Friday, December 30, 2011

New Year's Eve Pop!

 It's not to late to make
New Year's Eve Pop! 




To make New Year's Eve POP! corn:

1/2 container of Pearlized Sprinkles

pop your popcorn in the microwave.  follow the directions on the package of chocolate melts & melt in the microwave.  in a large bowl combine the popcorn & melted chocolate & mix together.  then spread it on a large baking sheet & add your glitter stars & pearlized sprinkles.  tossing around together lightly.  allow the mix to dry just a little, before you add the sprinkles & stars.  because the fun part is having the stars & sprinkles show up on top of your popcorn.

Store in an air tight container or in small treat bags tied with ribbon.






This amazing
fun
sparkly 
idea was found on
Nest of Posies blog.
 head over there and tell her what a wonderful idea this is. :) 
 

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Sierra's Olivia Party







It's really unfortunate that is takes us almost 3 months to post a party!!!
:(  
Good grief...as Charlie Brown would say!!  

This party was done in October for Sierra's 5th birthday.
  
It was held at the Presentation Center which is a good place with lots of space.  
We worked in as many details of Olivia as we possibly could.  
Red. 
Stripes.
Aqua. 
feathers. 
rules of life.  
polka dots...oh dear those polka dots!! 
Sierra was not too sure about them since Olivia does NOT wear polka dots like she wears stripes!  
We used them in the decor anyway and I think in the end she was OK with them. :) 

The menu: 
Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
Not sure if you can tell but they are wrapped in a strip of parchment paper and tied with a little string.  
Lisa had been wanting to do this idea for some time and was thrilled to finally do it.  
It was a bit messy and hardly worth all the effort, 
but the simple pb & jelly sandwiches did look alittle yummier with all the fuss. 


Sierra wanted summer sausage so brought that in and layered it with cheese for that wonderful striped look that Olivia is known for. 
Also on the menu were some pretzel sticks with some stripes on them.
Red spiral cookies were a real fun treat also. 
Mini Red Velvet Cupcakes were the dessert and they were fabulous!  
Mini was key. 
Red and white was perfect. 
And the little toppers were a hit.


There was an activity corner where the kids colored Olivia pictures. 
{this was a big hit and it was just coloring!}
Decor 
 
 

 

Of course we had to have a photo shoot.
 Fun!  

 
























 and an Olivia movie served with fresh popcorn.
 
everyone inside.....
 










the theater :) 
 the 5 year old princess!

 and a rule of life.....



Monday, December 5, 2011

Brie Bites





One of the appetizers Amy made for Saturday night was 
Brie Bites. 
   
They were not only pretty but yummy too!  
I must explain that these are leftovers from the night before so they do not look nearly as pretty and fresh as they did right before serving.  
Forgot to take ANY pictures of the party! 
We need to hire someone to do that. :) 

Here's the recipe:
Tart shells {those ones you buy frozen...super easy, right?}
Brie 
Cranberry Chutney {recipe below}
Sugared cranberries {recipe below}
Fresh Mint leaves

How to:
Put a small piece of brie in each shell,  add a teaspoon or so of the chutney over the brie.  
Bake at 350 for about 5 minutes or till brie is melted.  
Add 1, 2 or 3 
{or however many you can put on there!!}  
sugared cranberries on top of the chutney.
Add a fresh mint leaf.  
Serve.  
Enjoy.


The little sign at the party.




 Everything goes in one sauce pan…
Bring it to a boil and then simmer it.
About 10 minutes later…
Done. 

{Amy used dried apricots in place of the mango.} 
from 

Sparkling Cranberries

For the simple syrup, raw cane sugar or real brown sugar lends a nice molasses flavor to the cranberries, but regular granulated sugar (or a blend of brown/white) will work.
2 cups cranberries, picked over
2 cups water
2 cups sugar (see head notes)
More sugar for coating: I do a mix of medium-grained organic sugar for the first coating, and then a second toss with regular granulated white sugar. You don't want a huge grain for that first toss, just something larger than standard sugar, smaller than most turbinado sugars. You can sort of see the different grain sizes in the third photo in the main write-up.
Place the cranberries in a medium glass bowl and set aside.
Make a simple syrup by bringing the water and sugar just to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Let the syrup cool for a couple minutes and then pour it over the cranberries. If the syrup is too hot the cranberries will burst, so be careful. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
The next day, drain the cranberries and toss them with larger grained sugar until they are well coated. I only use a scoop of sugar at a time, and small batches of cranberries, so the sugar doesn't get too damp. Place the coated cranberries on a baking sheet to dry for a few hours.
Do a second toss with the regular granulated sugar, this typically takes care of any sticky spots on the cranberries. Let dry another hour.
Makes 2 cups of sparkling cranberries.





These were the card holders for the cheesecake buffet.  
They didn't stand up as well as I would have liked them to.  
I did have fabrics under them so I suppose that didn't help.  
But they did look pretty.  




Thursday, November 10, 2011

The BEST Chocolate Cake

Here is the recipe for the  
Chocolate Cake
 
that was made for the Rustic Party. 
It was yummy!
Very moist
Chocolaty
Creamy frosting
 Amy used Duncan Donuts brand coffee in this cake.

The Best Chocolate Cake

Yield: 8 servings
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:

2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons King Arthur Flour Black Cocoa, optional
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup strong black coffee (I used Green Mountain Coffee’s Vermont Country Blend)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans or one 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or in a large bowl with an electric mixer, combine the sugar, flour, cocoa(s), baking soda, baking powder. Mix on low until dry ingredients are thoroughly combined. Add eggs, buttermilk, coffee, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for about two minutes; the batter will be thin. Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes for round pans, 35 to 40 minutes for rectangular pan or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.
4. Frost as desired. I used a simple and delicious Chocolate Buttercream Frosting from Savory Sweet Life. One batch was perfect for this layered chocolate cake.

Notes:

- The Black Cocoa from King Arthur Flour is optional - it simply provides a great depth of flavor and color to the chocolate cake.
- This cake also pairs beautifully with a simple chocolate ganache.
Recipe adapted from Hershey's Black Magic Cake



Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Rustic Party



Ugh...where have we been???
Busy planning and doing parties I guess!  

Today we will show you the  
Rustic themed party 
we did just this past Sunday night. 
The party was for a very deserving lady which made it so much fun to put together!  
We were told she loves natural, rustic things.  
We chose the colors of browns, beige, greens to use in the decor.  Twigs, rocks, split peas and glass were all part of this party. :)

Amy chose a menu of 
Artichoke and Roasted Garlic Dip 
served with pretzel chips and flatbread sticks
Sweet & Spicy Nuts
Pumpkin Biscotti
Chocolate Cake
Coffee 
served with four options of homemade creamers
Vanilla 
Hazelnut
Cinnamon Strudel
and Caramel 
 
The ladies loved the creamers 
and I think most of them tried each flavor!  

Here are the pics we have to share with you.  
Recipes will may follow on a later post.






 This was the word banner I was making here.  
We decided not to hang it from the ceiling since it was really high, 
so this is what it ended up to be.






 We did not know what the guest of honor's home looked like so we hoped it 
would all come together and it was perfect!  
The home was beautiful and I knew the moment we walked in the door and saw a tray of 
lit candles sitting in rocks that it was all good! 

Up next...we do have pictures from the 
Olivia party we did in October. 
Stay tuned. :)

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