RUBY PEAR RECIPES BOOK

Yesterday I posted a wonderful post

 about a friend's birthday tea.

If you missed it be sure to go see how nice it was!

Quite a few of you asked where you could find

 The Ruby Pear cookbook-

so I am providing that info now for you.

I so wish I would have thought of it when I did that post!

This wonderful cookbook is available on etsy here. 

It makes the best gift for friends and family

and makes an excellent hostess gift!

Tell them Dawn and Marina's friend

sent you! 

♥

~Michele

Transitional Early Fall Tablescape

I am really feeling the fall vibe lately-

but not quite ready to plaster my house

 with the deep rich colors of autumn.

So I went downstairs and "shopped" my china storage
to put together this tablescape that to me says
 EARLY FALL - a subtle hint of what's to come....

There are  still flowers and lots of green outdoors

 but a few of the early trees are changing up.

I am seeing some deep reds and pinks out there.

My table runner with its crimson roses and leaves  

was my inspiration.

Cloud shadows rush over drying hay, fences,
 dusty lane and railroad ravine.
The first yellowing fronds of goldenrod
 brighten the margins of the woods.

                                                       ~J. Kenyon

Even as leans on the fainting evening
 the foliage withering,
I am touched with a song of brown and of shadows.
and of colors lingering.

                                                              ~M. Turbyfill

We had the BEST crop of onions in our harvest garden

this year - better than any year previously.

So I have been making a lot of French Onion soup.

These little soup tureens are perfect for it

because they are oven safe.

For us the first to wain is the sweet basil, followed by the Italian basil,

then parsley - and the hardiest is the thyme, oregano and the rosemary -

 they hang on till the very cool weather comes.

I just took all these pics today - our thyme is still going strong!

EASY FRENCH ONION SOUP:


1 cup of skinny strip cuts of onion  per person.  

1 cup beef bouillon per person.

Melt a little butter in stock pan and fry up onions until tender and clear - don't overcook or brown.

Add half stick of butter, the broth and some thyme, salt pepper and garlic powder to taste. 
I use a few shakes of all. Add a little bit of nutmeg but not as much as the other flavors.

I use fresh thyme from my herb garden and freshly grated nutmeg from a nut but dried is fine- use less with dried - it's nearly impossible to ruin this easy soup so I never measure, sorry!  : - )

Cook on low simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes. 

Fill oven safe bowls and place on a cookie sheet. 

Place stale bread (love baguettes past their prime for this) or croutons or whatever kind of thick dry bread and then sprinkle about a tablespoon of parmesan cheese, heavily cover with mozzarella and/or provolone on top of bread. Lots of cheese is yummy so don't be shy with it.

Place bowls on sheet and broil in preheated oven until cheese melts and lightly browns. Watch CAREFULLY that it doesn't burn- doesn't take very long.

This keeps in fridge for a couple days if you have extra.

As always, thank you for your visit!

♥

~Michele

Linking to these fabulous parties:

Show and Sharehttp://linda-coastalcharm.blogspot.com/2014/09/show-and-share-no229.html

Tablescape Thursday   *   Home Sweet Home    *   Time Travel

Feathered Nest Friday   *   Garden Party   *   Foodie Friday 

Asparagus Frittatas Recipe

For Easter brunch this year we had a nice selection of yummables:

Three kinds of sausage, bacon, salad, scones,

 bagels with various cream cheeses, a cheese tasting plate, fruit salad,

greens salad, herbed home fries, chicken vegetable soup, and asparagus mushroom frittatas. And cookies, which I tried to ignore and failed. Katie used a new Martha Stewart recipe on them and they were incredible.
I totally spoiled my diet with Easter this year.

We'v really been counting our carbs around here lately -
 and trying to get more protein into our diets.

This frittata really fit the bill nicely for us!

It's a very nice brunch or luncheon dish to serve.

It's the first time I had ever made them, and they were a big hit!

I also made a cheese and bacon one - my husband hates mushrooms.
But by the time I was onto making the 3rd one I don't even know where  my phone went. Sorry about the dark phone pic - all I could do, had a lot going on, and I am not a foodie blogger and seldom post about food I make so this is the best I could do. /blush in embarassment.

Anyway, I am not very good at foodie pics like all you other foodie pros - but hope you will like the recipe, as that is my reason for sharing.

FINCH REST  -  ASPARAGUS FRITTATA
(Serves 4-5 pizza sized wedges)


4 eggs well beaten
1/3 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup mushrooms sliced thinly
1 cup cheddar cheese (less a bit to put on top later) - or parmesan works too
1 tbl sweet onion chopped finely
half a "bouquet" of asparagus -prepared*
1 tbl  green pepper finely chopped
2 tb fresh basil or 1 tsp dried - fresh makes a huge difference
1/8 salt
1/8 ground black pepper
Dash or three of nutmeg
Dash or three of dried garlic - fresh is too strong
1/8 Mrs. Dash (original)
butter

* Wash asparagus and then hold each one firmly and crack in half. 
Put the top portion to one side and the stem portion on another side till you have 2 piles

Now take the flower side and break that in two - but save the topper pieces, keep them longer
I used organic and used the skinniest ones for my "star" on top of the frittata.

