I made this lunch for my friend Arna. When I was a child, I learned the saying, “Make new friends but keep the old. One is silver and the other is gold.” A life theme for me is it is important to keep old friends. I value the shared history. Arna and I first became friends years ago when I was married and had a house in a town about an hour away. Her visit last weekend was special. We had lunch, toured my house and gardens. It was a wonderful day!
Left Side: Camels – Cheddar cheese, bell pepper, sweet potato (roasted) cut with a cookie cutter, Eye – paprika, Palm Tree – zucchini cut with a cookie cutter, dried blueberries, hummus
Top Right: Hazelnuts
Bottom Right: Camels – Cantaloupe cut with a cookie cutter, Eye – cinnamon, Pineapple Greek yogurt
I made this turtle themed meal for my Mom at her Lake House. She enjoyed it especially the little turtle tortilla chips. We decided that we would not make the Blueberry salad again. It was not special enough.
Bottom Right: Turtles – cut flour tortilla with a cookie cutter, place on cookie sheet with parchment, spray with cooking spray and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until lightly browned and crisp.
I asked my Mom what theme or food she wanted for Mother’s Day. She said Daffodil dinner. It made sense since we celebrated at the mountain Lake House and the daffodils were about to bloom. They were in full bloom for our dinner.
Drinks: Pina Colada with Orange Juice or Seltzer with a ground up pineapple
Daffodil Main: Orange Cheddar mashed potato daffodil with roasted asparagus and sugar snap epas
When my Mom asked for “Daffodil”, I was lacking inspiration since I have done it many times before. The drinks were a late idea inspired by my niece who likes serving themed drinks. I wanted daffodil colored drinks. The dessert was a last minute idea. We went shopping right before the meal to get the whipped cream and cookies. The store was out of heavy cream so we used whipped cream from a can. The meal was enjoyed by all!
I made this snack meal for Elizabeth. I enjoy making cute food for her. It is usually the same food but I find different ways to present it. Today we have frogs.
Left Side: Frogs – tortilla chips cut with a cookie cutter, brushed with olive oil, sprinkled with salt – bake in 375 over for about 10 minutes, Frogs – cheddar cheese cut with a cookie cutter, cherry tomatoes
Over the weekend, Renae and family came over for dinner. Jeff hung poster frames in my movie room. Maybe sometime soon I will reveal that room. I made ordinary shaped ravioli which is rare for me, usually I make fun shapes. You can see a glimpse of this years glorious daffodils in the above photo. I brought some blossoms inside when I deadheaded the patch this week.
Ravioli – I used my favorite pasta dough, filling – Ricotta, Asiago, Parmesan, salt and pepper, (I made and put in freezer), boiled just before serving, served with homemade tomato sauce
My critique of the meal: I especially liked the flavor of adding a third cheese to the ravioli filling. While I normally make fun shaped ravioli, using something like this which I had a long time is fun to use. This chocolate mousse recipe is delicious and easy to make. My guests liked that I gave them small spoons to eat the mousse.
Tomorrow is the coronation of King Charles III. I like to celebrate moments in time with cute food, so I decided to create this coronation themed meal. I had many crowns in my collection but not the right shape for the St Edward’s crown. Renae was very kind to print a cookie cutter with her 3D printer.
Left Side: St Edward’s Crown – Cheddar cheese cut with a cookie cutter, details cut with knife, jewels cut with oval cookie cutter, painted with food coloring, Purple – mashed potato with butterfly pea powder, peas
Top Right: Pistachios
Bottom Right: Union Jack – Apple, painted with food coloring
I made this bento lunch for my Mom. Over the years I have made a lot of cute food for her but she was especially delighted with this one. Maybe it will make one of my top 10 bento for 2023.
Container: Wooden box purchased in Kyoto at Bento&co.
I made a mostly make ahead meal for my Mom, Dad, brother, sister-in-law and myself. It was a fun way to enjoy a meal with family and welcome spring.
Butterfly Ravioli – I used my favorite pasta dough, filling – Ricotta, Asiago, salt and pepper, (I made and put in freezer a week ahead), boiled just before serving, dried parsley garnish
Pesto Cream – homemade pesto thawed from my freezer mixed with sour cream
Salad – Romaine with zucchini, bell pepper, carrots, and kohlrabi cut with a cookie cutter
Vinaigrette – a basic no recipe with olive oil, vinegar, orange juice, and honey
I made this for lunch when my parents were visiting. We all ate it but I put this portion in the cloud boxes. If you make if for a packed lunch, I recommend packing the pesto dressing for the zucchini noodles separate and mix before serving. It was a fun way to eat zucchini noodles!
