One woman's foray into cooking for herself, for her family, and for her friends. It's not always picture-perfect, sometimes a little messy,
but it's always delicious. Join me in exploring new recipes, savoring the "résultats" and learning from the "erreurs".



Sunday, January 31, 2010

Food for Thought - Memories of a Lost Egypt

Memories of a Lost Egypt
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Memories of a Lost Egypt, written by Colette Rossant, is the story of her youth.  Born in France but brought to Egypt to be raised by her grandparents, she describes in almost poetic detail the kitchen and foods she remembered being cooked, the beautiful and fragrant apricot trees that lined the house, the propriety she was taught as a granddaughter of society.  Ms. Rossant talks about daily life in her grandmother's house, the markets the family frequented - enough to get a glimpse of her life and make one wish to see it all for yourself.


The book is laden with recipes, including one of Colette's favorite snacks of hummus with toasted pita.  I've made hummus with canned chickpeas, but I have to admit I've never soaked the beans overnight and made a real traditional hummus.  It was divine.  And not nearly the work I expected it to be.  It  went beautifully  with some of the pita I had made a day earlier, cut up, drizzled with olive oil, sea salt & freshly ground black pepper, and toasted.  Delicious!


Traditional Hummus

Cover 1 cup dried chickpeas with water and soak overnight.  Drain and place in a sauce pan with 1/2 teaspoon salt and water to cover.  Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer until tender, about 1 hour.  Drain and reserve the water.


Place the chickpeas in a food processor with the juice of 2 lemons, 3 minced garlic cloves, and 2 or 3 tablespoons of the cooking liquid.  Process until smooth.  Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/2 cup tahini, 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, and salt & pepper.  Process.  Transfer to a bowl and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons chopped parsley.  (I first drizzled some good olive oil over the top before sprinkling with the parsley.)  Serve with toasted pita.  You can substitute one 16-ounce can of chickpeas for the dried.  Yield: about 1-1/2 cups.


Source:  Memories of a Lost Egypt - A Memoir with Recipes, copyright 1999


 

Thanks to Jain for hosting Food for Thought!  Make sure you check out all the other edible book reviews for some tips on what to put next on your reading list and what to whip up in your own kitchen!

Friday, January 29, 2010

Saturday Blog Showcase - Homemade Pita

It's time for our 4th Saturday Blog Showcase.  Ann (Thibeault's Table) and I are hosting the event.  Please find Mr. Linky at the end of my post to sign up.  We look forward to everyone's participation and can't wait to see everyone's creations and introductions to different blogs!

This week I made pita from Kosher Camembert, a lovely blog with photos and essays of Zahavah's travels.  Her pita bread recipe was so easy to follow.  The one diversion I did take from the recipe was that I did separate the dough into 10 pieces and rolled each individually into 6-inch discs of dough to form the pita.  Zahavah rolled the dough and cut out 6-inch circles.  I will have to try that sometime to see if my results are any different.  I was very happy with the way my pita puffed!  They're wonderful. Another great recipe to add to my ever growing repertoire!  Thank you to Kosher Camembert!!

Pita

Adapted from Janna Gur’s The Book of New Israeli Food and Joan Nathan’s The Food of Israel Today.
These pitot are the closest I have found to the ones you get in Israel, fluffy and perfect with hummus, for mopping up leftover salad dressing, or filled with chocolate spread. The trick to forming the pockets is baking in a very hot oven on a baking stone (or, if my case, on hot cookie sheets) and refraining from opening the oven during baking.
Makes 8-10 pitot.

- 2 1/4 t yeast
- 1 1/2 C warm water
- 1 T sugar
- 4 C flour (I used all-purpose)
- 1-2 T olive oil
- 1 t salt

Make the dough. Dissolve yeast in 1 C of the warm water with sugar. Allow to bubble up (takes ~ 10 minutes). Add to flour, olive oil, and salt in bowl of mixer. Knead with dough hook for 10 minutes. Add additional water, tablespoon by tablespoon, until dough forms a slightly sticky ball.

