Lots of changes happening over here — In the past month I moved (with my fam) to our very own home in Pacifica, I quit my day job and I went to Paris and London for a good, solid two weeks. I know I promised posts while in Europe, but instead I focused on soaking up the style and inspiration to bring back home and to this blog.

So there are lots of fun things coming this way to the blog. And to start things off is my DIY project from the weekend: throwing a housewarming + Super Bowl party. It was a bit tricky pulling it all together after battling jet lag and the flu leading up to the weekend. But a few key tricks of the homemaking trade came in handy and I’m more than happy to share my plan of attack.

Super Bowl parties tend to start around kick off — which is around 3 p.m. on the West Coast. That means the parties fall between lunch and dinner so finger foods and snacks more than suffice for sustenance. A stellar Italian dinner in Paris a couple weeks ago inspired me to find a fabulous Italian deli in the area and to serve meats and cheeses for the center of my food show.

On Saturday, I checked out Lucca Ravioli Company in the Mission and I’m so glad to have found this gem. The most asked question at the party was where the meats had come from. And it was such a breeze to assemble the charcuterie platters. (The Italian Delicatessen also is well stocked with ingredients imported from Italy and a freezer full of homemade ravioli — truly a cook’s dream).

My next stop on Saturday was the San Francisco Flower Mart, which is open to the public Monday through Saturday starting from 10 a.m. Buying direct and in bulk allowed me to fill my home with flower arrangements for a fraction of the cost of buying from a florist. Of course, it required me to do my own arranging but I enjoyed the chance to get creative.

Finally, I made my favorite Guinness chocolate cake but waited to frost it until Sunday. To me, a Super Bowl is never complete without enjoying some homemade baked goodies. Usually it’s a red velvet cake, but this year the hubby convinced me that a beer cake would fit the bill best. (If I had the time and energy, I would have made red velvet cupcakes in addition to the Guinness cake — perhaps it will just have to wait until Valentines’ Day.)

The party went well (thank God!) and I’m always happy to see friends and family leave our home full of good food and drink. I tried to do as much shopping and prep work on Saturday and the final assembling on Sunday. It still ended up being a bit of a scramble and I’m still trying to perfect my role of hostess for big parties (I’m much better with smaller affairs). But, as the saying goes, practice makes perfect.

Lucca Ravioli Company
1100 Valencia St, San Francisco, CA 94110
ph: (415) 647-5581

San Francisco Flower Mart
640 Brannan St  San Francisco, CA 94107
ph: (415) 781-8410