Now go to the stem pile and break THEM in half - the lowest portion is too hard and stemmy to use, but I put in a pan with water and boiled them forever till they were super soft then added them to my soup.......and if TOO hard and stemmy we put in our compost.

The upper part of the lower part (if that makes sense) I used.

Options: if you have long green onions or chives
 add a few of the greens in this for color/flavor - optional



In a small oven safe sautee pan melt butter and sautee the stemmy part of the asparagus first because it is the toughest and needs to soften a lot. Once it softens add the onion,  green pepper and sauteed a few minutes. When they are a bit softer add the mushrooms and tops of asparagus. The mushroom and tops won't need to sautee nearly as long as the others,
 which is why one wants to fry in that order.

Fry on med/low till softer but not too mushy - 
add a dash of nutmeg and a pinch of salt and pepper when nearly done

In med bowl : beat 4 eggs well and add cheese and mix well
then add to the sauteed items in the frying pan.

Cook a few minutes till it gets semi-set then take your 5 asparagus
and make a star shape on top. If it isn't set enough the asparagus will fall down and not sit on top.

Now cover, reduce heat to low and cook to set - around 8- 10 minutes.

Take off heat and sprinkle with remaining cheese you set aside

Meanwhile preheat oven on "broil."

This is why you need an oven safe sautee pan (like Calphalon, etc.)

You simple take the pan and put in the broiler till top is lightly browned
and cheese is nicely melted

Gently loosen frittata and place on serving plate

Garnish with fresh herbs or tomato slices


SEE MY EASTER TABLESCAPE HERE. 

As always, thank you for your visit!

♥

~Michele

Linking:

