Hello and HAPPY FALL! I'm so happy we can officially say it's fall now! Today's post will be my last of the September apple recipes. I have 2 new recipes to share and then I'll give a quick run-down of all the apple recipes on my blog so you can have them in one post. Ok, here goes! Salted Caramel Apple Cheesecake Pie Anyone opposed to starting with dessert? Good because I've got a delicious one to share today. It's Salted Caramel Apple Cheesecake Pie and I try to make it sometime during the fall or for Thanksgiving. It is just heavenly! This recipe is by Brown Eyed Baker, and you can find the link here. Next is a savory Apple and Cheddar Stuffed Chicken that I love to make in ... Read more
Snapshot Saturday: Colors of Summer
Happy weekend! In scrolling back through my photos from the week, I was struck by the brightness and color of the season. I'm starting with my favorite little snapshot of the week. During an early morning check of the garden the butterflies were all aflutter, but I managed to catch a quick snapshot of this pretty one with her yellow wings, resting briefly on the dome of a peachy zinnia. I went out one evening to clip some blooms and loved how pretty they were just piled in my basket in every shade of pink. The tomatoes just amaze me with their colors changing through a range of green, yellow, orange, and red. It's just fascinating to observe the progression each day. I ... Read more
Cranberry Apple Chutney
Happy week of Thanksgiving! My girl is home and I'm one happy mama! She and her hubby arrived Saturday afternoon and we have already had so much family fun. This week we plan to just enjoy being together, watch some movies, do a little hiking, maybe some shopping, and cook and bake for Thanksgiving. In order for the week to not be so hectic while they're here, I've done a few things ahead of time in the last few weeks and one of those things was making our annual cranberry apple chutney. Since I was already making this chutney to go on a cheese/cracker platter for my ladies' small group a couple of weeks ago, I went ahead and made enough for Thanksgiving week. This has been a favorite of ... Read more
Back-to-School Tea
Friday afternoon we had a few neighbor friends over for an after-school snack--a sort of "teatime" except I didn't call it that in front of my son and our tea was enjoyed iced rather than hot, perfect for our warm summer afternoon. This was really easy to throw together! When you have stuff in your stash to work with--tablecloths, paper goods, ribbon, baskets, trays, etc.--a simple table can come together without any prep or purchases. The chambray cloth was a hand-me-down from a friend. I made the red checked topper when my girls were little (I use that thing all the time). The green napkins were leftover in my party box, the ribbon and pencils were on hand, and I always keep apples ... Read more
A Cracker Jack of a Snack!
Hey, Cracker Jacks! Hope you all had a great July 4th! We enjoyed several goodies for the holiday including the all-American snack of Cracker Jacks! I made a batch for the 4th and then a second batch for my supper club last night. We meet every other week for dinner and visiting with a theme for the meal. This week's theme was ballpark food! How fun! I signed up for Conecuh sausage dogs with homemade mustard sauce. There is also a sign up each time for someone to bring a takeaway treat for everyone to leave with. I thought the Cracker Jacks would make a fun takeaway treat so I signed up for that too! Homemade Cracker Jacks Ingredients: 16 cups popped corn 1 cup salted ... Read more
Elegant Woodsy Reception
Hello again and welcome back to wedding blog week! My apologies for dropping off for a couple of days after that first post. We've had a busy week! Anywho, Monday I began sharing about the wedding ceremony, flowers, and decor. Today's post is all about the food! As I mentioned before, my daughter's senior piano recital reception offered the perfect opportunity to try out some ideas before the wedding. Wedding Reception Menu Charcuterie Cups Cheese Straws Fresh Fruit Groom's Chocolates Bride's Southern Cream Cake Hot Tea: Scottish Caramel and Decaf Garden Blend Sweet Tea and Fruit Water Charcuterie Cups Salami/pepperoni/olive skewers ... Read more
Simple Summer Table
Happy Monday, friends! I promise the wedding posts are coming this week, but while I'm working on those, I thought I'd quickly share about our Father's Day meal. Our family hosted this year, and it was also my sweet sister-in-law's birthday so I wanted to put together some tables that would be pretty for my SIL but not too frilly for the dads being honored. Having just had the wedding the weekend before, I didn't even have a plan for the tables except that I would probably use some patriotic papers goods I had on hand and do an "All American Dad" theme. But then the day before Father's Day I noticed the 10 potted rosemary plants on my porch that were left over from the wedding (details ... Read more
Senior Recital Reception
My oldest just graduated from college with a major in music and a minor in Bible! As a requirement for her music degree, she performed her senior recital--the BIG one--a week before graduation and did a superb job! I love listening to her play piano and will always enjoy her playing for us when she comes to visit. For the senior recital, it's customary for the student's family to offer a reception after the performance. We've known throughout my daughter's four years as a music major that this was coming and we would mention ideas for food or tables here and there, but we didn't expect that she'd be engaged and planning a wedding during her last semester. It's a busy time! However, I ... Read more