Archive | food & drinks

Mother’s Day Flowers & Fran’s Chocolates

May 9, 2014

For Mother’s Day … I shouldn’t … but I do… like to help Bill with ideas. The simplest things to give are sometimes not obvious for him to think of. When Bill has a great plan, the kids think he’s pretty cool. That’s why I like to ….. ~~but I shouldn’t~~.

Flowers and chocolates are the classic combination to give for any occasion. Putting a simple twist on the idea can make it more special and personal. Find a few pretty containers and fill them with Mom’s favorite flowers. Arrange the flowers by grouping the same ones together. Then top it off with her favorite chocolate truffles.

I look forward to these gifts again and again.

A great thing about simple flower arrangements is that they are easy for the kids to help out with and put together. Each one could be moved to another part of the house, wherever Mom wants to enjoy it. .

Simply beautiful ranunculus, I could be quite content with just that.

. .

Fran’s Chocolates have been a favorite of mine for 20+ years. I remember going to the tiniest chocolate shop {about the size of a walk-in closet…maybe just a tad bigger} to buy some of the best chocolate truffles. Often times Fran Bigelow would be in the back room making it. Fran’s Chocolates have outgrown that space and expanded to three retail locations throughout the Seattle area. Today, Fran Bigelow is very well known and is considered one of the best chocolatiers in the country. .

Fran’s Chocolates are made with the highest quality ingredients, hand made in small batches from start to finish. The chocolate truffles are rich and creamy with a crispy thin outer shell. Their salted caramels are dipped twice in a special blend of chocolate made by Valrhona and carefully sprinkled with gray or smoked salt.

The attention to detail is utmost from the start of the first ingredient to the beautiful hand-tied satin ribbon bow on the package.

Having fun with this picture of Bill at Fran’s Chocolates in Bellevue.

Fran’s Chocolates, truffles, smoked salt caramels and other confectionery are available at many specialty retail stores throughout the United States. To find the best selection go online at Fran’s Chocolates or visit one of Fran’s Chocolates boutiques.

Fresh flowers with chocolate truffles is a wonderful combination to give for Mother’s Day.

images/sources: Fran’s Chocolates packaging 1 / packaging 2

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posted by: Kay

4 comments

Packaging, Chocolate Carrots

April 9, 2014

Found these mini crispy chocolate carrots by Palmer at Target recently and I thought they would be a cute addition to the Easter treats. I took the carrots out of their original netting bags and repackaged them in small plastic bags {3″ x 3″}. To make the chocolate carrots look like they were poking out from the ground, I added chocolate rocks and brown paper grass.

Another simple packaging idea for these chocolate carrots is to put them in a clear cello bag and tie it with a ribbon.

fun treats & simple packaging

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posted by: Kay

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Roasted Potatoes and Haricots Verts

April 5, 2014

Preparing an Easter menu and in need of a side dish?…

Roasted potatoes and haricots verts is a wonderful accompaniment for ham, salmon, chicken or beef. The combination of crispy potatoes and tender beans with rosemary is delicious and simple to prepare for a large or a small gathering with friends and family.

Haricot verts {ah-ree-koh VEHR} are French green beans. They are stringless slender green beans and widely cultivated in France. They are available in most grocery stores and other specially stores {Whole Foods Market & Trader Joe’s}. This is my favorite beans to use in cooking year-round.

{print recipe, Here}
serves 8-10

Ingredients
3 pounds red potatoes, quartered
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon rosemary
1 pound haricots verts {French green beans}, trimmed
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon minced garlic
coarse salt and pepper

Instructions
Preheat oven to 425˚ F .
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

Spread potatoes on a baking sheet, then drizzle with olive oil, add rosemary and salt. Toss together then spread out potatoes in a single layer. Roast 1 hour until potatoes are crispy/golden brown and tender inside.

{10-15 minutes before the potatoes are done}

Bring a pot filled with enough water to cover the beans to a boil over high heat. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and green beans and cook for 3-4 minutes, until the beans are crisp-tender. Drain beans and transfer to a bowl and set aside.

In the same pot, melt the butter over medium/low heat. Add garlic and stir for 30-40 seconds.

Add cooked beans, salt and pepper and toss. Turn heat off.

When the potatoes are done baking, take the pan out of the oven and loosen potatoes off the baking sheet. They will be brown and crispy on the underside.

Add haricots verts to the potatoes and toss gently. Transfer to a bowl and serve

Simple dinner, store bought rotisserie chicken with roasted potatoes and haricots verts.

{print recipe, Here}

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posted by: Kay

0 comments

Decorating with Eggs

March 29, 2014

Easter will soon be upon us along with coloring and dying Easters eggs. But for now to welcome Spring, I like to simply use and display eggs without any {or very little} adornments and in their natural pure form. Here I have filled a large white platter with an assortment of eggs with a sprinkle of feathers from my chickens as a center piece for a gathering or other entertainment.

Placing eggs in a small ceramic crate egg holder is another simple and easy display to do. Having a few eggs on the kitchen counter is a pretty sight. I love seeing the many beautiful shades of cream, brown, and green eggshells. It’s always handy to have some nearby for cooking and baking too.

To show off a particular egg {in a subtle manner}, I placed it on a white plate with a bed of green moss, a paper nest, and covered it with a glass dome. This little light brown egg with tiny dark speckles came from one my chickens. I kept the eggshell along with a few others as an inspiration for possible paint colors and for other uses. A great way to display and protect a fragile egg.

Over the years I’ve collected quite a few antique egg prints and one of the ways I like to display the collection is to group them together. This will bring attention and cohesiveness to the display wall.

Interested in collecting vintage prints, a good place to start your search is at the website, Panteek. They have a wide variety of egg prints and many other vintage prints to choose from.

{print vintage egg print 1 Here, print vintage egg print 2 Here}

Another source for egg prints and many other vintage prints is the website, Vintage Printable. All are free for you to print/dowload till your heart’s content. The two vintage egg prints above came from there. I changed the background and made it lighter and sharpened the images slightly. Feel free to use these egg prints however you like.

For an Easter table centerpiece, my friend Lynn put this together using a variety of baby lettuce plants, pansies and moss. Tuck a few eggs randomly in the centerpiece to add a touch of playfulness. After Easter, it can go outside to be enjoyed a little longer and the lettuce leaves will be a wonderful addition to a mixed green salad or a sandwich.

To add a personal touch, personalize each place setting and/or gift with an Easter tag.
Free printable Easter gift tags, Here.

I hope you enjoy decorating with eggs this Spring!

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posted by: Kay

0 comments

Marbled-Chocolate Banana Bread

March 15, 2014

Our family always enjoys the classic Banana Bread. But, I’ve noticed that by adding chocolate to the recipe, the consumption of bread per person doubled or tripled {that’s a good thing, … right? }. This Marbled-Chocolate Banana Bread recipe is the one I like to use when my freezer is packed with frozen ripe bananas. The bread is moist, chocolaty, and full of bananas.

. Continue Reading →

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