Friends
Monday, June 9, 2008, by Leigh Anne
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I am not really sure if addiction is the right word but I admit I really love aprons.
I have always been an apron wearer - even before it was the “in” thing to do! (If you didn’t know, aprons are really “in” right now!)
Thanks to my 4-H sewing teacher in the 3rd grade the first thing I ever learned to sew was an apron.
I wear an apron a lot - anytime I am in the kitchen (I am a very messy cook), when I am cleaning the house (I am a very messy cleaner) and when I am in the garden (yes, I am a messy gardener too).
And much to my two teenage daughter’s horror I have even been known to go out in public with my apron on!
I have quite a collection of aprons. A friend jokingly (or maybe she wasn’t joking) said that I had an apron to match every outfit! I have aprons I have bought, ones that have been made by friends and lately I have gotten into making my own aprons.
I even joined an apron swap I found on a blog I visit. Here is the apron I made for Tracy in Alabama - hope she likes it.
While I was at it I had to make another new one for myself too!
And in case you are wondering - those are not my slim little hips. My hips have birthed four babies! That is my slim hipped 14 year old dancer daughter. Thanks for being my model Tessa.
Since we are on the topic of aprons I thought I’d share with you the story of one of my favorite aprons.
Fourteen years ago I was on a “girl’s weekend away” with my Beach Babe group. On the way to the beach I was reading aloud excerpts from the book Living a Beautiful Life.
When I read the following section all 5 of us burst out laughing…
“When I return from the office I put on an attractive apron and unwind by freshening up the house. Somehow this simple act - putting on an apron - sets the stage for my tidying up ritual and I go about the apartment attending to little things.”
We got a huge kick out of it and have joked about it over the years. The idea of each of us getting home from work and putting on an attractive apron to “tidy up” was just too funny.
Well, the next time we got together, April, one of the group had a gift for each of us - yep, you guessed it - an “attractive apron”.
Here they are! (Yes, the top part of the apron is detachable and also doubles as hot pot holders!)
I don’t think this is what Alexandra Stoddard, author of Living a Beautiful Life, had in mind but we sure have gotten a lot of enjoyment and laughs out of them! They have managed to show up at various events, parties, BBQ’s, holiday gatherings, even the wedding reception of one of the Beach Babe’s daughters!
So next time you have some “freshening” up to do - don’t forget the attractive apron!
Popularity: 40% [?]
Categories: Friends, Humor, Nest
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Monday, April 7, 2008, by Leigh Anne
“The people in our lives”
Checking the mail each day use to be an exciting event - especially as a child. Would there be a card or letter from Grandma, a birthday invitation, a thank you note or a letter from a friend that had moved away?
Today so much of our correspondence is done via email, fax, cell phone, blackberry etc. Even my mom who lives two blocks away will email me to ask me a question! Invitations come electronically via E-vite and I now correspond with friends who have moved away via their blogs or emails. There are lots of advantages to electronic correspondence and I can’t imagine living without it.
It seems the only things I find when I check the mail these day are bills (although a lot of those come electronically too) or junk mail!
But this weekend when I checked the mail there was Happy Mail! There were TWO surprise packages waiting for me! Yes , two!
The first package was from my sweet friend Deb in Michigan. She and I are kindred spirits and have a lot of things in common - one of which is our love for shoes.
The inside of the cute card with all the shoes on the front said the following….
“Clean living paid off, and Leslie ended up going to Heaven.”
I am convinced heaven is full of beautiful shoes - that don’t hurt your feet!
The cute luggage tag said “The journey of a thousand miles begins with cute shoes.”
And the other shoe is actually an emery board - how cute is that!!
Thank you Deb for bringing a smile to my face - love ya girl!
The second piece of Happy Mail was a package from one of you! Karen, one of my blog readers, sent me this thoughtful and fun gift after reading my post on Words of Inspiration
Create is one of my favorite words - those of you who know me understand! This new word of inspiration will be sitting next to me on my desk. Thank you Karen for your kindness and thoughtfulness.
