You asked for them — here they are! Since appearing on Fox 5 Morning News in San Diego recently, we’ve been getting quite a few requests for easy-to-print recipes for our very popular “Rat Pack” Dinner Party.

This is one of our favorite dinner party themes, because it appeals to guys and gals alike, has a swanky, cool old-Vegas edge, and hearkens back to a more innocent era. Be sure to watch the clip for tips on table settings!

So bust out those Sinatra albums, set up some casino games, turn down the lights, and make some memories with this simple but wonderful menu.

Signature Cocktail: French 75
Don’t forget to serve your favorite martini, of course, but for something unique and retro-fab, we love this champagne cocktail that’s just the right blend of sweet and tart.
Serving Size: 1 cocktail

Shake up cracked ice, 1-1/2 ounces of dry gin, fresh juice of 1/2 lemon, and 1/2 tsp. powdered sugar. Pour into glass with ice cubes, fill with sparkling wine. Add a twist of lemon peel.

H’ors d’Oeuvre: Truffled Cream of White Cauliflower Soup Shots
Serving this soup in shot glasses adds extra Vegas glam and leaves room for that big classic steak dinner.  White truffle oil is an affordable luxury that you can find at a very reasonable price at Fresh & Easy Markets or at Italian grocers.
Serving size: about 18 shot glasses or 4 full servings

2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
1 large Onion, finely chopped
1 pound Cauliflower florets (about 5 cups)
2 14 1/2 ounce cans Vegetable broth
1 teaspoon White Truffle oil
1 tablespoon Chives, thinly sliced

1. Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add onion and sauté
until tender, about 8 minutes. Add cauliflower and sauté 2 minutes. Add
broth. Cover and simmer until cauliflower is tender, about 25 minutes.

2.Working in batches, transfer soup to blender and purée until smooth.
Return soup to pot. (Soup can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cool slightly.
Cover and refrigerate.) Bring soup to simmer. Season to taste with salt
and pepper.

3.Ladle soup into bowls. Drizzle with truffle oil. Garnish with chives.

Salad: Chef Gina’s Famous Gin and Tonic Martini Salad
Serve this salad in a martini glass, shake up the dressing in a cocktail shaker, and pour it over the salad tableside.  If only all salads could be this cool.
Serving Size : 4

For the Gin and Tonic Dressing:
1/4 cup Gin — top shelf gin for best flavor
1/2 cup Fizzy tonic water
2 tablespoons Juice of a ripe lemon
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 cup Vegetable oil
2 tablespoons Chopped chives

For the Salad:
8 ounces Baby mixed greens
1 bulb Shaved fennel
1 cup Sliced green olives
Zest from one lemon

For the salad dressing: Whisk the first four ingredients together in a bowl. Slowly add the oil until slightly emulsified (you may not use all the oil). Add chives and set aside.

Toss the salad ingredients with a bit of the dressing, gradually adding to gently
coat the salad. You may or may not use the whole portion on the
dressing. Fill the chilled martini glasses with the salad. Garnish
with a couple blue cheese stuffed olives on a skewer or use your
creativity!

Entree: Grilled Dry-Aged Porterhouse Steak with Roquefort and Chive Butter
Serving Size : 5

2 Porterhouse Steaks
1/2 stick Organic Unsalted Butter — softened
4 ounces Roquefort Cheese — rind removed and softened
1/2 bunch Fresh Chives
zest of ½ lemon
Kosher Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper — to taste

In a small food processor, combine the cheese and butter. Blend until
thoroughly mixed. Alternatively, you may blend the ingredients with a
wooden spoon. Add the lemon zest and chives. Mix well, then add
pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Season steaks with Salt and Pepper. Cook the steaks on a grill pan
until medium-rare (145 on an instant-read meat thermometer)

Spoon a dollop of the Roquefort butter onto each steak. –

Side Dish: Hash Brown Potato Cakes
You may also pair the steak with any vegetable side — for something rich, creamed spinach does the trick; for a lighter side, grill fat asparagus spears and season will coarse sea salt and a drizzle of lemon and olive oil.
Serving Size : 5

3 Peeled Idaho Potatoes
1 Yellow Onion
Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper to taste
1 Cage-Free Egg Yolk
2 tablespoons Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 tablespoon Organic Butter
1 tablespoon Organic Olive Oil

Grate the potatoes and onion in a food processor.

