A Southern Gal's Quest for the Gourmet Life

Romancing the Stove Cookbook Giveaway

2011-12-13T19:49:00.001-06:00

Hilarious women empowerment cookbook giveaway. To enter, leave a comment telling me what dish you made for your significant other (current or past) that made them beg you to make it again. If you are not registered as a google follower, leave your email address. Good Luck!

Here is the amazon.com link. You can click on the image of the book on the web page linked below and see some of the inside pages. http://www.amazon.com/Romancing-Stove-Celebrated-Recipes-Delicious/dp/1573248584/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1323827854&sr=8-1

Creating Antique Style Wedding Ephemera

2011-12-12T16:19:00.000-06:00

I have finally collected as many wedding photographs as I could and I will be publishing many wedding related posts in the next few weeks. This one is dedicated to all the paper ephemera I used. I tried to use many antique wedding traditions and ideas in all the stationary items. The only thing I had professionally printed were the actual invitations and we had silhouettes cut. I made the programs on my own, my mother drew a wonderful antique style map to be included in the invites, I drew the guest sign-in tree, and my mother hand wrote the geneology chart onto a blank fan geneology poster. The silhouettes were copied and transferred onto the backs of the programs, onto wine bottle labels, and I had the originals framed and displayed on a table. Click on the pictures to see them enlarged.

I ordered and received a custom antique style thermography invitations from the White Aisle. Rebecca worked diligently with me to get the right look and feel to it. I just looked online to try to link back to her web page and discovered that Rebecca had been diagnosed and passed away from brain cancer in a very short period of time. I am so devestated over this. She was the owner of the most wonderful letterpress company. In her photos, she was absolutely gorgeous, the best way I can describe her is that she belongs in a Waterhouse painting. Here is her blog and some pictures of her. I cried as I read through her last several posts. The world has lost a very creative and a beautiful person inside and out. http://www.whiteaisleweddings.com/

We had our friend Tiffany ( http://serendipitybytiffany.com/) take some side-view photos of us that we sent to Tim Arnold, The Silhouette Man (http://www.silhouette-man.com/). They both did a wonderful job.

Printed onto sticker paper on my computer and trimmed to size.

Not quite sure where we got it, but it is similar to this one with different shading.

http://misbach.org/9-generation-fan-chart.html

See previous blog post about this one. Real 1880s wedding certificate that had never been filled out. Photography done by Serendipity by Tiffany and Historic Walnut Ink Calligraphy done by Melinda Sapp (http://www.calligraphybymelinda.com/)

My mother drew the map, and I formatted the crest. We printed them on ivory colored post card cardstock that tore apart. On the backs we printed accurate google maps directions in a calligraphy font.

So many etsy stores now sell hand drawn trees for use as a creative guest sign in. "Leaf your fingerprint and name" These are sooo expensive that I decided to buy a sheet of large sketch paper and do it myself. I started off in pencil, then traced in fine point sharpie. The bottom I used a stencil for.

I made the two of us into little birds.

We had 5 colors of green inks for people to choose from. One of the five pads was different and the ink pad smudged the ink pen marks. The four pack of green that we bought from Joanne's was the best and we highly recommend it. This turned out great because you never know what people will actually do with art projects. We have a cute family of Beaver's at the bottom, their last name is Beaver how could they not be beavers, some wanted to be fallen leaves, one didn't understand and just signed, some thumbs have no names, and we have some spare birds. Currently hanging in our hallway, love it! I think I still have 10 people to track down, I have a few spare branches to fill in.

Scissor Art

weddingchicks.com has wonderful DIY free downloads

My Bridal Tea in April: Traditional English and Shabby Chic

2011-12-12T16:15:00.002-06:00

This is a very belated post. I hate that word because I have been using it entirely too often lately. Finally found all my completed wedding thank you's that had been misplaced in tornado/move and got them sent out today. " Belated Thank You!" Martha Stewart would be ashamed of me. Happy Belated Birthday seems the most tame form of using it. A few Christmas cards didn't get mailed, but a Merry Belated Christmas isn't effective.... must do better next year. Maybe my New Year's resolution should be not to create situations where I have to use the word "belated."

This post is all about the classic English tea that was thrown for me the day before my wedding.

April 22, 2011 I was given a beautiful Bridal Tea hosted by my mother's best friend and my aunt.

Knowing that someone loves you enough to break out their best china that will all have to be washed by hand I think is a great indicator of true love! Slaving away for hours to create perfectly matching tea party fare is also equally as proving of true love. I am a very lucky girl to have such people in my life.

The table looked gorgeous! I loved her silver centerpiece.

Picture of me playing bride dress-up when I was 6. I was VERY into dress-up.

Part of the decoration on this table: Paperweight I got off Etsy.com

Inside the gold and glass rim there is a metal word art that says Fred & Anna

Back Side of Paperweight

Me and my Bic-Bic, Stephie and Merby

The stunning antique M monogram silver covered vegetable dish they gave me.

My Bridesmaids : Maiben, Anna, Stephanie, Me, Becca, Alex, and Mary Elizabeth

I love my girls!

Recipes will be and posted for the cookies, the apricot bites, and the espresso beef soon in a separate post.

Sugar Cookies with a Lavender and Lemon peel Glaze

Love the center tray! My old Madame Alexander Bride sitting on top of all the delicious petit fours.

Me and My Aunt Dana Bug

Southern Cheese Straws

White Chocolate Roses

Smoked Salmon Skewers with Red Onion Cream Cheese

Tomato Cups filled with Chicken Salad

This pictures is a bit fuzzy, but these were wonderful. They are espresso encrusted fillet of beef bites with a horseradish thyme sauce on toasted rounds of bread.

Goat cheese apricot bites with a rosemary walnuts

Pimento and Cheese

Cucumber sandwiches

So delicious and pretty!

Wine Cork Wreath

2011-12-09T17:07:00.001-06:00

Just a post showing off my latest craft project. I have been selling place card holders which are sets of wine corks glued together with ribbon in my etsy store.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/69960796/wine-cork-place-card-name-table-number

I only use real corks for the holders. From friend and family cork donations, I have gotten a lot of plastic corks that did not have a purpose. Finally I saw a wine cork wreath that I thought I could do. I added a top layer to the design to create more height and more fullness to it. This is what I created. I am giving this one to my husband's uncle. You can easily add Christmas berries to it, more ribbon to punch it up, or add football related logos to it!

1 flat wreath board from Michaels ($3.99)

I used titebond wood glue, but you would probably be better off with a plastics glue

cork collection, I just used plastic but it would probably be much prettier with real ones

Glue the bottom layer in a herring bone type configuration, wait 24 hours for it to dry and glue the second layer on and wait another 24 hours for it to set. Hang with a wide band ribbon.

Redneck Dirty Santa Gift Idea: Redneck Wine Glasses, Larry the Cable Guy's Chicken Mix, and Reindeer Poop (Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies)

2011-12-09T16:27:00.001-06:00

Somehow it seems wrong to post this one on my food blog... being poop related and all. I decided poop is funny no matter what, so here it is. We are invited to our friend's annual Christmas Party in Tuscaloosa for tomorrow where we always have a blast. They always do a dirty santa swap. Instructions specifically said no "dirty" dirty santa (there have been hilarious inappropriate gifts in the past). Last time, I think I brought a cute martini shaker at Target and stuck a jar of olives it in for a "Dirty Martini" gift set. I ended up going home with an awesome mixed pack of gourmet beer. I think it is funny to play off the word dirty, so this year I went in a totally different direction.

The redneck wine glasses are very easy to make once you find the right parts. My mother taught me how to make these. People sell these things like crazy on Etsy.com but usually with bigger ball jars. I find that many of these use ball jars that are too big and the glasses look awkward, tip over, or just look ugly. I like the half-pint Ball brand jars that have the ball logo on one side, and a bunch of fruit on the other. The bottoms are glass candlesticks. You can find these for anywhere from 50 cents to $4 a piece depending on what kind you get. Glue them together with glass epoxy and let them sit for 24 to 72 hours to cure completely. Theoretically they are dishwasher safe, though I recommend still hand washing them.

Redneck Wine Glass Poem to add to:

This here's a wine glass that's made jest fer you

Ya'll can drink your vino or some homemade brew.

Attached is a tag to let ya know whoz is whoz

and it's a to-go apperattis with a lid and screw.

If you are interested in buying the glasses, contact me. I sell them for $5 a piece.

I paired them with a box of Larry the Cable Guy Chicken Mix. I saw it at Dollar Tree and busted out laughing. He has a whole line of this type stuff.

http://www.amazon.com/Larry-Cable-Muffin-Box-You-Git-R-Done/dp/B006BXB15S

Last but not least, I added a big batch of Reindeer Poop! You probably grew up calling these no-bake cookies or Preacher's Cookies. I call them Cow Patties which is just as bad as Reindeer Poop! These are so easy to make and are just a quick no worries comfort food. Kids love them!

Tie them all up together with a recipe card and VOILA!

REINDEER POOP

1/2 cup butter

4 tablespoons cocoa powder

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup milk

1/8 tsp. salt

3 cups old fashioned rolled oats (quick cooking oats)

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions: Mix butter, sugar, milk, cocoa powder and salt together in a medium saucepan. Bring this mixture to a boil. Recipes differ for how long to boil, some want you to reach a specific temperature on a candy thermometer. I let it go 1-3 minutes until it looks well combined. Move the mixture off the eye and stir in the vanilla and peanut butter until completely combined. Then add the oats. Drop by tablespoons onto wax paper and let cool completely. You can make pretty perfect circles for Preacher's Cookies or you can make disgusting shapes.

Gift Poem taken from another blog:

Reindeer Poop Poem

I woke up with such a scare when I heard Santa call...
"Now dash away, dash away, dash away all!"
I ran to the lawn, and in the snowy white drifts,
those nasty reindeer had left "little gifts".

I got an old shovel and started to scoop
Neat little piles of "reindeer poop."
but to throw them away seemed such a waste,
So I saved them, thinking you might like a taste!

As I finished my task, which took quite a while,
Old Santa passed by and he sheepishly smiled.
And I heard him exclaim as he rose to the sky~~~
"Well, they're not potty trained, but at least they can fly!"

Treasure Find of the Day: Antique Photo of Grandparents

2011-12-01T16:29:00.001-06:00

Sometimes the best things happen when you are least expecting it. Today I had trouble getting the drawer to close on a small antique side table that is in my dining room. I took the drawer out and stuck my hand inside trying to find what was making the drawer catch. The source was an unused tea light but also I found a photograph that had been shoved in there for who knows how many years. I'm so glad I didn't rip it when I was shaking the drawer back and forth. The table used to belong to my paternal grandmother that passed away when I was 5. The picture shows her and my grandfather, who passed away when my dad was 16, posing side by side in a field with slight smiles on their faces. The photo is dated Sept 59. This is a very happy find!

The most delicious pasta I have ever made: Rotini with Shrimp,Mushrooms, Artichokes and Pine Nuts in a Sundried Tomato Marscapone Cheese Sauce

2011-11-27T16:58:00.001-06:00

This is a very straightforward post. I did not have my camera with me for this one, only the trusty iPhone. I recently went to take care of my grandmother for a few days and made dinner from what I could find in the fridge and pantry. This is what I created and I think it is the most delicious pasta I have ever made. Very simple ingredients but the Marscapone cheese put this over the top. This tastes very similar to one of the make-your-own pasta bowls I had at Romano's Macaroni Grill one time.

1 box cooked tri-color rotini pasta (1 minute less than cooking instructions, you want it to soak up sauce)

1 lb. peeled and de-veined raw shrimp

1 box sliced white mushrooms

1 jar or can of quartered artichoke hearts (not marinated)

1 small container Marscapone cheese

1/2 jar sun-dried tomato pesto (1/2 cup or more to your taste)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

In a large saute pan on medium heat, cook the mushrooms and olive oil until they are slightly browned. Add in the shrimp and artichoke hearts until the shrimp are solidly pink (about 3 minutes) stirring constantly. Stir in the remaining ingredients to combine and then add the cooked pasta. Turn the heat off the pan and let the pasta sit in the sauce soaking up all it's goodness for about 5 minutes. Stir during this wait time once or twice. Serve in big individual bowls with an additional pinch of Parmesan on top.

Note: The only tricky part of this recipe is learning how to toast the pine nuts. They burn sooooo easily if you do not watch them. Burnt pine nuts are not tasty! I spread them out in a toaster oven on a sheet of aluminum foil and "bake" not "toast" them at 300F for 8 minutes. Generally when you can smell them walking around your kitchen they are done. In smaller grocery stores pine nuts are ridiculously expensive right now. If you really like the flavor, consider buying the big bag at Costco. I use a whole Costco bag in about a year but we make a lot of pesto and love them in salads too.

Shopping at Aldi is my new thrill! 2 new locations in Huntsville AL

2011-11-15T16:28:00.001-06:00

Yep, I'm about to do the most boring thing ever and post grocery receipts to my blog. I could go on and on about how great each item has turned out but I thought this would be more effective in the current economic climate. This is the cheapest gourmet food I have ever come across and I love it! If you have an Aldi Discount food store near you and you have never been to one.... GO NOW! You will save tons of money on quality foods, many of which are German or English in origin. Love this place. Everything so far has been delicious.

Love the eco-friendly bits too, you put a quarter in to retrieve your shopping cart and get it back when you place it back in it's proper spot. You bag your own groceries which promotes using less plastic bags and much faster check-out lines. The line was 6 people long and I was worried it was going to turn into a Walmart hour long waiting situation, but the line was clear in less than 10 minutes. Many of the items have barcodes printed on multiples sides of the items to they swipe much faster. The section of Christmas Candy is amazing too. I finally get my Toffifee candy that you can't find anywhere else! Staff is super friendly and helpful.

Best items so far are the fresh cheeses like brie and baby mozzarella, the frozen pizzas, and the frozen German Spinach and Zucchini Strudals.

Vintage Christmas Cheer: Mirro Cookie Press Recipe Booklet

2011-11-11T15:55:00.001-06:00

Received an early Christmas present from my mom this year. She bought me a never been used 1957-59 Mirro Aluminum Cooky Pastry Press with all the parts and recipe booklet. GREAT CHRISTMAS PRESENT TO GIVE THIS YEAR! You can find several on eBay, this is perfect for the vintage lover or food lover in your family. We inherited my grandmother's press and we used it for 15 more years until the metal screw inside got stripped in 2006. All the replacement Wilton brand presses I have gotten since then have been made out of plastic parts and I have broken at least 4 different models. Last year during Walmart's extreme Christmas sale around New Year's, I bought two presses for a grand total of $5. I was stocking up anticipating emergency part breakage and I did not want to have a sad family if I couldn't deliver the green tinted almond Christmas tree cookies with the green and red sugar sprinkles. One year I had to make the dough and patted them out into tiny balls and baked them. Tasted the same but it was sad! The plastic pieces and dies just don't hold up using thicker dough such as the dough for the cheese straws. I registered for and was given a Williams Sonoma cookie press that is half plastic and half metal that I will also be trying out this year. Can't wait to give this Mirro classic a try again.

