Lunch on the Porch at Susan's and Summertime Tablescape

Before I show you our tablescape for the week, I want to send a very special thank you to Susan at Between Naps on the Porch. A couple of weeks ago The Bloom Girls had lunch at Susan's house. As you might imagine, Susan is a consummate hostess and is equally as sweet and lovely in person. Picture above from the left: Nola and Karyn at The Bloom Girls, Catherine at Catherine de the Cups, Susan, and Sue at Rue Mouffetard. Rose (not pictured) with The Santamaker's Journey also attended, but had to leave early.

We had a potluck of sorts. Susan marinated chicken and steak and prepped other ingredients for delicious Kabobs. We had everything from appetizers to desserts; it was fabulous!!!

Appetizer table: Susan served a homemade Pico de Gallo with corn chips. Karyn made Cucumber Tea sandwiches and Turkey and spinach pinwheel Rollups.

Sue at Rue Mouffetard brought a beautiful loaf of homemade Artisan Bread. She was so sweet to bring a copy of the very easy recipe for everyone; I'm sure she will be happy to share with you.
Also on the menu: Tossed Salad made by Rose ~ Pesto Pasta from Sue ~ Corn Casserole from Catherine ~ Grilled Asparagus and Rice provided by Susan. To top it off, Susan also made a wonderful Pineapple-Rum beverage....very yummy!!!

Desserts were placed on Susan's sideboard in the dining room. Susan made a beautiful and delicious Peach Trifle with homemade Whipped Cream. To the left of the trifle are the Maple Scones and Lemon Curd that Catherine made. Sue made huge Strawberry Cupcakes. Unfortunately, I was only able to have a sampling of each after eating our fabulous lunch. I kept thinking about the array of desserts on my four hour drive back to Nashville later that evening.

Thanks again Susan for a wonderful afternoon.

It's starting to feel like summer.....

Over the summer I like to serve fruit and salads for dinner.

Since buying a complete set of Juliska is not in the budget, I have been looking for a set a white dishes at Homegoods and as many of you know, it is hard to find a complete set. So I didn't think twice when I saw a twelve place setting of Roscher Enchanted Olive.


There is a mix of fresh hydrangea and faux greenery in the centerpiece. I purchased two one-gallon boxwoods and placed them in the two green vases and covered the rim with green moss. I would prefer English Ivy, but have never had any luck with it.
Finally, after a light dinner of fruit and salad, I feel coffee and dessert are allowed.

Thanks to both Susan at Between Naps on Porch for hostessing Tablescape Thursday and Michael at Designs by Gollum for hostessing Foodie Friday.

Have a great week!

Nola

Twilight Theme Dinner Party….Dinner with the Cullen’s

Thank you to Designs by Gollum for another fabulous foodie Friday event!

Welcome to this two for one Twilight post! Tablescape Thursday and Foodie Friday!

Today’s apropos Vampire dessert, Red Velvet Cake. A Southern tradition made famous by the movie
Steel Magnolias and perfected by the Waldorf Astoria chefs. The Twilight party is next week

(See below!) so be sure to check back next Friday for the Italian Dinner menu and recipes!

Ingredients
1/2 cup

butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 ounces red food coloring
4 tablespoons cocoa (heaping)
1 cup buttermilk
2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vinegar
Frosting
3 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup butter (must be butter)
Directions
Cream shortening, sugar and eggs.
Make a paste of food coloring and cocoa and add to creamed mixture
Add buttermilk alternating with flour and salt. Add vanilla.
Add soda to vinegar, and blend into the batter. Pour into 3 or 4 greased and floured 8" cake pans. Bake at 350°F for 24-30 minutes.
Split layers fill and frost with the following frosting.
Frosting: Add milk to flour slowly, avoiding lumps. Cook flour and milk until very thick, stirring constantly. Cool completely. Cream sugar, butter and vanilla until fluffy. Add to cooked mixture. Beat, high speed, until very fluffy. Looks and tastes like whipped cream.

Pull up a chair and join us, I promise you will not be “On the Menu”!

I have to preface this tablescape by letting you know that my daughter Aimee suggested this theme. This is ironic because she has never really “gotten into” the whole tablescape thing and for those of you who have been following this blog, you will remember me expressing the JOY I felt upon discovering an entire group out there who can appreciate this art! So When she suggested it to me, I gave her “the look” (and you know the one) and she said “What have you done to me?, you have me sucked into this now!” It was too funny! We had a blast working together to create this tablescape.

Aimee is having a birthday next week and so to celebrate we are having “Dinner and a Movie”. The menu will be Italian and we will watch the twilight movie afterward. We tried to incorporate elements from each book in the Twilight series into our tablescape and to create an ambiance in keeping with that theme. Enjoy your visit!


We made the invitations from heavy red cardstock, flocked black specialty paper, vellum and ribbon. I found the twilight font online.

I removed the personal details from the invitation. Sorry, but we can not guarantee the safety of uninvited guests!

Oh, you brought a snack!.... James

The glass bowls belonged to my mother and have roses etched into them. We used pieces of black lace between the red rhinestone charges and each bowl












We used my wrought iron candelabras to add that perfect touch of goth!
























