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With Spring officially sprung, it’s time to start thinking about all things green, and that includes spinach!

On March 26th each year, this leafy green veggie is celebrated with National Spinach Day.

Packed with health benefits, spinach is an excellent source of iron, calcium, folic acid, fiber, protein, calcium, and vitamins A, C, and K. It is loaded with cancer-fighting antioxidants and is believed to help improve cardiovascular and gastrointestinal health too!

Talk about healthy; no wonder spinach is honored with its very own day!

The history of this healthy veggie is impressive. Spinach grows natively in central and southwestern Asia. It is thought to have originated in ancient Persia, where it was then carried into India and then later introduced into ancient China. There it was known as “Persian vegetable.”  

Spinach even has royalty in its backstory. During her reign as queen of France, Catherine de Medici enjoyed spinach so much; it was served at every meal. To this day, dishes made with spinach are known as “Florentine,” reflecting Catherine’s birth in Florence. 

If you are looking for some fun ways to serve up spinach to celebrate, consider a tasty spinach dip, a spinach pizza, or even add some of this green goodness to your scrambled eggs as you start your day!

Not in the mood to whip up your own spinach dish? Consider ordering one of our delicious mixed green salads from our curbside menu and celebrate National Spinach Day the healthy way!

With warmer days just around the corner (we swear they are!), it’s fun to think about outdoor gatherings and events that no longer require crafty ways to keep guests toasty. Instead, we thought it would be smart to share a few ways to light the night while entertaining guests in the upcoming warmer, welcoming weather. These ideas go from day to night effortlessly and can be used for various gatherings, from an outdoor wedding to a simple celebration of friendship and family.

Paper Lanterns: For an inexpensive, playful bit of lighting, decorate your outdoor space with paper lanterns. They come in various sizes and shapes, and it only takes a few to create a soft glow. These are super easy to assemble and look beautiful when hung from tree branches.

Candles: Candles add a soft glow to nearly any area inside or out. They are incredibly versatile with endless arrangement possibilities. Have a dark corner of your patio that is difficult to illuminate, candles to the rescue. You may use them on tables, as centerpieces, in lanterns, or to light a walkway. With safety in mind, remember that battery-powered candles have the same appeal but can eliminate any worry over open flames.

String Lights: These soft, twinkling lights offer a glow that can be strung around trees, wrapped around railings, border edges, and strung across open spaces. The bonus is these are relatively inexpensive and can be bought in large quantities without breaking your budget.

Now that you have the lighting covered for your event, what about the food? Check out our full-service catering menus online and contact us with your questions! We are always happy to provide a quote and work with our customers to meet their needs!

4 Fun Facts About St. Patrick’s Day (Plus How to Pre-Order Your Corned Beef & Cabbage Dinner) 

St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner – and you may be already getting in the spirit with “Kiss Me I’m Irish” tee shirts, green décor and plans to attend South Boston’s iconic St. Paddy’s Day Parade. 

Our team at B & M Catering is also preparing our special Corned Beef & Cabbage menu for the big day. In honor of this beloved Irish holiday, today on the blog we’re sharing four fun facts about St. Patrick’s Day! 

1. The Man Behind the Holiday 

So who is St. Patrick, anyway? Turns out, he’s a patron saint of Ireland, who died on March 17^th, the day we celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day.  According to popular belief, he was actually born in Roman Britain, and kidnapped as a teenager where he was taken to Ireland. 

2. The Luck of the Four-Leaf Clover

Four-leaf clovers have long been a symbol of good luck and fortune. Turns out, finding one may be even more difficult than you thought. According to Live Science, most clovers have three leaves, and the ones with four leaves (or more) are the result of a very rare genetic mutation. 

While luck may not be on your side finding one, in 2018 a young girl broke the Guinness World Record for the most four-leaf clovers collected in one hour when she spotted a whopping 166!

3. Pour Me Another Guinness! 

A dark Irish stout, Guinness is typically the go-to brew of choice on St. Patrick’s Day. In fact, according to IrishCentral, roughly 13 million pints of Guinness were expected to be consumed worldwide last St. Patrick’s Day. That’s a whole lot of  “Irish Champagne!” 