The Mirro Aluminum company was officially formed out of other companies in 1957, it was bought out in the 80s and now seems to be defunct. I am guessing this press was one of the earlier ones. I couldn't find a date in the book or on the box. I wish they were still making cookie presses though. These things are going to become pretty rare.

Many families still claim their traditional Christmas cookie comes from a recipe out of this Mirro recipe booklet. The original press features many cookie dies that the newer Wilton plastic models don't include such as the scottie dog and the camel. The detail is also another benefit of the older presses. For example, the tree die cut on the older one has scalloped edges to the branches that makes for a fancier and prettier cookie than the newer plastic dies that just have straight lines. If you click on any of the pictures below they will enlarge and you can copy and paste them into Word to print them out. I intend on enlarging the Christmas tree recipe and framing it in my kitchen this year. Picture update soon. I have made probably over a thousand of the almond Christmas trees in my lifetime already and I highly recommend it! Picture update of these as well. Can't believe I don't already have tons of pictures of these cookie trees. Must remember to take more pictures. I also love the image near the bottom that says, "Party Time is Pastry Time." Hope you find these useful and nostalgic! Let me know how yours turn out!

Front

Back

So cute! Many thanks to Laura!

Love how they spell "Cooky" just for the press but "Cookie" for the rest of it.

Snow Flakes

Quick-Mix Spritz

Shadows and Sugar Cookies

Orange Crisps

Peanut Butter Cookies

Caramel Cookies

Molasses Spice Cookies

Chocolate Spritz

Holly Wreaths

Almond Christmas Trees

Ginger Snaps

Cooky Decorating

Decoration

Different Frostings

How Classically 1950s! Cheese Appetizers

Cheese Appetizers Cont. and Cheese Straws

Too Cute! Party Time is Pastry Time!

Schaum Tortes

Cream Puffs

Lady Fingers

Eclairs

Custard Filling

Chocolate Frosting

This year I am definitely trying out the camel, scottie dog, wreath, and trees cookie die cuts!

Alabama Sugar Cookies: Roll Tide Elephants

2011-11-07T14:47:00.000-06:00

The big Alabama vs. LSU 2011 game is now over and our football high has been deflated. We didn't have tickets but we went down to tailgate at a friend's engagement party. It was wonderful! We had sooooo much fun catching up with old friends and seeing the sights! I am more sad about forgetting my camera in the car than I am our football loss. I missed many great photograph opportunities. I made a batch of sugar cookies to take to the tailgate. They turned out pretty cute and tasted wonderful! I have bought Mary's Cakes and Pastries (Northport, AL) Alabama football themed cookies several times. They have really cute Saban Hats, Bear Bryant Hats, Elephant, and football sugar cookies where they flood the whole sugar cookies with icing. They look adorable, but they taste more like shortbread than traditional rolled sugar cookies. Here is my fail proof recipe for a very flavorful rolled sugar cookie that holds it's shape well. The almond flavoring doesn't really register as almond - it just gives the cookies a better overall taste.

CLASSIC ROLLED SUGAR COOKIES

3 sticks of softened butter ( 1 1/2 cups)
2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond flavoring (imitation just makes this one taste better than natural for some reason)
5 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 to 2 tsp baking powder (if you have had your can for a while use 2 tsp)
1 tsp salt

Makes around 4 dozen cookies. Cut recipe in half if you are just making them for a few.

Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until very smooth. Next, beat in the eggs and vanilla and almond flavoring. Slowly mix in the flour baking powder and salt. Using a silicone spatula, turn out all of your dough onto press and seal, parchment, or wax paper and wrap up carefully. IMPORTANT PART: let refrigerate at least 4 hours. Your dough will be too sticky if you do not let the butter set back up. I let mine go 12-24 hours in the refrigerator usually. Cut dough into 4 pieces and work with one piece at a time to keep the rest of your dough cool. Roll out dough on a floured surface until the dough is about 1/3 inch thick. They make thickness rubber bands you slide on the ends of the rolling pin if you think you can't estimate well. You want your cookie to not turn out too crisp or too cake like. There is a perfect middle. I could go on and on about rolling pins. Right now I really like using a Wilton Teflon one, You don't need to add as much flour to the dough to keep it from sticking to the pin. Now for the baking instructions...... my oven is horrible so I bake mine on 350*F for about 8 minutes. You want them to come out before they are slightly brown. I use parchment paper or a silpat to bake them on. My handwritten instructions tell me 400*F for 6-8 minutes. You need to keep a close eye on them. Remove the cookies immediately and let cool completely on a cookie cooling rack.

I use a classic royal icing recipe. Some people are afraid of using raw egg whites for this. I think the dried meringue powder tastes funny so I make sure to buy fresh eggs and add lemon juice so that the citric acid also helps you avoid germs.

ROYAL ICING ALA ANNA

2 egg whites
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp almond extract
3-4 cups powdered sugar (see Note)

Whip together egg whites, lemon juice, and almond extract until you reach the soft peak stage. Mix in half the powdered sugar well and then mix the other half. Test thickness of icing against the side of the bowl. For all over cookie color you want a very loose icing, for piping designs and words you need your icing to be as thick as glue! It dries very hard and perfectly shiny. Let it dry for at least 4 hours, more if it is very humid. Adding your sugar in stages is very important. I never actually follow the sugar amounts for this I just keep testing the thickness because different brands of sugar, size of the egg whites, and the humidity around you really affect this. Separate icing blobs into separate small bowls and add Wilton gel food coloring to them, mix well, and use a piping bag and piping tips for your designs. Michaels has a great section for this.

If you are in the Huntsville area and are searching for that perfect cookie cutter for your special occasion, please go to Lynelle's Cake Decorating Shop in Huntsville, AL 3055 Leeman Ferry Road. I already had a football, pennant, jersey, and football helmet cookie cutter but I really wanted a cute little elephant. I called all around and they were the only place that had one. When I walked in, she pointed me to a back room that probably had over 100 different shaped cookie cutters! Best $1.50 purchase I have ever made! If you go there for the first time, make sure you tell them you heard about them on my blog.

I tried a few cookies with each of my cutters and the elephant cookies turned out the cutest by far. Next time I won't be bothering with the other 4 cutters, and I might try to flood the whole cookie with a thin gray icing before piping the white and crimson on.

Note: I haven't posted pictures of my kitchen yet, but you get a sneak peak of what it looks like..... snowflake style 60's counter-tops with chrome detailing. Oh yes, this girl is soon going to find as many HGTV, Martha Stewart, BHG kitchen contests as she can. My kitchen really needs some major renovations.

Edgar Allan Poe Party Decorations

2011-11-01T12:49:00.000-05:00

We love to decorate for Halloween parties. Since our friends are starting to disperse throughout the state and the US now, weddings, Alabama Football, Halloween, and Christmas are going to be the only chances we get to see each other, and then you are always missing several. The last two years we had Hogwarts Halloween parties so we went in a different direction this year. Some guests missed the Firewhiskey this year though . My mom did a good bit of these decorations for me, she is thinking of starting up a decoration business for bridal teas, birthday parties, and seasonal parties. I think she would be really good at it! If archaeology doesn't work out for me, I have considered something similar as well because I love to cook so much! My etsy shop is Mullican & Davenport and maybe we should just expand the name into a Mullican & Davenport Tea Parties and Cocktails Events to go or something. Maybe in 10 years......

Here are some of the main decorations we did. Couldn't take a picture of everything because I have been plagued with various camera problems lately. I satisfied with the iphone's pictures as substitutes though. We got inspiration of some Poe Parties from looking on Pinterest. Not everything was specifically Poe that we did. We just tried to give it an overall Victorian Macabre feel with lots of spiders, rats, and a few cockroaches. The cockroaches were the funniest thing ever! If you squeezed on them.... lime green bug guts would squirt and out and suck back in! :) Yes, sometimes I feel like I am 5.

Put a few ravens up in the chandelier

Everybody has to love the classic Ouija board at Halloween parties!

Old typewriter with a typed out page from Poe

Spray painted wine bottles and fake rats galore!

My favorite Cloche display. Replica skeleton keys for great price at Michaels. This was the fake skull that during my 4 years living in the dorm greeted guests coming in my door with seasonal headgear... my favorite was Roger's Easter bunny ears!

Open copy of Poe displayed with a Gold Bug

Found this real Alabama Museum of Natural History used/empty burial bucket at an antique store in Huntsville. I used to work for the museum and always wondered how one of these ended up like that. It was completely fallen apart into pieces in a box. Very easy to repair. Considering it's past... I would say this is a very real creepy thing to display. Added creepy looking angel with fake spider webs and a replica printed Edgar Allan Poe Note.

Printed Halloween piano sheet music with photo-shopped raven on top.

Witch Coven of Norfolk England... Google image this and print and frame

I think a bed of moss would be quite a comfy sleeping place

Creepy Skull Spider

Printed and Framed from the Graphic's Fairy Blog.

Holographic framed portraits from Big Lots (wedding couple, soldier, and little boys). The real photograph copies turn into ghoulish things when glanced from the side.

Front Door Decor

Not as pleased with how this turned out, but you get the picture.

Guest Bathroom Mirror: gel stick ons

More Rats!

Cute Mouse Cutouts

Cloche Display

Felt Banner over doorways

My Pinterest Board: http://pinterest.com/annamullican/edgar-allen-poe-halloween-party-2011/

Edgar Allan Poe Halloween Party: Armadillo Eggs, Amontillado Punch, Sugar Snap Pea Dip, Bloody Glass Candy, Pecan Apple Dip, Figgy Brie, Carmelized Onion Dip, Pumpkin Cupcakes with Milano Tombstones and Maple Cream Cheese Frosting,and Cheesy Fingers

2011-10-31T12:14:00.001-05:00

Last night we had a fabulous Halloween party at our new house. This year we had a small gathering but we hope to make it much larger next year. Each year we try to do a completely different theme for our annual party and this year we went with Edgar Allan Poe. Hood was the perfect Edgar and I was a bit meta..... his wife Virginia being the Raven. :) I didn't just want to be some ugly black bird! The only hitch of the night is that my camera died and no one had extra batteries. I have food and decoration pictures galore but no people pictures... I am really hoping I get some good ones sent to me soon (hint hint). We had so much fun with friends, snacked on delicious foods, tasted some really good beers (Sam Adams varieties including Black and Brew, Chocolate, Old Fezziwig (not Halloween I know) and some classic Boston Lager), roasted some marshmallows and made smores, listened to ridiculous Halloween classic music, and played with the pups. The Decoration pictures will be put in the next blog post. We tried to make our house feel very Victorian macabre, which was surprisingly not hard to do with my love of antiques.

Some of the food offerings

Baked Brie with Puffed Pastry, Fig Jam, and Pecans (recipe already listed on blog)

Armadillo Eggs

Jalepeno Popper wrapped in Sausage Ball Dough

There are many different recipes out there for this but I like the sausage cream cheese mixture in mine. Take 1 dozen jalepeno peppers. Slice them in half and de-seed and de-vein them. Blanche them in boiling water for 8 minutes and cool them down. Stuff eatch half with as much cream cheese as will fit in the cavity. Wrap Sausage Ball Dough (2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese, 1 tube of raw country sausage I prefer Dean's hot, and 2 cups Bisquick mix. Mix together until a stiff dough forms.) around the popper and seal the edges. Bake in an oven at 350 until the odd shaped ovals are golden brown (about 15-20 minutes).

Sugar Snap Pea Dip

1 cup mayonnaise, 1/2 cup sour cream, 3 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tsp powdered ginger, 1 tsp wasabi paste, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, and juice from half a lemon. Mix and let refrigerate overnight. Taste and add more wasabi/ginger/soy to your taste. Blanche Sugar Snap Peas and Ice them Down. I got a large bag from Costco and boiled for about 6 minutes. You want them to still have their crunch. Some peas your guests may need to de-string, others are very tender and can be eaten whole.

Carmel Pecan Cream Cheese Dip for Apples

1 pkg. softened cream cheese, 1/4 cup light brown sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla flavoring, 1/4 cup toasted pecans. Mix together and let refridgerate overnight. Let come to room temperature before you serve or mix in 3 tablespoons of cream or it will be too hard to scoop apple slices in. I used Granny Smith.

Carmelized Onion Dip with Kettle Chips

1 lg. container low fat sour cream, 1 envelope Lipton French Onion Dip, 2 lg Vidalia onions sliced thinly and caramelized on low heat (45 minutes). Mix together and let refrigerate overnight to meld flavors. Serve with thick cut kettle chips.

Bloody Broken Glass Candy (From Jessica)

Two cups regular sugar
1/3 cup light corn syrup (karo)
2 tbs water
Boil all together 5-7 minutes or until it looks SLIGHTLY gold - if it turns all the way gold your glass will be brown. You can add food coloring here to tint your glass any color you like or add a bit of flavoring if you like. Once it's ready, pour out onto a parchment paper lined pan and let it cool around 10 minutes.

At this point you have a couple of options: one, break sheet into shards to make broken glass; two, heat up a knife in a flame and carefully cut glass into shapes, i.e. a microscope slide, stained glass shapes for an intricate design, anything really...then toss them in the fridge to harden thoroughly (about 10 more min.) Done!

Then I just painted the edges red so they looked bloody. I am thinking about pouring the molten mixture into some cookie cutters or plastic/rubber jello molds to make little shapes, like legitimate vintage candies. It's actually really tasty, and you can pop in little sticks to make them lollipops. Very versatile and it looks impossibly difficult when it's really super easy.

Cheesy Fingers (From Jessica)

String Cheese with Cuts with Fake Fingernails

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting and Milano Cookie Gravestones

These were so much fun to make and sooooo easy. I used Krusteaz brand pumpkin bread mix and followed directions and added 1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk to make it more cake-like and less bread like. Frosting: 1 package softened cream cheese, 1 stick softened butter, 1 tsp vanilla, 3 tablespoons maple syrup, and 1 box of powdered sugar. Mix first 4 ingredients together until all is combined and whipped well. Add powdered sugar in slowly on a low mixing speed or you will cover your kitchen! I colored all but 4 tablespoons of frosting green and piped it on the cupcakes for grass. The rest I added black food coloring to and piped party guest names onto milano cookies and shoved them down into the icing. The disturbed dirt is crushed up gingersnap cookies ( I used Voortman Ginger cookies with almonds) and cup up small plastic skeletons to use for body parts. I had two cake plates covered, I really need to invest in a tiered cupcake stand.

Amontillado Punch (non-alcoholic)

2 jugs of apple cider, 1 2L Ginger Ale, 1 concentrated orange Juice, 1 box red hots

Melt the box of red hots into one container of apple cidar in a pot on the stove top until the red hots are dissolved, stir constantly. Let cool and combine with all other ingredients. I served mine with a skull ice cube and mismatched punch cups.

For alcoholic version I recommend pouring in a half bottle of apfelkorn or some hard apple cidar in place of one of the bottles of apple cidar.

Next year I am thinking Sleepy Hollow, Sweeny Todd, or Anne Rice..... all would have delicious foods! Best trick to planning a great themed Halloween party on a budget is to pick your theme by 8am the day after Halloween the year before. Go to Target, Walmart, Pottery Barn, and Williams Sonoma and snap up halloween goodies and decor at 50-90% off the orignal price!

My amusement for the day: I have the same pink sheets as Sookie Stackhouse!