Last fall, I planted 220 daffodils around a River Birch in my front yard. My friend Deborah helped me break the ground. Carol went with me to the garden store. My parents helped me plant. We had a warm winter; the daffodils were poking up from the ground since early February. I was concerned that my daffodils would be blind the first year. Blind daffodils do not bloom. My concern was unfounded. They are fabulous as you can see in the photos below. Many of my neighbors have remarked how beautiful they are.
My gorgeous daffodils are making me so happy! I frequently look out the window at them, talk about them to anyone who will listen, and walk out to the tree to visit. My neighbors probably say to themselves, “She is out visiting her daffodils again!”
Of course, I had to celebrate with a daffodil themed meal. I don’t think that mine look as good as the inspiration but they are attractive and were delicious! I used the recipe for the dough (with turmeric). I made my own filling with finely cut cabbage, snow peas, carrot, fresh ginger, soy sauce, and a little cornstarch.
Contents: Windmill – cut flour tortilla with a cookie cutter, place on cookie sheet with parchment, put small aluminum foil ball under portion to elevate, spray with cooking spray and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until lightly browned and crisp. Strawberries cut to look like tulips, blueberries, Tulip Rows – carrot cut with cookie cutter, peanut butter, celery, mixed nuts
My parents, brother, and sister-in-law stayed at my house for Easter weekend this year. We had 6 at our main meal since my friend Carol was able to join us. I decided on a Spring forest theme. My Mom did amazing work with the table plants and flowers. My sister-in-law assisted with setting the table. We put candy eggs in the nests. I was concerned that the eggs would fly when people removed their napkins. That only happened to one person.
Napkin Rings – Wooden with Nests (from Hobby Lobby) and Ferns (from Michaels). I hot glued ferns to the nests, then wired the nests to the wooden rings. Cadbury mini chocolate eggs.
It was wonderful to have family members involved in the preparations. My Mom and sister-in-law set the table. My brother decorated the desserts. The woodland table was fantastic! The desserts were adorable! As for menu items, the only one I would not serve again is the Pea and Leek tart but I would make the crust again it was perfect. We cut the potatoes for the gratin in cubes because I was nostalgic for Saltsman’s. They were wonderful! I want to only make cubed potatoes gratin in the future. They are more enjoyable to eat. It was a memorable Easter!
Easter weekend, I hosted my parents, brother, and sister-in law. It was a wonderful time with my family.
Decorations: This was my first year with a mantel for Easter. I bought the garland at Michaels, the rabbits came from TJ Maxx. My Mom found the eggs. I bought pink paper grass at Michaels. It was very messy so I expect I will use something different next year. I bought the wreath last year from Michaels. My Mom made beautiful arrangements for my kitchen, dining room and library. A glimpse of my library is in the photo below. I will not reveal my fabulous room until I get replacement French Doors. I ordered them in March and they told me it will take 6 months! My hallway floating shelves has an egg my Mom found, I added a cupcake stand, an Easter Card from my niece, and my Easter Egg Tree.
Easter Breakfast: We enjoyed our traditional breakfast the day before Easter. There were 6 of us since my neighbor Eugene joined us.
Table:
Tablecloth – My Mom’s Easter tablecloth
Placemats – Assorted color rounds
Napkins – Paper Easter napkins
Plates – My Mom’s Easter plates
Arrangement – Made by my Mom
Bunny Silverware Holders: I enlarged this pattern and made the felt bunnies in pink, blue, yellow and green to coordinate with my placemats.
Foil wrapped chocolate Easter Bunnies I bought at Parkleigh.
Cheese Plate with Fresh Mozzarella, Swiss, Horseradish Cheddar, and Aged Irish Cheddar (I used cute stickers on the labels)
My critique of the meal:
The basket bread was especially good this year. It is a time honored family tradition for my Dad to make it. The cheese plate was a new addition this year. It was enjoyed by all. Having this breakfast the day before Easter was a good idea to space out the larger meals and also for time management. My Mom did a wonderful job with the table decorations. My sister-in-law assisted. It was an enjoyable meal.
