Okay, I don’t live in Beverly Hills, but it doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy the foods and wines the city as to offer with their first ever Taste of Beverly Hills September 2-5, 2010. Sponsored by Food & Wine magazine, the food and wine event will be headlined by Jon and Vinny from Animal, Michael Voltaggio and Wolfgang Puck. 
Photograph: Mary McCartney for the ObserverThe McCartneys took over the Sunday edition of the Observer Food Monthly and packed it with celebrity-inspired vegetarian recipes, articles, tips and more. Guest editors Paul, Mary and Stella McCartney let us in on how a vegetarian diet can benefit your health, wealth and the environment. “It's not about being or becoming a vegetarian. It's about opening your mind to new ways of eating that could lead to a healthier, cheaper and more environmental way of living,” says Stella to the Observer.
Here is a great recipe provided by Gwyneth Paltrow:
Gwyneth Paltrow's burrata with roasted beetroot
Ingredients:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Wash but don't peel the beetroot and trim off any leafy tops. Place them on a roasting tin or a large piece of foil. Coat them in olive oil and sprinkle generously with salt. Cover the beetroot with foil and bake until tender, 30 to 60 minutes, depending on size of the beetroot.
Leave until they are cool enough to handle and then peel. Cut the beetroot into large pieces. Toss with olive oil, roughly chopped mint and salt and serve with hunks of Burrata.
For more recipes, check out: Vegetarian recipe special: the celebrities.
For more information on Meat Free Monday visit supportMFM.org; for more on Linda McCartney Foods: lindamccartneyfoods.co.uk
Rum, beer, brandy, kahlua, whiskey – no, I’m not listing out my favorite cocktails at the bar, but ingredients in the latest and greatest idea – cupcakes for men! 
I went to a baby shower today and had a great summer drink – and yes, it had alcohol in it. This wasn’t your usual baby shower. Instead of baby shower games, we had drinks and small bites such as tea sandwiches, quiche, scones and cookies. And this baby shower included men, so my husband was quite happy with the array of foods and drinks. Now, getting to the drink. The hostess and host are both British, as is my husband, so this drink brought back memories of home – Pimm’s Cup. The father-to-be’s sister made a super tasty Pimm’s Cup punch with lemonade and fruit – it sort of tasted like an Arnold Palmer with an added bonus – liquor. Here is the recipe below.
Ingredients:
Fill a large punch bowl with all the ingredients above. Add ice cubes – enough to cool the punch down. Serve in glasses and can garnish with a mint leaf and/or lime.
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Now that it’s finally feeling like summer, my taste buds are craving familiar flavors from my childhood. One of my favorite treats in the summer is boardwalk fries. We used to go down the shore every summer and hang out on the beach and boardwalk. My parents would treat us to Boardwalk Fries and frozen lemonades. They were so tasty with the malt vinegar drizzled on them, and the sprinkles of extra salt. But, now that I’m 3000 thousand miles from the nearest Boardwalk Fries, I’ll just have to settle for making my own.
Boardwalk Fries
Ingredients:
First rule is to NOT peel the potatoes. Cut the potatoes in long, shaped sticks. Place about a ½ cup or so of oil in the bottom of your frying pan and turn it up to medium-hot. Wait for oil to start bubbling, then place your potato sticks in the oil. Fry till they are brown in color. Remove the fries and place on a plate covering with a paper towel. Pat dry and sprinkle on some salt. For a real boardwalk feel, serve in a paper with lots of malt vinegar.
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My husband and I went to some friends’ house for brunch where they served vegetarian-friendly crepes, eggs, fruit and mimosas. The hostess also fried up some real bacon on the stove for the meat-eaters.
As the rest of us were playing with their adorable three-year-old son, my husband was eyeing the leftover bacon that was resting on a plate on the counter. I could see him out of the corner of my eye, looking at the bacon. I already knew he loved the smell of bacon from the many trips he has taken to my parents’ house, but this time he looked at it like some meat-eater had possessed his body. He stuck his face so close to the bacon I thought he was going to just lap it up with his tongue. I turned around quickly and yelled, “What are you doing?” to his response, “I just wanted to smell it.”
Ah, bacon. I completely understand the power of it. Bacon can make anything taste better. Just the smell of bacon can entice your mouth to start salivating. But, since I have met my husband, we don’t have any real meat – besides fish – in the house, and that includes bacon. We have settled for “fake” bacon to add to our BLT and fried egg sandwiches. But, one thing that has made the “fake” bacon almost tolerable – is Bacon Salt.
Bacon Salt is a zero-calorie, vegetarian and kosher seasoning that makes everything taste like well, bacon. Since we discovered Bacon Salt, we have added it to not only our “fake” bacon that we fry up, but my husband also sprinkles it on just about anything – salads, soups and other fake meat products.
Don’t get me wrong, Bacon Salt can never take the place of real bacon for a meat eater, but it can definitely help a vegetarian make everything taste better.
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EatingWell in Season: The Farmers' Market Cookbook
This book has more than 100 recipes that are divided up by season, and offer tips on how to freeze veggies, cook certain produce and how to start your own garden-at-home.
L.A.'s Original Farmers Market Cookbook: Meet Me at 3rd and Fairfax
This book is unqiue because if you have ever been to the L.A. Farmers Market you know not only how good the produce is, but the food at the eateries as well. The book is divided into four categories: breakfast, sandwiches, light bites, main meals and desserts.
The Santa Monica Farmers' Market Cookbook: Seasonal Foods, Simple Recipes and Stories from the Market and Farm
I'm a Santa Monica girl, so I absolutely love this cookbook. The author offers tips on buying produce, how to seek out vendors, and of course, tons of recipes using local favorites.