2011-10-24T17:42:00.000-05:00

This is not a food post, but a rather silly post about the sheets on my bed. If you are not a big fan of the HBO show True Blood, then I hope this post does not bore you to death. When the big bad Tuscaloosa tornado ruined all my bed linens, I went on the search for really cheap but cute stuff for my bed until we could afford better ones. If you read my previous posts you know I frequent the store Dirt Cheap. Well, they keep getting in all Target bed linens and curtains and I stocked up. I really like the Shabby Chic style and brand by Rachel Ashwell that is carried by Target and couldn't believe that her sheet sets that normally sell for around $50 were at Dirt Cheap for $10 with all the matching other linens for a fraction of the price at Target. Now at Dirt Cheap, something is usually wrong with half the merchandise so you really have to pick through it. Then as I was watching season 4 of True Blood...... I saw the scene below! My husband thinks it is hilarious, but hopes I find non-pink sheets soon.

My Lucy Baby

Sookie and Eric (Anna Paquin and Alexander Skarsgard) Season 4

Godric, Eric and Sookie Dream

Why doesn't this girl sleep with the matching cute patchwork quilt??? I do!

I have never actively sought out things to have that match things on tv, but this happens to be my third celebrity matching thrill and I think it's hilarious. I bought the shirt below (Lucky Brand) at TJ Maxx..... two months later I saw the firstTwilight and was very amused.

I was also informed by two of my best friends that my Kitchen tables matches the one in Gilmore Girls. Can't find a picture of mine or the Gilmore Girls but it has this exact porcelain enamel top but has much prettier carved legs.

Chocolate Chili

2011-10-20T11:32:00.000-05:00

I find myself wishing I really could do an Alabama Football Cookbook. Do lots of interviews and research and use secret family recipes to build an ultimate tailgating cookbook. (Noooooo think Anna.... Thesis, House, new Job, Garden...... then random book projects, I actually have a list of 10, I would love to have met Kathryn Tucker Wyndham before she passed. I love that style of Alabama writing.) This recipe for chocolate chili is the first recipe that I think of in my family for Alabama football and fall weather in general. If you have ever been over to my house when I was growing up in the fall, my mom probably served you a bowl of this. I remember her entering this in at least two chili cook-offs near home as well. My version is a bit different from hers because she never had it written down and I think she sometimes used the beer and sometimes did not. Michael Chiarello has a Chocolate Chili Con Carne recipe that is similar to this. His is a bit different but sounds interesting, but I will have to try his at some point. I adore him. This chili is not overly hot, just has a good all around balanced rich flavor. No habanero pepper disasters waiting to happen here. Great to serve with buttered cornbread, on top of chili dogs, or over tortilla chips.

CHOCOLATE CHILI (Chocolate Carrot Chli Con Carne= CCCCC)

2 lbs. ground beef ( I mixed 1 pound lean and 1 pound regular)
1 large vidalia onion chopped (use 2 if you love onions like me!)
1 bag shoestring carrots chopped finely
1 tblsp butter/olive oil/or lard
1lg. can chopped tomatoes (I used Cento)
2 cans dark red kidney beans
1 bottle good beer (I used Sam Adams, if you only have light beer put in a bottle and half)
1 tblsp cumin
1/2 tblsp Hershey's powdered cocoa
1/2 tblsp powdered red chili
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Shredded Cheese (used Sargento Mexican shredded) and sour cream for garnish

You can either use large saute pan and then transfer to a crock pot or start off with a soup pot. Either way you need to make sure it simmers on low for 2 hours. I prefer the crock pot method so it can be transported to parties easier. Saute the ground beef, onion, carrot, and fat until the meat is browned. Add the rest of the ingredients except the beans and simmer on low for 2 hours stirring occasionally so it doesn't burn. In a crock pot on low this may take 3 hours. Basically you are looking for your carrots to start to vanish. If you need a thicker chili for chili dogs, add in 1 tblsp masa harina or finely ground cornmeal or you can add 1 tblsp flour mixed evenly with 2 tblsp water to the pot and let it boil in the chili for at least a minute. If you need it thinner add some beef broth. Don't use more beer to thin in, it will taste a bit bitter. The carrots should cook down to where you almost can't see them anymore. That is what adds the bit of sweetness behind the spice. The chocolate serves as an unusual spice that your guests will try to place but usually can't. If you have a few squares of a good dark chocolate instead of the powder use it. Add the beans in about 10 minutes before the end of your cooking. You don't want them to get mushy and lost like the carrots. I have had two Texan friends cringe when I told them I put beans in my chili..... to each their own!

Now if I could just get my hands on some ground emu, elk, or buffalo around here! One of the best chilis I have ever had was an emu chili at a cook-off. I tried to be a vegetarian for two weeks and I failed miserably! I do try to buy organic and free-range whenever I can... that brings me to my tangent for this post...

Current Obsession: An article I read in a Country Living Magazine

How cute is this building plan???

Pick different varieties of chickens so you will have that easter egg look to the colors of the eggs.

They look like happy chickens to me!

If you have ever thought to yourself, I wonder what it would be like to raise my own chickens to have fresh eggs..... read this article. You eat eggs in so many different things and if you ever had the means and space to have your own I think it would be wonderful. To know that they are living in a clean, safe and quiet environment where they are not overcrowded and mistreated. I am just talking about just eggs here, not raising your own chickens for meat. I don't think I would be able to do that quite yet. (Now I have a quote from the movie Contact with Jodie Foster running through my head, "Small moves Ellie, small moves." I was told again a few weeks ago that she is my celebrity doppelganger.) We just bought a cute 1960s rancher that sits on an acre and are seriously considering in the future what having a chicken coop like this one would be like. Next post will be about my Sisters on the Fly experience from this past weekend. Met many interesting new people, one of whom was telling her stories about her pet chickens. I didn't know they could be affectionate and love to sit on your lap while you read the paper. Anyone want to talk me out of this? I would love your comments and stories about trying to raise chickens. My husband said they tried when he was little but didnt' have them enclosed and all they did was poop all over their really nice porch and lay eggs in bushes where they couldn't find them until they got super stinky! Yikes!

http://www.countryliving.com/outdoor/outdoor-living/ultimate-chicken-coop#fbIndex2

Green Chili Chicken Corn Chowder

2011-10-19T17:32:00.001-05:00

Well, it is finally getting cold and that means I start to crave soups, bisques, chowders and stews and order them at different places. I had the best bacon corn chowder at a little cafe the other day with a bagel. It really made me want to make a big pot of my corn chowder. I made this one up a few months ago by starring deeply into the fridge, freezer, and pantry for a very long time, repeat... very long time, and wondering what I could possibly make out of all that. What I made is a big steaming pot of comfort food with a great citrus tang to it. I hope you try this one out. My mom and stepdad tried it and loved it so much I sent all my leftovers home with them. My husband has even requested it again so it must be a winner!

GREEN CHILI CHICKEN CORN CHOWDER
(will be accepting suggestions for a better title)
1 lemon pepper rotisserie chicken, de-skinned and shredded
1 large chopped vidalia or sweet yellow onion
2 poblano peppers, de-veined, de-seeded and chopped
1 can diced green chilis
1 frozen roll of Mackenzie's white creamed corn
1 frozen roll of Mackenzie's southern fried corn
4 cups chicken stock
1 pint of heavy whipping cream (do not substitute milk..... you will be sorry)
2 tblsp olive oil
Juice of two limes
one handful fresh cilantro finely chopped
1/2 bunch green onions finely sliced
salt and pepper to taste (and I added 1/4 tsp powdered jalapeno for extra kick)

Break out your best soup pot. Saute the vidalia onions , poblano, and chilis in the olive oil until the onions are sweated down. Add the chicken, chicken stock, and both rolls of frozen corn. Let come together for about 25 min on low heat. Add in the cream, lime juice, cilantro and green onions and let all the flavors mingle for 5 minutes. If you feel like making this dish in advance remember that soups always taste better the next day! Garnish with a lime slice and a few extra cilantro leaves. I didn't add bacon to mine simply because I didn't have it that day but I bet a few slices of cooked and crumbled bacon would put this soup over the top. Add a bit more chicken stock if you think it is too thick.

Servings: Unknown..... didn't get a chance to count them, enough for 8 people at least.

Next post will probably be Our Secret Family Recipe for Chocolate Chili! (Don't worry.... I asked permission first, it is too good and interesting not to share)

Roll Tide Cookies: Ghirardelli White Chocolate and Kirshwasser soaked Dried Cherries

2011-09-23T09:16:00.000-05:00

Roll Tide Cookies

Ghirardelli White Chocolate and Kirshwasser soaked Tart Cherries

1 cup dried and chopped tart cherries

1/2 cup Kirshwasser (German Cherry Brandy)

1/2 cup water

1 1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 stick room temperature butter

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp almond extract

1 1/2 cup white chocolate chips

In a small saucepan, bring the cherries, water, and kirshwasser to a boil. Then turn off the heat and let them steep for 10 minutes. Drain, pat dry, and allow to cool. Preheat oven to 350*F. Using a mixer, cream together both sugars and the butter until well blended. Stir in the two eggs and extracts. In a spearate bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking soda. Slowly add flour mixture to the wet a few tablespoons at a time until all is well combined. Gently fold in the chips and cherries. Scoop spoonfuls of dough onto parchment paper lined baking sheets (or silpat works great). Bake cookies until golden brown. My oven took around 10 minutes to do this but yours may take up to 15, keep a close eye on them. Transfer to a cooling rack to prevent overcooking. Allow to cool and package them up.

Isn't this bottle precious? It even came with two fake cherries attached on top.

I miss having my cookie scooper!

These cookies turned out great and were delicious! Below is what inspired me to make them this week
.

Recently I saw the new University of Alabama cookbook by Brown Mercer at Cracker Barrell and at Costco. I am not a fan at all! It is a husband and wife team that hatched up this great idea where each one took a side (Alabama and Auburn), threw in a ton of football phrases and added them to their recipe names to make lots of money. While the recipes themselves seem great, sound tasty, are photographed well... the whole idea just threw me. They are using the iconic university images and phrases for just their own food and making it seem like it represents Alabama Football Food Culture. I hope a they pay the respective universities a lot of royalty money for using the logos. I was watching little old ladies just throwing the books in their carts just because it had the logo on it, they didn't even crack the book to look at it. I believe a proper University of Alabama cookbook would involve spending several games worth of tailgating, following your nose and following peoples recommendations of who, what, when, where and why the best homemade tailgating food is created and then finding out if those people would be willing to contribute their historic recipes and stories to a book. This Mercer cookbook also tricks the shopper by looking a lot bigger than it really is. The thickness of the front and back cover is more than half the book! This got me thinking about what tailgating foods I have always loved and remembering stories where people have bragged on their friend's secret tailgating recipes and how they wish they had them.

I thought I was in the thick of Alabama football fans when I lived in Tuscaloosa, but here in Huntsville I feel just as surrounded. This includes my husband's law office. All the employees are so sweet and the office is so strikingly Southern in a good way! The house was built in the 1820s and most of the occupants are Alabama fans and it certainly shows in the decor. The two Florida and Auburn fans are very tolerant to the overwhelming Alabama vibe! :) I had so much fun throwing in subtle and not-so-subtle Alabama items in his office. This coming weekend is the Alabama vs. Arkansas football game and it is the first SEC game this season. This makes me crave tailgating foods and I wanted to make something to send his office to try out. It is best to send sweet things that can just sit on the counter in the kitchen. I found a similar recipe in a Bon Appetit magazine (many thanks Anna M.!) and combined it with my normal cookie recipe. Most of my baking items, including my cookie sheets, cookie drying racks, cookie portion scooper, etc. are all still in my Tuscaloosa kitchen so please disregard the crispy edges in the pictures. The cookies did not look very pretty this time but they were delicious. The sugar/flour ratio in this cookie is perfect: caramelized sugar crispy edges with a tender buttery fluff center.

Growing up, we would try to do tailgating desserts that had the Alabama Crimson Tide Color to them, usually red velvet cake cupcakes or cherry chip cake cookies. I will try to get a guest blog post from my friend Kathryn. In high school home economics, she shared me her recipe for taking any type of cake mix box and turning it into cookies and I have used it several times since then. This is a different way of doing that idea but with the real dried tart red cherries and white chocolate chips. Though Mr. Mercer's cookbook just tries to throw Alabama phrases attached to his recipes, we have always called our game day desserts "Roll Tide" cookies or cupcakes or whatever it happened to be so this just makes me laugh!

Update: A link sent to me by my husband: http://alumlive.ua.edu/sites/default/files/GamedayGourmet.pdf

Collected entries from the University of Alabama National Alumni
Association’s tailgate recipe contest, received June 15 through July 15, 2008.
Contest and online cookbook sponsored by the Alabama Alumni Magazine.

Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyy! Go Alumni Association! There are some really yummy looking University of Alabama Tailgate Recipes in here!

Update: May-September

2011-09-22T22:28:00.000-05:00

Since the tornado hit Tuscaloosa four days after our wedding... my life has turned upside down and is finally righting itself. We lived as constant travelers the last four months living with different friends and family. Our damages weren't that bad but our condo association was not prompt at all. This left us with unlivable conditions for over a month. Living out of suitcases is fun during your honeymoon, but after several weeks of throwing my suitcase around it begins to wear on your nerves. A few weeks after we started to get our apartment put back together, my husband got a job as an attorney at a law firm in Huntsville. I backed out of the archaeology job I was applying for at my beloved alma mater and I spent my time finding us a new home. Our condo in Tuscaloosa is still up for sale but we have purchased a great fixer-upper in Toney, AL. We went from living directly next to a train track in a loud 1 bedroom 1 bath party friendly condo/apartment community to being surrounded by serene farmland and pastures and having more rooms than I have items to decorate (which makes it all the more fun for me to go to antique auctions! Just window shopping for now). The last several months have been focused on getting us settled in the house but now I can focus on doing the things I have severely procrastinated on such as my master's thesis and wedding thank-you notes. Hopefully, I will still makes lots of time for improving my blog, expanding my etsy.com store, and exploring Huntsville more so that the city feels like home.

For the next few weeks I will have several "catch-up" posts about my wedding, honeymoon, and house renovations and then I PROMISE I will revert the blog back to being food centered. Also expect a wine and cheese party post and a Macabre Victorian Halloween party soon! Also very excited about Alabama Football!

When I started this blog I really didn't know what I was doing with it or where I wanted it to go. According to Google Analytics I should just stick to food recipe but according to my close friends I should stick to parties and art projects with funny stories. I'm leaving it as a blend of both for now. I am so grateful that people have sent me exotic spices to try or have sent me items for giveaways to attract viewers. If you find something you are particularly interested in or have any suggestions please comment! That is the only way I can improve my blog. My goal is to have 100 subscribers through Google by Christmas. Please help me reach my goal if you do not already publicly follow my blog.

Having Trouble Food Blogging Because..... Tuscaloosa Alabama Tornado

2011-05-06T23:34:00.002-05:00

I have so many wonderful wedding pictures and honeymoon pictures to put up on the blog but I have been a bit distracted since we got back. We are so lucky that our family and friends are all ok. Many friends have lost their homes completely so we are very fortunate that the worst is our bedroom windows being blown in and a bit of water damage. Hopefully we can move back in a few weeks. Worst part was tiny slivers of glass shards being tracked all throughout. Only lost two plants, the rest look very happy.