First rising. Pour a little olive oil into a large bowl. Roll the ball of dough in the oil until coated. Cover the bowl with a damp kitchen towel and let dough rise until doubled (1.5 – 2 hours). I punch the dough down a few times during the rising.

Shape bread. Most recipes call for you to split the dough into 8-10 portions to roll out individually. But I prefer to easier method of rolling out all the dough and using a bowl to cut out 5-6 inch rounds. You can bake the scraps or re-roll them (this time I rolled the scraps into 3 individual pitot with not-so-round results).

Second rising and preheat oven. Allow the pitot to rise a second time for ~10 minutes. I do this on top of the oven as it preheats to 500º F. Heat cookie trays in the oven while preheating.



Bake. Pull a hot cookie tray out of the oven and quickly transfer half of the pitot onto it and return to the oven. Bake until all pitot have puffed to form pockets, 3-6 minutes. Repeat with remaining pitot.

Store. Pitot go stale pretty quickly, so the best way to store them is in in a bag in the freezer. You can reheat them for 20 seconds in the microwave after spritzing with a little water.




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To participate in Saturday Blog Showcase, remember:

   1. Make a recipe from another blog on any day of the week. Create a link to that blog in your post.

   2. Add the Saturday Blog Showcase logo to your post.

   3. On Friday night or Saturday, link your post to Mr. Linky.

Foodie Friday - Mini Bagels

When I saw Ann's (Thibeault's Table) post on the bagels she made, I was bound and determined to try them for myself.  The recipe is detailed, including a mention that the dough should be stiffer than most bread doughs.  I've tried making bagels before, but the texture of the dough was not something I'd ever paid attention to before.  It really made such a difference in the final texture of the bagels.  They were much easier to make than I expected though forming them took a little practice. A little shmear, a little smoked salmon... I'm all set (and very happy!)

Mini Bagels

2 cups warm water
2 packages active dry yeast
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon salt
about 5 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, unsifted
3 quarts water with 1 tablespoon of sugar
Cornmeal
1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
about 2 tablespoons poppy or sesame seeds.

Stir together water and yeast in large bowl of electric mixer; let stand 5 minutes to soften yeast. Stir in the Sugar and Salt.  Gradually mix in 4 cups of the flour and beat at medium speed for 5 minutes. With a spoon, stir in about 1 1/4 cups more flour to make a stiff dough.

Turn out on a floured board and knead until smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky, (about 15 minutes); add more flour as needed to prevent sticking - dough should be firmer than for most other yeast breads.
Place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place until almost doubled ( about 40 minutes to 1 hour).

Punch dough down and divide into thirds. Set 2/3 of dough aside on a floured board; cover with clear plastic. form remaining 1/3 dough in a log and cut into 16 equal pieces.


To shape, knead each piece into small ball and poke thumbs through centre. With one thumb in hole (hole should be at least 1/2 inch) work fingers around perimeter, shaping ball into a small donut like shape
about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Place bagels on a floured board or tray and let stand 20 minutes.

Bring water-sugar mixture to a boil in a 4 to 5 quart pan; adjust heat to keep it boiling gently. Lightly grease a baking sheet and sprinkle with cornmeal. Lift bagels carefully and drop into water (about 6 at a time) boil gently for 1 minute turning only once (30 seconds each side). Lift out with slotted spoon and drain very briefly on paper towels, and place on baking sheet. Brush with 1/3 of the egg yolk glaze, sprinkle with seeds and bake in a 400° oven for 20 minutes or until richly browned. cool on racks.

Repeat with remaining 2/3 dough (you may need to punch it down before shaping,) working with 1/3 at a time. Makes 48 cocktail size bagels.

Source:   Sunset - Hors D'oeuvres, copyright 1981




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Thanks to Michael of Designs by Gollum for hosting another Foodie Friday.  Follow the link to her blog to see what everyone else made for today!

