So many people want to be a great chef, we all watch them on TV and aspire to be like them. They are food Rock Stars!! But what makes one chef better than the other? It is not always about the food that they cook. Check out this great article by Steve Tobak called 10 Leadership Lessons From Food Network Chefs. If you, or someone you know, is an up-and-coming chef, here are some good tips to think about.

Buitoni did it again.... they hit a home run with their Reduced Fat Pesto With Basil sauce. I have used it many times in the past as a sauce to put on top of home made pizza, but this time I served it up for dinner with Buitoni’s Light Four Cheese Ravioli and it was delicious! If you like a little more spice in your pasta, a little crushed red pepper added just the right amount of kick. Another fantastic way to use this sauce is spread on an open-faced loaf of french bread, topped with a small amount of mozzarella and placed under the broiler for a few minutes to melt the cheese. I hope that the next time you are at the grocery store you pick up a few Buitoni products, and if you love pesto, they have a Pesto with Sun Dried Tomatoes Sauce that looks like the perfect match for their Tortellini! Give it a try and let me now what you think.

The other day, I was contacted by Buitoni to do a review of some of their products, and I was more than happy to do so! If you don’t already recognize the name, Buitoni is a company that makes many delicious pastas, sauces and full dinners that are sold in your local grocery store. My 15 year old son and I made a trip to Safeway and picked out the fresh pastas and sauces that we thought we would like best..... he picked their fresh Linguine with the Tomato Herb Parmesan Sauce (sold in separate packages in the refrigerator section of the store), and I picked the Spicy Beef and Sausage Ravioli and the Vodka Sauce. We cooked up the pasta, very very easy and quick to do since the pasta is fresh, and heated up the sauces on the stove.

The Results: I put all 4 items on the table and allowed everyone to pick which combination they liked best. I can honestly say that it was pretty much a toss-up! Everyone said that they would absolutely eat all four items again, they were delicious! The kids tended to lean toward the Linguini with the Tomato Herb Parmesan Sauce, Dave and I leaned toward the Spicy Beef and Sausage Ravioli but could not decide which sauce we enjoyed the most. There was no need for extra red pepper, salt, black pepper or parmesan cheese.... all items that we keep close-at-hand when we eat dinner..... just in case. Hands down, we enjoyed each item that we had, and that is a big statement coming from an Italian family that loves their pasta and sauces.

Final Statement: We would recommend any combination of the 4 items that we tried above, and we hope that you will give them a try as well. It is a wonderful meal that anyone can put together in about 15 minutes. AND, since you have taken the time to read this review, please follow this link to the Buitoni Masterpiece Challenge, where you will have the chance to win a $100 gift card for new kitchenware if you enter before March 27, 2011! Buitoni and I thank you for your time, please check back, I hope to be doing more product reviews very soon. Please feel free to leave your comments at the bottom of this page, I love to hear from you!

Sunday was my first night making my way through the cookbook Entertaining With the Sopranos. I chose the Baked Ziti and Bechamel Sauce recipes because I remember them serving it so many times throughout the Soprano’s series, even Father Phil lusted for Carmela’s baked ziti. I have to admit that this recipe took a bit more time and dirtied more pots than I had anticipated, but in the end it was well worth it. To respect the writer of the cookbook, I will not post the exact recipe, you’ll need to purchase the book for that, but I will refer to the basics. You need to time things correctly, chop up the ham, cheeses and get the Bechamel Sauce cooking while the pasta is cooking. I made the recipe exactly as they have it written in the book, but we all felt that it needed black pepper (although it only called for white pepper) to add more “kick”. Actually, red pepper flakes would have been fantastic as well. It is a layered casserole, lasagna style, layering ziti, Bechamel Sauce, fresh and smoked mozzarella, ham and Parmigiano-Reggiano. You can’t go wrong with those ingredients! This recipe is quite rich, but made enough for “encore night” (left overs) later in the week. I think that I enjoyed it more than the rest of my family, but spiced up I would definitely make this one again.