The 2X4 that landed on our 3rd story porch after it broke the window. Spliters inside bedroom prove. That board was soooooo heavy to lift off the porch. Boggles my mind how tornados work.

My husband (right) and his baby brother after removing most of the glass from inside the bedroom. I have loved living at our apartment complex but we were very upset to find that when we got back, these two units were the only two in the place that had not been boarded. We had to send his dad to get them to board it after they did not respond to my request. I guess short, blonde, and blue eyed is sometimes not very scary. Time to send in the big Irish Papa. :) Turns out we had several friends stop by the office asking them to board it for us. Unfortunate they left us out, we are lucky that we were out of the country when it happens but my heart breaks for all friends that had to live through the trauma. I have always loved living in our complex but now I am ready for a real house that is not in tornado alley of Tuscaloosa. All buildings around us in a semi-circle were flattened so we are very VERY lucky! RIP Krispy Kreme, Quik Pawn Shop, Jenny's Alterations, Milo's Hambergers, Full Moon Bar-b-que, Big Lots, Hobby Lobby, Tuesday Morning, Dollar General, Gas Station, and the Forest Lake Community. It is so strange to come out of the drive and be starring at blue sky instead of a historic lake subdivision.

First Wedding Pic!

2011-04-24T20:46:00.000-05:00

I am headed out for St. Lucia in the morning with my hubby! A few friends and family have already posted a few pictures to facebook so I just had to throw one quick pic up! I have so many pictures to put up when I get back.

Dried Cranberry and Blue Cheese Chicken Salad

2011-04-17T20:30:00.000-05:00

Less than a week until my wedding. Today a dear friend came over to help me fold all of my wedding programs and I made this for lunch for us. This is my new favorite type of chicken salad. I am a chicken salad fiend! While I am on the subject of superb chicken salads before I put my own creation up, I want to call your attention to two types of specialty chicken salad that the Publix grocery stores deli section now occasionally carry: Mango Lime Cilantro Chicken Salad and Almond Tarragon Chicken Salad. They are both amazing and I encourage you to try them. I may try to make my own versions of them soon.

This chicken salad is very easy. I got the inspiration for it by eating a delicious blue cheese chicken salad at Emma's Tearoom in Huntsville: http://www.emmastearoom.com/Todays_Menu.html If you are in the Huntsville 5-points area, you should check them out.

With all chicken salads, you add ingredients to your taste and the exact measurements of items are really irrelevant, but I will try to approximate on this one.

DRIED CRANBERRY AND BLUE CHEESE CHICKEN SALAD

1 small rotisserie roasted chicken de-skinned and chopped up or 3 baked boneless skinless chicken breasts cut up

1 cup finely chopped celery

1/2 cup toasted walnuts

1 cup blue cheese crumbles (or 1/2 cup strong creamy roquefort) (I love blue cheese so I put more)

1 granny smith or gala apple finely chopped

1/2 cup dried craisins (cranberry)

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper

1/4 tsp celery seeds

1 cup light mayonnaise (Duke's is my favorite)

Mix all ingredients together and let sit in the refrigerator at least 4 hours. I think chicken salads are always better made several hours to a day or two ahead. I served mine on croissants today with a serving of fresh sliced Baldwin County strawberries. I picked them up at Burris Farm Market in Loxley, AL coming back from the beach not long ago.

I got this French transferprint plate this past weekend at an estate sale for $1. I think it is so pretty. I looked up the maker's mark and found out it is from around 1928.

Launching My Own Etsy Store: Mullican & Davenport

2011-04-16T16:38:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago I decided to launch an Etsy store with 10 items as an experiment to see how I would do. I ended up selling 5 of those items in just a few weeks so I have decided to officially open a shop and have now added more items to it. Every Saturday, I love going to estate sales and I tend to find very unusual paper and kitchen items. I also need to do quite a bit of purging withing my own personal collection. I am getting married in a few days and potentially moving in the next several months. This has also helped inspire me to get rid of a few things and making a few extra bucks. I will try not to spend it buying gourmet food and more collectibles! :) Please visit my shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/MullicanXDavenport

To celebrate the opening of my store, for the next two months, the coupon code: MXD25AL will take 25% off the purchase total before shipping costs. Thanks for looking!

She's Hooked Bachelorette Party: Pajama and Spa (Rice Krispy Sushi)

2011-04-16T16:14:00.000-05:00

How cute is this invite? My maid of honor, Anna M (below), is very creative and came up with this idea!

Here she is posing with the adorable party favors. She took fish bowl shaped wine glasses and used opaque glass paint to paint all the girls initials which made the glasses look engraved and then filled with with nail polish and an emory board! So friggin cute!

Candy Sushi made out of Rice Krispy treats, fruit rollups, and Swedish fish! So sweet and cute!

More themed yummies: here are gummy worms, swedish fish, and sour gummy fish.

The delicious drinks: Sangria, Lemonade, and Anna's Signature Concoction Beer Lemonade. I know that combo sounds strange, but I promise that the mixture of light beer and concentrated lemonade mix gives this drink a great depth of taste with bubbles. Don't knock it until you try it, this stuff is delicious!

I could shoot myself for not getting a group picture of all the girls for this one.

We all did self manicures, pedicure, and some tried the fun peel off mask. I can remember doing those during childhood sleepovers. A very relaxing evening with great friends that gave me such beautiful gifts!

Kitchen Shower in Huntsville

2011-04-05T12:18:00.003-05:00

This weekend my moma's besties threw me a beautiful kitchen shower in Huntsville, AL. Below is a picture of me with all the lovely hostesses (Sonia, Me, Joyce, Sharon, Jan, and Debbie). Everything was so brightly colored and beautiful and I can't wait to start using all my new kitchen items.

Note: To see pictures bigger, click on them once.

So pretty with all the cut glass serving ware and the glass plates.

Debbie got my favorite petit fours from Peggy Ann's Bakery in Huntsville, AL.

Jan arranged the beautiful utensil bouquet with Gerber daisies inside my Target utensil holder. I get to keep the pretty tablecloth too. I now have the whole black iron set: utensil holder, spoon rest, cookbook holder, napkin holder and trivet in black.

Sonia made these beautiful white chocolate mints! Aren't these too cute? I brought the leftovers home to my fiance and he has already eaten half of these. Love anything with monograms.

Joyce made these cute little fruit cake bars. Served on an antique silver plate folding tray. I love these trays but they are hard to find. I have one as well but mine is desperate need of a re-silverplating.

Sharon made the delicious mexican dip! So colorful.

Butterfinger trifle made by Debbie. This is my mom's favorite.

Didn't quite take the picture at the right time but this is my favorite punch! Same punch I made in the halloween post: Lime Sherbert, Pineapple Juice, and Ginger Ale. I have heard it called Methodist Punch and Funeral Punch.

When people received their invites they were mailed two recipe cards that they were to donate recipes to me on. I got some really great ones I can't wait to try.

My sister-in-law Laura: she was a great picture taking and gift-writing helper. Love this pic!

Me doing an almost cheesecake pose next to all the pretty presents. Thanks for the Jessica Simpson shoes Gloria! They were a hit and got lots of compliments.

Me making a silly face( the ohhhh I love my present face, I really did!) but it is the only shot I got of me and my moma (in red). Look at those three cute pairs of shoes! Jan in black was my unwrapping helper, she is also my awesome wedding coordinator.

I had a wonderful time. Thanks you so much to all the hostesses and guests!

Maple Ham and Sweet Potato Biscuits with Carmelized Onion, Fig, and Ground Mustard Compote

2011-04-02T20:18:00.000-05:00

This sweet potato ham biscuit is my newest go-to staple recipe for Brinner.... yes, breakfast for dinner, which was what my mom was kinda craving for dinner tonight. I am staying in Huntsville for the weekend to run several wedding errands and tomorrow I get to go to another fabulous bridal shower that some of my mom's best friends are throwing so be sure to look for the new post tomorrow night!

I have had ham and sweet potato biscuits several times at different shower events and they are usually very dry with little flavor. After a couple trial runs of trying to make a better biscuit, this is what worked the best for me. This recipe is sure to not disappoint, it is packed with flavor, and is the perfect moist biscuit recipe to make for wedding showers, teas, and baby showers as well as the occasional brinner.

MAPLE HAM AND SWEET POTATO BISCUITS

1 package Maple Ham (at least 8 sliced cut into 4 wedges)

2 packages Jiffy Buttermilk biscuit mix

1 box Betty Crocker mashed sweet potato (use 1 bag)

1 1/2 cup of milk

1 large vidalia onion (chopped up medium small)

2 tablespoons Inglehoffer stone ground mustard

2 tablespoons fig preserves

2 tablespoons butter

Place onions and butter in a small frying pan and cook over medium heat for about 30 minutes stirring occasionally until all the onions are a nice carmelized color. I usually like it even darker than what I did today but I was trying to get done faster. Once carmelized, turn the heat off and add the mustard and fig preserves, stir well and let sit. Sometimes I like to add a tablespoon of Jack Daniels a few minutes before I turn off the heat, adds just a bit extra sweet smoky-ness.

Follow directions to make the instant sweet potatoes, I add about 1/2 cup more milk than what the package says. I really like to use the instant mashed potatoes better in this because it has flavorings already in the package that makes the biscuits have a great flavor (brown sugar, vanilla). It is also much much faster! I have tried the Bruce's brand sweet potato biscuit mix before and I like this version better.

Mix together the two jiffy packs, the entire bowl of mashed potatoes, and 1 cup of water. Knead together with your hands until all the flour is combined. Dust a surface and pat the dough out. I didn't need a rolling pin for mine, pat out to about 1/2 inch. Then lightly dust the top and cut with either a biscuit cutter or a floured drinking glass.

Place on a non-greased baking pan and bake at 450*F for about 10-12 minutes. Mine took 12 minutes. When they come out of the oven, brush the tops with butter. As you can see if you have flour marks on the top of your biscuits, the butter makes that go away and makes them very pretty.

Let cool for 5 minutes, cut in half with a knife, layer two sliced of maple ham and top with 1 tablespoon of your onion mixture. For me this recipe made 18 biscuits. I promise the flavor combo on this is to die for!

Herb Container Garden Replanting Time with Lucy the Pup Helper

2011-03-31T17:13:00.002-05:00

It's time to replant all the porch herb pots at my condo and I had a great little helper this weekend. Lucy kept sticking her nose in all the plants. My mint and chives survived the winter, everything else died. In fact my mint on my porch stayed green the entire year!!! Very strange even with the snow, I got really lucky. Added to the mix are a geranium, german thyme, rosemary, sage, basil, and my new chocolate mint.

I cant' wait to have a real house with a real herb and vegetable garden, Lucy can't wait either. The small porch still grows some great herbs though.

I think i'll add a time lapse photo beneath this one in a few weeks.

Kreme Delite in Athens, Alabama: Historic 1950s Ice Creamery

2011-03-29T10:28:00.000-05:00

I took these pictures a few months ago and they got lost in my camera for a while until I was downloading pictures today. I grew up in Elkmont, Alabama but when I was very little my paternal grandmother lived in Athens, Alabama directly across the street from the Kreme Delite! She passed away when I was 5, but I have such distinct and fond memories of her holding my hand crossing the street almost every time I came over to go get ice cream.

Kreme Delite is one of the most iconic places in Athens. I believe it opened in the early 1950s. I just love the neon sign. A better image of how awesome this sign is at night can be found on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/54031162@N00/1874556055 You cant' beat the prices here and they have the most amazing classic milkshakes, chili dogs, upside down banana splits (in cups), and soft serve ice cream, cherry cokes.

One of the most interesting things about Kreme Delite is that it still has the segregated water fountains remaining on the side of the building. They were painted to match the building so they kind of blend-in in the picture. They no longer work, and of course the white/colored signs have long been painted over but it is still an interesting reminder of the history that this establishment has lived through. As I was editing this post, I had originally written how much I love the walk up windows instead of having a drive-through lane, and then I started thinking that the double windows is probably also a result of this establishment being built during segregation. I saw one online complaint about how now they have a sign in one of the windows saying "no habla espanol". Last time I was there, I did not see that sign but if they still have it up that makes me sad. You don't speak Spanish...... fine, but do you really need to post that? That is not a good statement to be making in regards of the building's past. Come on people.... it's 2011, learn about the history but don't repeat it!

Regardless of the possible sign, if you are ever in Athens, AL near the square and the beautiful historic courthouse... I urge you to go a few blocks over and try the iconic Kreme Delite at 401 W. Washington Street. I sometimes get irrational cravings for one of their cherry milkshakes and a chili dog all the way with onions and mustard!

Kentucky Derby Bridal Shower...... I have the best friends ever!!!

2011-03-28T20:10:00.001-05:00

This weekend, my friends threw me a fabulous Kentucky Derby Themed Bridal Shower! I cannot express how amazing this party was. I am so grateful I have such supportive, thoughtful, and creative friends. Above is a picture of all the hostesses and gals. I was absolutely blown away by all the creative details that went into decorating and planning this party including all the super cute games we played.

This is me in red standing with the beautiful creative impetus behind this party (Becca). She even made my hat to match my dress! I had no idea what the theme of the party was until I got there. Below are all the pictures of the creative details.

How stunning is this table? All the yummy food presented with beautiful Arthur Court serving ware and an antique silverplate chafing dish with red roses. Fresh Fruit, spinach dip, chicken salad sandwiches, marinated broccoli salad, cream cheese with red pepper jelly and crackers, and chicken bites with sauces.

I was so blown away by the adorable favors: chocolate mint plants in the cutest little terra cotta pots.

The invitation.... no that is not a silhouette dye cut.... Becca hand cut those babies out using cuticle scissors. I am in awe of her skills!

Antique plates: beautiful! If I was not in love with Arthur Court serving pieces before this party I sure am now.

As if this party could not have been better.... there were Gigi's famous cupcakes: Kentucky Bourbon pie, Scarlet's Red Velvet, Champagne, and Wedding Cake. They were so sweet and delicious. This was my second Gigi's experience. I received so many amazing gifts from my friends and we had such a wonderful afternoon that the time completely escaped me and I don't think I left the house until around 6! (Thanks Kelsey!)

Wedding is less than a month away and I am surprisingly very calm and not stressed out, there is no way I could have gotten this far without wonderful friends and family.

Le Creuset Giveaway! Gorgeous New Fennel Color from Bo's Bowl Blog!

2011-03-24T20:22:00.000-05:00

Please go visit Bo's Bowl! It is a really great food blog! I love it! He has the most amazing giveaway right now! Go check it out!
http://www.bos-bowl.com/

De Liso Debs and I. Miller Beautiful Shoes... New Love of Antique/Vintage Shoes

2011-03-22T21:27:00.003-05:00

Another quick picture centric post..... I was tempted to title this post Shoe P0RN but thought that would get the wrong kind of Google hits!!!! :) Today I received a pair of antique shoes I got off eBay and couldn't be more tickled with them for $10! It even included the original box. They are beige suede high heels from 1952 that someone wore in their wedding ceremony (Size 6AA is a modern skinny 5.5). They have the cutest side bow. I intend to wear them to my rehearsal dinner. Also threw up my pair of black rose mesh 1945 heels (6AAA) I got at a hole in the wall in Charleston, S.C. Evidently they had been in this vintage clothing shop for YEARS because nobody could fit into them! The owner saw them actually fit my feet and let me have them for half price! ($30) One good thing about having very tiny feet is you find very interesting shoes!

