Sumo Wrestling Pizza Party!

jennifernaylorcatering — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 19:51:36 +0000

We celebrated a double birthday with double the fun!

Make your own pizza! The kiddos built their own pizzas and some were even brave enough to toss their own dough.

Lots of yummy options for toppings… also, very tempting for our four legged friend.

Mickey Mouse pizza.

Mickey Mouse pizza + smoked salmon galette + sweet potato fries + mini grilled cheese with shots of tomato soup = pure happiness.

Specialty drinks were made for the adults along with fresh squeezed lemonade and vintage colas.

One of the birthday boys dressed & ready for some fun!

Time for a sweet treat. Homemade cotton candy was whipped up in shades of turquoise and green.

Candy & birthday cake to end the day.

The End.

An Edible Easter.

jennifernaylorcatering — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 17:28:16 +0000

Our Easter Sunday took place in lush Santa Barbara, where we prepared the freshest ingredients from our local farmers for an afternoon feast in the garden.

The surroundings were beautiful and inspiring.

Grilled Fava Beans.

This stunning wood fired oven pumped out a variety of pizzas that Sunday, including our favorite of the day: Our own homemade Lamb Sausage with Mushrooms and Crispy Sage. YUM.

Grilled artisan bread with goat cheese and olive oil was paired with vibrant heirloom tomatoes and mixed greens.

Prosciutto wrapped asparagus.

Jen prepared the gorgeous salt-baked organic Scottish salmon. Stuffed with fennel, lemon and fresh herbs it was a piece of art.

The presentation.

We ordered our baby lamb from a farm in Sonoma especially for the Easter feast. We slow roasted the legs in the wood burning oven, crusted the racks with herbs de provence then grilled the individual chops a la “Scottaditto” – literal Italian translation “burnt fingers” referring to picking them up and eating hot off the grill. The chops and roasted lamb saddles were served with spicy Romesco sauce. The shoulders were fresh ground to make our homemade Merguez lamb sausage. After that we roasted the lamb bones to make our green olive and rosemary jus to serve along side the lamb feast!

Jen carves the wood-oven roasted leg of lamb.

In the kitchen with grilled baby artichokes, lamb chops with spicy Romesco, and hand-made cannelloni with Robiola, Parmesan, Pecorino and Bufala Ricotta.

Time for dessert! Jess spins the fresh wisps of pastel cotton candy and the sweets are set including shaved ice granitas made from fresh organic fruits – watermelon, green apple, pomegranate, pink grapefruit and “creamsicle” (fresh tangerine with vanilla bean).

EYE CANDY!

We hope everyone had a wonderful Easter weekend! Happy Spring!

Malibu Times Magazine Shoot!

jennifernaylorcatering — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 20:19:02 +0000

We had a blast setting the scene for Jen’s photo shoot for Malibu Times Magazine’s “Romance Issuse”. A play date in the sand with lobster, champagne and a golden sunset was all we needed to recharge after an already busy new year.

Location scouting was a breeze – only a hop, skip and a jump from the office in Malibu. Not many people were on the beach that day, but what seemed like hundreds of vibrant starfish lined the sandy coast. It was magical!

Jess sat by and watched with Lucca – our guard dog who made sure mama was is good hands!

Golden hour at it’s best.

That’s a wrap! All smiles while hiking up what felt like *Mount Everest* with all our props in tow.

We made it!

Thank you Malibu Times Mag! What a spread. Check out the March/April issue on stands now!

Click HERE to see more pictures and read the full article!

A Barnyard Birthday!

jennifernaylorcatering — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 00:19:37 +0000

We had so much fun creating a Barnyard Birthday Party for our little pal RJ who was turning 1! Pigs in a blanket, bandanas, and mini cowboy boots were just the essentials we needed to get started. Getty-Up!

The weather was beautiful on this sunny January day in Malibu – the perfect conditions for playing in the hay.

Fresh squeezed lemonade was served at the bar while yummy appetizers were passed amongst the crowd including; Sweet Corn Chowder, Crispy Potato Galette with Smoked Salmon and Dill Cream, and a variety of hand tossed wood fired pizzas.

We hired Jessies Party Animals to set up a petting zoo for the kiddos. They were such a pleasure to work with and had the most adorable animals we had ever seen.

Jess and Jennifer even got in on the fun! – Too hard to resist.

