Entertaining – Page 2

What I rely upon when entertaining

January 12, 2015

Yesterday as I was preparing and setting up to host a few lady friends for a gathering I found myself in a rhythm. I truly love to entertain (maybe that’s where Norah gets it) and have found a routine that I seem to follow as I primp my home for guests.

I always rely upon a few items when entertaining. The tools I use for parties and gatherings are part of my every day decor. I don’t have to rummage through cabinets and closets each time I entertain. Because I buy things that I find beautiful and that I truly love, these items are always out on display and easily accessible.

:: My glass pedestals (all thrifted) live on the top shelf of my open pantry. I have a variety of heights and sizes and love how they look all displayed together. Pedestals look beautiful all on their own holding a cake or quiche or towered on top of one another with cookies, bars and chocolates. I find a table presenting foods at varying heights is pleasing to the eye.

:: Cutting boards, many of which were thrifted, are daily essentials in my kitchen. They live stacked up against one another on my counter top and I have a few hanging up almost as artwork around the kitchen. They are all easy to grab and I find myself reaching for them every time I entertain. They work great for anything that needs to be sliced or forked like meats, fishes and cheeses. I like to add a few bowls with olives and nuts on top. Remember this big cutting board I made! I have a variety of shapes and sizes and love the organic feel they bring to the table.

:: I adore my antique cutlery caddy (thrifted) and have it out on full display in my kitchen at all times. It’s beautiful, functional and versatile, the perfect combination. I keep my antique silverware in it which gets used on a daily basis. When it’s party time I add a few paper napkins on the other side of the silverware, grab the handle and plop it where it needs to go. In the dining room, by the stove for soup, outside on the patio. Makes for easy set up!

A backyard restaurant

August 27, 2014

We have been having such a fun summer full of new experiences along with tradition. We are slowly but surely crossing things off of our summer manifesto and since we still have a few weeks left I am more than confident that we can fully complete it. It’s a simple and achievable list just as manifestos should be.

One of the things on our list was something that Hannah and Norah have been dreaming of doing for over a year now and it was so fun to watch it all evolve and come to fruition this past Sunday.
They have always wanted to create a real live restaurant at our home so on Sunday family and friends came out to 121 Cafe, a backyard restaurant offering homegrown and seasonal foods.

The menu featured pasta dishes made with homemade pesto and tomato sauce, farm fresh salads, breads dipped in herb infused olive oil, peach blackberry crumble, mint iced tea and lemonade. We used as many ingredients as possible from our own backyard as well as our local farm. They worked all week preparing, cooking and gathering.
There were 2 seatings, one at 5pm and one at 7pm where the girls worked as both hostess and waitress for 26 people total. We set a table on the back porch, one on the patio and 2 out on the street for a true alfresco experience.They made their own menus, check slips and even doodle pages for kids to draw on.

Many times throughout the night they kept running in to the kitchen thanking us for helping to make it all happen. We all had a blast and fell into bed that night marveling at and appreciating the many chefs, cooks, waitresses and restaurant owners out there. We definitely got a small dose of how much work is involved!

At the end of the night the girls were thrilled to find that their own hard work had paid off making a profit of $200, half of which will be donated to our local fire company.

Pie on the Porch

August 10, 2014

A few days before we left for the lake we had a little “Pie on the Porch” party. I like to host monthly pie parties in the summertime for an excuse to bake with seasonal fruits and to eat it with friends. May and June flew by too fast so before July left us we invited some of our favorite people over to eat peach/cherry crumble and calflouti. Yep no pie. But there was sangria so all was forgiven.

How to host a “pie on the porch party”

Don’t have a porch? No worries! The idea is to get outside on a summer night. A patio, balcony, deck or backyard will suffice just fine.

Don’t have enough time to make a pie? Pie crust just isn’t your thing? Don’t fret! Crisps and crumbles take no time at all and are just as yummy if not more. Or how about a calflouti. a tart, brown betty or trifle? It’s all about enjoying fresh seasonal fruit in some form or fashion so how about just fruit atop whipped or iced cream.