Can you think of someone who deserves some Happy Mail this week -a fun little surprise or a few kind words to brighten their day? Think Happy Mail!
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Categories: Connect, Friends
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Thursday, March 13, 2008, by Leigh Anne
“The people in our lives”
Another new blog post category - Connect.
Connect posts will share ideas and suggestions for ways we can Connect to the important people in our life whether we are Connecting in person, over the phone, through the mail or over the Internet.
The important thing is that we Connect and that we do so on a regular basis.
Today I have been busy putting together a care package for my two sweet college boys. This is something I do every couple of months or so.
A care package is a way to say - “Hi, I was thinking about you” without being there in person. When I send a care package to my two sweet college boys it is a connection to home for them - they know they are loved.
Yes, those are football, baseball and basketball shaped Easter eggs - aren’t they cute!
The first “official” care packages were sent back in 1945 by CARE (Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere) an organization that would send food relief to Europe when large numbers of people were at risk of starvation in the wake of World War II
Come to think of it - there are probably times my sweet college boys think they are at risk of starvation too - hopefully those care packages from mom come in time!
Since 1945 the term Care Package has been adopted as a generic term for a package of food or supplies sent for relief or comfort purposes.
One of my first memories of receiving a care package is from my childhood. Our family lived in Wisconsin but all of my mother’s family was in California so each summer my mother, my sister and I would make a trip to California where we would stay for a month or so. My mother was terrified of flying when I was a child (she has gotten better with age) so we would travel from Wisconsin to California via train. It was actually a very fun and memorable way to travel.
The thing that I really remember though was when we would be ready to leave California and board the train back to Wisconsin our Aunt Lulu (not really our aunt, just a good family friend) would bring us a care package to take on the long train ride home.
This care package was full of fun little gifts that were individually wrapped. We were to open them each day of the trip - most of the gifts were toys/games to help keep us occupied on the train ride.
Honestly, I don’t really remember specifically what the gifts were but what I do remember is that connection that was made - our Aunt Lulu loved us and cared about us. Each day, as we opened one or two of the gifts we were still connected to her even though she was hundreds of miles away.
My Aunt Lulu has passed away but I never send or receive a care package without thinking of her.
When was the last time you sent a care package?
This week find someone near or far who just needs a little connection, someone who needs to know they are loved.
It doesn’t have to be anything fancy. Once when I was sick in bed with a terrible flu a sweet friend brought me over a can of chicken noodle soup wrapped with a bow - I knew I was loved.
Remember you don’t need to spend a lot of money. I made a quick trip to the dollar store for most of the things in my boy’s care package and picked up a few bags of candy from Target.
Since this care package had an Easter theme I also made them a homemade treat - some Bunny Munch.
So have fun with this little project and come back and let me know what you did by leaving a comment below. Have fun connecting!
Popularity: 33% [?]
Categories: Connect, Family, Friends
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Wednesday, February 27, 2008, by Leigh Anne
Last week I mentioned that I was in charge of the appetizers for our annual Beach Babes and their Boys Valentine dinner - a 13 year tradition. All of my Beach Babe friends are great cooks (o.k., except maybe Julie, whose husband William does all the cooking at their house) But Julie makes up for her lack of cooking skills in so many ways.
So before I share my appetizer recipes I want to share Julie.
I have known Julie for over 21 years and I can honestly say that Julie looks the same today as she did when I first met her. Julie does not age! (Even though she just celebrated her “Sexty” birthday!) Julie’s now grown children with children of their own use to babysit for my children. Julie is an amazing woman - there has never been anyone like Julie and never will be again. Julie gets more joy and fun out of life than anyone I know.
What Julie lacks in cooking skills she makes up for in your gracious heart and gracious living. Julie’s house is a revolving house of hospitality - no matter what time of day or what day of the week if you stop by Julie’s house the dining room table is set in full - china, chargers, crystal, silverware, candles etc. - ready for a meal and for you.
