Week 109, 1-21-2018

Thoughts and Quotes: Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.
                                                                                                Winston Churchill

I'm a great admirer of Dear Old Winnie. Such a smart man. I often think that somehow certain people are born in the right place, at the right time, to accomplish great things in history. Think how things might have ended after WWII without Churchill to bolster Great Britain's determination to carry on, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, who stayed in London right through the bombing to raise the spirits of the people; General Patton to lead his men to victory after victory, and President Truman, who had the courage to drop the A bombs, putting an end to the war. 

Isn't it wonderful that we can forgive, forget, and move on. Time heals a lot of things. A Divine Plan?

Teas: Following Churchill's advice, I am moving on to fulfill my destiny. I've finished the redo of the January tea, which is now Winter Roses instead of Winter Flowers. Ten down and two to go.

Remember my peacock from the after-Christmas sale?

Everything but the table is the same as before. Stupid me, I had to make all the food again just so I could take photos.

Menu

Savories:  Roast Beef and Horseradish-Mayonnaise Tea Sandwiches

                 Dorothy Enid Beetroot and Butter Tea Sandwiches

Scone:      Apricot-Orange Scones, Orange Butter, Apricot Jam

Sweets:    Cherry Spritz, Chocolate-Mint Chip Cookies 

Tea:          Orange Spice

Recipes

Savories

Once more, let me stress that we always lightly butter each piece of bread before proceeding.

The Roast Beef Tea Sandwiches are made from deli roast beef, sliced so that one slice is sufficiently thick.  Add horseradish to mayonnaise to taste.  Place the meat first, spread with the mayonnaise on the meat, top with a lettuce leaf (anything but  iceberg), then the second piece of bread.  The lettuce and meat should overhang the edges of the bread.  Sharply slice through all to remove the bread crusts and then cut into squares or triangles.

Drain, rinse and pat dry with paper towels, one 1-lb can of sliced beets for the Beet Sandwiches.  Cut rounds of bread which will work with the size of the beet slices.  I used Libby’s beets and they seemed to be wide enough for this purpose.  You might want to buy two cans of beets, just so you’re sure to have enough.  You can always store them if they’re unopened or sliver the leftovers to top salads.  Cut the bread and beets with the same cutter so that they’ll be uniform in size.  Butter each bread round and place a beet slice between.  Run a toothpick through a small slice of sweet gherkin and top the sandwich, running the toothpick all the way through to hold everything together.  Don’t skip the pickle because this will alert your guests that there’s a toothpick to remove.

Note:  Here’s the story behind the name of the beet sandwiches.  Our chosen brother, Peter, is from England, and he mentioned that when his family had a picnic, his mother always made beetroot rolls.  I Goggled “beetroot rolls” and found photos of all kinds of gorgeous concoctions.  I sent the link to Peter and asked which kind his mother made.  He said, “Oh, they were simply rolls, butter and sliced beetroot”.  We Yanks simply call beetroot “beets”.  I thought that sounded a little strange and unappetizing, but I tried it and found that it’s one of those simple combinations that work well together, like bread, butter and tomato, or bread, cream cheese and cucumber.  So I replaced the rolls with bread to make them more “tea like" and christened them Dorothy Enid Beetroot Tea Sandwiches in honor of Peter’s mother. 

Scone

APRICOT-ORANGE SCONES

(I combined a few scone recipes and came up with this)

3 cups of flour

1/2 cup sugar

1-1/2 tsps baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) firm butter, cut into small cubes

1 cup finely chopped dried apricots (cut to about the size of a raisin)

Orange zest from one orange

1 cup buttermilk

1 tsp orange extract

Buttermilk and sugar for topping (optional)

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Using a pastry blender, two knives, a fork, or your fingers, cut the butter into the dry mixture until it’s all incorporated and begins to look like coarse meal.  Stir in the apricots and orange zest.

Make a well in the middle.  Add the orange extract to the buttermilk and pour it into the well, all at once.  Stir the mixture until it forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat it to 1/2” high.  Using a 2-1/2” circle cutter, cut scones and place them on lightly greased or parchment lined cookie sheets.

If desired, brush the tops with buttermilk and sprinkle with sugar.  Bake at 425° for 8-10 minutes.  Baking time will vary with the size of the cutter.  Serve with Orange Butter (recipe below) and Apricot Jam.

Note:  Scones may also be cut into wedges by patting the dough into a circle.  This will eliminate using the scraps, which can make the scones tough from rehandling the dough.

ORANGE BUTTER

1 cup (2 sticks) butter

4 Tbs powdered sugar

Zest of 2 oranges

Soften butter, mix in powdered sugar and orange zest with mixer.

I like these with Apricot Polaner All Fruit, but any apricot jam works equally well.