Mix with the egg yolk and flour, then season the mixture with salt and pepper.

Heat the olive oil and butter in a non-stick skillet over medium heat.

Pack the potato-onion mixture tightly into the skillet to make one big cake.

Cook for 5 minutes on medium to medium-high heat

Flip it over and finish in a 400-degree oven for 15-20 minutes.

Cut into wedges and season with kosher salt.

Dessert: Zabaglione with Fresh Berries
An easy Italian classic that transforms fresh summer berries into a wonderful, light dessert.

Serving Size: 4 servings
Ingredients
· 4 large egg yolks
· 1/4 cup sugar
· 1/4 cup dry Marsala wine
· Fresh strawberries and blueberries, washed and dried, stems removed from strawberries

Over medium-low heat, bring a pot of water to a simmer.  Combine the egg yolks and sugar in a heat-resistant bowl and whisk until foamy.  Set the bowl over the simmering water, without letting the bottom touch the water, and continue to whisk constantly.  Gradually pour in the Marsala while continuing to beat.  Be sure to keep the mixture from boiling.  Whisk vigorously for about five minutes, until the custard has doubled in volume and is very thick and yellow.  Spoon the zabaglione into dessert bowls and serve with fresh berries.

Summer is here, and what better way to celebrate than with a fun night of great food, cool cocktails, and juicy gossip with your closest gal-pals? (Gentlemen, you may wish to retreat to your nearest outdoor grill for a great burger party).

The recent release of “Sex and the City 2″ inspired us to create some great ideas to help kick off the summer party season. Whether for a casual “girls’ night out” …at home, spunky bachelorette, or lively bridal shower, Big City Chefs has you covered! So put on that cute new outfit, call your girlfriends, and throw a get-together with simple light bites and a cocktail or two, then catch the movie afterwards, or just be fabulous at home. We’ve put together a few recipes to get you started.

Sugar Cane Skewered Shrimp with Pineapple Glaze
These shrimp are delicious hot off the grill.  To save on calories and saturated fat, use I
Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!® instead of butter(0 grams trans fat per serving)

Ingredients:
Sugar cane skewers
1 pound Large shrimp
Kosher Salt, to taste
Freshly Ground Black Pepper, to taste
1 8-ounce can Crushed pineapple in juice, drained
1/2 cup Pure maple syrup
1/4 cup Fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon Soy sauce
1/4 stick Butter (or trans fat-free butter substitute*)

Directions:
1. Skewer shrimp, season with salt and pepper and grill about 5 minutes, or until just cooked through.

2. Meanwhile, whisk crushed pineapple, maple syrup, lemon juice, mustard, soy sauce, and butter in medium saucepan to combine. Baste shrimp skewers with some of pineapple mixture, and grill again.

3. Serve the leftover pineapple glaze as a dipping sauce.

*We recommend using I Can’t Believe it’s Not Butter!® sticks.

Chef Jesse’s* Cotton Candy Martini

You’ve seen Chef Jesse make these on Food Network’s “Private Chefs of Beverly Hills.” Now, make them for your guests! We offer an alcoholic and non-alcoholic version.

Ingredients:
Cotton Candy (in a variety of colors)
Lemonade
Soda Water
Ice
Raspberries and blueberries to garnish

What you do:
1. Take a small bunch of cotton candy and place in a chilled martini glass

2. Mix lemonade and soda water together in a martini shaker with ice.

3. Pour the lemonade over the cotton candy. The cotton candy will instantly dissolve and create a really pretty pink or blue color!

4. Garnish with raspberries, blueberries, or strawberries on a festive tooth pick.

Remember: It’s the “show” that counts here, so wait until you are just about to serve in front of your guest before you pour!

Note: For a “true” cocktail add some vodka to the lemonade mix.

*Recipe Courtesy of Chef Jesse from Private Chefs of Beverly Hills — please visit Chef Jesse’s website at www.jessebrune.com

Many thanks to our friends at I Can’t Believe it’s Not Butter!® for their support.

By Caroline Gibbs, Big City Chefs Food Writer

If baseball is America’s national pastime, then the hamburger would have to be America’s national food. Naturally, there are other competitors for this coveted title, namely hot dogs, but I maintain that the hamburger is America’s food because of its sheer prevalence across the US, its versatility, and its widespread popularity. Yes, the hamburger is a tour-de-force, because let’s be honest, when you’re in the mood for one, nothing else will do.