Now I have a two pairs of antique shoes that I can wear, hopefully my new love won't turn into a full blown collection.... as an archaeologist I think I have bad tendencies to collect things...... I almost got a pristine pair of brown lizard 1942 heels for $6 on eBay but at the very end 4 separate bidders came in and the pair sold for $85. Maybe next time!

I promise next post will be all food and no wedding!!!!

Chocolate Almond Birthday Cake!!

2011-03-22T21:11:00.001-05:00

This is a late post (my birthday was in the beginning of February) but I just wanted to throw up two quick pictures of the delicious and beautiful birthday cake my friend Anna made for my birthday. I am obsessed with all things almond flavored, it runs in my mom's side of the family, so she graciously made me an almond flavored white cake with milk chocolate frosted covered in slivered almonds! Yum!

Speaking of tastes for things running in the family. I think I got my aversion to licorice flavored things (no jager for me) and dislike of coconut from my dad's side of the family.... what interesting food likes/dislikes run in your family?

First Wedding Shower!

2011-03-21T23:27:00.000-05:00

I had my first wedding shower this weekend at the Moulton Baptist Church. The hostesses were so sweet, the decorations were so colorful and cute, got to meet several new people, and we received so many wonderful gifts! Many were new kitchen and entertaining items so I can't wait to show them off in future blog posts! Thanks so much to all the hostesses and guests!

Eggs Benedict Obsession!

2011-03-16T20:58:00.001-05:00

I have collected these pictures of eggs benedict variations for a while. In the past few months I have developed a passionate love for eggs benedict! Crispy English muffins, poached eggs, various meats, maybe some veg and hollandaise sauce! Good creamy buttery lemony greatness. Let's not think about the calorie content, just writing this post makes me feel guilty and want to go jump on the treadmill. They say your taste-buds mature when you get older and I know that is certainly true with stronger flavors such as coffee and asparagus; however, that doesn't explain my taste for eggs lately. I have always liked omelets and scrambled eggs but the world of runny eggs in form of poached, fried, and sunny side up were foreign to me. It seemed too icky and gross I guess. It could have also been a texture thing. Now I love them!!!!! This reminds me of the scene in Julie and Julia where she refers to a poached egg center as tasting like cheese sauce............... I totally see that!! The first three pictures I took myself and the fourth ..........I shamelessly stole from someone else's website "gasp!". I am not gonna poach instructions for how to poach eggs or how to make hollandaise sauce because most good cookbooks give great explanations. Just remember that neither are as hard to make as they are made out to be. Slow, low temperature for both, and patience. Powdered hollandaise sauce mix is good in a pinch but doesn't hold a candle to the real thing in my opinion.

I thought I would throw out some great eggs benedict flavor combos that I love. Also if you have the motivation to make them (real hollandaise or mix), it makes a killer impression on the house guests.

Eggs Benedict with Conecuh Sausage and Fresh Spinach (made lovingly by my fiance's family)

Eggs Benedict with Lobster Cakes (Walmart kind... not homemade) and Asparagus (my experiment... it was great!)

This is from Cantina Loredo, a latin america restaurant in Huntsville. It is a Sunday Brunch Special with Bloody Maria (tequila not vodka) or Mimosa Crab Cakes with a spicy take on hollandaise sauce. I can't wait to go back here. Also served with pan fried potatoes, fresh fruit with a sweet glaze (agave syrup?) and a sweet honey roll.

My favorite eggs benedict of all time! I'm so sorry to hollyeats.com..... I promise when I get enough money to go back to Brennan's in New Orleans I will take my own picture to replace! :) Eggs Hussarde from Brennan's in New Orleans, LA. I really wish I could replicate the Marchand de vin sauce they use in addition to hollandaise.... it is amazing!

Basically this is my plea to you, if you think runny eggs and/or hollandaise sauce icks you out.... be brave and give it a go just once.... you might fall in love!!

Healthy Ground Turkey Black Bean Nachos

2011-03-15T21:10:00.000-05:00

My go to dinner and a movie meal is nachos or pizza. Trying to eat healthier and this is what I came up with for a great nacho recipe. There is not very much to this entry, but it was fairly healthy, tasty, and very colorful!!!!!! Very easy to make and it is good for a crowd.

Ingredients:
ground turkey meat browned with taco seasoning
1 can refried black beans
3 chopped up and seeded roma tomatoes
1 ripe avocado pitted, skinned and diced
3 stems green onions sliced
1/2 cup to 1 cup of your favorite cheese mix, I used mexican four cheese
tortilla chips

Spread chips out on a lined cookie sheet, top with meat, beans, and cheese. Bake at 350 until the cheese melts (about 15 minutes) and add the rest of your ingredients. Serve!

Blog Update and Estate Sale Find of the Week: Royal 10 Beveled Glass 1920 typewriter

2011-03-13T16:25:00.000-05:00

Wow, I can't believe I haven't blogged in over 3 months! Wedding planning is crazy stressful, I had no idea. And on top of that, my mother has done most of it and I am still a complete stress basket. I can't image what this would be like by myself. Crazy! Finally getting to the calm before the storm and have some free time. That means back to the blogging world, back to thesis work, and also thinking of opening my own Etsy.com store. I have still been cooking and stockpiling recipes and pictures as well as awesome estate finds so in the next few days I am going to be posting like crazy before it starts getting really stressful again!

Here we go with the first new estate sale find of the week for me: A 1920's beveled glass sided 36 pound hoss of a typewriter. Got this baby for $17 and love it. I already installed a replacement ribbon for it.

Not the best picture...It is a royal 10. Mine is obviously not in top notch condition. I looked online and there are two recommended antique typewriter repair shops in the US..... one is 1 hour down the road from me in Birmingham so I may take it sometime this week. Here is an example of a completely restored one... quite fantastic with the beveled glass side panels, so fun to watch the inner workings. This one was sooooo dirty when we got it, took it outside with an office duster can for about 30 minutes to clean all the intricate workings.

http://mytypewriter.com/royalno10withsingleglasspanelc1920s.aspx Listed at $1,125.

Before close-up shot of keys

Keys after a good scrubbing

Right now this baby is sitting on my bookshelf but when my fiancé gets a law office.... I think it would be great art as well as functional if I can fix it up completely.

Lucky Duck Wine (Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Shiraz, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc) from Walmart: Super Cheap and Surprisingly Delicious! Must Try!

2010-11-13T17:33:00.000-06:00

Recently I have discovered a new brand of wine Walmart is carrying (owns?). The bottles are going for $3.97 right now and are surprisingly delicious! Had to share my find with you. If you love good wine but are on a budget this brand is for you. They have very cute labels and accurate taste descriptions. From my local store, there are 5 Lucy Duck wines available: 3 reds and 2 whites and are from Chile, Argentina, and Australia. I also love the fact that the two wines from Australia have an upside down duck! It's too cute. I have tried them all but my favorites are the Malbec and Sauvignon Blanc. Let me know if you try these and what you think of them! I have also been told there is a Tempranillo.

Here are the descriptions on the back of the bottles. I think they are very accurate, in fact some of them are so fruity that it makes me think they may have added those flavors. If true that would horrify most true wine lovers but these are delicious.

Reds:
1. Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile: rich cherry and fruity blackberry notes. Enjoy lucky duck alone or paired with red meats or pastas.
2. Malbec from Argentina: deep aromas of blueberries and chocolate. Enjoy lucky duck alone or paired with grilled meats, vegetables, or sharp cheeses.
3. Shiraz from South Eastern Australia: deep aromas of blackberries and vanilla. Enjoy lucky duck alone or paired with your favorite grilled meats or vegetables.

Whites:
1. Chardonnay from South Eastern Australia: sweet aromas of apple and pear. Enjoy lucky duck alone or paired with your favorite fresh seafood or salad.
2. Sauvignon Blanc from Chile: bright citrus aromas with a crisp, vibrant taste. Enjoy lucky duck alone or paired with fresh seafood, chicken or salad.

Halloween 2010 Potion Punch and Decorations

2010-11-04T00:29:00.000-05:00

Hello! I haven't written in a very long time on my blog. I have been neglecting it! I thought I would quickly throw up a few pictures of my food and decorations I had for my Halloween party this year. In my next post I will post pictures from my Hogwarts Halloween party last year, it was a trial run and this year's party was much bigger. This year's party was Hogwarts inspired and also had a lot of skull decorations... being an archaeologist it is my preferred theme of Halloween to decorate with. Once this party got started I completely forgot to use my camera enough so there are not a lot of pictures of the food and I could kick myself for not taking enough pictures of my guests. Some of the food that was at party but not pictured: ritz cracker cookies, pumpkin cheesecake bars, ghost meringue cookies, chocolate chip cheese ball with pretzels, caramel corn, and chips and dip.

Potion Punch: 2-2liter bottles of ginger ale, 1 large can of pineapple juice, 2 gallons slightly melted lime sherbert. This punch is delicious, have heard it called Methodist Punch, Southern Punch and Funeral Punch. I just love the bite it has to it and how it froths up which makes it perfect for Halloween! We were calling it Pensive Punch. We made the punch non-alcoholic but you could easily add a few cups of vodka or pineapple rum.

View of the tablescape with some of the snacks, the breadsticks coming out of the glass cups were inspired from Martha Stewart's witches finger pretzels. I was strapped for time so I just used cut up crescent dough and tried to scrunch it up to look like fingers, then you take a whole blanched almond and place it on the end and with a small paintbrush you paint it with red food coloring! The visual effect was great but I had trouble keeping the almonds on... that's what I get for messing with Martha's recipes.

View of table before I put the other half of the food on... then I forgot to take another picture!!! :(

We have several silly potion bottles labeled with Harry Potter Potion labels.. more pictures to come and also some crystal head vodka! My stepdad was sweet enough to stand in line at the base and got Dan Aykroyd to sign a bottle for us when he was traveling around and promoting his new vodka brand!!! Red bottle at the end is the firewhiskey (Jack Daniels with half a box of red hots dissolved into it... takes about a week, super tasty stuff!!!)

Comfort Food Hybrid: Southern Cornbread Dressing, Pork Chops with English Mustard Cream Sauce, and Mustard Greens

2010-09-16T20:49:00.001-05:00

I know this seems like such a weird combination, but it is sooooo tasty! To me this is comfort food. The Southern cornbread dressing is based off of my Paternal grandmother's (born in Mississippi) recipe that I had every Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter growing up. Hers always had a strong celery taste, was very moist, and had no meat. For those of you not familiar with Southern Dressing, it is basically a very moist twice baked cornbread pudding that is never stuffed inside a bird. Paula Deen's recipe for dressing is also very good, but to me this one is better. My Maternal grandmother was born in Tennessee, but her dressing uses dried Pepperidge Farm cornbread and herb seasoned white stuffing mixes. Still tasty to me, but the other one is my favorite. The mustard sauce is based off of sauces I tasted in English pubs that were served with boiled veggies and pork roasts. It is also based off of a recipe I tasted at the Chophouse in Knoxville Tennessee, it was pork chops over stuffing with mustard sauce. Mustard greens were a request by my fiancé. I must admit that it is almost blasphemous that as a Southern Gal, I am not the biggest fan of greens (Collard, Turnip, and Mustard), though since my sweetie is..... I kindly make them. He says they are awesome so I will just have to take his word for on this one. I eat them because I know they are good for me, but I don't particularly enjoy them and never get a craving for them.

SOUTHERN CORNBREAD DRESSING

2 cornbread pans (I used white lily self rising white cornbread and made the way the back suggested with buttermilk, I don't add sugar though), Crumble up the cooked and cooled cornbread

2 yellow onions, chopped small

1/2 package celery, chopped small

4 cups or more (1 Swanson carton) of chicken broth

1 tsp. or more of poultry seasoning

3 eggs beaten

1/2 stick butter

I admit that usually when I make this I just go by sight and smell for how much chicken broth and seasoning I use. I tried to measure what I used this time but adjust it as you need. The trick is to get the crumbled cornbread and veg mixture to a very moist consistency but not soupy. I aim for a cooked cheesy grit quality if that makes sense. Cook and cool your two cornbread pans and crumble up the cornbread in a very large bowl. In the meantime, sauté the onions and celery with the butter in a medium to large sauté pan until they are very tender but not caramelizing, this part took me about 15 minutes. Stir constantly. Combine cornbread, cooled onions/celery, chicken stock, and three beaten eggs together until combined. Butter large glass Pyrex casserole dish. Spread mixture evenly into it and pat down the top. Bake at 350* for 1 hour or until golden brown and set up. I'm sure you see tons of different recipes online for this and they may have much better instructions than mine. This is just one of those things that I was taught to make and never really thought about how I made it. This freezes and keeps well.

PORK CHOPS WITH ENGLISH MUSTARD CREAM SAUCE

1 package thin pork chops or boneless pork cutlets

2 cups heavy whipping cream (use fat free if you can find it)

1 heaping tablespoon powdered mustard (English or Canadian)

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon flour

1 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1 teaspoon Cavenders Greek seasoning

Juice of 1 lemon

1/4 cup chopped green onion (5-6)

salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Use Cavender's or salt and pepper liberally the pork on both sides, sauté each side for several minutes until you have cooked the pork through all the way, set aside and let it rest. Make the mustard sauce by starting off melting butter in a small sauce pan. Add the flour and make a roux stirring constantly for a few minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and let it come to a simmer, whisking constantly to completely combine. Taste test and see if you think it needs more sugar, salt or pepper. Serve over the pork. If you don't eat pork, this would taste equally good poured over grilled chicken.

MUSTARD GREENS

1 large bag washed mustard greens, I use glory brand just because I don't like the washing and chopping of the greens

3 strips bacon

1 onion

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1 tsp sugar

2 cups water

salt and pepper to taste

Like I said, I am soooo not the best authority on Southern greens but my fiancé loves the way I fix them so here goes.... Stir fry the bacon and onion together until the bacon is cooked through and the onions are translucent, all the rest of the ingredients except the vinegar and cook for 20 minutes with the lid on stirring every now and then. Some people like to eat them just barely wilted and other like to cook for a VERY LONG TIME! You will be surprised how quickly they cook down if you have never made them yourself. Something that starts off as 20 cups worth of greens ends up being like 6 cups worth. If you feel you are a Southern greens aficionado I welcome your recipes and critiques of my version! My fiancé would be very happy if I had new recipes to try!

Making this meal reminded me of one of my favorite dinner parties that I threw was in undergrad. It was for four of my fiancé's Japanese exchange friends. They had never had southern food before and never even heard of the items. It was sooo much fun to tell them about each dish and how that is our comfort food. I don't remember everything I had made, but I know there was pork chops and biscuits, greens, beans, and jiffy sweet yellow cornbread. Even though I know jiffy isn't technically southern, it ended up being their favorite item because they said it was like dessert! All of them said they were buying several of the boxes to take home to their families in Japan. Still can't believe that stuff is like $.33 a box!