When we arrived at Julie’s house for our Valentine Dinner every square inch of her beautiful 112 year old house in the Hawthorne area of SE Portland was decorated for the holiday and our party. I think she has more Valentine decorations than most of us have Christmas decorations.
Julie adds her special touch to all she does. The house was ablaze in candles, there were at least a dozen heart shaped balloons surrounding the mantle and every flat surface of the house had hearts, bears, and other pretty decorations.
Everyone needs a friend like Julie and I am so blessed to have her as my friend!
Now for the appetizers.
Popularity: 33% [?]
Categories: Friends
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Wednesday, February 27, 2008, by Leigh Anne
For our annual Beach Babe and their Boys Valentine dinner I prepared some of my favorite “stand by” appetizers. Ones I know everyone will love.
Above picture - The Beach Babes enjoying my appetizers. One of our beach babes Patrice was visiting her sick daddy so wasn’t with us - we missed you Patrice!
One of my favorite appetizers, the one I make more than any other appetizer is Roasted Garlic and Artichoke Dip - yum! You can serve it with sliced baguette or crackers or just eat it by the spoonful. There are lots of artichoke dip recipes out there - the secret ingredient that makes this one so good is roasted garlic.
If you have never roasted garlic before I recommend that you pay a visit to Pioneer Woman Cooks blog (one of my favorite food blogs) and her beautiful pictorial and instructions for roasting garlic. I used roasted garlic in several of the appetizers I made so I roasted about 6-7 heads of garlic.
Roasted Garlic and Artichoke Dip
1 (6.5 oz.) jar marinated artichokes, drained and chopped
1 cup reduced fat or regular mayonnaise
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1 head roasted garlic, mashed
salt and pepper to taste.
Mix the above together. Place in a 1 quart glass dish. Sprinkle 1/4 tsp. paprika on top. Bake 20 minutes or until bubbling in a 375 degree oven.
Serve with pita bread, baguette, crackers or vegetables.
Sun-Dried Tomato Tart with Fontina & Prosciutto
1 large egg yolk
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1/4 cup finely chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cup grated Fontina (or any mild Swiss like white cheese)
4 thin slices prosciutto, cut into thin strips
2-3 Tbsp. freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
Whisk the egg with 1/2 tsp. water.
Lightly dust a work surface with flour and gently unfold the pastry sheet. Roll out the pastry eliminating the creases to a 10 x 14 inch rectangle. Cut the rectangle in half lengthwise to make two 5 x 14 inch rectangles and if the edges are uneven or ragged, trim them.
Transfer both pastries to the baking sheet. With the tines of a fork, press a 1/4 inch border around the edge of the pastry. Brush the egg mixture along the border. Poke the rest of the pastry all over with the fork to keep it from puffing too much. Bake both pastry rectangles until firm and golden, about 12 minutes. Remove the pastry from the oven and increase the temperature of oven to 475 degrees.
Let the pastry rectangles cool slightly and press them gently to flatten any large air pockets. Scatter a thin layer of the sun-dried tomatoes on both rectangles. Scatter the Fontina over the top. Place the prosciutto strips on top of the cheese, either draping them in a random pattern or arranging them evenly. Sprinkle the top with the Parmesan cheese. Bake until the cheese has melted, about 5 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes and then cut into strips or small squares to serve.
Cambozola Cheese Tray
This is super easy and super yummy!
I bought a yummy wedge of cambozola cheese from Costco (this is a combination of a French soft-ripened triple cream cheese and Italian Gorgonzola)
I filled a ramekin with some sliced roasted red peppers I bought at Trade Joes and filled another ramekin with some of that roasted garlic.
I thinly sliced a baguette, brushed the bread with some olive oil and toasted it. Easy and yummy - a Cambozola Cheese Platter!
Popularity: 44% [?]