I must admit that my deep appreciation of hamburgers is a rather recent revelation, as I spent six years of my adolescence as a vegetarian. Huge mistake, I know. But since that time, I would argue that I’ve made up for my years as an herbivore in trips to In-n-Out (the best fast-food burger in my opinion, as well the opinion of our Big City Chefs co-founders) and in the number of blue cheese and bacon burgers I’ve consumed since then (my toppings of choice). On occasion, when I’m in the mood to try something new or feeling particularly guilty, I’ll opt for the turkey or veggie patty instead. They are both good in their own right, fulfill my burger needs in texture and size, but I can’t honestly say they satisfy me in the same way. I suppose that is just the magic of the hamburger. (On a side note, the philly cheesesteak has come close to meeting my burger needs – all the flavors are there, the form is simply different. If you have never tried one and you are a hamburger fanatic I suggest you try one immediately.)

Another spectacular thing about the hamburger is its versatility. It is simply the perfect base to which to add any variety of toppings. From trying out different buns and cheeses, to adding unique toppings like grilled pineapple (also very good), the hamburger has no limits. All you need to start on your hamburger journey is a good basic hamburger patty recipe. My personal favorite comes from our own private chefs here at Big City Chefs. Heck, if they’re good enough for the elite in Food Network’s “Private Chefs of Beverly Hills,” then they’re good enough for me. Our basic burger patty looks like this:

Basic Burger Patty

Yield: 8 burgers

INGREDIENTS:

3 pounds Ground Beef Chuck or Round
1 Large yellow Onion
1 1/2 tablespoons Heavy Cream
Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper, to taste
Unsalted Butter (or, if you’re avoiding cholesterol, we recommend a butter substitute like “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!” sticks)
Vegetable Oil, as needed
Kosher Salt, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Spread the meat out onto a cutting board or casserole dish and grate 2 to 3 tablespoons of onion into it. Use a fairly fine grater so that you get just the juice and very finely grated raw onion. Mix in the heavy cream and some freshly ground black pepper, to taste. Form into small patties, averaging 3 to 4 ounces per miniature burger.
2. In a heavy cast iron skillet or pan, cook the hamburgers in the butter and oil over medium-high heat, giving it 3 to 4 minutes a side, depending on how well done you like it. Salt the patties and serve them on toasted rolls with a half lettuce leaf and tomato to start.

From here, the sky is the limit. My personal favorite burger is topped with spinach, sautéed with caramelized onions and Point Reyes Blue Cheese (I crave the standard cheddar, lettuce, tomato and onion burger when I go to a burger joint, but whenever I make burgers at home, I tend to go the gourmet route). When I’m feeling adventurous, I’ll even go as far as to make my own fries (or pommes frites when I’m feeling fancy!), and again, I go with this fantastic recipe from Big City Chefs to guide me:

Homemade Pommes Frites
Yield: 6 servings

INGREDIENTS:

6 Russet or other Baking Potatoes
1 quart Organic Vegetable Oil
Kosher Salt, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Peel the potatoes, and cut them into fries of approximately the length and width of your index finger. Preheat a deep pot of oil to 325 degrees F.
2. For the first fry, deep fry potatoes in the oil for 5 to 6 minutes, or until a light golden color. Do not over load fryer. Fry in multiple batches if necessary. Remove the potatoes using a slotted spoon, and allow them to cool to room temperature.
3. Raise the temperature of the oil to 375 degrees F. For the second fry, deep-fry the potatoes for 2 minutes, or until crispy. Remove potatoes, and transfer into a colander or bowl. While still hot, salt the fries.

You can try all kinds of sides to your burger, onion rings or strings, fried vegetables, a fresh side salad, but ultimately there is nothing quite like the French fry to accompany your burger.

