Julia Child Dinner Party-Part 2-Making the Chef Hats

For my Julia Child Dinner Party I thought since I had assigned each guest one of Julia's recipes to prepare and bring, that qualified them as an unofficial Chef. And what sets a Chef apart from his/her staff but an official Chef's hat. Well, ok, it could also be a large Chef's knife, but that is dangerous and harder to make from paper, so I researched the hat idea and
found these two:
I actually made both the gathered one and the pleated version and decided to stick with the gathered one as it was going to be easier to make.
Here are the directions for making the hat:
1. You will need some Butcher paper--what is more authentic than asking your local butcher for some of his paper?
You'll need 7" x 26" for each one. This is used for the headband.
2.Fold the butcher paper in half length-wise with the shiny sides together so the band measures 3 1/2" x 26"
3.Next you take white tissue paper and tape two (or more) together to measure 45" x 14".
4. Mark one long end of the tissue paper at the 1/4, half and 3/4 marks.
5. Do the same with the butcher paper on its long side.
6. Using double stick tape, tape the butcher paper at the marks you have made. Then attach the tissue at those same places.
Put double stick tape in between the places that are attached, one at a time.
7. Now with your hands just gather up the tissue in between the places that are not attached and stick them to the taped places.
All along the edge of the tissue should now be attached to the butcher paper.
8. Gather up the other edge of the tissue paper about 1" in from the edge. Wrap a string around the gathering and tie it tight.
9. Turn the gathered, string-tied edge to the inside. (This is the top of the hat)
10. Attach the two short ends of the butcher paper together to form the band into a circle.

There you have it.
A Chef's hat for the culinary genius that you are!

I made one for each of the guests. They were used as the place cards with the guest's name on each one.

Tomorrow I will post about some other preparations
for the big dinner party!

Julia Child Dinner Party, Part 1--Finding the Book

After seeing the movie "Julia and Julie" I have been inspired to cook! Not only that, but I thought what great fun it would be to have a Julia Child Dinner Party with each guest making and bringing a recipe from Julia's cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Of course, not owning her book, I set about finding one. That was harder than one might think. I asked around who might have one of her books. No success! (Why hadn't I purchased one so many years ago? I think I must have been intimidated by it at that time, but sure wished I had one now). All of the bookstores were sold out, the library was out, (I put my name on the HOLD list for one), Amazon had them but were back ordered on them. Luckily, a friend in California had found an article with some of her recipes in a recent Bon Appetite magazine and had her own dinner so she forwarded them on to me. So, after looking through them, this is the menu I selected for the dinner:

Terrines de Legumes au Coulis de Framboise
(Sliced layered pureed vegetables with Raspberry Sauce)

Potage de Poireau Pomme
Leek and Potato Soup

Boeuf Bourguignon,
(Beef Stew)

Ratatouille
(Vegetable casserole)

Pommes de Terre Parisiennes
(Potato Balls Sauteed in Butter)

Pissaladiere Nicoise
(Onion Tart with Anchovies and Black Olives)

Pain de Francaise
(French Bread)

Salade Verte avec vinaigrette
(Green Salad with sauce vinaigrette)

Tois fromage avec Champagne Grapes
(Three Cheese with Champagne Grapes)

Reine de Saba
(Chocolate and Almond Cake with Ganache)

Vanille Glace
(Vanille Ice Cream)

The date was selected and then the guests were invited (7 of them because that many can sit around my table comfortably). Each one was assigned one of the above recipes with strict instructions to plan on spending time in the kitchen preparing each one just as Julia did.

Tomorrow, I'll continue with the next phase of the party--Making the Chef Hats.

Stay tuned!

Friend Makin' Monday--Fall

Friend Makin Monday-- Fall Happiness

Today's assignment from Amber, our host for today, is to tell our favorite things about Fall, so here goes:
The colors that come in the fall are gorgeous. I love the mountains full of red and yellow and the lovely chartreuse green.
The pumpkins and strangely formed squashes are fun to decorate with as well as to eat.
It is nice to have the evenings cool down so sleeping is more comfortable.
I love the smell of the kitchen with cinnamon, cloves and spices of pumpkin bread, apple crisp and gingerbread.
Lots of people are really in love with Fall, so to read their reasons and visit them click here.

Have a great Monday!

Can't Get Fresher Than This

This post for Tablescape Thursday is a little unusual as the simple humble table is not the real focus, but , instead it is the story behind the table that is the important part. I hope you enjoy it. I am also connecting with Foodie Friday with this post.

