Like did you know:

-It was not until 1941, that Congress declared Thanksgiving as a national holiday

- Turkeys have heart attacks. When the Air Force was conducting test runs and breaking the sound barrier, fields of turkeys would drop dead.

-91% of Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving Day.

-There are regional differences as to the “stuffing” or “dressing” traditionally served with the turkey. Southerners generally make theirs from cornbread, while in other parts of the US white bread is the base.

-50% of Americans put the stuffing inside the Turkey

- TURDUCKEN, a turkey stuffed with a duck stuffed with a chicken which originated in Louisiana is becoming more and more popular at Thanksgiving.

Here are just a few of my favorite ones, but you can check out the whole list by checking out the website Thanksgiving Facts

GLITTER Makes Everything Fabulous!

Sarah — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 17:57:44 +0000

Here at the Casual Gourmet we are always on the hunt for new and exciting things to offer our Cape Cod Brides. While on the search we came across these amazing glitter bon bons from Bedazzlemybonbons.com and we just had to get them. They are actual edible chocolates covered in Glitter. We showcased them at many of our Summer Galas and they were a huge hit, especially at the Falmouth Hospital Gala in August. They were so popular that we thought hmm… what else can we Glitter? Check out the amazing cake that was adorned by Bedazzlemybonbons.com and ask us about your wedding cake and all the fun colors of bon bons we can add to your cake. The bon bons come in a large variety of colors as well as flavors.

Friday Fun: Giant Cupcake

Sarah — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 20:04:57 +0000

It’s been a busy week here at the Casual Gourmet, with six parties, three weddings and about a dozen wedding cakes going out this weekend, but we just had to share this one!

A young girl came in last week looking for a birthday cake. Not just any birthday cake though, she wanted a gaint cupcake! Take a look: