Aqua Friends Tea Party

I had my annual tea party for our aqua group. 

Grandchildren and Fun

I was so happy to take my four older grandchildren out to lunch !

Rainbow Bread

My youngest son and daughter in law went skiing and my son, Mike, and I watched Harper and Hayden for a few days after our frigid shutdown in Texas.  It was a busy time of tea parties, baking, cookie dipping, slushies from  the neighborhood Ice Cream Truck, and gnome making out of socks.  My son made them an Olaf snowman and drew pictures of Olaf for them to paint.  Harper had kindergarten upstairs with three other little girls and a wonderful teacher.  Hayden was a busy ballerina and tap dancer. 

 

These were our candy dipped Oreo cookies that we had for a tea party. You can purchase molds at Michael's or JoAnn's for making these quick and easy treats. 

 

 

 This was our rainbow bread dough.  I made this several years ago and you can see some of my other grandchildren here.

I love looking back on the grands' younger pictures of fun times in my kitchen.

Yield: 2 loaves

Author: Kitty

Rainbow Bread

This is a fun activity for young ones and the recipe was given to me from my friend, Mary, who had been a preschool teacher.

Ingredients

• 2 packages active dry yeast
• 1 T granulated sugar
• 1 c warm water [100° to 115° F, approximately]
• 1/3 c olive oil (or vegetable oil)
• 3/4 c hot water
• 2 t salt
• 5 1/2 to 6 c AP flour (start with 5 cups)
• cornmeal or semolina flour

Instructions

1. Stir the yeast, sugar and warm water together in the bowl of a stand mixer; let sit until yeast dissolves and starts to proof.
2. In the meantime, add the olive oil to the hot water and let cool to lukewarm. Add the salt, and combine with the yeast mixture. Stirring vigorously with the dough hook attachment, add the flour 1 c at a time, until the dough almost comes away from the sides of the bowl. [The dough will seem rather soft and sticky at this point.] Continue kneading the dough with the dough hook, adding a couple tablespoons of flour as you go along. Alternatively, you could turn out the dough onto a lightly floured board and knead with your hands. Continue kneading until the dough has absorbed enough flour that it is easy to handle, about 2 to 4 minutes.
3. When the dough is soft and smooth, let rest for 5 or 6 minutes and then divide into two. (At this point, you add your food coloring to dough that has been separated into as many colors as you would like. You can have the child then put them together and stack and twist them). Without food coloring, you roll each half into a rectangle about 12″ x 8″. Starting from the wide end, roll the rectangle up quite tightly, pinching the seams as you roll. Let the rolled loaves rise on a piece of parchment paper, that has been sprinkled with cornmeal or semolina flour, in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in bulk, about 50 to 60 minutes. Place a baking stone* on the middle rack of the oven and preheat to 425° F while the bread proofs. (At this point, I slashed the of the loaves).
4. After the dough has doubled in bulk, place the loaves on top of the hot stone, parchment and all (I use a rimless cookie sheet to transfer the loaves). Bake 30- 40 minutes (directions said 40, but this was too long for my oven!), or until the loaves are a rich, golden color and make a hollow sound when you tap the crust with your knuckles, top and bottom. Cool on a rack and slice when fresh.
5. *If you have no baking stone, butter one or two baking sheets well and sprinkle with cornmeal. Place the just-rolled loaves on the sheets, and then let them rise until doubled in bulk. Bake the loaves on the sheet[s] on the middle rack, the same as you would with the stone.

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Thank you for visiting!  xo

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Bee Tea Party

Ella and I chose a Bee Theme for this week's garden tea party.

 Here's Ella in her pretty tea party dress.  She choose the table covering to complement our dishes, teacups, teapot, and napkins.  Of course, she had her toenails and fingernails painted, and her hair beachwaved again. 

 Isn't this the cutest beehive teapot?  It came from HomeGoods before the Covid.  Ella decided that she wanted iced tea in it, and still use our pretty teacups, which was perfect for our Texas heat!  Ella chose Ahmad's Lemon Lime Twist tea, and she declared it as "interesting".  Let's just say that it wasn't our cup of tea!!!

 These are our pretty napkins that we used.

Ella set the table, and she chose a bee teacup that my daughter had given me, and I chose a Mary Engelbreit one that a friend had given me.  We used my plaid plates.  We had some homemade pimento cheese and some Boursin cheese and crackers, along with our salads.

