Last-Minute Labor Day Ideas

Yummm....check out this Labor Day menu from Hostess With the Mostess...turkey burgers with oven fries. My mouth is watering!

Today feels like fall already in the Pacific Northwest...I made hot apple cider and biscuits this morning...it's just one of those kinds of days. I'll be back with regular posts tomorrow as we start thinking about and celebrating the coming of autumn. For today - try not to "labor" too much - have fun with family and friends! Happy Labor Day!

Fourth of July Inspiration

So today I've collected a few links from my favorite entertaining sites; they all had fabulous posts recently on decor, food, and drinks for your Fourth of July celebration. Just looking at their photos is inspiring, but be sure to follow the links for more details.

I'm especially fond of the July 4th menu that Rebecca from Tastefully Entertaining put together. YUM!! I thought the Watermelonade and Blueberry Hill Cupcakes sounded particularly scrrrumptious. (Go to Tastefully Entertaining for recipes.)

Here's some lovely red-white-and-blue inspiration from Social Couture, via Hostess with the Mostess blog. Social Couture offers a whole party package where you can purchase everything you see here. It may be a bit late in the game for that now, but I still find lots of DIY inspiration in just looking at the photos. You can find little flags like this at The Dollar Tree (if they're not sold out by now, that is!)

This is Kim's inspiration board from Head of the Table. She put together lots of fabulous links to various projects from good old Martha. (You know, Stewart? She and I are pretty tight - we're on first-name basis.)

Many thanks to these entertaining women for their inspiration this week. BBQ...fireworks...good friends...good food...good company...here we come!

salad in a...vase?

My latest issue of Better Homes and Gardens had a great idea for a bridal or baby shower theme...an "advice"-themed party. (For some of you that may sound more like a nightmare than a party, but stick with me for a moment.) The invitations were printed in a simple newsprint-type font, and guests were sent cards along with the invitations on which to write some advice for the bride-to-be. Then, the cards were collected into a scrapbook at the party.

But here's where it gets cute: they used large, photocopied versions of vintage advice columns like "Dear Abby", etc. which they covered the table with. And here's where it gets nearly genius: the "Confucius-say Salad Bar" was actually a noodle-salad bar and every topping for the salad bar was in a different-size square glass vase (I guess to pick up on the Asian theme of "Confucius-say"?). Anyway, the images of this salad bar were gorgeous. I have looked and looked online to see if I could find the image from the magazine, but no luck so far. It doesn't appear to be on BHG's website, and I don't have a scanner, so I'm doing my best to describe it. (Pictured here are the same type of vases from Pottery Barn.)


I loved the visual, though: picture different heights and sizes (i.e. both rectangular and square) of glass vases - not bowls - with colorful veggies in them...shredded carrots, shredded purple cabbage, cherry tomatoes...you wouldn't need a centerpiece with such a beautiful salad bar! But, that being said, then they added to the beauty by including a few vases full of luscious, brightly-colored blooms (just one variety per vase). The whole thing was gorgeous and definitely something I want to try in the future.

I was thinking, though, that this could work with any kind of event, and any kind of vases - cylindrical too - or what about using large footed hurricanes? They're beautiful with candles in them - but how much more stuffed full of julienned green peppers! Stunning!

Nest Cupcakes

Just one more note from Easter. I had to show you these adorable cupcakes I made that actually taste even better than they look! I think I was inpsired by reading about these nest cupcakes and these coconut cupcakes by Tracey at A Cottage Industry, and decided to combine the ideas to make nest cupcakes of my own. I used a shortcut, however: these are just a white cake mix, homemade buttercream frosting, and toasted coconut on top to form the "nest". In a few of them, as an experiment, I actually injected whip cream and made filled cupcakes. That experiment was a success, let me tell you!

I've decided cupcakes are one of my favorite desserts now; the portions are just right, and they're so fun to decorate and look so cute on a buffet table. I didn't use my cupcake stand this time, because it holds 24 and by the time Easter Sunday came around, I only had about 14 (no comment). So I used this antique silver 3-tier stand instead, with pastel jelly beans to fill in, and was very pleased with myself.