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Jam Thumbprints


I love these cookies.  I remember the first time I tasted them, I was in heaven.  Shortbread, coconut, and the raspberry-plum jam I make every year.  What's not to like?!  My family fell in love with them.  I brought a batch to work - they fell in love with them.  In fact, one of my co-workers told me he developed a craving for these cookies!  Truth be told... I have, too!

Jam Thumbprint Cookies

3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water (egg wash)
7 ounces sweetened flaked coconut
 Raspberry and/or apricot jam (I used my homemade raspberry-plum jam)

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until they are just combined, and then add the vanilla.  Separately, sift together the flour and salt.  With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the creamed butter and sugar.  Mix until the dough starts to come together.  Dump on a floured board and roll together into a flat disc.  Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.



Roll the dough into 1-1/4 inch balls. (If you have a scale, they should each weigh 1 ounce.)  Dip each ball into the egg wash and then roll in coconut.  Place the balls on an ungreased cookie sheet and press a light indentation into the top of each with your finger.  Drop 1/4 teaspoon of jam into each indentation.  Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the coconut is a golden brown.  Cool and serve.



Yield:  32 to 36 cookies


Source:  Barefoot Contessa Family Style, copyright 2002



For Printable Recipe, Click Here

Monday, January 25, 2010

Chicken & Corn Chowder



Mondays.  I'm not crazy about them.  Just when you think they're not going to be that bad, something always happens that makes me remember why I'm not in love with them.  Thankfully, Mondays are only 24 hours long, and whatever happens on Monday I try to leave on Monday.  Unfortunately, today was a typical Monday - started out okay, and then deteriorated.  So I needed soup.  There's always something comforting about soup.  I found this one a few weeks ago from a lovely blog called Heart n Soul Cooking.  Other than halving the recipe, I made no changes to it.  It's a delicious soup, filled with comforting potatoes, corn, and chicken.  The recipe suggests garnishing with avocado, tomato, cilantro and a squeeze of lime.  I had all that on hand and I was surprised at how much the garnish actually completed the flavor of the soup!  Another delicious blog find that I'll be adding to my own repertoire!

Chicken & Corn Chowder


2 slices bacon, chopped
1 onion, chopped
3 tablespoons flour
1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and chopped
6 cups reduced-sodium or homemade chicken broth
4 cups shredded cooked chicken (from a 2 1/2- to 3-lb. roasted chicken)
3 cups corn, frozen or kernels cut from 3 ears corn
1/4 to 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
2 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and chopped
1 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves
2 limes, cut into wedges
Freshly ground black pepper


In a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat, cook bacon until fat renders and meat starts to brown. Add onion, reduce heat to medium, and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Sprinkle with flour and cook, stirring, about 3 minutes.

Add potatoes and broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to keep mixture simmering and cook until potatoes are barely tender, about 5 minutes. Add chicken and corn and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and stir in cream to taste. Heat through, about 2 minutes. Serve in soup bowls, garnished with tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, a squeeze or two of lime juice, and pepper to taste.


Yields: 6 servings

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Orange Pork Stir-Fry with Brown Rice

Today was a day spent asking myself the $64,000 question:  What should I make for dinner tonight??  I looked in the freezer and saw some thick center-cut pork chops I had wrapped individually.  I took one nice sized chop out to thaw and spent an hour on the internet trying to decide how to make it into dinner.  I narrowed my search down to something with an Asian flair and since I still had a few of the Cara Cara oranges left, thought it would be good idea to find a recipe incorporating orange in it.  I found the perfect recipe:  Orange Pork Stir-Fry at Cookreceipts.com.  I made a few subtle changes, only used green onions along with carrots that I had sliced on a mandoline, and decided to serve the stir-fry over brown rice.  I love the chewiness of brown rice, though it does take a bit longer to cook than white rice.  It was all delicious!  I'll be making this again!