Family Score: 7 out of 10

You all know I’m a total Foodie, a trait that I embrace in every way. Well, since I loved the entire idea behind Julie and Julia so much, I decided to do my own version. I searched cookbooks that intrigue and inspire me, and after checking out just about every cookbook from the library, I have finally zeroed in on the one that inspired me most, “Entertaining With The Sopranos”. Now, you might be thinking that’s kind of strange, a book based on a fictional TV family... but hear me out. My husband and I were total die hards for the series The Sopranos, and every week when we watched it, we first made up some delicious pasta to eat while viewing, and we drooled every week as we watched Tony go to the fridge to pull out some mouth-watering left-over that Carmela had made the night before (come on, you have to admit that your mouth started watering when Tony’s Uncle Junior described Carmela’s lasagana with the layer of basil!). That show was as much about food as it was about the life of an Italian mob boss. I am going to work my way through this cookbook, attempting to make at least one recipe a week and blogging about it to let you all know how it is going living the Foodie life of Carmela Soprano. Since I have a family with kids in school and a husband that works hard to get home for dinner every night, I will most likely be making the dishes on the weekends. I will make them exactly as they are printed in the cookbook, and then note what I would do different, if anything. This will be a fun journey so keep checking back and be sure to leave comments at the bottom of the page!

I’m sorry to everyone for being off line for the past few months! Technical problems with my computer, but my I finally gave my IT guy what he needs and I’m back up-and-running. Stay tuned, I’m doing my own version of “Julie and Julia”, called “Nan and Carmela”, if you’re a Foodie you won’t want to miss it!

My dear friend and client Sharlene was asking me for a beef stew recipe and this one immediately came to mind! My mom has made this recipe for Christmas dinner for so many years, and now I have taken over the tradition. It is one of the most delicious beef stew recipes that I have ever tasted, and it just keeps getting better as the days go on and the flavors really start to come out. Whether you make this in a Dutch oven or in a slow cooker, cook this dish for your family and watch them enjoy every bite of it! This Beef Bourguignonne recipe is found in my Recipes section.

Check out this interview with Gloria Allred, warning parents of the dangers of “sexting” among our kids. We all like to think that our kids aren’t doing it, but so many of them are and the liability that comes along with it is something you should be aware of.

i took my kids to see this, mainly because my oldest son plays the electric guitar, and partly because I wanted to peek into the heads of 3 rock stars from 3 very different generations. This movie brought together legendary guitarists, Jimmy Page from Led Zeppelin, The Edge from U2, and Jack White. The movie was written like a book with many different chapters, each chapter allowing the artist to tell his story. While doing this, it never became a “commercial” for their individual albums or guitars. It was a view into the soul of each of these legends and their music, all being expressed through their connection with their guitar. If you play guitar, love rock and roll, or want to hear the story of how 3 men followed their passions which led them to their own individual genius, this is the movie for you! It is currently in theaters, hopefully out on DVD soon.

At first when I heard about this movie I wasn’t sure what to think. How can they make a movie about Julia Child that would seriously bring the crowds to the theater. But, since I am a Foodie, I had to check this one out. I went with one of my friends and sat in the back row, honestly not expecting anything more than just a sweet story to watch. What I found was a movie that took me in, grabbed my heart, and left me wishing that the story would never end. The only complaint that I have is that the movie wasn’t dedicated to just the life of Julia Child. I found myself wishing that I had a Tivo controller in my had to fast-forward over the story line about Julie. Not that Amy Adams didn’t do a good job, I just wasn’t nearly as interested in her story, and I couldn’t get enough of the story about Julia Child. Meryl Streep absolutely channeled Julia through her performance and I never wanted it to end. I can not say enough wonderful things about this movie, and even if you are not a Foodie, you must ad this to you list of movies to see!

Now that summer is here salads go from a side dish to the main course. However, if you are like me, you get stuck in the old routine, dressing your salads with the same dressing day-after-day. Well, it’s time to change it up! I came across this blog while trying to find a new salad dressing to make for my family. Check out FranticHomeCook.com for a list of great new recipes. I’m trying the Garlic Caesar Salad tonight, but the Avocado Green Goddess Dressing looks fantastic! Let me know which recipes you try and enjoy. Post your comments below.