Spicy Cajun Crawfish Pasta Alfredo

2010-09-16T19:33:00.002-05:00

This is a very quick dish that satisfies my spicy crawfish craving. I have made this less spicy before but this time I really wanted it spicy so I put in extra cayenne from what I listed in the recipe. I buy the precooked crawfish tail meat package so I have much less mess and trouble to deal with. This is usually found in the frozen seafood section, I buy Boudreaux's brand. This recipe is so simple and takes less than 20 minutes.

SPICY CAJUN CRAWFISH PASTA ALFREDO

1 box of your favorite pasta
1 lb. crawfish tail meat thawed
1 package baby portabello mushrooms, sliced
1/2 bunch sliced green onions
1 jar Classico sun dried tomato alfredo sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon of your favorite cajun seasoning (I made my own mix with some salt, pepper, cayenne, paprika, parsley, garlic and I added some dill to this recipe, but put in what spices you like as long as it includes cayenne pepper and black pepper)

Cook and drain the pasta. While the pasta is cooking, quickly sauté the mushrooms in a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the sauce, seasonings, onions, and meat until the crawfish tails are completely heated through, be careful not to boil, just keep it at a simmer. Mix together and serve. Very simple, spicy, and delicious! You could do this with shrimp instead or go meatless.

Crimson Tide Asian Ribs: University of Alabama Football Themed Tailgate Food

2010-09-12T17:33:00.000-05:00

For the Alabama vs. Penn St. game I wanted to do something Alabama themed in color. We didn't have tickets to the game, so we stayed home and watched it on espn. Though I must say that in Tuscaloosa, espn went black about 2 minutes before kickoff and didn't come back on for about 10 minutes, very frustrating. Thank goodness I was told how to bring up espn3 online! I went with traditional tailgate fare... ribs, but used a pack of Chinese barbecue seasoning, the type you find on skewered chicken and pork ribs in Chinese restaurants. It was so delicious! Definitely turned out the correct color of crimson and they were absolutely delicious and perfectly juicy! I had always wondered how they made those in the restaurants, turns out it involves pure sugar, red food dye, and Chinese spices. Bought the seasoning pack, made in Hawaii, at the army commissary, but I have seen it in Asian groceries before. Mixed it with 1/4 cup water and let the ribs marinate overnight and baked them for 1 and 1/2 hours. This was a trial run but I will have to make these again for game day celebrations.

Wine Cork Bulletin Board Project

2010-08-22T19:35:00.000-05:00

I haven't written in a while so I thought I would put up pictures of the art project I made today. My mom and I collect interesting wood picture frames at yard sales particularly with bad images on them so that we can use the awesome frames in other projects. I have been collecting wine corks for a while now and my future father-in-law gave me a big bag of them too so I thought I would try to make a few cork bulletin boards. Really easy to make. Use frames with a hard board... in this case all these frames had an image that was printed on a hard surface instead of covered by glass or canvas. Spray paint the entire thing with flat paint of your choice. I chose black. Then use wood glue to attach corks on the board in a checkerboard pattern. I had to cut a few corks in half lengthwise or heightwise to make them all fit since corks can vary in size. I recommend weighting the corks down with a brick or something heavy while the glue is drying. Use push pins to hang up mail, menus etc.

Note: I really like the way the one with the champagne corks is looking but I have to collect a few more corks before I can finish that one!

This is what the two smaller frames looked like before they got painted. The two smaller frames were a dollar for both and the larger frame was three dollars. I think all of them are probably from the 1940's........ ish.

Amaretto Tiramisu with Dark Chocolate Swirls

2010-08-06T13:46:00.000-05:00

This is such a great dessert to make for a dinner party. Really easy once you learn the steps the first time and it is sure to wow. No bake, just make ahead at least 2 hours. Try variations on this to suite your taste, add sliced strawberries in a layer, replace amaretto with hazlenut liqueur or godiva chocolate liqueur, or add candied orange peel. Hope you enjoy!

AMARETTO TIRAMISU

6 egg yolks

3-4 tblsp sugar (depends on how sweet your lady fingers are)

2 packages marscapone cheese (1 lb.)

2 cups strong espresso cooled

2 shots Disaronno Amaretto

1 package lady finger cookies (I prefer Alessi brand in the breadstick section of grocery stores, not cookie section, usually comes 24 cookies to a pack)

1 tsp. cocoa powder

1 dark chocolate bar

ln a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer or stand mixer with whisk attachment, beat egg yolks and sugar until thick and color changes from a bright lemon yellow to a very pale yellow, about 5 minutes. Next, add mascarpone cheese and beat until smooth. Add 1 tablespoon of espresso and 1 tsp. of amaretto and mix until thoroughly combined. This cream is traditionally known as zabaglione cream that is used in many Italian desserts usually used with marsala instead of espresso. Delicious stuff!

In a small shallow dish, add remaining espresso and amaretto. Dip each ladyfinger into espresso for only 5 seconds. Letting the ladyfingers soak too long will cause them to fall apart. Place the soaked ladyfinger on the bottom of a 13 by 9 inch baking dish, I used a pie pan. I can't wait to get standard baking dishes for my wedding! If you need to, break the cookies in half if necessary in order to fit the bottom properly.

Spread evenly 1/2 of the mascarpone mixture over the ladyfingers. Arrange another layer of soaked ladyfingers and top with remaining mascarpone mixture.

Finally, cover thetiramisu with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 8 hours.

Before serving,shake cocoa powder over the top using a screen and sprinkle with chocolate shavings. To make chocolate shavings, take the dark chocolate bar and turn it over on it's side. Use a vegetable peeler and in single long motions peel top layer off until the bar is used up.

Enjoy!

Spicy Shrimp and Cheesy Grits: Comfort Food

2010-07-21T22:15:00.003-05:00

I LOVE this recipe!!!! Great summer southern food too! Very easy and quick to make despite the long ingredient list. I think I made this tonight in less than 20 minutes. It will take 30 at most! Servings: 4 normal or 2 happy servings! Above is a happy serving!

SPICY SHRIMP AND CHEESY GRITS

Shrimp:

1 lb de-shelled and deveined medium sized shrimp (RIP Alabama Gulf Shrimp)

4 slices of good bacon cut up into 1/2 inch strips

4 roma tomatoes de-seeded and cup up

4 stalks sliced green onions

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1 tsp. olive oil

1/4-1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper depending on your spice tastes

1/4-1/2 tsp of paprika

salt and pepper to taste

In a skillet, saute bacon strips with the olive oil (to get the process going) until slightly browned, remove and place on paper towel to drain. Drain most bacon grease leaving 2 tablespoons left in the pan. Add remaining ingredients and saute for 4 minutes. Remove from heat immediately or the shrimp will over cook and not be tender and have that crisp crunch when you bite into them. Add bacon pieces back in mixture.

Variation: Use 1/2 pound shrimp, 1/2 pound peeled crawfish tail meat, and at the end stir in a few tablespoons of heavy whipping cream!

Cheesy Grits:

2 cups milk

1 cup water

1 cup Quick Grits (not instant or regular... quick grits cook in 5 minutes though I let mine sit awhile to firm up)

1/2 packet of ham flavoring

3/4 cup of shredded sharp cheddar

1/4 cup of shredded parmesean

1/2 tsp of garlic powder

Mix milk, water, flavoring, and garlic powder in a medium saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil, slowly stir in grits and turn the heat down to medium low. Constantly stir for five minutes (might want to wear long sleeves, sometimes grits can pop up and burn when the mixture starts to thicken) and remove from heat. Add cheese and stir thoroughly. Let sit off the heat for another 5 minutes to firm up. This will create very firm almost polenta textured grits but very flavorful and creamy! Not the runny oily grits you get at diners and breakfast hubs across the south.

Serve layered in a bowl with a spoon!

Mustardy Chicken Salad in Pita Pockets

2010-07-21T21:58:00.000-05:00

MUSTARDY CHICKEN SALAD IN PITA POCKETS
(Tastes amazing! Photo doesn't do it justice)
4 small boneless skinless chicken breasts cooked and shredded (I boiled mine for an hour with some onion, carrot, celery, and bouquet garni herbs I had: rosemary, basil, parsley, thyme, tarragon)
2 tender celery stalks chopped finely
2 stalks green onion chopped finely
1/2 cup light mayonnaise
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon stone ground whole grain mustard
salt and pepper to taste

Trying to think of good brain food to feed my fiancé this week. He takes the bar exam next week!

Craft Project: Antiquing wooden Crates (Lavender) for Environmentally Friendly Wedding Send Off

2010-07-20T13:20:00.011-05:00

This is another wedding post! Next post will be a food post with my shrimp and grits recipe. I have known for a while now that at my wedding I want the send off to be guests throwing lavender buds at us. Not bird seed, rice, bubbles, or sparklers. Here is an example of a Martha Stewart idea to put individual portions of lavender in. I thought this looked very Victorian looking.

To hold them in, my mom came up with the great idea of finding an antique lavender storage crate to put them in by the door. No such luck in finding one, so I decided to make one myself. I don't even know if they ever shipped Lavender in containers like this, probably not but I think that it looks amazing! I used my real antique Scotch-Whiskey wooden crates I am using as bookshelves for inspiration.

This project turned out so much better than I thought! I am so happy with the results. I must say... I think I got the color spot on too! Went to Michael's craft store and bought a wooden crate using a 40% off coupon and bought stencil letters. Also bought a small can of wood stain at Home Depot.
Pine Wooden Crate: $5.99
Nueva Stencils: $5.49
Wood Stain: $4.45 Color: Early American
Total w/o Tax: $15.93

To Make this crate look antique, I first beat up the corners with a screwdriver, a pair of scissors, and a hammer to create small indentions for the wood stain to pool in to make darker spots. Then on the sides I used scissors to make a few small scrapes and dots to do the same thing. Then I applied the wood stain with a small brush. This part took about an hour. I let it dry over night outside, the wood stain has quite strong fumes so only do this in a well ventilated space! Then I researched what logo I wanted to use. The Norfolk Lavender Trading Company has been in operation in England since 1932. I really want to visit this place!!!! Click here to see picturs! http://www.norfolk-lavender.co.uk/ I used their address and copied one of their old logos and put it on the box. I just used a sharpie to trace the letters and draw the logo though it had been recommended to use acrylic paint or india ink. I went the fast- less messy route.

I think it looks pretty real!!! What do you think?
Below is it's new location for the next year! I think it blends in very well!!!

Update: So my idea for using the one crate for holding the lavender has now expanded! I have decided to make 12 more, one for each of our bridesmaids and groomsmen and have them personalized with part of their name and something that relates to one of their favorite food or drinks. They will be used as part of the wedding decorations and then they can take them home as part of their bridesmaid/groomsmen present. : ) Some near the bar holding the wine, some incorporated into food/cheese displays to add height, one to hold programs, etc.

Moncure

Espy

French Emblem

Karl

Rehearsal Dinner Dress plus Decoupage Suitcases

2010-07-07T14:18:00.004-05:00

Non-food post! Even though my rehearsal dinner is almost a year away, I am already planning what I would like to wear. Though I don't quite fit into this dress yet, this is my weight loss goal. I fit into it 3 years ago. This is my grandmother's prom dress from either 1948-1951... not quite sure which year. It is a gorgeous strapless ivory tulle with glass and silver beading. I bought an estate sale purse a few weeks ago that matches it perfectly. Though this is a very formal gown, I plan to shorten it to a cocktail length to wear. I may change my mind but I think this dress is just gorgeous and I would feel like a princess in it! What you can't see around the top line is that there is an underlayer of fluff that peaks over the bodice line. The picture doesn't do it justice and it is in almost perfect condition. I had even considered wearing it as a wedding dress once upon a time. Click on the picture to see a closeup. Didn't try very hard, but my quick peak at it the other day I found no dress label on it. She doesn't remember whether she bought this one or had this one made. She has a turquoise and a pink one that were made for her.

How much of a girly girl am I???? My tool box is a decoupaged makeup case from the 1950's covered in Victorian Scrap! My tools..... are mostly colored pink! Had to share the pictures while I had it out. It matches another suitcase I decoupaged that houses my photos.

This uses matte finish Mod Podge. I wrapped the handles in grosgrain blue ribbon soaked in Mod Podge.

Sun Drop Punch

2010-07-07T14:03:00.000-05:00

Sun Drop Punch: We used this punch for our Alice in Wonderland Bridal Tea Party. Very Simple and Delicious Punch! Great for Weddings, Tea Parties, Office Parties! I grew up drinking Sun Drop instead of Sweet Tea in Limestone County. It is a citrus tasting drink similar but much better in my opinion than Mountain Dew. My high school, Elkmont (K-12), even had Sun Drop drink machines. If you are not familiar, Sun Drop was created in 1949 and is the dominant drink in small pockets around the country. It is highly caffeinated at 5.25 mg of caffeine per ounce compared to 4.58 of Mountain Dew. It comes in regular, diet, and cherry limeade (which is hard to find in Tuscaloosa!).

SUNDROP PUNCH (Citrus Punch)

1 large can pineapple juice
1-2 liter bottle of Sundrop (I used diet)
1 small can frozen lemonade

Punch in background... I forgot to take a closeup when we just had it made so I promise it makes more than this picture shows.

Alice in Wonderland Mad Hatter Bridal Tea Party: Food Pics

2010-07-05T00:40:00.001-05:00

Alice in Wonderland Mad Hatter Bridal Tea Party Entry 2: Food Pics! The next entry when I have more time will have some of the recipes! I hope you enjoy these pictures! My mom and I have so much fun cooking!

Tablescape

Purple M&Ms (Bride's color) and Black Cherries

Bacon Crackers

Petit Fours

Cheese Straws

Chocolate Meringue Mushrooms

Dessert plate with "Eat Me" Sugar cookies, chocolate pound cake bundt bites, macaroons, petit four, and a strawberry!

Tea Fare: Chicken Salad on a baby lettuce mix, a cucumber tea sandwich, a sweet zucchini bread cream cheese tea sandwich, crudite, cheese straws, bacon cracker, ham and cheese pinwheel, gourmet crackers! So delicious!!!!!!

Closeup of the macaroons!

Lemon Water container with our Bee Glasses and awesome Pink Flamingo Straws!

Being silly sipping on Sun Drop Punch!

Water and Pineapple Sun Drop Punch!

Recipes in next post soon!

Alice in Wonderland Mad Hatter Bridal Tea Party: Tablescape

2010-07-05T00:18:00.001-05:00

My mom and I threw an amazing themed Bridal Tea Party for our friend Mary Elizabeth. My mom was the creator on this one and I was the co-creator and sous-chef. Standard English tea parties are wonderful but make it a Lewis Carroll themed Alice in Wonderland Mad Hatter style English tea party and it is more than twice the fun! This entry will contain many of the pictures of the tablescape and other decorations. The next entry will contain recipes and food pictures. Click on the images to make them larger. If you are in the Northern Alabama area and are interested in having 'this' tea party contact me.... my mom is getting into event planning for teas, showers, and birthdays!!!!! Very fun! I'm going to add more pictures to this post when I have time... just wanted to throw a few up now!

Miniature Cloche with Mushroom Display

Tea Tablescape using assorted teacups, mercury glass, fresh red roses and paper red roses, pocket watches, Alice in Wonderland playing cards, red table runner, burlap tablecloth, gold chargers, and red napkins.