So there you have it – all the reasons why I love the hamburger and why this summer, I’m going to give the hamburger all the love and appreciation it deserves. Hamburgers have a place in my heart because they fill that little void that love, family and friends never could – the one that craves meat, cheese and all of the other savory and delicious gifts from nature that the hamburger brings together in one little joyous package. Thank you, hamburgers.

by Caroline Gibbs, Big City Chefs Food Writer

While we shouldn’t wait for Mother’s Day to tell our moms just how much we love and appreciate them, there’s no reason not to use this Mother’s Day as an opportunity to celebrate Mom and show her just how much you care. As Mother’s Day is always celebrated on a Sunday, a classic and memorable way to celebrate is with a Mother’s Day Brunch. Starting off her day with a delicious and relaxing meal will be sure to set the tone for the rest of the day. As far as details go, remember this day is about her. Think whether or not she’d best like an intimate family bunch, or a larger group of friends and family, indoors or outdoors, breakfast or lunch oriented foods. Whatever you decide, she’ll be sure to love it if it’s put together with thought and care. Here are few recipes from our personal chefs here at Big City Chefs that will be sure to make this brunch one to remember.

(Recipes from The Big City Chefs Cookbook: Easy Recipes for Everyday Cooking and Entertaining)

Cappuccino Smoothies
Yield: 5 Servings

Ingredients:
1 cup Espresso, cold (Note: If you don’t have an espresso maker, use triple the amount of coffee you normally use to brew coffee)
1/2 cup Coffee ice cream
1/4 cup Crushed or cracked ice
1/4 cup Heavy Cream, whipped
1/4 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon, or as needed

Directions:
1. Blend the espresso, ice cream, ice, and milk in a blender until smooth.
2. Serve at once in chilled tall glasses garnished with a dollop of whipped cream.
3. Sprinkle with cinnamon.

Smoked Turkey, Brie, Apple Butter and Arugula Pinwheels
Yields: 40 pieces

Ingredients:
3/4 cup Arugula, chopped
4 teaspoons Fresh sage leaves, chopped
1 puff pastry sheet (from 1 (17 1/4-ounce) package frozen puff pastry sheets), thawed
1 large Cage-Free Egg, beaten lightly
2 ounces Sliced smoked turkey
Brie, sliced
Apple Butter

Directions:
1. In a bowl combine Arugula and sage. On a lightly floured surface arrange pastry sheet with a short side facing you and cut in half crosswise. Arrange 1/2 half of sheet with a long side facing you and brush edge of far side with some egg. Arrange 1/2 of prosciutto evenly on top of pastry, avoiding egg-brushed edge, and top with 1/2 of Arugula mixture, apple butter, and brie.
2. Starting with side nearest you, roll pastry jelly-roll fashion and wrap in waxed paper, make another log in same manner. Chill pastry logs, seam sides down, until firm, at least 3 hours, and up to 3 days.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and lightly grease 2 large baking sheets. Cut logs crosswise into 1/2-inch – thick pinwheels and arrange, cut sides down, 1- inch apart on baking sheets.
4. Bake pinwheels in batches in middle of oven until golden, 14 to 16 minutes. Transfer pinwheels to a rack and cool slightly. Serve pinwheels.

Pancetta, Ricotta and Artichoke Frittata
Yield: 8 Servings

Ingredients:
16 large Eggs
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
12 ounces Marinated Artichoke Hearts, drained and quartered
4 tablespoons Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper, to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Beat eggs lightly. Heat oil and butter in a 9- or 10-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat. When fats are sizzling, add eggs and reduce heat to low. Arrange artichokes in a decorative pattern on top of eggs. Cook gently, lifting edges of frittata to let uncooked egg run underneath, until it is just set on top. Dust with Parmesan, salt, and pepper. Transfer skillet to oven and bake just until frittata is firm on top; do not overcook or it will be tough.
2. Cool in skillet, then slide onto serving platter and cut into wedges. Frittata Can be eaten hot, warm, or at room temperature.

Wild Organic Blueberry and Sour Cream Coffee Cake Muffins
Yield: 16 Muffins

Ingredients:
12 tablespoons Unsalted Organic Butter (1 1/2 sticks), at room temperature
1 1/2 cups Granulated Cane Sugar
3 extra large Cage-Free Eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
8 ounces Sour Cream (about 1 cup)
1/4 cup Organic Milk
2 1/2 cups Unbleached Organic Flour
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
2 half-pints Fresh blueberries, picked through for stems

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place 16 paper liners in muffin pan.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter and sugar until light and fluffy for about 5 minutes.
4. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs one at a time, then add the vanilla, sour cream, and milk.
5. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
6. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture and butter batter and beat until just mixed.
7. Fold in the blueberries with a spatula. Be sure the batter is completely mixed.
8. Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin pans, filling each cup just over the top, and bake for 25-30 minutes, until the muffins are lightly browned.