I had an enjoyable experience last week of going to visit an engaging 86-year-old man whose profession was as an engineer. Now that he is retired his "hobby" is farming. So, he has put his analytical engineer mind to work planning, preparing, planting, harvesting and keeping meticulous records of his passion--growing corn. I learned much from him that I could use in my own pitiful make-shift garden such as:
Buy the best seeds. He orders his from a company in New York. This year he planted what is called Seneca Dancer.
Prepare the best soil. He rototills his soil.
Plan the crop. He sows the seeds in a weekly sequence so that all of the corn does not mature at once.
Fertilize. He has a special formula with %'s that he has determined work the best for his soil, weather and such.
Water--He has put in irrigation ditches and tuns them on at determined times.
Harvest-This is the part that he let me and my friends participate. You have to feel each ear to decide if it is heavy enough to pick. Then you lift the ear down, then twist it off the stalk.Each of his 34 rows of corn were numbered and labeled. We were each assigned a row. I had row # 24. We could pick as much as we wanted that were ready.Next we helped him sort his pickings from that morning into buckets labeled CHOICE, MATURE, IMMATURE and FOOD BANK. Personally, I thought all of it looked like Choice, but I guess I am not as picky as he is. We also picked young zucchini. He has many pumpkins too. Each one is labeled with the name of one of his grandchildren on it for them.
Then while we were cooking our dinner of fresh zucchini, tomatoes, and corn he has a ritual of delivering to friends and neighbors his CHOICE corn. He writes in his book how many dozen he delivers and has the recipients listed alphabetically. His goal is to deliver 160 dozen this summer.What a sweet man! His charts, all graphed out, were very impressive and detailed. As we were cooking the corn (according to his written instructions--1 minute after the water returns to a boil, a friend delivered homemade salsa and chips--YUM. His daughter had picked some peaches that day and we added a delicious peach cobbler she had made just for us to have with our farm fresh dinner. We sat at his humble table and talked and listened to his wise and sweet advice, learned of his family heritage--Italian. and met his sweet wife, Jean, who joined us (she is recovering from a broken leg). It was an enjoyable evening with "can't get any fresher than this" food.

Thanks "Farmer Dan"

Friend Makin Monday

2009

Friend Makin Mondays

Today is Monday so it is time for Friend Makin Mondays!!This week's task is to answer some personal questions about our daily lives so here are the questions and my answers.


1. Do you cook every night?
No, it is seldom that I really cook. After cooking every night for 35 years, I have retired from cooking. It is one of the perks of living alone. When I have family or friends over then I full-out cook. In fact, this Saturday I am having a Julia Child dinner party where the kitchen will get a real workout.


2. What kind of laundry detergent do you use & why?
Tide . It is the only kind I have found for high-efficiency washers. I wish Costco had one.

3. Do you do laundry every day or loads at a time?
I do about two loads at a time. When my children were home I did all the wash on Fridays and it was nice to have it all done at once.

4. How often do you eat out per week?
Two or three times a week. I usually eat only half and bring the rest home and have it later.


5. Where do you usually eat out?
My favorite is Mexican food called Cafe Rio. I also love the turkey at Kneaders and the sandwiches at Hagerman's


6. What is your favorite retail store?
♥Target♥

7. What's your favorite thing to drink?
I am really trying to stick with water but Tropicana has a delicious light lemonade with only 5 calories and no sugar.


8. Do you take vitamins? What kind?
Yes. I take Arbonne's supplements with vitamins, minerals and calcium.


9. What percentage of the household chores to you do?
Unfortunately 100. --A disadvantage of living alone.


10. Do your children do chores? {Or will they, did they, etc}
Yes, we always had chore charts and they grew up complaining about all the work they had to do. The youngest one is certain we had her just so I wouldn't have to vacuum! But, they all learned how to work and have their children learning the same.

11. Do you go to church?
Yes, faithfully every Sunday for three hours.

12. Do you have a housework schedule?
I just made a new one for this fall--it starts soon:)

13. Do you keep a working budget?
In general, yes. Specifically, no.

14. What do you do at night as a family?
Somehow at night it seems I am still trying to get through my to-do list and by the time I sit down it is time to go to bed.

15. How do you prepare yourself for a new week?
I like to plan out my week so I usually write events and tasks for the next week as they come up and if they are not on it then I review it and add to it on Saturday. Monday morning I make detailed lists and write in the calendar if they are not already there.

16. What do your mornings look like?
I get up, make my bed, get dressed, and begin that to do list. Soon I will add work-out to that list.

17. What time do you get up in the mornings?
Between 6 and 6:30

18. What time do you go to bed at night?
I begin getting ready about 10:30. It usually takes me half an hour before I get into bed and then I read.