This is a great list of things everyone should know that Popular Mechanics has put out. It is actually called “100 Skills Every Man Should Know”, but they are also skills that women should brush up on as well. This list also includes the instructions with videos, so check it out! This could be a good list to get some great summer ideas from when you (and the kids) have run out of things to do.

Now I am not trying to put myself out of business as an Esthetician, but If you suffer from razor burn and do not have the time for a bikini wax, try this new razor from Schick. Check out the review for this product in the Product Recommendations section.

I have been on this earth for 44 years now and I have accumulated many titles along the way; I’m a Daughter, Sister, Wife, Aunt, Niece, Daughter-in-law, Tech Support/Customer Service Rep, Esthetician, Friend... but the title that I am most proud of is Mom. Being a mother has been the most rewarding journey that I could have ever imagined being on. I wasn’t one of those little girls that always dreamed about being a mother, it was just something that I knew I would do after I got married. And of all the paths that I have taken along the way, nothing comes close to the feeling and emotion that comes with being a parent. I want to take this opportunity to thank Quentin and Sawyer for taking this journey with me and allowing me to love two individuals as passionately as I love the two of them. I couldn’t have asked for two better kids, I am so proud of them both. And Dave, I couldn’t have done it without you! Happy Mother’s Day to all the lucky Mom’s out there. You really do have the best job in the world!

With our lives being as busy as they are, we just don’t have time to rent movies that aren’t worth seeing. Well, this weekend the kids were doing the sleep-over thing so Dave and I actually had time to watch some movies. Unfortunately, we ended up with 2 movies that we felt were a flop. Check out the Movie Reviews section to see the reviews. And please, send me some suggestions for good movies to rent. I would love your feed back!

OK, I know that I’m about 1 week behind the news, but I finally got the time to check out what all the hype about Susan Boyle is all about, and I must say, I am pleasantly surprised. If you haven’t seen this YouTube video, check it out: Susan Boyle - Britains Got Talent 2009

If you haven’t had the fun experience of going to the Maker Faire, you’re really missing out. If you love to build, learn, create, think, play, invent, craft, recycle (and SO much more) than this is the show for you. Spend the day at a hands-on faire where you get to experience some unbelievable projects and products. We went last year for the first time and absolutely loved every minute of it. So if you have kids, or even if you don’t, make time the weekend of May 30 & 31, 2009 to head to this event in San Mateo, CA. Check out the Maker Faire website to get your tickets in advance.

This is to report that the Chicken Marbella that we cooked up for a very large crowd on Easter Sunday turned out absolutely delicious! We had many dishes cooking in the pizza oven, but the Chicken Marbella turned out the best. And with it’s slightly sweet flavor, the kids totally ate it up. I’d give this one a two thumbs up!

Outsourced is a good light-hearted comedy.... worth taking the time to watch. For more movie reviews, go to my Movie Reviews section. Life’s too short to take chances on crappy movies!

A Gastrosexual (thanks to the Urban Dictionary) is a foodie who uses their culinary skills to impress friends and woo the opposite sex. Actually, the Urban Dictionary specifically refers this term to a “man”, however, we know better than that! Many of us Gastrosexual women are wooing and having all kinds of fun in the kitchen as well, if you know what I mean!

Why Chicken Marbella of course! I am doubling the recipe and cooking it in our wood fired pizza oven, enough to feed 12 people. Check out the recipe, it’s easy and fantastic.

Was Jesus Black, Jewish, Italian, Californian, American Indian, Irish, or a Woman? Click here to find out.

Cook up a Nacho Casserole or Garlic Mashed Potatoes. These recipes have been tested, tasted and given a thumbs-up! Also, check out the Movie Reviews section to find newly added reviews of movies like W., The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, Burn After Reading and Wanted.

Check out this site that we stumbled upon. It’s called Social Media Mom and it’s another wonderful social networking site for all women. It was created by Kristen Munson, allowing women to network through the internet, very much like I am doing here with Nan’s Network. She is also starting a new social media/networking site for women called SmackNews. It is currently in beta, but you can go to the site and sign up to be emailed when the site is up-and-running. Social Media Mom is a good site, so take the time to check it out!