 Ella sliced the strawberries with my egg slicer and arranged them on our lettuce, along with some roasted pecans, feta cheese, and chopped chicken.

 We enjoyed our time together and played Old Maids and Uno afterwards.

Yield: 6 cakelets + 1 mini loaf

Author: Kitty

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Cornbread

I tried the cornbread recipe that came with my beehive cakelet pan, but it was very dry. I decided to use my old, tried and true recipe that I've been making for 40+years.  Ella poured on a simple glaze of powdered sugar and lemon juice, and attached the bees, from Wilton. 

Ingredients:

• 1 c. flour
• 1 T. baking powder
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/3 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. cornmeal
• 1 c. milk
• 1 egg, well beaten
• 1 T. vegetable oil

Instructions:

1. Spray the beehive cakelet pan with baking spray that contains flour.  You also can use a cast iron skillet or a 8" baking dish, or a  muffin pan.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl.
3. Add the milk to the beaten egg & add the oil. Stir this into the dry ingredients.
4. Pour into prepared pan.  Bake in a 400 degree oven for 15-18 minutes for the cakelets, and 20 minutes if using a cast iron skillet or baking dish. 

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 Ella's sister, Avery, wanted to go to a cupcake place, and that sounded great to me!  However, the place closed at 6 pm, and we sadly had to change plans and get some gelato. 

 My grandsons, Riley and Caiden wanted to go get wings after their football camp, and I was happy to take them.  The restaurant took our temperature before we were seated, and we were spread far apart inside from other tables.  

 

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Garden Tea Party with My Granddaughter

 My sweet granddaughter mentioned recently when she was leaving my house, that she loved my teacups, and wondered if we could have a tea party.  Well, this grandmother was so ecstatic and said that of course we could!

 Ella was excited to wear a pretty dress, and she had her toenails and fingernails polished, and  her hair curled with her beachwave curling wand.  She also brought a cute purse.  Shes filling up our mini food safe pots with pudding for our dirt cake, by squeezing it from a plastic bag, with a hole in the corner.  She's wearing an apron to protect her pretty dress.  I decided to wear a pretty dress, too, and we couldn't believe that we both had chosen pink!

 Ella chose to have our tea party in the garden.  I let her choose the  tablecloth, and the china pieces.  We used cloth napkins and Ella put the pillows for each chair.  We used my wedding crystal for our water, and Ella squeezed lemon into each goblet.  We decided to add some of my pastel sugar cubes to the lemon water to make some lemonade!

 Our menu consisted of tiny buns filled with turkey and gouda cheese, cucumbers with a topper of herbed cheese, and garnished with fresh herbs from the garden, carrot sticks, and grape tomatoes with ranch dip.  Ella is such a good eater and this was all foods that she loved.  Ella used my crinkle veggie cutter to cut the carrots and cucumbers. 

 She wanted to use this special teapot and matching teacups that dear friends gave to me.

 Our mini dirt cakes were so yummy!  All we used was vanilla instant pudding, mixed with 1 and 1/2 cups milk, and then some Cool Whip folded in.  One crushed up Oreo was enough "dirt" to top the little pots of pudding.  We planted the pots with faux silk flowers, that I had cleaned.  Ella put the tiny tea spoons into the pots.

Isn't she darling? Ella wanted to know how I got started with collecting teacups.  I explained that my late Great Aunt Kitty painted 6 sets for me, which consisted of teacups, saucers, and luncheon plates,  that she gave me as a shower gift, and now people know that I love tea, and they gift me with teacups.   We both enjoyed our tea party so much that we have so many more parties planned with different themes.  Ella is already planning what she wants to wear to each.  We are both looking forward to our next  tea time together.  We will be creating more memories together. 

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Pasta Fagioli Soup - Instant Pot Version

I've converted my very favorite soup to an Instant Pot variation. If you would like to try the slow version, it can be found here.