Left Side: Basket – Tortilla chip – cut flour tortilla with cookie cutter, brush with olive oil, sprinkled with salt – bake in 375 over for about 10 minutes, Easter Eggs – carrot, romaine lettuce
Happy Spring! This is my collection of Spring themed food.
Over the years, I created a lot of flower themed food. I will restrict the flowers in this collection to Daffodil, Tulip, Lily of the Valley, and Flowering Trees.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day. I made this fun meal for myself. I rarely make food with rainbows since I find it difficult but I am happy with this very simple rainbow. Click here to see my St. Patrick’s Day food collection.
Contents: Rainbow – Red, Yellow, Green bell pepper, cottage cheese, Shamrocks – Tortilla chips cut with a cookie cutter, brushed with olive oil, bake in 375 over for about 10 minutes. Pot of Gold – Peanut butter, graham cracker crumbs, and non-fat milk powder, dried pineapple
Decorations:
Dining Room: This is the first March that I decorated my Dining Room. I bought the shamrock wreath from Walmart online but I can’t find the same one to link. I made the simple Shamrock garland with paper, hole punch, and string. The trophies are from my youth Irish Step Dancing days. I received the Belleek Irish Cottage tea light holder in 2004.
Hallway Floating Shelves: St. Patrick themed honeycomb decorations, plastic shamrocks (from Dollar Tree years ago), cards from my 20 year old niece and Mom.
Left Side: Sheep – cheddar cheese (cut with a cookie cutter), food marker detail, cheese tortellini with Italian dressing, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, black olive
Top Right: Utz White Cheddar Cheese Balls
Bottom Right: Sheep – apple slice cut with a cookie cutter, apple
Left Side: Elephants – Bell pepper and cucumber cut with a cookie cutter, romaine, Tortilla chips – cut flour tortilla with cookie cutter, brush with olive oil, sprinkled with salt – bake in 375 over for about 10 minutes,
I know that this does not look like Abe Lincoln. My Dad ate this and had no idea what the theme was supposed to be. But, I provided fun nourishment to my family and that is what really matters.
This is my collection of winter themed food including snowmen, snowflakes and winter sports. As with my other collections, I plan to update when I create something new.
Happy Valentine’s Day! This is my first year decorating my fireplace and mantle for February. Last year I did not yet have the mantle. Also I was too busy working on my house to decorate. I am very pleased with the results! It makes me happy to view it and know that I made it myself.
Felt Rose Wreath – I used this template but cut by hand. I used three different shades of pink, cut leaves out of green felt, the heart wreath form was from Hobby Lobby. I used a lot of hot glue for this project and of course burned myself a little as is common when I use my hot glue gun.
Valentine Garland – I bought the wooden bead garland with tassel ends at Hobby Lobby. I also bought the wooden hearts. I glued paper on the hearts, made a hole with an awl, threaded thin ribbon and tied to garland.
XO Sign and Background – I bought the sign at Hobby Lobby. Since it was not clearly visible against the white fireplace, I covered a piece of carboard with decorative paper.
Green Vase with Fabric Roses – I have had the green vase for a long time. The satin roses were used with birdseed at my wedding since we were told to have guests throw birdseed after exiting the church. A coworker and my Aunt helped me prepare the roses. I think they are beautiful and match this theme.
Pink Taper Candles in Glass Holders
Heart Waffles with Ricotta, Strawberries and Maple Syrup – I made this meal for myself to celebrate myself and have a cute Valentine themed meal in my beautiful dining room. The paper Valentine was an art therapy assignment to make a Valentine for myself.
These are my hallway floating shelves for seasonal decor.
Top Shelf: Valentine card from my parents. Stuffed animal Kangaroo with heart (had this a long time).
Bottom Shelf:Wooden elephants cut with my Cricut machine. My 20 year old niece styled the elephants. I added some hearts for the season.
I made this meal for my Mom. I don’t have a lot of success depicting cupid out of food. I don’t consider this a success but I think it is okay for a cupid. They are odd looking. Here is my collection of Valentine themed meals with my past cupids.