After playtime with the animals, it was time to “COME AND GET IT!” Our buffet consisted of – Corn Bread with Honey Butter, Roasted Baby Beet Salad with Lentils, Arugula and Citrus Vinaigrette, Spinach Salad with Gorgonzola, Balsamic Glazed Apples and Candied Pecans, Chicken Filet Mignon Chili, BBQ Baby Back Ribs with Pickled market Vegetables, Grilled Veggies with Salsa Verde, and Mac & Cheese with Parmigianino Reggiano. Click on images to make larger.

Once plates were cleared it was time for fun and games, and of course dessert.

Happy Birthday to our little cowboy! And, thank you Cake Divas for making RJ’s over the top barnyard cake!

The amazing photography was taken Incito Photography by Sarah Prikryl.

Operation Smile Malibu Benefit

jennifernaylorcatering — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 01:11:40 +0000

What an honor to be a part of such a memorable event for Operation Smile!

Malibu locals came to the event hosted by Veronica at Veronica Malibu Skin & Body Care Center to view the premier of Operation Smile’s “A Cure to War: Six Degress of Humanity”, directed by Patrick Heaphy and narrated by Craig T. Nelson. The movie documents how Operation Smile began during the Vietnam War when a large group of American surgeons were sent to help return soldiers lost during the Vietnam War. These amazing doctors built relationships by performing operations to restore the smiles of the Vietnamese children.

Producer/Director Patrick Heaphy, Kathy Magee, actress Roma Downey, Veronica Barton-Schwartz, actor Craig T. Nelson, and Dr. Bill Magee

We loved working with our favorite “dream team”- Kathleen Sacchi of The Fine Art of Events, Sue Moore of Let’s Be Frank, and Steven Petrarca of Steven Petrarca Events. And as always, we are happy to support Smile Ambassador Roma Downey’s efforts!

actor Roma Downey, Veronica Barton-Schwartz

Kathleen Sacchi, Jennifer Naylor, Sue Moore

We were asked to create a menu of appetizers and sweet bites for the guests:

- Cones filled with Hot Truffle Popcorn
- Bite-sized “Reuben” on mini Soft Pretzels
- Crispy Potato Galette with Smoked Salmon and Dill Cream
-“Croque Monsieur” with Prosciutto, Gruyere, and Caramelized Onions

We also served seasonal granitas of green apple, grapefruit-vanilla, and watermelon alongside trays of assorted cookies and blondies.

Kim Kardashian’s Wedding Shower

jennifernaylorcatering — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 18:18:06 +0000

We were so excited to have cooked at Kim Kardashian’s Bridal Shower!
When event planner Sharon Sacks asked us to be a part of the event, we were more than thrilled.

Sharon Sacks and Jen

Kim loves pink cotton candy and cookie dough ice cream, so we came up with a creative way to serve Kim’s two favorite desserts together that would compliment Sacks Productions’ beautiful table designs. We used beaded silver mint julep cups and chilled them in the freezer to keep the ice cream nice and cold. Then we topped the ice cream with a wispy display of the pink cotton candy.
It was the perfect, cool treat on a hot summer day at Kris Jenner’s house and all of Kim’s family and friends loved it!
Check back soon for more photos and fun from Kim Kardashian’s Wedding Shower!

INDIAN SUMMER HARVEST

jennifernaylorcatering — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 03:13:41 +0000

INDIAN SUMMER HARVEST

Got to see my big sister Heather last week on a quick impromptu trip up North. Not sure what to make for dinner, we headed to her garden to look for some inspiration.

Jen in the garden

Heath with the harvest

We harvested green tomatoes, squash blossoms, Romano beans, super tender baby Swiss chard, cherry tomatoes, fresh basil and lemon thyme.

Heather wanted me to show her how to make stuffed squash blossoms. Here is how we did it…we rifled through her cheese drawer and found goat cheese and Fontina. We grated the Fontina, combined it with the goat cheese, lemon thyme, and some salt and pepper.

You can use any good melting cheese coupled with any sharper flavored cheese. Some of our favorite combinations are mozzarella and Tallegio or Ricotta and Parmesan. First we carefully removed the stamen and stuffed the goat cheese mixture into the squash flower. We sautéed the flowers in some good extra virgin olive oil.

sauteed blossoms

FRIED GREEN TOMATOES

jennifernaylorcatering — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 08:11:52 +0000

Here is another great appetizer we made with green tomatoes from my sister’s garden!

Slice firm green tomatoes about ¼” thick. Whisk one egg. Dip each slice into the egg wash, then into coarse cornmeal until fully coated on both sides.

Saute the tomato slices in good extra virgin olive oil until golden brown on both sides. Season with salt and pepper and serve with a spicy romesco sauce!