Categories: Friends, Recipes
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Wednesday, February 13, 2008, by Leigh Anne
Thanks to all of you who have shared your favorite way to eat your chocolate! If you haven’t entered my contest to win an amazing assortment of Moonstruck Chocolate click on over and do so now - one more day to enter! I mentioned on Monday that one of my favorite ways to eat chocolate is white chocolate and raspberry
The first time I was introduced to this combination was when I was in the hospital following the birth of my fourth child and my sweet friend April came to visit me. She brought a darling gift for the baby but for me she brought a bar of white chocolate and a basket of fresh Oregon raspberries (it was July). It was amazing and I sat there in bed and ate every bit of it all by myself!
So today I will share what we are having for Valentine’s Day dessert - Raspberry Velvet Tart. This recipe was given to me by my dear friend Deb Afton. Deb and I met 15 years ago through our direct sales business and we have been kindred spirits ever since. The only negative of our friendship is that she lives in the Midwest - way too far away!
LA Notes: As fresh raspberries can be hard to find in February you can also use unsweetened, individually frozen raspberries. Just thaw and drain. I found fresh ones at our local grocery store (but they were $$$). I also used white chocolate chips
Raspberry Velvet Tart
Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pieces
1 egg yolk
1 Tbsp. whipping cream
2 Tbsp. ice water
Filling:
10 ounces of premium white chocolate
1/2 cup hot whipping cream (but do not boil, or it will curdle)
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups fresh raspberries
powdered sugar
For crust, mix flour and sugar. Cut in the butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Beat together the egg yolk and whipping cream and pour over flour mixture. Stir dough, adding just enough of the water to make a dough. Form a ball and flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate 30 minutes.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough into a 1/8 inch thick round. Transfer to a 9 inch tart pan with removable bottom. Fit dough into bottom and up sides of pan. Prick crust all over and cover edges with foil (remove during last 5 minutes of baking) Bake crust in oven preheated to 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool completely on wire rack.
For filling, melt chocolate in the top of a double boiler over simmering water, stirring until smooth. Mix in cream and butter. Remove from water.
Sprinkle raspberries over bottom of prepared crust, saving a few berries for garnish. Pour filling over berries and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour (This can be prepared 1 day ahead and refrigerated, but allow tart to stand at room temperature one hour before serving). Garnish with reserved berries and sift powdered sugar over top.
Popularity: 37% [?]
Categories: Friends, Recipes
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Saturday, February 2, 2008, by Leigh Anne
Yesterday, my friend Karen Morgan and I were the food chairs for a dinner and program at church. We planned and prepared dinner for 300 women! This is not the first time I have done this - you are probably wondering why I didn’t learn my lesson the first time and say no this time?! Well - to tell you the truth I actually enjoy it! It gives me the opportunity to get to know women at church that I wouldn’t otherwise. Each time I do it I make so many new friends! I also learn a few new tips and techniques along the way. So - just in case you ever need to cook dinner for 300 I thought I’d share some things I’ve learned as well as the recipes for what we served last night.
Now the original recipes I have are actually for 200 servings so I divided the quantities down for you but if any of you think you may need to feed 200 or more email me and I’ll send you the original recipe. (leighannew31@comcast.net)
Tips for Feeding a Crowd:
1. Get yourself some GOOD help! One of the reasons I said yes to this assignment was I knew that there would be a wonderful group of women who would be willing to help me - ‘many hands make light work’. About 8 women joined me Friday afternoon and in 2 hours we assembled enough Apricot Chicken wrapped in Puff Pastry to feed 300. Three friends helped by preparing and cooking 30 pounds of vegetables each and another group of women made 3 batches each of a delicious Swedish Creme. I think I had another 10 women who helped bake all the chicken in their ovens at home. We couldn’t have done it without all the help!
2. Use dishes that taste good at room temperature. Because we don’t have cooking facilities at our church (a kitchen but no operating ovens) everything needed to be baked at individual homes and transported to the church. There is just no way you can feed 300 people hot food when you have to do that. Even if we could have baked it at the church it would have been difficult. Our main dish, Apricot Chicken in Puff Pastry actually tastes better at room temperature, the individual flavors of the chicken, onions and roasted red peppers are more flavorful.