Yield: 5-6

Author: Kitty

Pasta Fagioli Soup - Instant Pot Version

This is my all time favorite soup! I never cook the pasta in it, but cook it separately, so that it doesn't get mushy and overcooked, even when cooling. Don't tell Olive Garden, but I like this better than their Pasta Fagioli Soup!

ingredients:

• 1/2 lb. mild Italian sausage + 1/2 lb. hot Italian sausage (or 1 lb. ground beef)
• 1 can Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 celery stalk, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cans beef broth (I used 4 teaspoons of Better Than Beef Bouillon + 4 cups water)
• 2 14.5 oz. cans diced tomatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon, pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon, marjoram
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce, optional
• 1 teaspoon, dried basil
• 1 teaspoon, dried oregano
• 3 cups of cooked small pasta, like ditalini

instructions:

How to cook Pasta Fagioli Soup - Instant Pot Version

1. Brown the sausage in your Instant Pot, on saute' setting. 
2. Add the celery, onion, and garlic, and saute' for a minute or two.  Add the rest of the ingredients, EXCEPT the pasta, being sure to scrape the bottom of the pot to get all the bits of browned sausage to release.  Cancel the saute' setting.
3. Put the lid on the Instant Pot, and move the lever to the seal position.  Hit the Pressure cook button and pressure cook for 10 minutes. 
4. When the time up, let the pressure come down naturally for 15 minutes.  (You can cook your pasta separately in a saucepan during this time).  After 15 minutes, move the lever to vent position, and let the button drop before opening the lid. Stir the delicious soup.
5. Place some cooked pasta in the bottom of the bowl and ladle the soup on top.
6. Grate some Parmesan cheese on top and enjoy!

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 Cissy was recently one of a group of students who were awarded The Lion's Pride Award at her school!  Teachers nominate students for the award, and it could be for being organized, kind to others, for being helpful, for making the teacher a better teacher, etc.  The teachers write up a paragraph on why they nominated the particular student.  It was all very inspiring, and humbling. 

My handsome grandson, Riley, turned 16 last week!

 

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Easy Pumpkin Muffins

 Recently, Julie, at Julie's Creative Lifestyle, shared an easy pumpkin bundt cake, and I decided to make the cake into muffins, and put a crumb topping on.   I'm trying to make my way through my Republic of Tea Pumpkin Spice, and Twinings Chai Pumpkin Tea, before I start on my holiday teas.  My pumpkin tea towel and adorable pumpkin are from a sweet blogging friend. 

 My youngest son and daughter-in-law went out of town again, and this time, my son, Mike, and I went to their house to watch the girls.  Here's Harper mixing up the easiest muffins or cupcakes ever. 

 Hayden wanted to help, too, and she's putting on the topping.

 She looks quite pleased with herself, don't you think?

 My morning friends are enjoying their breakfast. 

Yield: 12 muffins

Author: Kitty, adapted from https://www.juliescreativelifestyle.com/

Easy Pumpkin Muffins

These are the easiest and most moist muffins ever! I think a yellow cake mix would work, too, but add maybe 2 teaspoons of pumpkin spice to it. Cream cheese frosting on top would be great if you want cupcakes!

ingredients:

• 1 Spice cake mix
• 1-15 ounce can pumpkin (not pie filling)
• 1/2 cup water
• Topping (if desired)
• 2 tablespoons of softened butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar

instructions:

How to cook Easy Pumpkin Muffins

1. For the muffins:
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
3. Line the muffin pan with cupcake liners, or spray with cooking spray.
4. Mix the ingredients together in a bowl. 
5. For the topping:
6. Mix the butter, flour and brown sugar together to form crumbs.
7. Fill the pan with the batter, filling to the top.
8. Sprinkle on the topping, if desired, or use some sparkling sugar, or leave plain.
9. Bake for about 18 minutes.

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Fig Preserves

My friend, Joyce, has a gorgeous fig tree in her backyard, and two years ago she asked me to make fig preserves for us.  The preserves turned out so tasty, but last year, she didn't get enough figs to make any.  However, this year she happily shared with me and I perfected the recipe to our liking. The preserves are good for a charcuterie board with crackers,  and I like them on my homemade Civil War starter bread, which is filled with lots of wholesome grains.  Joyce likes them on peanut butter bread.  

I have had this teacup planter for years, and this year I planted some succulents in it.  

On the 16th of this month, it will be the 6th Anniversary of my beloved's passing.  I keep this photo of him on the bar of my kitchen. 