Foodie Friday   *   Masterpiece Monday   *   Amaze Me Monday

Double Layer Pumpkin Parfait Cups Recipe

Double Layer Pumpkin Parfait Cups Recipe

~~~for Thanksgiving~~~~

I don't know about many of you but I always host 

Thanksgiving dinner, and by the time it comes to

serving dessert I am about wiped out exhausted.

Well, look what my youngest daughter came up with

as an easy grab-it-and-serve-yourself dessert!

Cindy asked in comments, so I should add this:
Daughter made them for that awesome
Halloween party she hosted and I just saved
mentioning it till now to be a seperate post.

If you missed the post about her awesome party you can find
the post here.

There was a fall coloured MnM on top I accidentally

pushed down that you can't see, didn't notice till it was

too late consumed. Oops.

But don't they look fun all lined up together?

First make a cookie or graham crackers crust following a generic online or on box recipe for it and place in bottom of little plastic shot glass cups. The vessel may be motified to use anything see-through that you may already have, too such as wine glasses, ect. She wanted little bit size ones because more often than not one just needs a little taste of sweet and not an entirely huge dessert.

Filling ingredients you will need:

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1 cup plus 1 Tbsp. milk, divided
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed, divided
1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin
2 pkg. (3.4 oz. each) vanilla Instant pudding
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves

Directions: 

Beat cream cheese, 1 Tbsp. milk and sugar in large bowl with whisk until blended. Stir in half the COOL WHIP. Pipe spread onto bottom of crust.

Whisk remaining milk, pumpkin, dry pudding mixes and spices 2 min. (Mixture will be thick.) Pipe spread over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate 4 hours or until firm. Serve topped with remaining whipped topping.....and/or other options: fall coloured sprinkles, coloured sugar sprinkles, shaved chocolate. 

There you have it - a fun, cute and simple dessert

for your guests - and easy to transportor send home

if that is what you do, too!

As always, thank you for your visit!

♥

~Michele

Linking:

Foodie Friday  * Be Inspired   *  Show Off  * Masterpiece Monday

Cranberry Cheese "Present" Appetizer Recipe

 

Well I cook and bake a great deal

 but don't really blog about food I fix much,

 unless it's about tea party fare.

 

 

Today I am sharing one of my favorite Christmas recipes

 that I borrowed years ago from my friend Dawn.

 She brought this to our church choir Christmas Party

and I have been making it ever since!

 

It's a real show-stopper with lots of flavor!

 

 

 

 

 

This pic is kinda bleh taken years ago - way before my good camera and blogging

since then I never bothered to take pics of it again -

B ut it's too good not to share this holiday recipe with you all!

 

 

 

CRANBERRY CHEESE CHRISTMAS “PRESENT” APPETIZER

16 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup REAL mayonnaise

½ cup finely chopped sweet onion

¼ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. black pepper

¼ tsp.  ground red pepper

1 cup chopped lightly toasted pecans plus 1/2 cup for topping

¼ cup chopped toasted pecan “dust”

1 8 ounce can whole berry cranberry sauce

Green onions (only need two of the green strips but have a couple in case they tear)

1 orange

party crackers or sliced baguette
 

Beat first 6 ingredients at med speed with mixer, then gently stir in  1 cup of your chopped  pecans.

Shape mixture into a 5 x 5 x 2 inch box.  (I made  mine by cutting up an old milk carton to make the sides and just placed on a waxed paper cardboard base –creating a makeshift “spring form” in a square shape.)

Spoon mixture into box to form a square shape.  Cover and chill at least 8 hours or up to 2 days.

When getting ready to serve:  Gently pull off the box form and discard. Sprinkle the pecan dust all over the sides and top of your cheese and press it into the cheese a bit.

Lift the cheese block onto your serving tray. Spoon cranberry sauce over cheese square and make it tidy on top- but don’t let it spill over the edges if you can help it. Then sprinkle the sauce with your reserved 1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans. You will see I used walnuts on my topper because I ran out of pecans that time. Either works but pecans taste better.

Cut the white part from 4 green onions. Blanch the strips in boiling water 1 minute until tender, and save the white part for other use. Run under cold water to stop the blanching and to cool the strip. Drain well and gently pat dry. Press two strips in the form of a cross on the top of the cheese – that will be your ribbon bow.  Cut a skinny long strip from your orange – longer the better, and it’s more difficult than it sounds – and gently tie into a “bow” and place in center of the cross portion of your two green strips.

Serve with crackers and/or bread.

 

Enjoy!

  

Linking up with:

HOME  *  Home and Garden Thursday * Tutorials and Tidbits * Open House

Foodie Friday

Tea Party Breakfast with Nieces

Oh joy of joys!

I just love when my nieces come to visit!

Last night our 3 nieces and nephew (oldest) spent the night because yesterday was my little sister's 20th wedding anniversary!

Early this morning our nephew and the middle niece had to leave around 8am for orthodontists appointments....which left my eldest niece (next month becomes a teen) and youngest (8) and me just enough time to prepare a pretty BREAKFAST TEA. Unfortunately we didn't have much time because those two immediately after had golf lessons to skedattle off to!

I was busy preparing the food so had them decide together how to dress the table and this is what they prepared.  I didn't change anything (ie "straighten" so a few things are "off" and it doesn't matter one bit!

Didn't they do a really fine job?

They chose one of my teacup silk floral arrangements to add a bit of color.

I wish I had thought of letting them cut flowers from the garden.

Oh well, next time perhaps!

Our menu was a simple one of "English Eggs in a Cup," which they want EVERY time they spend the night. We also had fruit (peaches & pears) buttered toast fingers with jam, and 3 chocolate mini doughnuts that their brother earlier this morning couldn't finish. (The two who had to leave without a proper breakfast picked those horrible things for their own breakfast the night before on the way home from our seeing a movie.) Bleh.

They picked out Harney and Sons "Paris" black tea - one of our favorites, delightful vanilla undernotes- highly recommend it! I know I am repeating myself, but worth doing so!

If you have never eaten soft boiled eggs before, try it soon! They're delicious! You needn't have a fancy vintage egg cup, either -use anything (even an egg carton cut up) that will prop up the egg for you.

~Addendum: Brilliant idea from Kathy from Creative Home Expressions! She shared a great idea in her comment below. Butter toast, break it up in bit-sized pieces and put in bottom of a mug. Scoop out all the soft boiled egg onto your toasts bits. How perfect for Breakfast on the Go! Better for you than any drive-thru eats, for sure!
A demitasse spoon works best for cleaning out the egg entirely, fits in the small egg well.

We used vintage Noritake teacups. They're light as a feather. I have 4 of them but unfortunately have no matching teapot or plates. I shall have to keep a watchful eye out for more pieces! Let me know if you know of any available out there!

I do love the green rimmed plates they chose in which to pair these lovely teacups.

EASY EGGS IN A CUP TUTORIAL

Some folks bring eggs to room temperature. I seldom have time beforehand, so I never do so and have found it makes no difference that I can tell. Also older eggs work better so if you are getting close to an expiration date this is a great way to use up eggs and a pretty fun way to get some extra protein.

* Fill a pan with water and put eggs in making sure the water is about an inch above eggs.

* Bring to a full boil.

* Remove from heat, cover and let stand 4 minutes for XLG or LG eggs,   three minutes for medium sized eggs.

* When timer goes off (do not let them cook any longer) immediately place in cold water to stop the cooking time. Don't let them get cold though, just stop the cooking.

* Grasp egg firm and gently "whack" with a sharp knife at the thinnest top side about a quarter inch down to "open." Keep whacking and turning until the "top" comes off.

* Put a tiny dollop of butter, salt and pepper on top and serve hot.

We always put the egg cap back on b/c there is egg in it, too, and tends to help keep the egg warmer longer as we are always fussing with tea once the eggs are at the table. it isn't considered proper to do so, but makes sense to us, and is our tradition to serve them that way.

Linking:

Tablescape Thursday

Let's Dish!

Foodie Friday

Feathered Nest Friday

Show and Tell Friday

Seasonal Sunday