3. Experiment - try out recipes first. Karen had fun experimenting with different dessert recipes before we decided on the final choice. We nicknamed her the Dessert Fairy because she would show up at our door with samples of the different desserts she was trying out! We will miss those visits:( It is not a good idea to use a new recipe you have never tried before when cooking for 300!
4. Have Friends with Good Recipes. Three of the recipes we used came from my friend Patrice, who is an amazing cook and does catering on the side. Thanks Patrice for answering my many questions via email and phone! Karen got the dessert recipe from her friend Elaine. Friends are wonderful!
4. Get MORE good help. Thanks to a group of wonderful helpers in the kitchen we were able to set up an assembly line for serving and get the food out to everyone in a decent amount of time.
LA Note - I used 4 oz. chicken breasts from Cash & Carry. They are the perfect size. The Costco chicken breasts are a little too thick. I also bought 5 inch square sheets of puff pastry from Cash & Carry but you have to buy it in quantities of 100 so you can also just buy full sheets from the grocery store and cut it.
Apricot Chicken in Puff Pastry
Puff Pastry - 5 inch square per serving
12 chicken breasts, 4 oz.
1 onion
1-2 red peppers
olive oil/butter
1 pkg. of cream cheese, set out first thing in the morning so it is really soft
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
4 oz. apricot jam
1 egg
water
Trim and slice onions. Caramelize in mixture of 4 parts olive oil to 1 part butter. Set aside to cool. Do the same with the peppers.
Mix cream cheese, soy sauce and jam. Mix with an electric mixer until smooth. You want it creamy but not airy like whipped cream. It is better for it to have a few lumps than to be whipped creamy.
Mix egg with 1 Tbsp. water until well mixed (used for an egg wash)
Roll out the puff pastry squares to half again their size. Drop a generous tablespoon of cream cheese mixture on the first one third of the puff pastry. Top the mixture with caramelized onion and a couple strips of pepper. Top that with the chicken. Pull the short end of the puff pastry back over the chicken, pull each side in and then brush all the edges with the egg mixture. Continue the wrap and seal with fingers - a little pinch will do, but they need to be sealed. If you are storing in the fridge cover in wax paper and then plastic wrap and return to the fridge/freezer. When ready to cook, brush the surface with egg mixture and cook at 350 for 30-35 minutes.
Peach Chutney - Serve over Apricot Chicken in Puff Pastry
2.5 lbs. frozen or fresh peaches sliced or chunked
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup white vinegar
1/2 tsp. mace
10-12 cloves tied in cheese cloth
1-2 cinnamon sticks
Dump it all in the pan at the same time. Bring to a low boil and reduce the heat and simmer on low for an hour or so. Pull out the cinnamon sticks and cloves. Cool and serve. Store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks if covered tightly. Better the 2nd day.
Roasted Winter Vegetables
This was a bit of an adventure as we had to cook large amounts so we did it in roaster ovens. It is really meant to be cooked in a single layer on a cookie sheet in the oven. There were a few prayers said over these potatoes!
This recipe is for 5 lbs. of vegetables (we used red potatoes, gold yukon potatoes, carrots and onions). You can also add cauliflower, broccoli, snap peas, green beans but these veggies will need to be added half way through the cooking process as they cook faster.
Mix together:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/8 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbps. paprika
1 Tbsp. garlic powder
Kosher salt
Fresh chopped chives for garnish
Put potatoes, onion and carrot on the baking sheet, toss with marinade ( I use my hands) and stick them in the oven at 425 for about 40 minutes. Ovens may vary so keep checking them. When they are 1/2 to 2/3 done add in the other quicker cooking vegetables if you are using them. Toss the whole thing to make sure all veges are coated. Cook for another 20-30 minutes or until all are tender. Garnish with fresh chopped chives
Lemon Vinaigrette
We used mixed greens from Costco and added toasted almonds, craisinets and Gorgonzola cheese. I was hoping for blueberries too but they were out of them at Costco:( Fresh figs are also a nice addition to this salad.