You all know that I am a dish lover, and this pretty salad plate comes from a set that my hubby and I discovered when we stayed at a Bed and Breakfast in Wimberley, TX, that our daughter gave us as a gift.  Of course, while there, I had to peek underneath at the make and name of the dishes.  We found the Berry Delight set by Mikasa, and I have loved them ever since.  Because I like to mix and match, the teacup is from another set that we had early in our marriage, and it is called Brentwood by Adams.  I gave this set to my daughter, but kept back one teacup and one salad plate. 

 These two granddaughters, Ella on the left, and Avery on the right, came over for lunch, cooking, sketching, and school supply shopping.  We made chocolate dipped Oreo cookies and Crunchy Fudge Sandwich cookies in a short time!

Cissy celebrated her 12th birthday with a pool party at her home, with pizza, snacks, and shaved ice from Bahama Bucks!  My daughter received her first letter from Marines boot camp from Connor!  Connor also had prepared a video for Cissy to see on her birthday with wishes from him, and a gift that he had bought her ahead of time.  Of course, there were tears all around. 

Yield: 5 half pints

Author: Kitty (adapted from a recipe on Allrecipes.com)

Fig Preserves

This a spicy, perfect fig preserve recipe. I've used figs from my friend, Joyce's, fig tree, and made some for her, too.

ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 5 cups fresh figs, stems removed
• 1 cup water
• 1 and 1/2 cups sugar
• 5 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• zest from 1 large lemon
• juice from 1 large lemon
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• pinch of salt
• 5 half pint canning jars, with lids and rims

instructions:

How to cook Fig Preserves

1. Dissolve the baking soda in about 2 quarts of cool water, and immerse the figs in the treated water in a large bowl. Gently stir to wash the figs, then drain off the water and rinse the figs thoroughly with fresh cool water. Place the figs into a large pot. Add 1 cup water, sugar, butter, vanilla extract, lemon zest, lemon juice, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Very gently stir the mixture to dissolve the sugar, keeping the figs intact as much as possible.
2. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat; reduce heat to a simmer, and cook until the figs are golden brown and coated in syrup, about 1 hour, or until the preserves are thick enough to your liking.  Stir gently a couple of times to keep the figs from burning onto the bottom of the pot. Add a pinch of salt, if desired, to tame the sweetness.
3. Sterilize the jars and lids in boiling water for at least 5 minutes. Pack the figs into the hot, sterilized jars, filling the jars to within 1/4 inch of the top. Run a knife or a thin spatula around the insides of the jars after they have been filled to remove any air bubbles. Wipe the rims of the jars with a moist paper towel to remove any food residue. Top with lids, and screw on rings.
4.  Place a rack in the bottom of a large stockpot and fill halfway with water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then carefully lower the jars into the pot using a holder. Leave a 2 inch space between the jars. Pour in more boiling water if necessary until the water level is at least 1 inch above the tops of the jars. Bring the water to a full boil, cover the pot,
5. Remove the jars from the stockpot and place onto a cloth-covered or wood surface, several inches apart, until cool. Once cool, press the top of each lid with a finger, ensuring that the seal is tight (lid does not move up or down at all). Store in a cool, dark area, and wait at least 2 days before opening.

NOTES:

I put the hot fig preserves into the sterilized jars, put the lids and rings on, tightened the ring, and placed the jars upside down on a towel for about 5-8 minutes. I then turn the jars right side up and the little button in the center, pops down to ensure the jar is sealed.

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My Grandson is Off to the Marine Boot Camp

 Today I'm having a bittersweet tea party for myself.  My firstborn grandchild is off to Marine Boot Camp.   The little soldier on the plate, was a reminder for everyone to take one and say a prayer for Connor when they looked at it at home. 

 I'll be praying for this child as I always have even before he was born.

 My daughter had the best farewell party for Connor!!  She has such a knack for planning parties and I think it was a very cathartic experience for her to do this for him.

 She had this beautiful prayer posted.

 

Guess who made the beautiful cake??  Cissy did, of course!! 

 

 Here's the inside of the pretty three layer cake. The canteen holder on the left belonged to my late beloved, when he was in the Army Reserves.

 Aren't these decorated cookies so pretty?

 Here's my daughter with her four kids, at the end of the evening.  Please pray for my daughter as this has been such an emotional journey for her.  She gets on scripted phone call from him when he get to boot camp, and then can't talk to him for 13 weeks.  

Now I'm crying as I type this, thinking of my grandson with pride, but also sad that he is leaving.  May God watch over this fine young man. 

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. 

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