Red Stemware (Pier One) adds a touch of class! (Are you Thirsty?)







The theme of red, black and white was carried through out our design and apples represent the first book (Twilight)

























One continuous piece of satin Red ribbon was tied around each napkin until it circled the table completely. (Eclipse)
















Tiny Diamonds are sprinkled all over the entire table representing Edward in the sunlight

Cut black lace adorns the candelabras in the room

Red jewels scattered around the base of the candles glitter in the glow of the flames

The centerpiece is representative of the relationship between Edward and Bella.

Parrot Tulips (New Moon)

Place cards are embellished with the chess pieces (Breaking Dawn)

Two bottles of wine chosen especially for this event! I digitized the font that I found on the internet and stitched out the design on our wine towel with the boutique embroidery machine.

There are eight place settings , each member of the "Cullen' family is represented

A View of the entire room

To see more tablescapes from more amazing bloggers, please visit our friend Susan over at Between Naps on the Porch!

Finishing a Guest Room for Savannah!

We built our home with the intention of turning it into a Bed and Breakfast. That meant I had several guest rooms to finish and with limited $$$$. So I did the smart thing and responded to a post on Craigslist making arrangements for a young lady coming from Australia to study violin to stay with us for two months. Nothing like knowing a guest is coming in a month to get me motivated!! Honestly, the room was still dressed in drywall and subfloor. No bathroom, no paint, no lighting, etc.

This iron vanity was sitting in my garage. I had three of them made in San Miguel for less than $125 each. I painted it black and made the vanity top base from 3/4 inch plywood. Screwed on backer board and tiled the top. The sink is made of cast iron and is by Kohler (pricey). The Delta faucet was a display that I got for ($25) from a distributor going out of business. The mirror is IKEA ($15) and the light fixture is Costco ($27).

I wish I had before pictures, but I wasn't blogging then and didn't think about it. I tiled the wet bar area in the same tile as the vanity area. I had the custom base cabinet made for ($95). I painted it black and distressed the edges. My father helped me build and install the microwave cabinet/shelf above the sink. He also did the additional electrical needed to add a light over the sink.

I had all of the furniture except the headboard. So I constructed the frame for the headboard out of 2x4's and plywood. I glued 2" foam onto the plywood and then wrapped the entire thing with thick batting and stapled it onto the back. To cover it, I used a chenille fabric that I had left over from when I had a sofa reupholstered. The desk was purchased at auction and the chair (1 of 4) from Storehouse I got from Craigslist.

I grew tired of the chenille and decided to attempt a slipcover. I bought white denim on sale at Joann for $5.99 a yard and some inexpensive cording. At first I tried making it from just measurements and had a hard time. Once I removed the headboard from the bed and pinned the fabric and cording using the headboard as a form it all came together. I really like how it turned out and I like the fact that I can launder it.

So how did it go with my guest? Her name was Savannah Jo and she was delightful. She would stand out on the veranda and play her violin and sing like an angel. She had no transportation so I offered her one of our bicycles, thinking she'd never accept. Surprisingly, she did accept and rode it all over with her backpack on and her violin strapped across her shoulder. We went to lunch a few times and once I surprised her and took her to the Savannah Tea Room, she loved it.

My vanity is my thrifty treasure. Be sure to visit Rhoda at Southern Hospitality for hosting Thrify Treasures.

Also, be sure to visit with Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Metamorphisis Monday.

Thanks to both Susan and Rhoda for hosting todays events.

Have a wonderful week!

Nola

P.S.....I apologize for the format. I think our blogger is possessed!

Chocolate Molten Cake in 10 Minutes!

Chocolate Molten Cake is my go-to dessert and here are the reasons why: It's delicious; I normally always have the ingredients in my pantry; less than 10 minutes to prepare; always a crowd-pleaser; great presentation; and the number one reason....it's chocolate!

Chocolate Molten Cake

1/2 c. softened butter

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate

3 eggs

1/4 c. sugar

2 t. flour

1/4 t. vanilla

Butter and flour four ramekins. (you can use cocoa powder or granulated sugar). Slowly melt butter and chocolate in a double boiler. Beat eggs and sugar together until light and thick. While beating slowly poor small amount of chocolate/butter mixture into eggs to temper. Continue to beat slowly and add remaining choc/butter mixture. Quickly beat in flour and vanilla just until combined. Divide batter between four ramekins. Bake in a preheated oven at 450 degrees for 6-7 minutes. Invert cakes onto serving dish and let rest for 15 seconds, then unmold. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar and enjoy!

I like mine with Coffee, Almond and Fudge light ice-cream from Publix.

Other than the taste, the versatility is what I like the most. I will prepare the batter early in the day, fill the ramekins and place them in the refrigerator. I take them out of the refrigerator just before dinner. Then pop them in the oven right after dinner to bake while we are clearing the dishes. Note: I always bake them with a water bath (bain marie).
They can also be cooked in the microwave; my microwave cooks them perfectly in 50 seconds.

Thanks to Michael at Designs by Gollum for hosting Foodie Friday!















Enjoy!
Nola