Cast Iron White Rabbit..... "I'm late I'm late I'm late!"

Painting the roses red!

Beautiful Bound copy of Lewis Carroll's works including all the original illustrations.

Outside of Alice playing cards, each card had a different Tenniel drawing from the original Alice in Wonderland and a quote from the book.

Tea stained Drink Me Tags

Outside sign and display with croquet set, hedgehog and pink flamingoes! So cute!

"I want some tea too..... or maybe I mean those bacon crackers!!!!!"

Twilight Paintings.... Post in Honor of Eclipse Release

2010-06-29T21:29:00.000-05:00

Non-food post! In appreciation of the Eclipse release today I thought I would throw this post up. This is a set of the four Twilight Book Covers that I painted and gave to a very sweet Gal that watches mine and my mom's pups when we are out of town. They are not awesome..... but I am quite proud! Most proud of the one with the hands. These are small flat canvases. The last one is one I painted at Sips and Strokes and gave to my bestie Maiben!

Kitchen Stamp Giveaway Winner!

2010-06-29T10:25:00.000-05:00

Yay! It is time to giveaway the awesome kitchen stamp kit.

The winner is.......... Comment number 4 which is ANNA M! Congratulations! I used the random number generator at random.org and once again it would not copy over correctly displaying odds as number 4 out of 100. I hope you get to enjoy this kit!

Chilton County Peaches and Gulf Shores Bachelorette (and Les Roux, Foley AL)!

2010-06-28T12:28:00.000-05:00

Just got back from Becca's Bachelorette Bash in Foley/Gulf Shores AL. It was so much fun! The cookies were well received! : ) Chilton County Peaches: On the way to the beach we took 82 so that we could go through Chilton County and get some peaches to put on the waffles I was making for Saturday morning. There are 6 peach stands in a row on that row and we stopped at Paw Paw's Peaches. They are $8 for a large basket and they said they are the biggest and best tasting since 1994. Unfortunantly the peaches weren't ripe until the last day of the trip, but they were delicious! Still have several left... I see some peach ice cream and some peach pancakes coming my way!

I forgot to take a picture but I have a mickey mouse waffle maker and a Cinderella waffle maker and I made waffles for the girls! Love them! I got mine at Tuesday Morning a few years ago on super sale but you can find them online. The cinderella's are twice as big as the mickeys.

Taylor made us some homemade Bloody Mary's with Dill Pickled Okra and Pickled Baby Green Tomatoes! Delicious! She made this trip possible!

On the way back home, we stopped by a really cute cajun restaurant in Foley, AL called Les Roux. They had a great Sunday Brunch going on and I had to order their Eggs Benedict with spicy grits. Very tasty. If you don't want a traditional Island Waffle Beach fare or Cracker Barrel for breakfast, I highly recommend this place! Very fast service, friendly staff..... just wished they hadn't sat the table full of almost deaf octogenarians yelling about their their intestinal problems to each other next to us!!!! They didn't respond to my "hello there are other people sitting around you stare"- Ewww!

Click the Picture to enlarge. Visit their website: http://www.lesroux.net/index.asp

Bachelorette and Lingerie Party Corset Sugar Cookies!

2010-06-24T09:33:00.003-05:00

I am headed to a bachelorette party this weekend at the beach and this is my contribution! Classic rolled sugar cookies with royal icing. I think they turned out very cute! I baked some other more risqué and hilarious cookies but thought that the blog was not a good place to show them off. : )

I wrapped them up individually in treat bags and I think they look almost professional. Used a Wilton featherweight icing bag with coupler and two tips to do these. My first attempt at actually trying to ice something fancy! I am so proud!

New Kitchen Toy! Wavy Edged Garnishing Knife

2010-06-22T18:36:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to share my fun new toy. Our local Thai restaurant uses garnishing knives on most of the veggies to make them extra pretty and I wanted to try one. This one works very well and I got it at TJ Maxx for $3.99. An added bonus of this knife is that when you brown veggies in the skillet it makes them look like they were grilled. Our apartment complex doesn't allow outside grills so I am loving this!

Engagement Party! Wine and Cheese: "He Popped the Question" Invitation, Food Pics, and Friends

2010-06-19T13:01:00.000-05:00

Our engagement party: What a great looking crew! We forgot to take a group picture until much later in the night so this picture is missing a few people. :( Delicious food, tasty wine and beer, lots of friends, and cute cuddly puppies..... perfect night!

How cute is this invitation that my friend Anna made??!! The champagne cork at the top was cut out of thin cork board

I'm sticking the party pics into this post and some of the recipes in the next post later today. So much fun! We feel so loved by our friends! Everybody brought a bottle of wine or fun beers and some of the girls made awesome treats! I didn't get enough pictures as I feel several pictures are missing.

Some of the food: my blue cheese crackers up front, bacon/almond/parsley stuffed baked brie in puffed pastry, sausage stuffed jalapeno poppers, cocktail sausages, fruit pizza, baked bacon cheese crackers.

Becca's Heath Bar and Chocolate Cake with Coffee Trifle

My Blue Cheese Crackers: Used Ina Garten's Recipe.... turned out more like Blue Cheese Cookies than Crackers and also made my apartment smell like Blue Cheese for 24 hours. They were delicious; however, I really don't know if I will make them again anytime soon. Super stinky!

So pretty! Tiffany's Sugar cookie crust with cream cheese icing, fresh fruit, and a jello sauce! Yummy!

Becca's Bacon Crackers: So delicious, they were gone quick!

Kelsey's Spicy Sausage Jalapeno Poppers: So spicy and yummy!

Anna's (other Anna) Awesome Stuffed Baked Brie

Closeup of all the yummy goodness stuffed in the brie

Do we look like our pets?????? Hahaha! I think we do in a way! Kelsey, Me and Becca with Lily Belle, Lucy Lynn, and Kaiser Bonecrusher. I just have to share...Kaiser's brother's name is Zeus Soulcrusher, how cute are those names!!!!

Estate Sale Finds of the Day

2010-06-18T14:57:00.001-05:00

Tuscaloosa Estate Sale: 1 silver plated cracker tray($2) , 1 silver and clear glass beaded clutch bag ($4), 1 abalone-esque button necklace ($2)

Before Cleaning

After Cleaning

Tonight our friends are throwing us a wine and cheese engagement party! Even though I am we are not required to bring anything since we are the guests of honor, I really want to make Ina Garten's Blue Cheese and Walnut round crackers. I will have to put them in this newly acquired cracker tray! Stay tuned for pictures of the party!

Fish Tacos with Spicy Dill Slaw

2010-06-17T19:26:00.000-05:00

Nothing like a great summer dinner of fish tacos. I have done them several different ways but I had all the ingredients to make them this way today. Really simple, really tasty!

FISH TACOS WITH SPICY DILL SLAW for 2

2 tilapia fillets cut in half
8 small corn tortillas
1/4 head of green cabbage shredded
3 tablespoons light mayonnaise
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
1/2 tsp dill
1 and 1/2 tsp Cholula Mexican spice rub
fresh lime juice
sliced avocado and/or tomatoes

Combine tilapia with 1 tsp of the Cholula and cook until done. Squeeze fresh lime juice over the fish. I used a George Forman Grill for 4 min. Combine the rest of the spices and the mayo together and then add the cabbage to make a slaw. When I plate these up I used two corn tortillas per taco so that they stay together better. Add slices of avocado and/or tomato when plating.

DON'T FORGET TO COMMENT ON THE POST BELOW TO ENTER MY GIVEAWAY!

Giveaway! Personalize Your Life Gift Set for the Cook! Changeable Self-Inking Stamp Set from Three Designing Women!

2010-06-16T13:27:00.001-05:00

I'm so excited to present this giveaway to all my readers! Not too long ago I commented on a blog's giveaway to try to win a set of stamps from this cool company. I didn't win the giveaway but one of the designing women read my comment and saw my blog and really liked it. So I was sent a stamp with two changeable personalized stamps to use in my wedding stationary. I am going to use it on my Save the Date Invitations when I send them out toward the end of the summer.

I was also sent a really nice box set of stamps to giveaway on my own blog! This set is specifically for the cook and is valued at around $30. It comes with 1 self-inking stamper, 6 changeables stamp designs, 1 black ink cartridge, 12 stampables stickers, 12 stampables recipe cards and 6 stampable gift tags!!!!!!!!

Here is the company's website so that you can look at their other stamps, embossers, and stampables: http://www.threedesigningwomen.com/ProductCart/pc/viewcontent.asp?idpage=4 Note that this company does not sell directly to the public but sells to stores. They have stamp sets like the one above but they specialize in personalized stamps with Names and addresses etc. If you have need of one of these, I highly recommend them. Go to expressionery.com and you can order from their site. You can also use the three designing women's site to search for local stores in your area that carry their line.

I saw this ad in a Real Simple magazine recently:

Also, I saw this great display for the stamps in a store in Hartselle, AL:

To enter this giveaway contest: Make sure you are signed up on my blog as a follower (click the follow button above the list of my followers) and leave a comment on this post about what your favorite homemade food item is to giveaway to people as presents. I have two I like to giveaway to people: Southern Spicy Cheese Straws, Almond Christmas Tree Cookies (family tradition) made in a cookie press, and my new adventure for Christmas presents this year will be homemade Limoncello. I have picked this for comments because this stamp set is perfect to use for stamping recipe cards to give to friends or to stamp paper tags to put on baked goods to sell or giveaway.

Here is one of the two stamps I received! So pretty!

Wedding Plans Update: Mercury Glass Decorations for Reception

2010-06-12T19:35:00.001-05:00

Here is another post about my wedding plans. Sorry if I am boring the food lovers. As you can tell by my blog, I LOVE antiques!!! So it only seems natural to make several aspects of my wedding look antiqued! : ) I really love mercury glass, but of course collecting vintage mercury glass is waaaaaay too expensive for me. I have read several wedding blogs that have used mercury glass in their decorations and many people say they rent different mercury glass votives and candle sticks from rental places, florists or wedding planners. I looked into this and to rent each piece it can be anywhere from 2-15 dollars! Outrageous! So my mother and I have been on a several week quest to find affordable new mercury glass looking pieces to use. I wanted to get a few of different types so it looks like a smörgåsbord of different candles. So far we have found 11 different affordable types and got a few of each. They range from costing 50 cents to $12.99. Any we found over that we didn't buy. Sources: TJ Maxx, Marshall's, Pier One, Old Time Pottery and Big Lots (had the most).The great thing about these is that we are splitting them in half after the wedding to use as our Christmas decorations. The vase on the back row far right is a silver plated mint julep cup. I wanted to use them for holding the bridesmaid's bouquets and to use them as some centerpieces. Other centerpieces will be placed in old silver plated teapots and champagne buckets. Note to family members reading the blog: if you have old silver plated teapots and champagne buckets I would love to borrow them for a day next April!!! : ) To rent mint julep cups it cost around $8 a piece, to buy six of them at Tuesday Morning they were $9 a piece, I think I did the right thing. Now I can't wait to make real mint juleps in mint julep cups!! I need to remember to register for a muddler to crush the mint leaves.

Saw this beauty in front of a cafe yesterday. He was huge!!!!

Was given this gorgeous Victorian rose plate by my friend Kathryn yesterday. I can't wait to get out of this one bedroom condo and move into a real house where I can paint, decorate, and hang my plates up in a real dining room. So pretty! Thanks again Kathryn! Go check out her blog! She does amazing tablescapes and vignettes! http://bonafidesouthern.blogspot.com/

Food for Thought Trivia Challenge Game Winner

2010-06-10T15:14:00.003-05:00

True Random Number GeneratorMin: Max:
Result:4Powered by RANDOM.ORG

Yay! We have a winner! The web generator really did have a min of 1 and a max of 6 but no matter how many times I tried to copy it, it always said 100. The true first result was a 4! The fourth comment is Bo from Bo's Bowl. Go check out his blog! It is awesome and he has a huge following and awesome recipes. He is a fellow Alabamian food blogger! http://www.bos-bowl.com/ Please send me your mailing address at Rich010@bama.ua.edu!

Pretty Food Pictures and Puppy Sitting Pictures

2010-06-08T19:09:00.002-05:00

Tuscaloosa Farmer's Market Produce from Snow's Bend Farm. How pretty does that Rainbow Chard look? I made some grilled squash and some pickled beets.

Staying in Huntsville for the week dog sitting. Staying in Huntsville really makes me wish that Tuscaloosa had a Earth Fare, Fresh Market, or Whole Foods store. Ate this Mediterranean sampler platter for $6 from Earth Fare! Yum Yum !

Cute Pups! Princess (my "stepsister" 14 year old part Husky), Rosie (my "sister"16 year old Toy Poodle mix), and Lucy (my "baby" Norfolk).

Hard to think that my Rosie was apricot colored and black splotched when we first got her. Now she is an old gray lady. Never seen a dog change colors as much as her. She wandered up on my grandmother/aunt's porch 15 years ago after being attacked by something and living in the woods for a while. For years she would snap flies out of the air out of habit. Lucy comes close with the color changing. Lucy had red hair when we first got her from the humane society which is partly why we named her Lucy. Now she is white and blonde with just a little bit of red left on her ears. We figure the color change must have happened because she was so malnourished.

Lucy got groomed yesterday for the first time ever! I usually hand trim her. If you live in the Huntsville area and need a groomer you should consider Goin' To The Dogs and Cats Mobile Pet Grooming. They are a bit more expensive than some but they are definitely worth it! When they are done grooming, they give you a really cute report card that tells how the dog did and what services they performed. My mom's two pups are very old and don't like to travel and get very nervous at other groomer's. These people are sooo sweet and love pups and the pups never have to leave home! They park their decked out RV in your driveway and do all grooming right there. Lucy was soooo happy when she ran in the house, she couldn't quit smiling for a long time. Robyn and Tab did a great job! http://www.groomerhsv.com/index.html

Some Classics From My Recipe Box: Asian Coleslaw and Sausage Pinwheels

2010-06-08T18:52:00.001-05:00

These two items were made for a potluck graduation party I went to the other day and am just not getting around to putting them up. The coleslaw is perfect for picnics and grill-outs. The sausage pinwheels are perfect for breakfast, teas, and appetizers. I have been making both of these recipes since high school. I made the coleslaw and my friend Anna made the pinwheels.

ASIAN COLESLAW

1/2 head of green cabbage shredded

1/2 head of purple cabbage shredded

2 carrots grated

4 stems green onion finely sliced

1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds

1 package of ramen noodles, broken up and toasted

1 tablespoon sesame seeds toasted

1 tablespoon sugar

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 tablespoons peanut oil

I prefer to buy whole cabbage and slice it myself instead of buying packaged pre-shredded coleslaw mix. It is fresher, cheaper and you get a lot more of it. If you are in a hurry, the package kind is fine. Mix last four ingredients together first, and then toss all ingredients together. This is best if allowed to sit in the refrigerator for an hour before serving. Eat within two days or the cabbage breaks down from the vinegar. There are several variations of this recipe on the internet. Some people like to use the ramen seasoning packet that comes with the noodles. I have done that before and it is good, just different.

