I am so very excited to announce the first official Lottie + Doof event. First, there was merchandise and now, an event. Soon, there will be a theme park.

I am thrilled to be collaborating with my pal (and favorite Chicago baker), Sandra Holl (and the rest of the fantastic team at Floriole) to bring you a special dinner inspired by our youths in the Midwest. This is the sort of Midwestern comfort food that the movie version of me would have grown up on (the real me grew up on the bottled or boxed versions). We’ve pulled and adapted some recipes from my site, and added some things that just sounded delicious. My blog will come to life!

Without further delay, the menu:

Details after the break…. read more+++

Continuing the resolution theme, I bring you a delicious salad dressing. Bryan and I make a salad every night as part of our dinner. He is in charge of washing greens and I usually throw together a quick vinaigrette. It is one of the few kitchen constants at our place, and so of course we sometimes get bored and feel the need to mix it up. Mixing it up usually means a variation on the vinaigrette—wild, I know. I am happy to have found this wildly exciting garlic dressing in Andrew Carmellini’s Urban Italian. read more+++

I wanted a coconut cookie to serve with the yogurt panna cotta and pineapple granita, but have had bad luck with coconut cookies in the past.  I spied the Alice Medrich cookie encyclopedia that had been eagerly awaiting use on my shelf. When the book first arrived in the mail, I was extremely excited that one of my favorite bakers and cookbook authors had dedicated an entire volume to cookies, but then the holidays happened and I got distracted. Until New Year’s Eve, when I opened the book and found this recipe for coconut sticks. read more+++

January is the land of resolutions and good intentions, so I thought I would start off the month with a recipe that is relatively guilt-free. I have become a huge fan of panna cottas for entertaining. They are ridiculously easy to make and can be prepared hours (or days!) in advance. read more+++

Happy new year to all of you! I took a two week break and am reluctantly rejoining the world. In Chicago, that means a cold, cold world. Bryan and I took a break from the frigid weather and spent some time at Garfield Park Conservatory, one of our favorite places in Chicago. Inside the warm and sunny gardens, the sound of snow and ice sliding off of the conservatory glass is the only clue to the reality of the outside world. It is the perfect escape. Also, their agave plant is blooming- which is a sight to behold. Chicago, keep it in mind when winter is getting you down.

Recipes as usual return in a couple of days but I wanted to let you know about an exciting upcoming event. I am teaming up with my friend Sandra Holl of Floriole Bakery to help host/create a special dinner that you can attend! I am thrilled to get the opportunity to collaborate with the Floriole team and to meet some of you in person! I’ve been wanting to find an opportunity to connect with readers in the real world, and this is perfect. It will be like my blog world comes to life, but you get to actually eat!

Details will follow, but put it on your calendar for February 2 (Groundhog Day!). Once we have the menu worked out, I’ll let you know all about it and how to order tickets, etc. I can tell you now that Sandra and I are planning a 4-course meal inspired by our experiences growing up in the Midwest. It will include some serious comfort food, and be the perfect meal for a cold winter night.

More soon.  In the meantime, I would love to hear about your holidays and the new recipes you tried. What has been going on?!

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