To make things simple serve a featured drink of the evening. Making a pitcher or punchbowl of something like sangria or mojitos can allow the host to sit back and enjoy. Highlight what’s growing in your garden by using fresh herbs like mint,lemon verbena, or basil. There are so many delicious summertime cocktail recipes out there. Ice is key for many drinks so make sure your freezer or cooler is stocked with it!

Serve a few savory things to nibble on to balance the sweet. I made the watermelon-basil-feta cubes I wrote about a few weeks back.

Make a playlist of your recent favorite tunes. Or break out the record player and vinyl.

String some twinkle lights around tree branches to make things a bit festive.Scatter votives about and have a lighter in your pocket ready for sundown.

Keep bugs at bay. Have a few bottles of natural bug spray on hand for guests. Light a few citronella candles. Bring out an oscillating fan. (we have found this to be the most effective way to keep bugs away!)

For the younger folk offer a basket of flashlights for flashlight tag, sparklers, or mason jars to collect fireflies.

At some point in the evening tuck a little pie or crisp away for breakfast in the morning!

A fourth of July tradition.

July 6, 2014

What a beautiful, unseasonal cool and windy day we had on the 4th of July.
I can’t remember the last time we donned sweaters on what is usually one of the hottest days of the year.
It rained all morning but luckily cleared up in time for our annual festivities.
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When I first moved in there was a cyclone fence dividing our yard from our next door neighbor’s yard and then another fence diving her yard from her next door neighbor’s. We decided a while back to take those fences down as a neighborly and friendly gesture. Although we each have our own gardens and spaces to tend taking those fences down has opened things up and given such a warm and welcoming vibe especially when we throw our neighborhood gatherings and parties.

We set the food up in the paper street/alley that runs behind our garages and everyone mingles throughout the three yards. We get a permit to close the street each year where the kids romp around with sparklers and play four square. When the sun sets everyone gathers around for the show.

Folks from around the corner and several streets down walk down to sneak a peek. Even one of the police officers on duty showed up to watch (luckily everything was legal).

The Media 5 Miler

June 21, 2014

Have I mentioned how much I love my town? There is always some sort of event or celebration to look forward to throughout the year, one of our favorites being the Media 5 Mile Run.
Since our home sits right on the course with over 1600 runners racing by twice, we make sure to throw a big soiree each year. We aren’t the only ones who celebrate though. The whole town is like one big party!
Some years I have run and some Hannah has too. But this year we sat back and cheered until we were hoarse.

To keep the dishes to a minimum we served mostly finger snacky foods. And with an over abundance of mint growing in the garden, Mojitos were the featured drink of the evening. Our muddler got a workout!

But maybe not as much of a workout as those runners. Especially the hamburger and hotdog.

We can’t wait for next year already.

Making pretty with what you have

May 27, 2014

We hosted a little birthday celebration for my mom yesterday.
As we were driving back from the beach in the morning my mind began to wander as to what needed to be done once I got home to prepare for the party. Bake a strawberry rhubarb cobbler, clean the bathroom, marinate the chicken and asparagus for the grill, make a few flower arrangements…..

I wanted to be able to entertain mostly outdoors since it was going to be a warm evening but I began to get into a funk as I thought about our back porch which is looking a bit run down (plans to rebuild it next month!) and the fact that we needed new outdoor furniture and that I wished there was some money in the budget for some new plants and …… you get the point.
I stopped myself and said “Amy you can do this. You can get creative and make a beautiful outdoor experience with what you have. I know you can!”

After the car was unpacked and a visit to the market I got to work.
I swept the patio and porch clean (what a difference a clean swept space makes!) and unearthed the patio umbrella from the garage. I brought out a woven rug and laid it out on the porch. To serve hors d’oeuvres, I set up my antique ironing board with a pretty cloth napkin and glass jars filled with stems of Solomons Seal and Honeysuckle. I placed a piece of large flagstone on top of a clay crock and one on top of the stand that holds our fire pit to make little tables to set food and drinks on. I used a basket tray to place on top of one the tables for a homey feel and set out a bouquet of flowers and a votive. Instead of buying flowers, I made arrangements from my own garden of Lambs Ear, Catmint, Hosta leaves, Enonymous and Comfrey. I got out the birthday flags and stuck them in arrangements and planters and set out a chalkboard wishing my mom a Happy Birthday when she arrived.

