PS. I just wanted to say thank you to everyone. I am just overwhelmed to the response of Tasha Tudor day. It was wonderful to read about how Tasha, her art, her lifestyle has inspired so many of you. I am glad I am not the only one. I really hope this becomes a yearly tradition for all of us. So thank you to all who helped remember Tasha xoxoxox
"Her Greatest Legacy was the enthusiasm for life"
Winslow Tudor
This is what Tasha's legacy is for me, what I strive for, what I have taught my girls. May we all have her enthusiasm for life a nd the bravery to persue it as Tasha did.
I want to thank everyone for the wonderful, enthusiastic :-) response to Tasha Tudor Day. It is obvious she is loved and will be missed. Also thank you Cay and Suzanne for your help with Tasha Tudor day. Please leave a comment at one of our blogs about your Tasha Tudor day, I know we would all love to hear about it xoxoxoxxo
This is a note I sent to a friend of mine and I thought I would share it with all of you. Although, after you read it you may think I have no right to ever write about homemaking again. But hopefully this will encourage someone and remind all of us to clean the mess when it happens, not 3 months later xoxoxox
"Okay I am warning you this is a negative note where I will be hard on myself but I need to vent, lucky you! So feel free stop reading here. I have just spent 2 1/2 solid hours cleaning my fridge. There was soo much black, sticky, gross stuff on the bottom of the fridge and other sticky stuff on the door. I kept having to pour hot water on it, let it sit, then wipe it up only to do it all again. Over and over and over. Luckily all the shelves fit in my big tub so I could soak and scrub them in the tub (Chloe is now scrubbing the tub for me and Aubern'e is cooking dinner, since I will be in a comma. Thank you girls!!!) Why do I do this to myself? You would think after 46 years of living I would know better. I HATE cleaning, so I ignore it, instead of dealing with it at the time. Then by the time I do get to it I have such a huge mess, agggg. I could just slap myself. I was smart enough to use rosemary and lavender oil in everything. So the aroma therap, keep me from killing someone. I am sitting here with a bright red face, boarding on purple. I am so hot, tried and frustrated with myself. Well at lest I got my aerobic workout. Well, when I cool down I am going to cut an herb bouquet for my fridge and take a picture for the blog. That and a piece of chocolate will be my reward. But please remind me in future not to be sooo stupid. Thank you for listening to this rant. You are tooo sweet to me, love Clarice"
Hello I just wanted to post a reminder of Tasha Tudor day on August 28th. I have had several readers write me and say they would love to see what others are doing. So I will post a Tasha post at midnight on the 28th. If you post about your Tasha Tudor day, just leave a comment on my post or Suzanne or Cays blog and everyone can come visit you.
By the way Cay is having a Author Fiesta with lots of Tasha Tudor links. Also Pink Gate is having a Tasha Tudor give away. Good luck xoxoxox
I was so inspired by this charming lacey brooch at The Heart Of Provence, I had to make one. They were so easy to make and I can picture them on packages, instead of bows. Thank you Paula, for sharing the blog with me and Laeriss for the wonderful inspiration xoxoxo
Okay, can you handle another healthy recipe? I got this recipe from Angie, who got it from Uprising Cookbook. It is yummy, easy and keeps well. The batter is made ahead. It says let sit one hour, but you could let it sit in the fridge overnight. One nice thing about this recipe, is if you are looking for baked items with no dairy or eggs, this has none. It is good for breakfast but really good anytime.
Breakfast Cookies
In a large bowl combine:
4 cup rolled oats (not instant, you can also use gluten free oats)
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (or almond flour for a gluten free verson)
1 tsp. salt
1 1/3 cup roughly chopped, toasted nuts (Angie really likes pecans, I really like pistachios)
2/3 cup roughly chopped dates ( I used half dates and half dried cherries)
Mix in a smaller bowl:
1/3 cup mild flavored olive oil
3/4 cup rice syrup
1 cup maple syrup (I use half maple, half agave, you could also use honey)
1 1/3 cup water
Mix liquid in dry ingredients. This mixture will be soupy. Let sit one hour or so. the oats will soak up the liquid and binds the dough together.
Pre-heat oven to 325˚F
Form dough into one inch balls and place on a greased cookie sheet. Press down to 1/4 inch thickness. They do not spread, so you can set them close together on a cookie sheet.
Bake 20-25 minutes, until just firm in the center.
Hello everyone,
I have heard from so many of you readers that on Tasha Tudor's birthday, you were going to celebrate what a special place she has in all our hearts. So Cay, Suzanne and I thought it would be lovely if blog-land celebrated Tasha. Really I would love if the whole world would stop and remember her. This could simply be sitting in your garden with a cup of tea, reading her books, doing a sketch or just stopping and smell the roses. Let us all on Tasha Tudor's birthday remember her and all she has inspired us to live. If you want to post about Tasha Tudor day, feel free to use the image (but you do not have to). Just click on the image and save in your pictures. I also made a small version below for your sidebar. Even if you do not have a blog, please help spread the word xoxoxox
I can not tell you how much I love this jam, I think it may be my favorite. By the way, keep an eye on it while it is cooking. And do not talk on the phone, so it does not burn like my second batch did, aggggg.
There are some very good reasons to use red wine in this recipe. One is to help the jam not be so sweet. Since you need lots of sugar to make jam, jam can be very sweet and the red wine balances out the jam. Also it enhances the plums. This jam does not taste of red wine. It just has a deeper plummy flavor. I choose a zin because it is know for its spicy, berry notes. But any red wine would do. Just look for a red that is fruity and opposed to tanic or woody. If you are unsure ask the wine person for a fruity red, with berry notes. Having said all that, do not stress about the red. It is nice to know what is best but it will be fine with any red wine. Also any berries would be good with the red wine syrup.
Also I wanted to share were I get my cute faceted jars. I just love these for canning. What I do is run my jars through the dishwasher, when they are done and still very hot, I set them on a cookie-sheet and keep them in a oven set on low to keep them hot. I take the lids and set them on a pan of water, set on low setting. You do not want to boil them, just keep them hot. Fill a hot jar with hot jam and screw on hot lid. But do not screws totally tight, just till it is tight but not fully. So do you get it, keep everything hot, hot and my jam jars always can. Having said that, if my method does not work, I am not responsible and do not e-mail me
;-P Enjoy xoxoxo
I was lucky enough to win this charming little owl cushion from Marmee Cratf. Isn't it wonderful. You also must check out her regency bonnet inspired from Sense and Sensibility. I think we all need to make one. Thank you Marjorie xoxox
Oh this is serious love Coconut Bliss ice-cream. Those who can not have dairy, will really like this. I had the vanilla bean, akkk I want some more, right now.
The girls and I (even my hubby, but do not tell anyone) love Penelope. It is charming, has amazing clothes and set, wonderful message, nothing objectionable (and I am picky), very funny (Catherine O'Hara is soooooo funny) and a dreamy vacation for a couple of hours.
The new Calico Petals store. She has the sweetest yo-yo potholders and vintage ephemera kits. Of course her yummy soaps. Well done Miss.Jill xoxoxo
Thanks to the new Artful Blogger, I have found Tammy Ficher. She has a lovely blog, with some great tutorials. But I really loved her scrappy blossoms.
You know I am really not one for kitchen gadgets. I tend to keep it simple, I would rather take my money and buy chocolates. But I have to say I really love my dough whisk. It cuts right through dough and batter so smoothly and really mixing all ingredient. Chocolate and Zucchini has an interesting post about the dough whisk .