Monday, July 31, 2017

Blueberry Crumble

 How about joining me for some Blueberry Crunch?  I'm just about ready to serve it, but first let's have some iced tea, served in a pretty goblet.  A local French cafe' used to serve their water, iced tea, and soft drinks in pretty goblets, and I always thought that was such a nice idea. 

 This is one of my very favorite dishes, which is Berry Delight, by Mikasa.  Years ago, my late beloved and I stayed in a Bed & Breakfast in Wimberley, TX, and they served their meals on these pretty dishes.  I scoured our Mikasa outlet store when I got home, and found these lovely sets.  The dinner plate just has the same edge as the salad plate, and not the pretty berry motif in the middle. 

 My new favorite tea is this Blackberry Sage, by Republic of Tea.  It's yummy both hot and iced. The back of the container states that "This soothing cup rekindles the spirit.  The first sip produces a soft berry note floating atop the taste of smooth, clean tea.  The next uncovers the head clearing character of white sage with it's wispy coolness dancing at the back of the throat.  An enchanting tea and herb blend."  I'm not sure that I got all that, but I do enjoy it!


Yield: 6 servings

Blueberry Crumble

Be sure to use fresh blueberries in this recipe, as frozen do not work.

INGREDIENTS:


  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 4 teaspoons cornstarch
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
  • 5 cups FRESH blueberries
  • 2/3 cup flour
  • 1/3 cup old-fashioned oats
  • 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 6 pieces

INSTRUCTIONS:


  1. Adjust oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat to 375 degrees.
  2. Combine the granulated sugar, cornstarch, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Add the berries and toss to coat. Transfer to an 8" x 8" baking dish.
  3. Process the flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt in a food processor until combined. Add the butter and pulse until dim-sized clumps form. Transfer the crumble to a bowl and pinch together and powdery parts. This is important to make the clumps of crumble. Sprinkle the crumble evenly over the berries.
  4. Bake until the filling is bubbling around the edges and the topping is golden brown, about 30 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes. Once the Blueberry Crumble is fully cooled, it can be wrapped in plastic wrap and refrigerated (the recipe says for up to one day, but I did longer). It also reheats well in the microwave.
Created using The Recipes Generator



I am sharing this with these lovely parties:



Thank you for your visit!  xo

Monday, July 24, 2017

Rocky Mountain High


Do you remember the song "Rocky Mountain High...Colorado",  by John Denver?  Well, that song was playing in my head while on vacation with my youngest son, Kevin,  DIL, Kristen, and granddaughter, Harper, as they whisked me away to the beauty of Colorado!  Oh, what a time we had!  This was our view from our condo's balcony! 

 

Our second morning, we were greeted by this magical rainbow!


 We took the gondola up to the top of the mountain.

 Harper had fun playing in the snow, making a snowman, and throwing snowballs.

 Riding down the hill on her Daddy's lap was such  fun!

 

 We drove to Rocky Mountain National Park.


 We made it to the Continental Divide.

 We saw female elk on one of our favorite stops.

 On the way back from the National Park, we stopped at the town of Grand Lake, had lunch and there was a beach, where Harper could play.

 Sapphire Point was a spot that my friend, Joy, told me about.  Little chipmunks were all around, in and out of the rocks, and such fun to see.  There was also a easy hike which we took.

 We even went panning for gold at a nearby mine....no luck, though, in our pans!

 This darling lavender house, with the purple trim, caught my eye, and I immediately thought of  friends, Margie, from Tea In The Valley, and Judith, from Lavender Cottage and Gardening, and had to get a picture. 

 I could move right into this darling, little cottage!

 

Gorgeous, overflowing hanging baskets were everywhere!

 I always take time to stop and smell the flowers, and admire their beauty.

 Speaking of beauty...these two special mother/daughter friends honored me by driving an hour from their homes to meet me for lunch.  I have known sweet Stephanie, from The Enchanting Rose, for several years, through blogging, and she paired me up with her dear Mom, Debbie, from, She Graces Her Home In God's Beauty, at her very first teacup/mug exchange, which was four  years ago.  You can really get to "know" friends through their writing and blogging.  However, it was so nice to meet them for real, in person and chat the hours away.  They are as kind,  wonderful, and dear as you would expect. 

Stephanie and Debbie gifted me with these thoughtful gifts.  Thank you, my friends, for your thoughtful gifts. 

Thank you, sweet family, for sharing your vacation with me!  What a fun family you are to be with! These memories will be with me forever, and I am truly grateful.

 

I am sharing this with these lovely parties:

Thank you for your visit!  xo


Monday, July 10, 2017

My Mom's 88th Birthday and Meeting Michele

 I recently went to Ohio to celebrate my Mom's 88th Birthday.  That's my sister, Amy, on the left with my Mom and I.  We took her to the Morgan House, and had a wonderful lunch. 


Isn't my Mom so cute?  She bought this pretty dress to wear for her birthday lunch, and then before I left for home, she gave it to me!

 Here's a picture of my chicken salad, with a side garden salad with a fresh strawberry dressing.  We each had a pot of tea, and I chose Blackberry Sage, Mom had Apricot, and Amy had Wild Blueberry.

Look who showed up to meet us!!  My friend, Michele, from The Nest at Finch Rest, surprised us!!  I had texted Michele to tell her where we were going, hoping that she could come by.  Michele and I have always wanted to meet in person.  Of course, we already knew each other well from blogging, but meeting in real life was such a treat.  My Mom and sister loved Michele right from the start, and she stayed and had a pot of tea with us.   Michele was too kind and brought my Mom a gift that she had made, with the instructions to open later. 

Here's Mom at home,  opening her gift from Michele.

The gift was a darling pitcher (which my mom collects) with a pretty floral arrangement.  Wasn't that sweet of Michele?  I placed it on my Mom's nightstand.

 My Mom always wants me to make her an angel food cake with her favorite Speedy Meringue Frosting.

Singing Happy Birthday to this sweet lady!  

My Mom and I had a day to spend together because my sister had to work.  I was down in the basement doing some laundry and this quilt and sham set was calling to me.  I brought it up to see if mom would like to change out her quilt on her bed, and she did.  It gave her a pretty summery feel to her room.  The green quilt at the foot of the bed was found down in the basement, too. Yes, it was such fun shopping the house! 

One evening we did the fun tiles that my son, Mike, and I had done this summer with the grands.  My nephew, Shane, joined in for the fun project.  He was so sweet and asked to create one together with his grandma.  the bouquet of flowers behind Shane were a gift from him to his Gram.


Happy 88th Birthday to my beautiful Mom, sitting on her pretty patio.  I was so happy to be able to share her birthday with her!

Now I am off to Breckinridge, CO, to vacation with my youngest son, Kevin, DIL, Kristen, and granddaughter, Harper.  

I am sharing this with these lovely parties:


Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...