Sweets

CHERRY SPRITZ

2-1/4 cups flour

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup shortening

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

Maraschino cherries

Heat oven to 375°.

Mix dry ingredient together with a whisk.

Cut in shortening with a pastry cutter or two forks.

Add egg and vanilla and mix well.

Put through cookie press onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Lightly press a piece of maraschino cherry into the center

Bake 10-12 minutes.  Remove at once.  

CHOCOLATE-MINT CHIP COOKIES

(From an Andes® Crème de Menthe Baking Chips Package)

(Recipe is called “Andes® Crème de Menthe Chunk Cookies”)

1/2 cup salted butter, softened

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsps vanilla

2 eggs

1 (10 oz) pkg  Andes® baking chips

2-2/3 cups sifted flour

Heat oven to 350°.

Beat everything but baking chips and flour together.  Add chips, then flour.

Chill in the refrigerator for one hour.

Roll into balls the size needed for the size cookie you desire.  For tea cookies, I used about one tsp dough and baked the cookies for about 6 minutes.   Baking time will determine whether you end up with a soft cookie or a crunchy cookie.  Experiment.  Recipe calls for 1 oz of dough and bake 8-10 minutes.

The Plan

One or two weeks before the tea:  Bake and freeze the Chocolate-Mint Chip Cookies.

Up to five days before the tea:  Chop the apricots and cube the butter while watching TV.  Store the apricots in a plastic bag or air-tight container at room temperature.  Store the butter in a plastic bag or covered container in the refrigerator.

Start planning your table.  If you’re using a tablecloth, you might need ironing time to remove fold marks.  If you’re using real silver, you might need polishing time.

Up to two days before the tea:  Bake the Cherry Spritz and store the cookies in a cool  place in an airtight container.

The day before the tea:  Make the scones and orange butter.  Store the scones in a cool dry place or the refrigerator in an airtight container.  Put the butter in the dish you’ll use to serve it, cover it tightly with plastic film and store it in the refrigerator.

If you have the space, go ahead and put the scones on a baking sheet and cover them with film.  They’ll be ready for reheating.

If you’re going to make your beet sandwiches round like mine, you can cut the bread rounds and, using the same cutter, cut the beet rounds.  Store them (separately) in airtight containers in the refrigerator.

If you don’t need to use the tea table or area the day before the tea, go ahead and set up the area, ready for the big day.  I even place the dishes for lemon slices, sugar, sweetener, milk, butter and jam so that I don’t forget anything.  If your butter is already in its serving dish in the refrigerator, leave it there until party day.

The day of the tea:  If the table is already set, fill the condiment dishes.  The lemon, butter, jam and milk will be okay at room temperature a half hour before the tea.  This will give the butter time to soften and the milk won’t be cold enough to cool the tea.

If refrigerated, put the scones out to reach room temperature before heating.

Make the sandwiches and put them on the plate(s) you’ll use for serving.  Cover them with wet (not dripping) paper towels so they won’t dry out.

Heat the oven to 350°.

Put the cookies on their serving dish(es) and cover with film.

When you start the water for tea, put the scones in to heat.  It will take 5-10 minutes, depending on size.  Uncover the sandwiches and cookies while the tea steeps. Put the scones on a serving dish on the table.

This is exactly what I'll put in the Teas book. I haven't decided yet whether I should put all the info about the dishes, tablecloths, etc. like in the Tablescapes book. 

Tidying: I haven't made much progress here. I cleaned all the pictures and wall decor except the one over the fireplace which I couldn't reach. The 7' ladder is lying in front of the fireplace, ready to go.

I cleaned out my writing desk. My plan was to sit here every night, looking out over the canals of Venice, and write my journal and correspondence for the day. That lasted about two minutes. But look at all the journals I have ready to go.

And miracle of miracles, my credenza was still organized.

But -  I discovered that Nancy (Veronica's new mommy) left her old job and her new one doesn't start until March, so she's coming over this week to help me so I can work on my books. Hooray for Nancy!

She and Martha and I went to Relics for quiche to celebrate my Auntie Kack's birthday (which is January 21), and Martha and I went up to visit Veronica when we picked up Nancy. She ran under the bed and wouldn't come out. She loves her new home. I guess she thought I was there to take her back to my house. 

Tissue Box Cards: Here's the box.

And here are the cards

Tasting: This week's soup is Beef-Vegetable Like My Mother Made

BEEF-VEGETABLE SOUP LIKE MY MOTHER MADE

Short ribs, stew meat, beef shanks, whatever.  If using short ribs and you have lots, you’ll have enough meat and fat.  If using stew meat, you’ll need some soup bones for more flavor.