Orange Pork Stir-Fry

1/2 cup Orange juice
2 tablespoons Sesame oil
2 tablespoons Soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon mirin
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
3/4 pound pork tenderloin, cut into strips
3 cups mixed fresh vegetables*, such as any combination of the following:
-green pepper, red pepper,snow peas, carrots, green onions,mushrooms, onions
1 tablespoon Cornstarch
3 cups hot cooked brown rice

Combine orange juice, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, soy sauce, garlic, mirin, ginger and orange zest peel in small bowl. Add pork; marinate one hour. Drain pork; reserve marinade. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add pork; stir-fry 3 minutes, or until pork is lightly browned. Add vegetables; stir-fry 3 to 5 minutes until vegetables are tender-crisp. Combine cornstarch with marinade; add to pan, stir until thickened. Serve immediately over rice.

Friday, January 22, 2010

Saturday Blog Showcase - Ann's White Chocolate Cupcakes


It's Saturday Blog Showcase time again.  Thank you to Ann for hosting this week's event.  Make sure you head over to Thibeault's Table to sign up for participation and to see everyone else's creations they've discovered from fellow bloggers!


This week, I had my 4-year-old niece, Ashlynne, for a couple of days.  She's a definite character - continuously asking questions and opining on everything from my dogs to President Obama (seriously!)  Coming to LaLa's house (how my nieces and nephew refer to me) always seems to mean cooking and/or baking for all the little children in my life.  And it was no exception this time.  The first thing Ashlynne wanted to do was make cupcakes.  Ann of Thibeault's Table reminded me of the white chocolate cupcakes she made not too long ago.  They sounded like the perfect choice for Miss Ashlynne's cupcakes.

I melted the butter and the white chocolate, while Ashlynne stirred up the dry ingredients.  On to the wet ingredients.  To my surprise, Ashlynne happens to be a pro at cracking eggs without dropping any shell into the bowl.  Who would have thought that a 4-year-old would be able to master a task that many adults have difficulty with??  We combined the ingredients, and using a handheld mixer, Ash made sure the batter was nice and smooth.  She put the cupcake liners into the tin, and I spooned the batter into them.  Now, as I may have mentioned before, I tend to be a bit cupcake-challenged.  I have great difficulty in measuring out the right amount of batter for each cupcake.  And this time was no different.  All the cupcakes ended up with flanged tops, so a little trimming was involved before frosting them.

I used a buttercream frosting that I decided to flavor with almond instead of vanilla.  It paired with the white chocolate cupcakes deliciously!  I piped on the frosting and Ash sprinkled colored sugars to her heart's content.  Of course, a little taste-testing was in order and my little chef was more than willing to comply.  The verdict?  Well, it was difficult to tell with all the cake and frosting in her mouth, but I think it was pretty positive.  :D  Another successful baking stint under our belts!


White Chocolate Cupcakes

2 cups all purpose flour
1-2/3 cups of white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 ounces quality white chocolate
1/2 butter
1/2 cup water
1 cup of sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla
1-1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs
Almond Buttercream Icing (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Melt chocolate with butter. Stir until smooth. Add water.

Mix together flour,sugar, salt and baking soda.

Mix together sour cream, vanilla and eggs, add butter chocolate mixture and flour. Beat with either a machine mixer or hand mixer. Pour into muffin tin lined with paper cupcake liners. Bake for approximately 20 to 25 minutes.

Yield:  24 cupcakes

Almond Buttercream Icing
1 cup butter, softened
6 - 8 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 cup whole milk
2 teaspoons almond extract

In a large mixing bowl, place the butter, 4 cups of the confectioners' sugar, then the milk and the almond extract.  On medium speed of an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy, about 3 to 5 minutes.  Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition (about 2 minutes), until the icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency.  You may not need to add all of the sugar.  If desired, add a few drops of food coloring and mix thoroughly.  Use and store the icing at room temperature because icing will set if chilled.  Icing can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.


