Everyone looks better in candlelight! Keep the lights low and use candles around the room...reminds me of a certain episode of Seinfeld :-).
Want to set the right mood for your holiday celebration? Let guests follow their noses. Combine water, sliced citrus fruits, and cinnamon sticks or other spices in a large pot and simmer or use a small crock pot.
* Bring family and friends together with your favorite foods this holiday season. What's the secret to successful entertaining? Have as much fun preparing as you do sharing. These holiday entertaining tips and ideas will help you bring your best to the table.
Yield: 6 quiches
Slice eggs crosswise and place 1 in each pre-baked puff-pastry shells (found in the frozen-food section). Top with fresh sage and grated Fontina cheese. Bake at 400° F until the cheese melts (about 5 minutes). Garnish each tiny quiche with crumbled bacon, if desired.
Yield: 12 servings (serving size: 3 canapés)
1. To prepare polenta, bring 4 1/2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Gradually add polenta and 1 teaspoon salt, stirring constantly with a whisk. Reduce heat to low; cook 3 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. Spoon polenta into a 13 x 9–inch baking pan coated with cooking spray, spreading evenly. Press plastic wrap onto surface of polenta; chill 1 hour or until firm.
2. Preheat broiler.
3. Invert polenta onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Cut polenta into 36 rectangles (leave polenta on baking sheet). Broil 5 minutes. Turn polenta over. Brush polenta with 1 tablespoon butter. Broil 5 minutes. Sprinkle 1/2 cup shredded cheese evenly over rectangles; broil 5 minutes or until cheese melts.
4. To prepare topping, combine 1 cup boiling water and porcini mushrooms in a bowl; cover and let stand for 15 minutes. Drain; chop mushrooms.
5. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium he
at. Add shallots to pan; cook 4 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in red pepper; cook 30 seconds. Add porcini, shiitake, and cremini mushrooms; cook over medium-high heat 10 minutes or until liquid evaporates, stirring occasionally. Stir in vermouth, thyme, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and black pepper; cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
6. Spoon 1 teaspoon mushroom mixture on top of each polent
a rectangle; top rectangles evenly with shaved cheese.
Here are some comfy and delicious fall food ideas...just click on the pic to get the recipes. Enjoy! Ciao!
Makes 2 dozen
1. Cut butter with a sharp knife or pastry blender into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Sprinkle butter slices over flour in a large bowl. Toss butter with flour. Cut butter into flour with a pastry blender until crumbly and mixture resembles small peas. Cover and chill 10 minutes. Add buttermilk, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened.
2. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead 3 or 4 times, gradually adding additional flour as needed. With floured hands, press or pat dough into a 3/4-inch-thick rectangle (about 9 x 5 inches). Sprinkle top of dough with additional flour. Fold dough over onto itself in 3 sections, starting with 1 short end. (Fold dough rectangle as if folding a letter-size piece of paper.) Repeat entire process 2 more times, beginning with pressing into a 3/4-inch-thick dough rectangle (about 9 x 5 inches).
3. Press or pat dough to 1/2-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface; cut with a 2-inch round cutter, and place, side by side, on a parchment paper-lined or lightly greased jelly-roll pan. (Dough rounds should touch.)
4. Bake at 450° for 13 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven; brush with 2 Tbsp. melted butter.
*Cinnamon-Raisin Biscuits: Omit 2 Tbsp. melted butter. Combine 1/2 cup golden raisins, 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon, and 1/3 cup chopped pecans with flour in a large bowl. Proceed with recipe as directed. Stir together 1/2 cup powdered sugar and 2 Tbsp. buttermilk until smooth. Drizzle over warm biscuits. Makes 2 1/2 dozen.
Don't forget the Apple Butter :-) This is how Autumn would taste if it had a flavor!
We are quickly approaching the holiday season and the idea of having a festive event is already lingering in the mind of the over zealous and anxious holiday lover's mind (me). As soon as the first leaf makes its transition from summery green into a golden autumn orange and is blown to the ground by a gust of cool air...I'm there, ready for the beginning of the anticipated holiday season!
Not only is it the beginning of the holiday season, but Fall festivals galore!!! The apples are ready for the picking and making of the perfect flaky crusted apple pie and the pumpkins are at their peak and look forward to adorning festive autumn tables and filling pie shells as well!
Don't even begin to plan your party before you decide on your budget. Decide how much money you can afford to spend on your party - then stick to it. The total budget will help you decide on the style of party you can host, and will protect you from that after-party budget hangover.
5 quart pitcher
3 quarts Lemonade
2 quarts Iced Tea
Karo syrup
Raw sugar
Lemon Slice
Ice
Preparation:
I like to start with sweetened Lemonade made with fresh lemons and a family sized tea bag (lipton) brewed sweetened while in the pot.
Allow tea to cool down. Combine both beverages in pitcher and stir.
On a small saucer, squeeze a small amount of lemon juice and add a teaspoon of Karo syrup and mix. Place raw sugar on a separate saucer. Dip rim of glass into juice and syrup mixture, then coat rim with raw sugar.
Add ice and WBPalmer to glass and garnish with lemon slice and Voila! The marriage of Sweet and Sour!
Here are some classic Flatware settings to get you jump started in the right direction to entertaining perfection! Don't subject your guest to use your everyday flatware when entertaining...you don't want to be the cause for gossip afterward, and yes people do take note to flatware.
Today man has mastered the glass-making process and can make many different types of glass in infinitely varied colors formed into a wide range of products.
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