The cupcakes were a hit with my daughter, too - pictured here in her Easter finery.

The Easiest Desserts Ever

So last night, I was having a craving. You know the one...where you begin searching the cupboards desperately for any sign of chocolate. You consider opening some chocolate chips and digging in, but can't find any...you find a few stale leftover red and green M&M's from Christmas in the back of the cupboard, and that helps for a few minutes...but only for a few minutes. Then, it gets worse. Next thing you know you are pulling out your cookbooks, looking for any recipes made with cocoa powder...maybe that will do the trick? When, at last, you remember, you have the two things necessary for the perfect fix: a cake mix, and the book 101 Things To Do With a Cake Mix. You sigh in relief as you turn on the oven to 350 degrees, and get to mixin'. Within 20 minutes you are pulling White Chocolate Chip Fudge Bars out of your oven, and the house is filled with a scrumptious aroma that only comes from chocolate baking. (Are you drooling yet?)

This is all theoretical, of course. Had this really happened to me, I would be able to tell you how delectable these little morsels were and how absolutely quick and easy they were and how they would be perfect if you had last-minute guests coming over, or just needed a simple dessert for an after-school snack. Of course, I am the picture of self-control. If I had lost control, however, I would be really glad that I had 101 Things To Do With a Cake Mix.

I LOVE this little cookbook! Let's just say that for someone who doesn't have a lot of time to bake fabulous homemade goodies, this book makes me look good. Each recipe is so quick and simple and yet the desserts often seem really special. So I checked on Amazon just now, and lo and behold! there is a second one in the series....101 More Things to Do With a Cake Mix. I added it to my Wishlist immediately. And for $9.95 each, these little cookbooks don't break the bank. (By the way, there are even more in the series...check them out on amazon.com...like 101 Things to Do With a Slow Cooker.)

When I entertain or throw a party, I want to be able to spend more time on creating the atmosphere (i.e. decorating) and socializing with my guests then I do cooking. (That's just me...I know so many of you out there are fabulous cooks!) So any little cooking aids like this that I can get to simplify the kitchen end of things are much appreciated.

Strawberry Dream Cake

Strawberry Dream Cake - Perfect for Valentine's Day, a girl's birthday, or any strawberry-lover! This is a FABULOUS recipe that I got from my husband's grandmother. At the age of 90, she was still making this cake every year for my mother-in-law's birthday, so when I got married, she passed the recipe and the tradition on to me. I made a few adjustments to the recipe, and in addition to making it each year for my mother-in-law's birthday, I've also used it for cupakes for my daughter's birthday. This is a perfect cake for February, because it has a beautiful pink color from top to bottom.

Cake:
1 white cake mix
1 small package strawberry Jell-O
2 T. flour
4 eggs
½ c. water
½ c. vegetable oil
10 oz. container of frozen, sliced strawberries in sugar, thawed

Buttercream Frosting:
3 c. powdered sugar
1 stick salted butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla extract
10 (or so) drops red food coloring (optional)

Filling:
1 pint heavy whipping cream
2 T. powdered sugar (to taste)
8-10 fresh, sliced strawberries

CAKE:
Mix all ingredients except strawberries on medium spee for 2 minutes. Add berries and their juice and mix 1 more minute. Divide batter into two 8- or 9-in. round cake pans. Bake @ 350◦ for 35-40 minutes. Cool on racks for 10 minutes, then frost with frosting.

FROSTING:
Beat all frosting ingredients on medium-high speed for two minutes. Add food coloring to get the desired color of pink.

FILLING:
Beat heavy whipping cream with sugar until peaks form. Add fresh sliced strawberries and spread between layers.

Enjoy!!

Easy Valentine Cupcakes & Toppers

I'll be bringing you more Valentine's themed posts in the coming weeks, but for now...I just saw this article in Country Living magazine and thought these cupcakes were charming. There are a couple of different styles of toppers they show in the magazine, but the best part is, you can download vintage images from their website here to make custom toppers for them. I LOVE cupcakes and I love little touches like this that make them seem so special.