Adapted from More from Magnolia, copyright 2004

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Prosciutto-wrapped Roasted Asparagus

One of my favorite Giada deLaurentiis recipes is more of a method than an actual recipe.  It calls for roasting stalks of asparagus and then wrapping them in this strips of prosciutto.  It's really delicious.  I like to roast asparagus until it has caramelized, leaving the tips almost crispy.  Unless the spears are rather thick, I bundle 3 or 4 of the pencil-thin asparagus into one.  Once wrapped in prosciutto, I like to 'gild the lily' by drizzling a little balsamic vinegar over the spears.  Delicious!!

Prosciutto-wrapped Roasted Asparagus

1 pound asparagus (about 19 stalks), trimmed
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 to 8 paper-thin slices prosciutto, halved lengthwise
Balsamic vinegar

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Snap the dry stem ends off of each asparagus and place on a heavy baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss. Roast until the asparagus is slightly caramelized, about 15 - 25 minutes (depending on the thickness of the spears). Cool slightly.

Wrap each asparagus with 1 piece (about 1/2 a slice) of prosciutto, exposing tips. Arrange on a platter and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.  Serve at room temperature.


Adapted from Giada deLaurentiis

Friday, January 15, 2010

Saturday Blog Showcase - Linda's Goat Cheese with Olives, Lemon & Thyme and Rosemary Flatbread


Welcome to the 2nd week of Saturday Blog Showcase!  I'm hosting the Showcase this week - remember that Ann (Thibeault's Table) will be hosting again next week. Today I'm featuring a recipe I've been wanting to try for quite some time now from Linda of How to Cook A Wolf.  Her pictures of this lovely appetizer have always left me salivating, and so I couldn't wait to try it for myself.  I don't know why I waited so long!  It's delicious, easy, and unique.  The goat cheese gets a little warmed from the infused olive oil and the flatbread is the perfect accompaniment.  Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe, Linda.  I'll be making it again and again!

Goat Cheese with Olives, Lemon & Thyme

1/2 cup assorted olives
3 fresh thyme sprigs
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 (4- to 5-ounces) fresh goat-cheese medallion or 2 (2-ounces) goat-cheese buttons

Accompaniment: crisp rosemary flatbread (recipe follows)

Heat olives, thyme, oil, zest, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a small skillet or saucepan over low heat until fragrant (do not simmer). Cool to room temperature.

Serve olive mixture over goat cheese.

Cooks' note: This dish can be prepared 2 hours ahead and kept, covered, at room temperature.

Rosemary Flatbread
1-3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon chopped rosemary plus 2 (6-inch) sprigs
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup olive oil plus more for brushing
Flaky sea salt such as Maldon

Preheat oven to 450°F with a heavy baking sheet on rack in middle.

Stir together flour, chopped rosemary, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Make a well in center, then add water and oil and gradually stir into flour with a wooden spoon until a dough forms. Knead dough gently on a work surface 4 or 5 times.

Divide dough into 3 pieces and roll out 1 piece (keep remaining pieces covered with plastic wrap) on a sheet of parchment paper into a 10-inch round (shape can be rustic; dough should be thin).

Lightly brush top with additional oil and scatter small clusters of rosemary leaves on top, pressing in slightly. Sprinkle with sea salt. Slide round (still on parchment) onto preheated baking sheet and bake until pale golden and browned in spots, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer flatbread (discard parchment) to a rack to cool, then make 2 more rounds (1 at a time) on fresh parchment (do not oil or salt until just before baking). Break into pieces.

Cooks’ note: Flatbread can be made 2 days ahead and cooled completely, then kept in an airtight container at room temperature.

Source:  Maggie Ruggerio via Linda/ How to Cook A Wolf 




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To participate in Saturday Blog Showcase, remember:

  1. Make a recipe from another blog on any day of the week. Create a link to that blog in your post.

  2. Add the Saturday Blog Showcase logo to your post.

  3. On Saturday, link your post to Mr. Linky.

Ann and I look forward to everyone's contributions. Happy Saturday Blog Showcase!

