I found some great recipes on SpaFinder.com’s website that sound delicious. Here’s a great menu for fall entertaining without breaking your caloric bank:

Appetizer (from the Royal Palms Resort and Spa)

Warm Asparagus with Morels, New Potatoes, and Orange Vinaigrette
Serves 4

For the orange vinaigrette

• 2 shallots, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 c orange juice
• 1/3 c grapefruit juice
• 1/3 c lime juice
• 1/3 c lemon juice
• 2 c canola oil
• 1 c extra virgin olive oil
• 2 T honey
• 2 drops orange oil (available in the baking section of grocery stores)
• Salt and pepper to taste

For the asparagus salad

• 12 spears white asparagus, peeled
• 16 spears jumbo green asparagus, peeled
• 5 new potatoes, finely diced (about 2 c)
• 2 T canola oil
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 20 medium morels
• 1/2 c vegetable stock
• 1/2 t chopped chervil
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. To make the vinaigrette, sweat the shallots and garlic in a little oil in a sauté pan over high heat. Add 1/2 cup of the orange juice. Reduce until all the liquid has evaporated (this should take 5 to 7 minutes). In a blender, add the warm reduction to the remaining juices and the honey and blend well, then slowly add the canola and olive oils. Add the orange oil. The dressing recipe makes 4 cups, but the salad recipe calls for 1 cup; the remaining dressing will keep in the refrigerator 5 or 6 days.

2. Blanch the peeled asparagus in boiling salted water. Blanch the white asparagus separately from the green, since the white takes longer to cook. Blanch the potatoes in boiling salted water until they are al dente. Drain the potatoes in a colander, then immediately plunge the colander into a large bowl of ice water.

3. Heat a sauté pan and add the oil. Once the oil begins to bubble, add the shallot and garlic, and quickly sauté. Add the morels. Sauté for 1 minute, and then add the potatoes. Continue to cook until the potatoes are warmed through. Add the chervil, salt, and pepper.

4. In another sauté pan, warm the asparagus in the vegetable stock. Season with salt and pepper.

5. To serve, arrange alternating white and green asparagus spears on each plate and ladle about 1/8 cup of the vinaigrette over the spears. Top with the sautéed morels and potatoes.

Entrée (from the Parrot Cay spa)

Zucchini and apple torta (Prep time: 1.5 hours)

Torta

Ingredients:
4 ea Zucchini
3 ea Apple
1 pkg Rice paper
1 cup Guajillo sauce (recipe below)
1 cup Spinach cream (recipe below)
1 ea Avocado, sliced thin
Sea salt

Guajillo sauce

Ingredients:
6 ea Guajillo chile, soaked overnight
1/4 tsp Cumin
1/8 tsp Coriander
1 ea Lime juice
1 cup Tomato juice
1 tsp Pectin
Salt
Pepper

Procedure:
Combine all ingredients in blender and blend until thick. Strain through fine mesh strainer and season to taste.

Spinach cream

Ingredients:
3 cup Baby spinach
1 clove Garlic
1 pc Scallion
1/2 ea Lime juice
1 tb Olive oil
Salt
Pepper

Procedure:
Wash and drain spinach well. Remove stems and combine with all other ingredients in blender. Blend well and season to taste.

Assembly procedure:
To assemble torta, arrange all ingredients in separate bowls around one large cutting board. Find a deep pan large enough to hold the diameter of the rice paper and fill it half way with cool water. Place three sheets of rice paper into the water and allow to soak for 2-3 minutes or until the paper is smooth to the touch. Remove sheet and quickly dry on paper towels.
Place rice paper sheet on cutting board and begin the layering process with a very light layer of guajillo sauce followed by a layer of zucchini.
Season.
Remove the next sheet of rice paper, dry, and place on top of the zucchini.
Brush this layer with the spinach sauce and top with apples.
Season.
Remove the next sheet of rice paper, dry, and place on top of the apples.
Spread the thin sliced avocado on this layer and season.
Repeat process once more and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Dessert (from Azul, Mandarine Oriental in Miami)