Left Side: Cupid – Niishiki rice shaped in a cookie cutter with plastic wrap, Wing – cream cheese, Eye – spinach cut with a straw, Mouth – piece of bell pepper, roasted asparagus
Top Right: Macadamia nuts
Bottom Right: Hearts – Red bell pepper cut with a cookie cutter, fresh mozzarella balls
Here is my kitchen. Last November, I hired contractors to build an island with beverage refrigerator and create a tile backsplash. I also purchased quartz counters. I love my renovated kitchen! Below you can see before and after photos. The nook, counters, sink, faucet, backsplash, floor, and island are new.
Paint: Sherwin Williams Biscuit (I did the painting myself.)
Floor: Sheet vinyl (I tried to get slightly better flooring but the install person said he couldn’t do it because of slope.) I know it does not make sense but I didn’t want to spend a lot on the kitchen floor anyway. I really did not have a choice of color. The floor was done last winter.
NookCeiling Light: I hired an electrician to move and change the light over the nook. (He did this the same time he put electricity and light in dining room.)
Tile Backsplash: Pickets since I wanted something more whimsical than rectangles
Nook: From Wayfair. I don’t like the look of knotty pine so eventually I will probably paint it and add cushions for my guests comfort. This is a wonderful nook and my kitchen has the perfect spot for it.
Island: Built by contractors with space for beverage refrigerator. I don’t know why the kitchen did not previously have an island. It is perfect for the space.
Tuesday was Carol’s birthday so I had her over for a birthday meal. The wellington is a favorite and I have made it for many Thanksgivings and Carol’s birthdays. This year I served it with spiralized carrots to add something different. Since it was a worknight I kept the meal easy and bought dessert and flowers at Wegmans. The centerpiece also served as a gift for Carol.
Vegetable Wellington (I used frozen Puffed Pastry and for vegetables used zucchini, red bell pepper, and asparagus), served with Citrus Beurre Blanc sauce (recipe at the bottom)
My friend Deborah’s birthday is this week. I had her over for dinner. I asked for food requests and she said, “Mexican flavors / spices”. I find it so much fun to get menu inspiration from friends. We both enjoyed!
Note: You can see a glimpse of my new Valentine’s Day decorations. Last year I was busy working on the house and did not have a mantle yet. This is my first year decorating for this season. I added some customization to a purchased garland, created the felt roses wreath, and papered cardboard to go behind the sign.
I don’t think that these look like cats but that is what they were supposed to be. I made this for my friend Carol. When I asked for her food or theme requests, she requested the quinoa cakes I shared here. I always enjoy requests and presenting food in different ways and these are delicious quinoa cakes.
Contents: Cats – quinoa cakes, Ears – carrot, Face – spinach cut with mini cutter, Black Bean Sauce – black beans, salsa, balsamic vinegar blended in a food processor, Fish – Cheddar cheese, romaine
Left Side: Snowman – Homemade polenta (cut with a cookie cutter), cream cheese, Hat – cucumber, Eyes and Buttons – dried blueberry, Nose – carrot sprinkle, peas
Top Right: Utz snowflake pretzels
Bottom Right: Pistachios (snowflakes drawn with food coloring marker)
Left Side: Snowman – cheddar cheese (cut with a cookie cutter), food marker details, cheese tortellini with Italian dressing, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, black olive
Top Right: Utz White Cheddar Cheese Balls
Bottom Right: Snowman – apple cut with a cookie cutter, cinnamon details with toothpick used to write, Mandarin orange slices
On New Years Day, my niece made homemade ramen. She did most of the work. I only helped with the broth, some toppings and prepared the dessert. Five of us enjoyed the delicious ramen with toppings (my friend Carol joined us). We reused some table decorations from the night before. It was an extraordinary start to the new year!
Ramen – she used this for the broth, this for the noodles
Toppings
Mushrooms sautéed in butter
Spinach sautéed with a little sesame oil and soy sauce
I am a true morning person. I am normally awake and active by 5 am. Staying up until midnight is rare for me even on New Years Eve. This year when my 20 year old niece made plans to be with me and my parents for New Years Eve we planned a little party for the 4 of us. We decided to celebrate midnight in London and live streamed their countdown and fireworks (7pm Eastern). We had appetizers just after 5 pm and dessert and toast at 7 pm. My parents drank champagne, my niece and I drank white grape juice with plain seltzer. A memorable and fun time was had by all!
