Easter 2020 tablescape
It’s been a week since Easter and I realized that the only Easter thing I’ve posted since then has been the cocktail. Priorities!
It was a strange gathering in strange times. A few days prior, my dad decided he was not comfortable coming and that he’d rather stay home. He is alone, so this made me especially sad. My dad does not have internet, own a computer, and barely knows how to use his smartphone. Last year, his cellular carrier forced him to get rid of his flip phone and get a smartphone. He uses it strictly as a phone. He does not text, open a web browser, use the camera, etc. and does not want to learn how.
So early in the day, Connor and I took him plates of our Easter meal and I brought along my computer.
I set the laptop on boxes in his garage so that we would not need to go into his house. I used the hotspot on my phone to connect the laptop to WiFi and we were able to use Zoom so that he could see and talk to Marissa and Jeff in Austin. He was thrilled.
For our Easter meal, I set up three place settings using the 6-foot social distancing requirement. Connor was at one end of my 7-foot outdoor table and Dave was at the opposite end.
I had myself set up on a tray that was 6 feet from each of them since sitting in at the center area of the table would have positioned us too close together.
The guys were required to enter through the back gate into my backyard and were not permitted to go inside the house. We had a FaceTime call with Dave’s mom, brother, nieces, and nephew in Illinois. Then another Zoom call with Marissa and Jeff where we played games with the Jackbox.TV app.
I made a small Easter Harmony Board for the guys to share at the main table, the half with the yellow and green grass for Dave and the half with the pink and purple grass for Connor. Everyone had their own serving utensils, wine bottles, pitchers for the signature cocktail, etc. so that nothing was shared or touched by anyone else.
This means that I had a little Harmony Board of my own. All for me!
[Read more →]April 20, 2020 8 Comments
2 for the price of 1
This year we get two holidays for the price of one on April 1st.
I suppose April Fool’s Day isn’t a true holiday, especially when compared to the importance and holiness of Easter, but I’m going to give you cute ways to celebrate both anyhow.
Today is a fun and messy, yet clean, way to color Easter eggs, and tomorrow a couple of fun Easter-themed April Fool’s jokes to play on family and friends.
Shaving Cream-Dyed Easter Eggs
- Hard-cooked eggs
- White vinegar
- White shaving cream
- Food coloring
- Lots of paper towels
Place the eggs in a bowl and pour in enough white vinegar to cover. Let sit for 3 to 4 minutes and then remove eggs from the vinegar and set aside. Soaking the cooked eggs in vinegar before dying gives you more vibrant colors. The vinegar may then be poured back into the bottle and used again, no reason to waste it.
Spray the shaving cream into a cake pan or onto a rimmed baking sheet or baking dish. Use a spoon or spatula to press down the shaking cream to make it smooth and dense.
Add 4 or 5 drops of two different colors of food coloring, of your choice, to a small area of the pan.
Then run the tip of a paring knife or a toothpick through the two colors to “marble” the colors together.
March 24, 2018 No Comments
Pumpkin Pie … Not!
Thanksgiving is tomorrow!!! Don’t know that I can help you now if you haven’t gotten busy yet, but just in case, I give you – Complete Thanksgiving Planning Guide and Timeline.
OK, so I have caved and I have made the dough for the potato rolls. How can I not, after The Audrey Files made them for her family and then raved about them on her blog? I’d feel like a heel if I stood my ground on that one. But I must rebel in some small way, so I am NOT going to make a homemade pumpkin pie this year! Instead I am making a pumpkin bundt cake, so take that, my whining family! But, I even felt a little guilty about that, so I purchased a little pumpkin pie at Trader Joe’s… oh well.
I do not trust a bundt cake to come out of the bundt pan cleanly. So I never, and I mean never, use Pam to grease it. I always melt plenty of butter and brush it on every visible interior surface and then dust the pan with flour. That usually does the trick, but not every time, sometimes it just sticks in one little spot, just to spite me.
November 24, 2010 7 Comments
black friday for foodies
Turkey Day is only 3 days away!!! Complete Thanksgiving Planning Guide and Timeline.
If you love shopping, then you probably love Black Friday. As for me, absolutely NO WAY! I never venture out on that day or any Saturday or Sunday between now and December 24th! But for those of you diehards, I give you some Foodie Deals I found while searching the web for the upcoming ads. The things I do for you… it’s only Monday, so keep your heart rate down and start planning ahead!
As expected, many of these are “limited quantity” doorbuster deals so please rely on the fine print and exact details in each specific ad in Thursday’s newspaper or online ads. None of the information is guaranteed – remember, I found all this on the internet! But maybe it will help give you a helpful heads-up before you head out to the malls. Have fun, I’ll be praying for you.
November 22, 2010 3 Comments
drama free holiday
Turkey-Day is only 4days away!!! Complete Thanksgiving Planning Guide and Timeline.