4. The Perfect Irish meal 

If you’ve ever eaten at an Irish restaurant or gone to an Irish friend’s house for the holiday, you’ve likely enjoyed a Corned Beef and Cabbage dinner – which is actually an Irish-American tradition. Typically pink in color due to its curing process, corned beef is made from a cut of brisket and usually served with cabbage and potatoes.

Order your Corned Beef & Cabbage dinner today.  

Includes: Fresh Corned Beef Brisket - Tender Cabbage - Boiled Potatoes - Turnips - Carrots - Onions - Irish Soda Bread with Butter.

Pick up at our kitchen in Pawtucket. 

We all love reasons to celebrate - and one of the happiest of reasons to celebrate is a baby shower!

With our landscape looking a little different this year, we want to offer some simple tips for planning a safe but beautiful baby shower.

The Invite List

Your invite list may not be quite as extensive as it usually is, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still arrange for everyone that wants to take part, to do so! Inviting close family members and friends in small numbers can work while extending a virtual invite for anyone else that would like to “pop in” to the party that day!

Choose Your Theme

After you’ve selected your date and time, get ready to choose a theme! You’ll want to pick something that reflects the mom-to-be’s personality and celebrates the new baby’s impending arrival. If you feel lost on theme suggestions, some ideas could be a fairytale theme, jungle animals, superheroes, or even Peter Rabbit. Brainstorm with the guest of honor or visit Pinterest for endless theme suggestions!

 Plan Your Menu 

Once the theme is in place, it’s time to plan your menu! B & M Catering is happy to make this part of the planning simple for you. We offer a variety of full service and a la carte options, so your options are never limited. Fruit & veggie platters, sliders, salads, and skewers are all popular choices for events such as showers!

Include Small Businesses in the Baby Gift Registry

A gift registry lets guests know what the mom-to-be needs to prepare for the new bundle of joy’s arrival. One wonderful way to recognize the changing landscape of 2021 is recognizing the support small businesses need as they recover from the 2020 year. Work with your mom-to-be to identify some small businesses that local guests can visit and shop in-store as a show of support for your community! 

A baby shower is a perfect way to welcome the arrival of a new baby into the world, and with these tips, your celebration can be just as beautiful as ever.  

Ready to start planning your baby shower? Request a quote today!

Winter's arrival can leave us wanting to hibernate, but why not make the most of these snowy, white-blanketed landscapes?

Creating a small winter themed gathering outside in the fresh February air can be more fun than you realize!

Bring your closest family and friends together and celebrate a "Let it Snow" theme in your own backyard!

Toasty Food & Drink Ideas

S'mores and hot cocoa are always the first thought when people picture cozying up outside, as it’s an important sweet treat option. But, you can also expand on your menu with a quick curbside pick-up before you celebrate the cool, crisp winter air! Offering yummy options to warm the bones like Swedish meatballs or delicious Buffalo Chicken Dip can be an unexpected way to meet your hungry guests' needs.

Warm Their Toes

Aside from advising your guests to dress warm, there are some added touches you can supply to keep your guests comfortable. Offering blankets to cuddle up in and a fire pit to relax around will feed the winter warmth vibes! Have some extra hats and gloves on hand if you have them for those that come unprepared. 

The Little Details

Kick up your celebration a notch by decorating your backyard space with accents that add to the ambiance. You can give it a warm glow with battery-powered tea lights set in mason jars around the perimeter of your entertaining space. Want to add flowers but not sure how well they will fair in the cold weather? Take some small bundles of flower heads and freeze them in small blocks of ice in advance. Set them out in the yard in various places for pops of color and an unexpected nod to a Spring that will eventually come!

Embracing winter with those you love and welcoming the crisp, fresh air of the season is a great way to celebrate this snowy time of year. If you are ready to give this winter celebration a try, don't forget to place your curbside order 48 hours in advance of your gathering!