White Chocolate-Chestnut Mousse
Serves 4

For the chocolate-chestnut layer

• 2 c chestnut paste
• 10 1/2 oz white chocolate
• 3 sheets gelatin
• 2 c plain yogurt

For the coconut-tapioca layer

• 1 c tapioca pearls
• 12 c water
• 2 c coconut milk
• 1 c sugar

For the rose-scented froth

• 4 c nonfat milk
• 1/4 t rosewater (available in gourmet, Middle Eastern, and Indian stores)

For optional garnish

• 1/4 c rose petals (hydroponic only), if available
• Store-bought puff pastry, cut into wedges and baked according to package directions
• Strands of pulled sugar
• Cubed honeydew

1. To make the chocolate-chestnut layer, beat the chestnut paste until it’s smooth and creamy. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, then fold it into the chestnut paste. Bloom the gelatin in cold water and then squeeze out the excess water when softened. Heat the gelatin with half the yogurt over very low heat in a saucepan, just until the gelatin has melted. Combine the gelatin mixture with the rest of the yogurt and then fold it into the chestnut mixture. Divide into 4 ramekins.

2. For the coconut-tapioca layer, bring the water to a rolling boil and add the pearls. Reduce heat to medium and cook until the pearls are translucent. Drain the pearls, put them back into the pot, add the coconut milk, and bring it to a boil. Immediately remove the pot from the heat and let sit for 10 minutes. The mixture will thicken. Pour the mixture into the ramekins as the second layer and place the ramekins in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.

3. For the rose-scented froth, heat the milk in a small saucepan over medium heat until reduced by half. Add the rosewater and petals. Let stand 1 hour, then strain and chill. Using a hand blender, froth the sauce right before serving.

4. To serve, run a clean paring knife around each ramekin and invert it over a plate to release the mousse lightly onto the plate. Spoon 2 or 3 tablespoons of the rose-scented froth over each serving and garnish with rose petals, puff pastry wedges, pulled sugar, and honeydew (if using).

Check out their website for more Spa Recipes Made Simple

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Here are some coupon codes that I’ve found lately for some of my favorite sites:

FragranceNet.com is offering $10 Off Orders Over $75  through the end of October with coupon code LS752. Combine that with their free shipping on orders over $60 and you get one heck of a deal on fragrances that are already as low as 70% of retail.

Drugstore.com is offering $5 off $30 or $10 off $50 order to new customer until the end of October.  They also have a great 40% off sale going on right now, so you could score some serious savings.

e.l.f. Cosmetics sells great cosmetics starting at only $1. 
- Save 50% on your order of up to $15 through the end of the year with code: CAROLINA
-Get free shipping on orders over $45 with code SHIP45 until the end of the year.

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Facial cleansers aren’t something you normally think of whipping up in your kitchen.  But it can be a nice change of pace from your usual cleanser to try something made from fresh ingredients and free of preservatives.  They can also be great if your skin changes from it’s usual condition and you don’t want to invest in a whole new cleanser.  All of these can be used like your regular cleanser and can be kept in the refrigerator for up to a week:

 -Yogurt Cleanser: combine 1 tablespoon of sesame seed oil and the juice of half a lemon into a 1/2 cup of plain yogurt. 
-Berry cleanser: combine 1/2 cup of raspberries or strawberries with 1 tablespoon of witch hazel and 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a foodprocessor
-Creamy aloe cleanser: combine 3 tablespoons of aloe with 2 tablespoons of heavy cream (or half and half)

Share your homemade facial cleansers by leaving a comment.

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Lot’s of sites offer free advice, resources and products to win our business. I shamelessly take advantage of as many as I can. Here are some of my favorites:

1. Your free Beauty Horoscope on Beauty.com

2. Free USA shipping on all orders at SkinStore.com

3. Professional skincare advice from a pro at DERMAdoctor.com

4. Give yourself a Free Virtual Makeover at CosmeticMall.com

5. Complimentary Personalized Skin Care Analysis on Beauty.com

6. Free shipping anywhere in the world at StrawberryNET.com

Have any links to free stuff? Share them by leaving a comment.