Honestly, our Thanksgivings are drama-free. But we’ve all heard those stories of families that just let it fly on that special day. When you have a small group, let’s say just four people for dinner, those problems probably won’t arise. Another thing that is different about Thanksgiving without the crowd is the “turkey-situation”. Unless everyone is a huge fan of leftovers, a big turkey may seem like too much, so instead, how about opting for turkey breast? It’s most everyone’s favorite part of the bird anyhow, and takes much less time to roast. Or, maybe you have just a few too many people for one turkey and don’t have the room to roast another. The addition of a breast or two is the answer!
I am going to skip my usual two birds and do just that, one bird and 1 extra breast half for our crew this year. My dilemma was how do I show you how to do the breast without having to do one ahead of time for this post? I worked it out by stuffing and roasting a boneless chicken breast instead.
To be clear, the recipe is for turkey breasts, the photos are of chicken breasts. Follow the recipe and you’ll be fine.
November 21, 2010 1 Comment
breaking tradition
Turkey-Day is only 7 days away!!! Complete Thanksgiving Planning Guide and Timeline.
Shhh, don’t tell my family, but I am going to make different rolls this Thanksgiving. This is a big deal! There will be whining, complaining, moaning, crying, and even a possible revolt, but I’m still going to do it! Our traditional roll is the absolutely delicious and addictive James Beard Potato Bread Rolls that I made each year. The thing is, I also make these rolls only a short 4 weeks later for Christmas Eve dinner, Christmas day dinner, and use the same dough for my killer Cinnamon-Pecan Rolls on Christmas morning. So… these people, who I have to feed every single day, (sometimes up to 3 times a day!) can try something different on Thanksgiving this year! That something different will be cloverleaf rolls.
Cloverleaf rolls sometimes have tiny crosses marked on each of the three sections, referring to the Holy Trinity, which in Ireland is often compared to the clover. I’ll save that little embellishment for Easter. You may also dip the balls in melted butter after forming and before placing in the muffin cups, that makes for one very rich roll! Another option is to brush the tops of the rolls (after rising in the muffin tins) with and egg wash or melted butter and then sprinkle the tops of the rolls with sesame, poppy, or mixed seeds. Do so if you wish.
The composed butter that accompanies the rolls calls for pomegranate molasses, which I’ve posted about before and you can get the recipe for by CLICKING HERE. You can make a full 1 cup recipe or reduce it by two-thirds, which will produce exactly 1/3 cup, as called for. And finally, I’ve added a pumpkin variation for this recipe, just in case, you too, want to mix things up next week. That and the measurements for a scaled down amount of pomegranate molasses are found at the bottom of this post.
November 18, 2010 4 Comments
where there’s smoke…
… there’s hair and skin, and clothes that smell like smoke! I’ve had a charcoal smoker for years and use it every now and then. The reason I don’t use it more often (besides the need to immediately take a shower afterward to get rid of the “Smokey The Bear” smell) is that it seems like a lot of work to have to keep adding charcoal and keep the fire going all day long. But then, while in Payson at Barb’s earlier this week, I spotted an unassembled electric smoker in the garage and said, “Cool, and electric smoker!” To my delight, Barb said, “You can have it, it’s just been sitting there for four years.” I was so excited, I don’t think I said my usual, “Really, are you sure?” So, Connor and I assembled it yesterday and I am putting it into service today to make smoked pulled pork. Thank you, Barb! ( I think that’s #5 – inside joke!) xoxo
Smoked pulled pork barbeque may sound like strenuous work, but it’s not, it’s simply a gentle, slow cooking process that is ideal for outdoor smoking. It is time-consuming though, so be sure that you or another willing subject are around to tend to the smoking meat every hour for about 6 hours. [Read more →]
July 18, 2010 4 Comments
sharing
Yesterday I mentioned the outstanding sliders that Barb, Kim, and I had at Chaparral Pines in Payson, Arizona. We split an order and I’ve been dreaming about and wanting MORE every moment since then! I dissected the menu description and, by Joe, I think I’ve got it! They are so fabulous, they must be shared – here you go! These would be a great addition for next year’s 4th of July BBQ. BTW, you will have extra mayo and onions leftover after you make the 12 sliders – this is a good thing… a very good thing!
July 17, 2010 4 Comments
hooray for the red, white, and blue!
Happy 4th of July!
The recipe for Red, White and Blue Red Velvet Cupcakes follows,
but first…
What is your happiest or earliest memory of celebrating July 4th? Mine is standing in my maternal grandparents’ backyard, holding sparklers with our big extended family all around. That would include my grandparents, mom, dad, brothers, sister, cousins, aunts, and uncles.
There could be up to 43 of us at any one time, given that my mom is the oldest of eight. We would either barbeque hot dogs and hamburgers or there would be big buckets of KFC scattered around, and always huge watermelons … and … soda! We were allowed to drink soda – at my grandparents’ house! [Read more →]
July 4, 2010 No Comments