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Chicken Paillards with Avocado-Pomegranate Salsa



When I received the most recent edition of Fine Cooking, some of the recipes really caught my eye.  The first one I couldn't wait to try was the Chicken Paillards with Avocado-Pomegranate Salsa.  The magazine's photos drew me in and I just knew I would love the dish.  I wasn't wrong.  It's a delicious chicken dish with a variety of flavors and textures that I just loved.  The recipe does call for pomegranate molasses which I happened to have in the pantry.  I've heard that you can cook down pomegranate juice to a thick syrupy consistency for a homemade version.  It's well worth adding it. The only unfortunate thing about making this recipe... my photos don't do the dish justice.  Trust me - this is a beautiful, delicious recipe!

Chicken Paillards with Avocado-Pomegranate Salsa


4 4-to-6-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Salsa
1 large lemon
1/2 medium pomegranate
3 small green onions, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced
2 medium firm-ripe avocadoes, pitted, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons chopped flat leaf parsley
1 teaspoon finely minced seeded jalapeno
1 teaspoon pomegranate molasses
Kosher salt

Prepare the chicken:  Pound each chicken breast between  pieces of plastic wrap until about 1/8-inch thick.  In a shallow bowl, stir in the lemon juice, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, the pomegranate molasses, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.  Add the chicken, turn to coat well, and cover and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes and up to 1 hour.


Make the salsa:  Finely grate the zest from the lemon and then squeeze 1 tablespoon juice.  Pick the seeds out of the pomegranate*, discarding any pith, and put them in a bowl.  Add the lemon zest and juice, scallions, avocado, olive oil, parsley, jalapeno, pomegranate molasses, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Fold gently with a rubber spatula.  Season to taste with more salt, if needed.

Cook the chicken:  Heat 1/2 tablespoon of the olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat.  Add 2 of the chicken breasts and cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes.  Flip and cook until lightly browned on the other side and cooked through, about 3 minutes more.  Transfer the chicken to a plate and cover to keep warm.  Repeat with the remaining 1/2 tablespoon oil and 2 chicken breasts.  Serve the chicken with the salsa spooned over the top.

*To remove the seeds from a pomegranate, I slice the pomegranate horizontally and thwack the outer rind with a wooden spoon which releases the seeds.


Source:  Fine Cooking, Feb/Mar 2010

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Thank you to Michael at Designs by Gollum for hosting another Foodie Friday.  Please take a look at Michael's blog to see all the other wonderful dishes contributed by the other participants!



Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Tablescape Thursday - Shades of Cream


I've had the beige polka dot dishes for awhile now and wanted to work them into a tablescape this week.  On a trip to Tuesday Morning, I had come up with the little cream-colored wreath for less than half price, along with the tall breath of fresh air for the middle of my table.  Once I realized they were in the same color family, I started building my tablescape.  I found the little tassels  for 75 cents apiece and the cream colored napkins for $6 at Target.  It all just came together.  I even had an afghan in the same shade.  Here we go!

 


 

I "rescued" these roses from the my local grocery store.  The poor things are really on their last legs...






 
The tall white wine glasses were a gift from my son.  They're special to me just because he gave them to me!  I love them!
 

Another one of my afghans.  I love this pattern!


 




Tablecloth, centerpiece, tassels:  Tuesday Morning
Beige & white polka dinner plates:  Chef's Catalog
White salad plates:  Sur La Table
White napkins, Cream napkins, flatware:  Target
Shot glasses (holding flowers), water glasses:  Marshall's
White wine glasses: gift



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Thank you for sharing Tablescape Thursday with me, and my thanks to Susan of Between Naps on the Porch for hosting TT again this week.  Please visit Susan's site to visit the other participants' beautiful tablescapes.




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