DECORATIONS
Balloons from Wegmans
2023 sign my niece and I made from paper (she did most of it)
23 Hershey Kisses with festive stickers – we cut with the right sized round punch I already had
Left Side: 2023 – Cheddar cheese cut with a cookie cutter, celery, tortilla chips cut with cookie cutters, brushed with olive oil, sprinkled with salt – bake in 375 over for about 10 minutes, strawberries
I helped my niece make a gingerbread house this year that was inspired by one of my mom’s fairy houses. At my mom’s lake house my niece sets up the fairy houses, and each year she puts all of the sheep figurines near and on top of the pub because the sheep sometimes like to go overboard.
Royal Icing Recipe: I love using this recipe which uses Meringue Powder. It hardens fast and in works very well.
Front of the Pub: We used a Milano cookie for the door with a black candy ball for the door handle and blue sugar pieces in royal icing as the door window. Then additional windows were piped on using more royal icing and purple sugar sprinkles. On the top window there are two birds in love at the pub.
Back of the Pub: The chimney was made by sticking muli-colored jelly beans into royal icing.
Side of the Pub: The window was made by hot gluing gold quality gelatin sheets from the back of the pre cut window hole. Then a banner was made using muli-colored candy stars stuck into royal icing and candy birds were added.
Roof: A thatched roof was made using whole grain spaghetti stuck into royal icing. Then gummy bears were put into royal icing for the top of the roof. Sheep were stuck onto the roofs with more royal icing with their beer mugs since the sheep went a little crazy at the pub.
Ground/Grass: The ground was covered with green royal icing using the Wilton 4B decorating tip to make the icing look like grass.
Sheep: Gingerbread sheep were cut out using my many sheep cookie cutters, and un-dyed royal icing was used as the sheep’s coat. For the eyes black candy balls were used and the mouth was made out of candy cane sprinkles (and one mouth was made using a pink jimmy). The sheep were then glued to the top of the roof or stuck into ground.
Beer Sign: The base of the sign is gingerbread cut into two squares. For the front of the sign tweezers were used to write out “BEER” with candy balls in the royal icing and two candy carrots were put in the corners. The back of the sign was made using purple sugar sprinkles in royal icing and two star anise. Once both pieces were dry they were glued together with royal icing so they would stand up when placed in the front of the pub.
Tables and Beer Mugs: The tables were made by microwaving caramel squares in the microwave for 5 seconds then stretching. Then tootsie rolls were cut in half and glued to the bottom with royal icing. The beer mugs were also made using cut in half tootsie rolls with two small pieces of whole grain spaghetti stuck into the tootsie rolls for the handles. For the beer mugs on the tables white candy balls were placed onto the tootsie roll with tweezers to make foam.
Front Path: A path was made using candy stars and gummy bears to line the path.
New techniques tried this year:
Using spaghetti to make a thatched roof and gummy bears for the top of the roof
Delicate tweezer work for writing letters and adding details
Beer mug handle
Piped green grass
My Gingerbread Collection: Go here to see most of my gingerbread creations.
My first Christmas in my home was special. My 20 year old niece joined my parents and me on December 27. We celebrated Christmas Eve on the 27 and Christmas day with her on the 28. We waited for stockings and most presents until my niece joined us. The photo above shows my new Balsam Hill Christmas tree. I decorated it with vintage glass ornaments that were my Grandparents, glass owls I bought after my divorce, pink ribbon I bought at Michael’s this year and a vintage looking star I bought this year on Amazon.
2022 Christmas breakfast. This is our traditional breakfast that I featured many times in the past.
Christmas Butter Lamb – used wooden mold parents brought back from Amsterdam years ago. I made it “Christmas” with a little bit of Christmas ribbon. Kerrygold butter.
Niece brought cookies made and decorated by my sister and nieces.
Italian Christmas Meal
Our Christmas meal with niece featured many recipes my Grandma used to make for us. Niece made a delicious lasagna.
Lasagna
Broccoli
Garlic Bread
Salad – Iceberg, tomatoes, cucumber, black olives, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt
My Mom made this arrangement for our Italian Christmas meal with niece. This sleigh has been featured in many past holiday meals.
I made pink and white felt poinsettias with jingle bell centers. I cut some with my Cricut and some by hand and in general kept it more simple than the inspiration. I hot glued them to metal clips and attached to garland with lights on my railing.
This is my hallway floating shelves decorated for Christmas. The adorable snowman was made years ago by my niece from marriage. The tree is decorated with some of my Hallmark miniature ornament collection.
Eclectic Lamb 
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