19. How do you manage all of the paperwork that floods into your household? {bills, school work, magazines, ads, etc}
I learned a long time ago not to bring in junk mail so I look through it at the mailbox and go right to trash can with anything that does not concern me. I used to look through all the coupons but found that that was just a waste of time since I seldom used the items they pertained to. I also used to look through all the magazines and flyers but now give myself permission to toss them knowing that another one from that same company would be coming soon. This was especially helpful as it gets closer to Christmas and mailboxes are loaded with catalogues. I also call and cancel a lot of ones that I never use so that I don't get them anymore. I feel it is such a waste of paper.
The bills I open, get rid of the fillers in them, write the due date on the outside of the envelope and put them in my bill payer box. I have limited my magazine subscriptions to about 4. After I read each one (it may take me 6 months) I tear out what I want to keep and toss it as well.

20. How do you keep your household organized? {calendars, charts, etc}
I keep a desk calendar and a larger monthly calendar on my desk. On the side of the larger one is an empty space that I use for any phone numbers that I need for that month or new names and phone numbers--like a repairman. I also have my daily to do pad which is divided into these catagories: to do, calls, errands, and letters. That way I can organize my day and can see at a glance what needs to be done and where I need to go.
The bigger monetary bills, like taxes due, I put on my yahoo calendar so it comes to my e-mail to remind me a week before it is due. It has taken me a long time to come up with this system and I hope this is helpful to some of you who are younger and wondering how to balance it all.
To check out other's answers click here.
Have a wonderful week as we progress into September!

Foodie Friday--Basil Pesto

Pesto

With summer gardens laden with beefy tomatoes it is the perfect time to make Pesto from the wonderful basil growing there too. This is a time tested recipe that I've been making for many years. It comes from the Silver Palate Cookbook which says, "The first batch of pesto--that marvelous Genoese basil sauce for pasta--officially welcomes summer back to our kitchen."

2 cups fresh basil leaves, thoroughly washed and patted dry (I pack in 2 cups worth)
4 good size garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 cup shelled walnuts
1 cup best-quality olive oil
1 cup freshly grated imported Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup freshly grated imported Romano cheese
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1. Combine the basil, garlic and walnuts in the bowl of a food processor--or halve the recipe and use a blender--and chop
2. Leave the motor running and add the olive oil in a slow steady stream.3. Shut the motor off, add the cheese, a big pinch of salt and a liberal grinding of pepper. Process briefly to combine, then scrape out into a bowl and cover until ready to use.
Makes 2 cups, enough to sauce 2 pounds of pasta.I put it into 2 one-cup canning jars. I give one away and keep the other to enjoy. This is so simple and can be made in less than 10 minutes if you have all the ingredients ready.
Pesto Possibilities:
-Mix 2 T. pesto with 2 T. creme fraiche or sour cream, and dollop into your favorite summer soup.
- Whisk 1 T. pesto into 4 eggs as you scramble them
-Season mayonnaise with a Tablespoon or two of pesto when making potato salad
-Brush broiled chicken with pesto to taste about 10 minutes before the end of cookig time. Serve with fresh tomatoes

Enjoy!

To see other wonderful food ideas click here to visit Foodie Friday hosted by Michael at Designs by Gollum.

Stretching Your Clothing Dollar

In this time of economic worry there are a few things you can do to help keep the money in your wallet. Sometimes this involves learning new things or just using your imagination. Here are a list of a few ideas that might help and save you money that you might have spent on alterations:
1. Learn how to shorten-hem that pair of pants that are too long. Since attaching the original hem on a pair of jeans is the fashionable thing now, learn how to do it. It isn't hard and you can save yourself anywhere from $12-20 by doing it yourself. A really good website with step-by-step pictures is: www.daciaray.com2. You can also lengthen a skirt by adding another tier or layer as this one was with a layer of gathered lace to extend the length.
3. Learn to mend--a rip in a seam, a hole in a pair of pants, or lace that has become loose from an article of clothing. A basic sewing book from the library would have instructions and pictures or if you know someone else who sews enlist their help to teach you.
4. Embellish something you already own to make it more stylish and give you longer wear.
This T-shirt was given new life by stitching on a colorful flower of different fabrics.
5. Repurpose an article of clothing that you don't need.(a) These wool purses are made from 100% wool sweaters that have been felted (shrunk). A great video clip showing how to make them can be found on www.studio5.ksl.com (search Felted Wool Sweater Totes)(b) The inspiration for this sweater was in a mail-order catalogue for about $100. This cardigan was purchased in a local chain store for about $20.00 then the flowers were added (from an old sweater) and embroidered on to it for the same look.(c) Sometimes a piece of clothing can be used as a "scrapbook" like this sweatshirt by stitching pictures and word memories from a favorite vacation. You can buy special paper in an office supply store that will transfer images from paper onto fabric that can then be stitched onto the sweatshirt.
(d) Sometimes you have outgrown or it is out of style and you can make it into something else. This Halloween vest was transformed into a Halloween pillow very quickly with only two seams.

I hope this has helped get you thinking about ways to save. Have a wonderful day!