Potatoes

Carrots

Onions

Celery

Frozen corn and/or peas (optional)

Canned tomatoes

Cabbage

Bay Leaves

Salt and Pepper

Brown the meat in a soup pot in a little oil.  Cover with water and cook until tender.  Remove meat and set aside. 

Peel potatoes and carrots.  Cut potatoes into bite-sized cubes and the carrots into coins.

Chop onions and slice celery.  Add to pot with three bay leaves, salt and pepper.  Add more water if necessary.  Cook until vegetables are almost tender.

Add canned tomatoes (can size depends on your amount of soup), chopped cabbage and some corn and peas for color.  Cook until cabbage is tender.   Taste and if you feel it’s needed, add some beef granules or a cube or two softened in hot water.

Debone and cut meat if using short ribs.  Add back to soup.

Remove bay leaves.

Tasting: This week's salad is Real Cobb Salad. Many restaurant menus show Cobb Salad, but you end up with something between a Chef's Salad and a Garden Salad.

A true Cobb Salad is finely chopped, made of very specific ingredients, and presented as a composed salad before being tossed with vinaigrette. The ingredients are iceberg lettuce, turkey, bacon, hard-boiled eggs, tomatoes, and bleu cheese. One popular presentation is in a circle with each ingredient placed like a slice of pie. The other is in a circle made of stripes (much easier). 

I'm always reminded of the "Cobb Salad Lunch" scene in Julie and Julia where the  girls meet for lunch and when the waiter takes the order, it's "Cobb Salad no bacon", "Cobb Salad no bleu cheese", "Cobb Salad no eggs", and "Cobb Salad no  . . . .

Feel free to take liberties. I prefer lettuce other than iceberg, for example. And I substituted Monterey Jack for the bleu cheese. If you don't care for vinaigrette, use your favorite dressing. 

You can find what's supposed to be the original recipe HERE.

Muffin Tin Monday: My friends and I were just discussing how producers are reducing the size of their package instead of raising the price, and it sometimes messes up our recipes. Maybe this is one of those examples. The recipe calls for a 12-oz tube of refrigerated biscuits. I couldn't find a 12-oz tube in either of the two stories I tried. I ended up with a 16-oz tube. 

I wanted to try a recipe for garlic rolls I found on Pinterest. The recipe didn't specify how many rolls it would make, but just to "spray a muffin pan with cooking spray". I sprayed my 12-muffin tin.

The recipe says to cut each biscuit into four pieces, mix them with melted butter, minced garlic, and shredded Parmesan, and put three pieces in each cup. My tube had 8 biscuits, and 12 oz is to 16 oz as X is to 8 biscuits. In other words, my biscuits weighed 2 oz each (16 oz divided by 8), so the 12 oz tube should have 6 biscuits to be equal. Right? 

So I cut the six biscuits in 1/4's and put three per cup. That made 8 rolls, so I said, "Oh, well, and cut up the other two biscuits. Since I had already sprayed the entire pan, I snipped off pieces to fill the other cups. 

Then I was supposed to top each roll with shredded mozzarella, but I didn't have any, so I used Cheddar. Bake at 375 degrees for 11-14 minutes. My kitchen smelled like an Italian Restaurant on steroids. I still haven't tried one of the rolls. They look good, but I wasn't ready for heavy garlic. Maybe tomorrow. I won't be saving this recipe.

The original recipe from Pinterest is HERE.

Tidying: No acquisitions this week. Good girl! Here are my seven discards:

Tales: As you can see above, I finished An Unexpected Guest by Anne Korkeakivi. A lot of talk about food and Paris, so I'm passing it to Bev. Not a great plot.

The Pepper and Pals Report: No changes. We had bitter cold this week, so I wrapped two soft-sided carriers (one is large) in blankets, put baby blankets inside, left the screen propped open, and the kitties hunkered down out of the snow. Midnight and her three would sleep in the larger one and BJ in the other. I put a potty box out there, and I think they've decided they like indoor plumbing. 

Now that the snow is gone, so are the kitties. They just come for meals. Raining tonight (Sunday), and supposed to get cold again. I'll wash the blankets and be ready just in case they need to stay in again. They must be confused. I know I am. Saturday and Sunday were in the 60's F and now we're in for a 20 degree drop.

Hope you have good weather in the coming week. It makes such a difference in our dispostions. 

Tidbits: I keep hearing about hygge living when I read European blog posts. I think I'm getting the idea. More on this next week.

And I'll try to get up to our new market for photos. I was there Friday, but it was the first day after the snow melted, and I could scarcely push my cart through the aisles. 

EAT YOUR APPLES

AND GREENS

DRINK LOTS OF WATER

SLATHER ON THE LOTION

FEED THE BIRDS AND FERAL KITTIES

WHEN THERE'S SNOW

THANK YOU FOR SHARING MY LIFE