Dr. Michael Murry was on The View From The Bay on Thursday March 19th. He is the author of the book Hunger Free Forever, and he talks about a dietary supplement called PGX Daily (created by the University of Toronto, the team that created the Glycemic Index) that forms a gelatinous mass in your stomach that tells your brain that your stomach is full, It also claims to flatten your blood sugar level to help achieve your ideal body weight, restoring blood sugar stability. I wanted to hear from anyone out there that may have tried this supplement, and what results have you found from it? Is there something to this, or is this just another diet pill that we should not spend our money on? You can check out his interview on The View From The Bay.

Take a look at the recipes for Spaghetti alla Carbonara and Chicken Apple Sausage Casserole. They are easy and they ROCK!

If you are celebrating Saint Patrick’s Day this year be sure to check out Sweet Colleen’s Shop and order up some traditional (or not so traditional) Irish delights! She is in Almaden Valley, California and is taking orders for her fantastic soda breads. Check out her website or contact her at 408-674-7271 to place an order today.

Just added this recipe... super simple, super yummy! Check it out on the Recipes page.

Its time to take out those iPods and start putting them to use! If you haven’t started checking out podcasts it’s about time that you give it a try. There is a podcast for just about EVERY subject you can think of... here are a few of my new favorites. Start Cooking is great! They are short 1-3 minute videos that give recipes and cooking techniques. It is well produced and fun to watch. My next new favorite is APR: The Splendid Table. This is a 1 hour audio program with segments and interviews about food. Fantastic to listen to when driving in the car. Just get a car cassette adaptor for your iPod, put the cassette into the tape player in your car and plug the other end into your iPod. You can find these adaptors at Radio Shack. Then you are set to listen with the sound coming through your car speakers. For more podcast ideas, take a look at my Podcast Reviews, or go to the Podcast section in iTunes to subscribe to your favorites.

Ever wonder what to do with all that beautiful artwork that your children bring home from school? Eventually the walls of your house get covered, and then what? Take digital photo’s of the artwork and send them to Snapfish to make a beautiful book that you and your kids can keep forever. You can make a different book per child, per school year and they are beautiful. I saw this on Oprah and thought it was a fantastic idea!

Well, the Super Bowl is over, so bring on the next big event... Valentine’s Day! Valentine’s Day is such a crazy day to go out to dinner, so why not save some money and cook up a fantastic and loving meal for your Valentine instead? Take a peek at my Valentine’s Day Recipes page and the Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas for great food and gift ideas. I will be posting new gifts and recipes daily so be sure to check back. And don’t forget to look under the Recipes page for more good food to cook up.

Looking for a Handyman, Gardener, Hair Stylist, Chiropractor, Therapist. Music Teacher and more in the South Bay Area? Check out the Referral section, and be sure to send me any referrals that you have to add to the list!

I just found this recipe for a Beergarita and need to share it with you. It would be the perfect Super Bowl drink. Check it out!

Getting ready for the big game? It’s this Sunday, February 1st so you need to start thinking about what you are going to cook up. Check out the Super Bowl Recipes page and prepare one or more of these fabulous dishes! Oh, and in case you aren’t totally into football, the Pittsburgh Steelers are playing against the Arizona Cardinals.

I have been given the honor of having my blog included on the Alltop site in the “Food” section created by Guy Kawasaki. Alltop is an “online magazine rack” of blogs, organized by popular topics. Guy hand picks the sites that he includes on this site, so I am thrilled to be a part of it. Thanks Guy! Guy is an Entrepreneur, Apple Fellow at Apple Computer, author of 9 books, business speaker, and an icon here in Silicon Valley, and around the world. To learn more about Guy Kawasaki, check out his blog. You can also find a review of his book Hindsights in the Book Reviews section.

Check out these great cook books from Williams-Sonoma. There is a series of them called Food Made Fast and they are excellent. There is a picture for each recipe (I LOVE a cook book with pictures!) and they are all quite simple to make. Here is a link to the Williams-Sonoma site, but you can also find them through Amazon and Barnes & Noble a bit cheaper.