SAUSAGE PINWHEELS

1 roll hot sausage
2 rolls low fat crescent roll dough
1 container 1/3 fat cream cheese (bring to room temperature)

Brown and finely chop the sausage in a skillet. Drain on paper towels. Roll your sheet of crescent dough out onto wax paper. Luckily, they now make crescent roll dough without the perforated creases to separate them. If you can only find a classic roll.... pinch all the seams together to create a solid sheet. Spread half of the cream cheese mixture evenly over the dough. Once cooled, sprinkle half of the browned sausage over the roll. Using the wax paper as a guide, roll the dough length wise tightly and seal the edges. Wrap the wax paper around it and twist the ends closed. Store in the freezer for about 10 minutes in order to stiffen the dough so that it can be cut easily. Cut into pinwheels and bake in a 350* oven for 12-15 minutes until brown (this depends on how small of pinwheels you cut, I cut large ones for breakfast and very small ones to serve as appetizers). Once they have baked, use a spatula to immediately remove them from the pan, they can stick if they sit too long. The hot sausage and the cooling cream cheese go great together! This is probably one of my most requested recipes and it is soooooooooooooo easy to make.

This pinwheel can be made into several recipes using the same method. Here are some of my favorites. You can also make these with puffed pastry just as easily as crescent dough.
1. roast beef slices, sharp cheddar cheese, and prepared horseradish sauce
2. chive and onion cream cheese, swiss cheese, and sliced ham
3. roasted chicken slices, provalone, and pesto or sun dried tomatoes
4. cream cheese, gorganzola, chopped walnuts
5. spinach and feta

Porcini Mushroom, Ricotta, and Mixed Tomato Brushetta!

2010-06-02T18:26:00.002-05:00

I received some samples of dried mushrooms a month ago from Marx Foods and haven't had a chance to use them yet until today. Wedding plans and thesis work has kept me busy! Marx Foods periodically does giveaways and recipe contests, so I wanted to make a quick and easy recipe to submit to one of their contests since they were so nice to send me a sample pack of dried porcini mushrooms as well as a few other varieties. This is a delicious appetizer or finger food for parties. I couldn't make a huge amount because of the sample size I received, but they were very tasty!

Check out their website if you get a chance. They sell fine foods in bulk. They have some really cool stuff! When wedding and thesis are over, maybe I will be able to buy more fancy gourmet foods! http://www.marxfoods.com/

PORCINI MUSHROOM, RICOTTA, AND MIXED TOMATO BRUSHETTA

1 french baguette (buy the kind that is hard on the outside and chewey on the inside, not the all over fluffy kind)
1/4 cup dried porcini mushrooms (reconstitute by pouring boiling water over them and letting them sit 10 minutes)
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup of assorted baby tomatoes
1 sprig of fresh basil leaves (about 6 leaves), finely chiffanade (cut into small strips after rolling all the leaves together)
several grinds of good cracked black pepper
good olive oil
kosher salt

This is a really simple to make. Cut the baguette on the bias so that you have larger slices. Then coat both sides with a little bit of olive oil. I use a pastry brush to get them evenly coated. Then toast in a toaster oven on a low setting, you don't want burnt toast. In a small bowl, mix together the cheese, black pepper, a pinch of salt, and the basil with a fork. Now, I am going to tell you to do something you don't really see in the picture... Once you have reconstituted your mushrooms (I used porcini, but use whatever you like) quickly sauté for 5 minutes with a little bit of olive oil to add some extra flavor. Once they are cool, add them to the cheese mixture. I placed mine on top in the picture because I really wanted to show the mushrooms off, but they stay on better if you mix them into the cheese. The mushrooms add a nice earthy taste that brushetta doesn't usually have. Slice the baby tomatoes and try to drain some of the juice and seeds out of them so that your brushetta doesn't get too wet. Assemble the brushetta with the cheese mixture on the bottom, then layer sliced tomatoes, and add a small drizzle of good olive oil to the top. Bon Appetit!

If you have never made brushetta before, it is a really easy way to throw something together when people are coming over. Rethink the ingredients and mix and match with a variety of different stuff. Trial and Error is the best method:
Cheese- ricotta, goat's cheese, mozzarella, marscapone, parmesean
Veggies/other- tomato, roasted red pepper, olives, grilled eggplant, sautéed mushrooms
Herb- basil, tyme, rosemary, parsley, sage

Marscapone, figs, and honey go really well together as do goat's cheese, roasted red pepper, and rosemary! I do recommend lightly toasting your crostini in a set toaster oven that goes off when you tell it to rather than the pan or oven toasted method you see fancy chefs doing on tv. They bread can get too hard that way if you are not able to literally watch it. Toast them however you feel comfortable.

I broke my dried mushrooms up in to small pieces before I rehydrated them. I poured boiled water over them in a large coffee cup.

How cute is this mixture of tomatoes! I love the dark red and green striped ones! Very tasty!

Giveaway! Food For Thought Trivia Challenge!

2010-05-28T11:12:00.003-05:00

This game is soooooo cute that I had to buy a copy for myself and a copy to give away. That's right, this is not a sponsored giveaway, it is sponsored by myself! Trying to get more of my followers signed up on my blog so my numbers go up and I really wanted to share this adorable game! If you are already a follower... THANK YOU and please comment for the giveaway! This game comes in a picnic basket-esque box and comes with 4 game pieces, a dice, game board and large stack of trivia cards. The questions are so cute and range from really simple questions like "what't the phrase used to describe an overly simple task?"....... "easy as pie" to much harder literary questions such as " In Proust's Remembrance of Things Past, what is the teacake that sends him into ecstasy?"....... "a madeleine." This game is too cute! Perfect gift for a foodie lover or to break out at a boring dinner party!

http://www.foodforthoughttriviachallenge.com/pages/home.htm

To enter the giveaway, please make sure you are signed up as a follower on the blog, and leave a comment telling me what your favorite board game is. As I have been thinking of things to register for for my wedding, I have learned that they have re-done Hasbro games such as Monopoly, Clue, Yahtzee, Risk, Life and Jenga in vintage style wooden boxes that you can place on a shelf and look like nice books. The pieces in them are all metal and wood, and the images all look like the classic images. If you are a board game lover, you should really check these special edition games out, they are nicely priced too!

Winner will be announced June 9th!

Rotel Recipe Contest: Info about it plus my recipe for Tangy Rotel Stuffed Chicken and Grits

2010-05-27T20:09:00.001-05:00

Ro*tel is sponsoring a recipe contest where the grand prize winner gets $2,000! To enter you have to become facebook fan of ro*tel (just until the contest is over) and then submit your recipe. This contest ends June 13th! You have unlimited entries, and must use one ro*tel product in the recipe. You must have a facebook account to enter. I found out about it though a blog I read called "Deep Dish South." Mary, the blogger, is going to be the judge in this contest. Check out her blog and consider entering this contest! I am thinking that the $2,000 would sure be nice for all the wedding planning I have been doing! : )

Here is the recipe that I made up and am submitting to the contest. I made it tonight and it is delicious! There are not enough recipes out there that use grits!

TANGY RO*TEL STUFFED CHICKEN AND GRITS

Servings: 4, Prep Time: 10 minutes, Cook Time: 35 minutes

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

4 ounces of goat cheese, this is one small log, I prefer to use Belle Chevre as I am trying to support local places, this is made in Elkmont, Alabama

1 and 1/3 cups quick grits, do not buy instant grits, get blue stone ground for something different if you can but this will take much longer to cook

1 can drained mild Ro*tel

1/4 cup chopped green onions (3 stalks)

3 cups chicken broth

2 cups milk

3/4 cups heavy whipping cream

1 tsp tomato paste, try to buy this in a tube not can, this way you can use a tsp at a time without wasting and keep it in the fridge

salt, fresh cracked black pepper, and garlic powder to taste

1tsp olive oil

Before continuing........We are big fans of goat cheese, if you are not a goat cheese fan don't worry. Just buy some Mexican queso fresco cheese and add a bit of lime juice to your ro*tel to give it that nice tangy taste.

In a small bowl, mash the goat cheese and 1/2 can of ro*tel until well blended. On a plastic cutting board, partially butterfly the chicken breasts. Take 1/4 of the cheese mixture and place into the cavity you have created. Place in a glass baking pan and repeat the process with the rest of the chicken. Drizzle the olive oil over the chicken evenly, use a pastry brush if you really want to get exact with your oil coverage. Then quickly salt and pepper the top of the chicken breasts. Bake in a 375* oven for 30 minutes. While the chicken is baking in the oven, you will be making the cream sauce and the grits. Take the other half of the can of ro*tel and blend it until it is smooth. I used an immersion blender but you can certainly either use a standard blender or leave the sauce chunky. Add the cream and tomato paste and heat it in a small sauce pan on the stove top until the sauce is warmed through, you are not trying to cook this mixture. In a larger sauce pan, combine the milk and chicken broth and bring it to a boil. Slowly add the grits, turn heat to low, and simmer for 10 minutes stirring constantly. I like my grits to be thick and creamy more like a polenta than your standard southern diner runny greasy grits. Plate (or bowl) the grits first, then one of the baked stuffed chicken breasts to the side, and pour 1/4 cup of your sauce over the chicken and grits. Add a handful of green onion on top. Picture below is a little bit fuzzy because of the steam! I served mine with a garden greens salad with heirloom tomato slices.

This easy cream sauce can also be used with shrimp and grits or in a spicy crawfish pasta ( really simple to make, buy a frozen package of de-shelled crawfish tail meat and thaw, add pasta, and this recipe of sauce, really delicious!)

Lost Finale Party! Pictures of all the Yummy Treats!

2010-05-24T14:23:00.000-05:00

LOST FINALE PARTY! I cannot take credit for any of the cooking or creative parts of this party. I was a guest and it was really fun and delicious! Kudos to my friends Anna, Tina, Laurie, and Rachel for making all the yummy Lost themed foods. I am avoiding commentary on the actual episode. Though I will say I am much happier after thinking about it than I was last night.

Key Lime flavored Island Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Sand

Fish Shaped Biscuits to go with the Fried Chicken (not pictured)

Airplane Sugar Cookies

Bacon Wrapped Pineapple Bites

Mexican Dip, Claire's Peanut Butter, and Rum!

Dharma Cola! Love the labels!

OH NO!!!! It's the smoke monster!

Schnitzel Ranch Restaurant Review and Menu: Huntsville, Alabama AL (glass beer boot)

2010-05-24T13:58:00.000-05:00

Full Restaurant Menu and Bread Menu at bottom of post!

If you are looking for cheap authentic German food and delicious Paulaner Pilsner served in DAS BOOT you will love this Oddly named and clip art logo-ed establishment. You can order the men's boot (1 liter) or the ladies boot (.5 liter). Eventually they said they are going to try to sell the boots, but they have to import them. The decor is homey, not fancy, with a ceiling full of hanging beer steins, and when you want service at your table, you pull up your table number flag. Very creative, and very cute when the owner said they have a patent pending on it. You can't beat this price in town for German food. I still love Ol'Heidelberg and Cafe Berlin for fancier German food, they have the best blue cheese salad I have ever eaten, but they are very expensive compared to the lunch prices at Schnitzel Ranch.

For an appetizer we started with a fresh baked German pretzel with mustard. So delicious!

We ate Jager Schnitzel (mushroom brown gravy) and Rouladen (beef filled with onion, relish, and bacon in a thick gravy). They were amazing!

Jager

As cute and delicious as Schnitzel Ranch is... I must confess they do have a few shortcomings in some of their sides that you should take into consideration when ordering, but this should not overshadow how delicious the rest of their food is. The red cabbage tastes like it was plopped out of a can instead of being homemade, the salad is iceberg out of a bag, the butter is some other type of spread, and the bacon in the German potato salad is real bacon but chopped up chips from a bottle. All other sides were amazing: cucumber salad, potato dumplings, spaetzle, and pan fried potatoes.

Now I come to the best part about the restaurant: the owners! Renja Reinig-Schmitt and her husband, Joachim Reinig came from Germany after they had researched the country and choose Huntsville as a very German friendly area. They used a special visa to open a business as she is trained in business and he is trained as a butcher. Renja was our waitress and was so nice and talkative explaining the food, telling us her story of how she opened the business, and where she came from in Germany. My mom lived in Germany when she was little so they were discussing Stuttgart and the Black Forest.

Fun Dessert: Spaghetti Ice Cream Sundae..... Vanilla ice cream extruded into noodle shapes topped with whipped cream, strawberry sauce, and coconut. Delicious!

Please try this restaurant for lunch sometime with friends or to go to watch a soccer game at night. Also, they serve an extensive variety of fresh baked breads now. The pumpkin seed is particularly delicious!

Menus are below. Click on picture for larger image.

Wonderful Find: 1880 Lithograph Marriage Certificate Couple on Lake with House and Church... also Calligraphy in Birmingham

2010-05-19T19:40:00.002-05:00

I am so excited about the find I am showing you today. I have been trying to find ways to add special touches to my wedding. I love collecting old photographs, letters, money, and lithographs and somehow wanted to incorporate that into my wedding. I looked at several reproduction blank marriage certificates on eBay from the Victorian Era through the 1920's and found several pretty ones but they all seemed very girly and flowery and mostly pink. I wanted something beautiful and classic that I could have framed and hang in my dining room. I came across this one later when I wasn't looking for it simply by typing in "lithograph." When I received it in the mail yesterday I was ecstatic. It is from 1880, it is copyrighted, has never been used, and is in perfect condition! No creases, no fading, PERFECT! It even smells old like an awesome old library book! You know the smell! I keep searching for others like it and have come across one other that is the same, it was used and filled in in the 1880's, but instead of it being a lithograph with gold accents, it was watercolored in.

When we get our engagement pictures, I hope the photographer will take some individual shots of us in sepia tone. Those would look perfect in the photo slots!

I am currently looking into the copyright law, or rather my fiancé is. Most works of art are copyright free after 100 years I have been told. If that is so, I intend to make some professional copies of this and possibly sell them as many others do on eBay with reproduction ones. Of course, the gold ink will not copy like this, but I have not seen a prettier version of an antique marriage certificate. Let me know if any of you are possibly interested in buying a copy for a reasonable price or if any of you have seen something like this.

I don't know if you can see from this picture, but the lithograph of the couple on the lake between the church and their new home is so detailed and crisp. Very beautiful!

Here is another beautiful one online that can be printed as a reproduction. This one has less of a religious overtone and is very brightly colored. It also has a boat scene and the holding hands.

Update 4/14/2011: I have officially gotten the sepia tone portraits placed in the certificate and we hired a wonderful Calligrapher, Melinda Sapp, to fill it in for us using historic style walnut ink and a wonderful Spencerian script. If you are looking for a calligrapher in the Birmingham, AL area to do anything from calligraphy wedding invitations, monograms, envelopes, place cards, etc...this is the lady for you. I didn't need professional no-mistake style font so she gave me a great deal and it looks flawless to me.

http://www.calligraphybymelinda.com/index.html

You can now also buy copies of this particular lithograph wedding certificate in my newly launched etsy store: Mullican & Davenport. This was a very irregular sized lithograph, so the print shop copies came out without the full chain link border, but it is not very noticeable. Very sturdy great copies. Thanks for looking!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/MullicanXDavenport