1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice - yes I did use fresh lemons, fortunately my neighbor has an electric juicer!
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup honey
1 Tbsp dried basil
1/8 cup fresh chives finely chopped
Kosher salt and pepper to taste
Mix together and shake
Now - the dessert - it was amazing!
Swedish Creme
Combine in heavy pan;
3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 package knox gelatin
Add;
2 cups heavy cream
1 Tbsp. vanilla.
Heat the above 4 ingredients until bubbles form around the edge of the pan. Do not boil. Remove form heat.
Add and mix until smooth:
3 cups sour cream
Pour into 10 small cups and refrigerate overnight. Top with your choice of fruit.
Raspberry Topping;
Boil:
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
Add:
2 cups raspberries (fresh or frozen)
Remove from heat when mixture achieves a full boil. Cool. Use as topping for Swedish Creme. Add topping right before serving.
Happy Cooking!
What’s the largest number of people you have ever cooked for at one time? Leave a comment in the box below and let me know!
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Categories: Dinner Time Helps, Friends, Recipes
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Thursday, January 31, 2008, by Leigh Anne
You have heard me say it before -one of the best things about my direct sales homebased business is the friends I have made.
Today I want to share one of those friends with you - Sherra (yes, it is pronounced Share - a). We have been friends and business associates for over a decade. We have shared a lot over the years. We’ve shared business ideas, favorite books, recipes, incentive trips, visits in each other’s homes and a friendship that transcends the 2500+ miles that is the distance between our homes and lots of laughs.
I can honestly say Sherra is the funniest friend I have (and I have some pretty funny friends), she makes me laugh - a lot! Sherra is an amazing lady - she has had a lot of different experiences in her life - some good, some bad but all have made her stronger, wiser and funnier! (Even the severe head injury!)
As a result of the “magic of the internet” you can meet her too! She’s recently started her own website (she’ll tell you she did this at my urging - and I’ll take the credit!) where she shares many of her life experiences and how they have helped to shape the person she is today.
I know she’ll make you laugh - she is the funniest person I know. Seriously, I mean that. So I hope you will visit Sherra at www.Sharealifelesson.com to get to know her better, learn from her life lessons and to have a good laugh now and then!
So in the interest of sharing Sherra, here are three things she’s recently shared with me.
The $2.00 product that changed Oprah’s life!
- Is this cool or what!! The new Scotch/3M highlighter with built-in post-it flags is exactly the kind of thing that Sherra knew I would love. We are both voracious readers and she was surprised when I hadn’t heard about it yet. Of course, I went out the very next day and bought one. I would have gone that night but Office Depot was already closed!
- Sherra is a techno wizard” - well, at least compared to me! She shared with me a great way to change my comment section on this blog so you all can comment more and talk to each other. So be sure and leave a comment - let me know if she made you laugh!
- I love chocolate chip cookies - they are my absolute favorite, especially when they are warm! Sherra shared with me this yummy recipe that gives a new twist to chocolate chip cookies. There is a secret ingredient - malt - and if you love malt, you’ll love these. Even if you don’t love malt I think you’ll still like the cookies - YUM!
LA Note- if you have not ever bought Malt before you will find it in the section of the store with the chocolate milk powder and hot chocolate. The malt flavor is very subtle in these cookies so don’t be afraid! Watch the timing of your oven - I found my time varied a little from Sherra’s - they cooked faster so just check them.
Chocolate Malted Cookies
- 1 cup butter flavored shortening (Crisco)
- 1 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup malted milk powder (Original)
- 2 Tbsp. chocolate syrup
- 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
- 1 cup milk chocolate chips
In a mixing bowl, combine the first five ingredients; beat for 2 minutes. Add egg. Combine flour, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture, mixing well after each addition. Stir in chocolate chunks and chips. Shape into 2 inch balls; place 3 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375 for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 2 minutes before removing to a wire rack. - Yield: about 1 1/2 dozen.
Popularity: 70% [?]
Categories: Cookie Jar, Direct Sales, Friends, Home Based Business, Recipes
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