OK, so this soup and President Obama have nothing in common, other than it tastes fantastic and it’s in hopes for a fantastic next-four-years with Obama in the big house! Check out this easy and yummy Tomato and Bread Soup recipe, you’ll love it.

Go to the Recipes section to find a fantastic recipe for Italian Stuffed Shells!

I heard about Tastebook.com from, Aimee, a client of mine. She has given it as a gift to quite a few people and they have loved it! It is a simple yet very professional looking cook book creator where you can use their recipes or you can upload any of your own to put into this beautifully printed book. Take a look at their site, it would make a wonderful gift to give, or make one of your own!

Check it out in the Recipes section. It’s perfect for this cold crisp weather, easy to make on a night you have little time and great to eat while watching football! It will keep in the fridge for 1 week so you can keep it around for last minute meals.

At the salon we serve our customers this delicious water infused with sliced cucumber and apples. It’s so refreshing and all of our clients enjoy it as if it is a luxurious item that you can only have at a spa. Well, I came home and thought, “Why can’t I have that at home as well?”. So I dug out a plastic pitcher, put in some cold water, added 4 slices of cucumber and 4 slices of apple and put the pitcher in the fridge. Now I get to have this delicious water at home. Give it a try!

I guess the best term I can use to describe my husband when he walked through the doors after visiting MacWorld 2009 in San Francisco, is “unimpressed”. He had very little to say about the show itself, and even though he is a HUGE Apple fan, I could see that he didn’t find this show to be anything impressive. There were some items that he did find interesting, an HD video camera for one, but in general it seems that it didn’t have the same MacWorld excitement.

So I watched Food Detectives on The Food Network last night for the first time and I am hooked. It’s kind of a food-meets-MythBusters. Ted Allen takes all sorts of food questions and myths and puts them to the test. Last night they were talking about whether or not ginger really does help with nausea (yes, it actually does!), and is there a way to cut an onion without it making you cry? It is only a 30 minute show, so if you get the time, check it out! Or better yet, Tivo it and watch it when you actually have time.

Food Network is launching 2 new shows that you just might want to check out. Ultimate Recipe Showdown started this past week. It is a bit like a fast-pased Top Chef hosted by Guy Fieri. Then, on January 13th, another new show called Chopped starts, hosted by Ted Allen from Food Detectives and Queer Eye. This is another food competition show, but looks promising. Check them both out!

I know it sounds early, but it’s already time to start thinking about what to do with our kids this summer. I am receiving summer camp brochures and after a while it becomes overwhelming. Send me your summer camp picks and I will post them up here for the network to see. It can be a local camp, away-camp, maybe a workshop, class, anything that would be interesting. I look forward to your suggestions! Email your suggestions to me here.

I finally decided that I had to stop somewhere and launch this blog, so I published it and got the word out on January 4th. What a fabulous “Grand Opening” this has been! I have had such a huge response from everyone, it’s fantastic. Thank you to everyone that has checked it out and sent in their comments. Please pass the word on so we can continue to grow this network and keep the comments and submissions coming. And remember, the content is always growing so keep checking back. I have already added another recipe and some good recommendations under the Share! section.

Welcome, and thank you for visiting my site! Please take some time to look around, there is a little something for everyone. Enjoy!

I hope everyone has a fabulous and safe New Years Eve! 2008 has been a rough year for a lot of people, so let’s bring in 2009 with open arms, hearts and minds.

We are celebrating tonight with some wonderful friends. Everyone is coming over with a recipe to cook in our kitchen and share with the crowd. I will post some of the wonderful recipes that people cook up so that you too can enjoy them.

Check out the new Recipe section for all you FOODIES! Here is where we will exchange recipes and kitchen tips. I would love to have your favorite ideas and recipes to add throughout the year. All recipes are accepted, from the simple ones like salad dressings and drinks, to more difficult main dishes. Let’s make the year of 2009 a culinary adventure. New year.... new food cooking up in our kitchen. Life’s too short to be cooking the same old stuff!