When I was finished I stepped back and fell in love with the cozy outdoor party space made entirely with things found around my home and garden. Later that night as I was blowing out candles and cleaning glasses off of my makeshift tables I realized I hadn’t noticed all night how run down the porch was. I sort of like it now.

a Dance Party

February 22, 2014

Hannah is now officially 12 year years old. It’s hard to believe that this is her last year before entering teen-hood. It has been such a joy watching her grow into the wise, strong, confident individual that she is. And it makes this mama happy that she still asks for parties at home.

Last night she had a bunch of friends over for a dance party.
This was one of the easiest and most simple parties we have thrown. Some pizza, root beer floats, mustache straws, silver balloons, and a good dance mix was all that was required. At this age they fill in the gaps and keep themselves engaged.

A few times during the night I couldn’t help but to reminisce about past parties, ones with themes and games. I would peek in and get a little emotional about how fast time is moving and that next year I will have a teenager. I tried to think back to my own 12th birthday party. I think it was a sleepover where we watched horror films and played “Light as a feather, stiff as a board” and broke out the Ouiga board.

There are still a few stragglers here from last night. Breakfast dishes have been cleaned up and I have some left over pizza heating up. I hear a game of monopoly in the other room. The balloons are still hovering above and all is calm.

Let’s start with cake…

February 17, 2014

We usually drag birthdays out as long as possible around here. The day you were born is an important day to celebrate so why not do it over several days or even a week!

Although Hannah doesn’t turn 12 until Tuesday, we began the festivities with a birthday cake with friends last night. I made this cake and it was to die for!
I am usually a chocolate cake with buttercream or cream cheese icing kind of gal but this cake spoke to me when I read the icing was made with sour cream and bittersweet chocolate.
The tangy to sweet ratio was perfect! Warning: make enough icing to ice your cake and eat it too. It was hard to stop tasting!

When I came home from the store to unpack the cake ingredients I was disappointed to find that I had overlooked the bittersweet chocolate I had bought contained almonds. Chris was nice enough to run back out for me. He couldn’t find plain bittersweet but did come home with both dark chocolate and milk chocolate. He thought combined it would do the job. And he was right. It was perfect.

And there is still cake left over. Cake counts as breakfast right?

applesauce cake

February 13, 2014

we had just a smidge of our homemade applesauce left so i thought i would do it justice by turning it into cake. craft circle was this evening and i served it up with chai tea.
it’s a deliciously moist cake made with warm spices, brown sugar and pecans, tasting a bit like gingerbread. it tastes best warm out of the oven with a dollop of homemade whipped cream but is also the perfect breakfast drizzled with a little yogurt and honey.

applesauce cake

preheat oven to 350 degrees
grease and flour one (6 cup) fluted or bundt pan

1 1/2 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon round ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 cup applesauce
1 cup chopped pecans

sift together flour, baking soda and spices.
cream butter and sugar. add egg
alternate adding flour mixture and applesauce.
add nuts.

scrape batter in to pan and bake for 30 minutes.
cool and dust with confectioners sugar.

adapted from the joy of cooking. i added ginger to the recipe.

Tuesday Nights with Izzy

February 12, 2014

i look forward to tuesday evenings with my sister elizabeth (or izzy as my girls call her).
being my only sibling i feel so lucky that she only lives 5 minutes away.
over the last year we have enjoyed dinner together almost every week.
it usually falls on a tuesday night and we alternate hosting each week.
there are no specific rules. no pressure, no stress.
sometimes we eat pancakes for dinner. and sometimes there is a roast chicken and scalloped potatoes.
the kids play while we cook and chat.
and the night is never complete without lots of giggling. usually resulting in me getting the hiccups.
some things never change.

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