Showing posts with label Mother's Day. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mother's Day. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 03, 2023

CELEBRATE MOTHER'S IN STYLE




Do something really nice today for the lady who does so much for you throughout the year. This brunch  will show her how much you care. A few fresh flowers on the table are a nice touch.
 

MENU
Quiche
Fresh Fruit Salad
Croissants
Raspberry Jam
Butter
Zucchini Bread for Dessert
Mimosas
 Quiche
1 frozen deep-dish pie shell
1 tsp. (5g) butter
6 bacon strips, cut into ¼ in. (.64cm) pieces*
¼ cup (30g) onions, chopped
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
1¼ cups (230ml) heavy cream
3 pinches white pepper**
¾ cup (85g) swiss cheese, grated
2 tbsp. (25g) butter, cut in small bites

Preheat oven to 375° F (190°C). 

Place pie shell on cookie sheet. Use a fork to poke several sets of holes in the bottom and around the sides of the shell. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside. 

Melt butter in a heavy skillet. Add bacon, and ham if you’re including it, and onion when foam subsides. Cook until meat is lightly browned. Remove from skillet with a slotted spoon to paper towels. 

Beat or whisk eggs, yolks, cream, and seasonings in a large bowl. Stir in cheese. 

Scatter meat, into pie shell. Gently ladle in egg mixture. Sprinkle the top with butter bits. 

Bake for 25 minutes or until a sharp knife inserted in the middle of the quiche comes out clean. 

The dish may be served hot, warm, or room temperature. It also makes a wonderful appetizer. Leftovers reheat in the microwave beautifully. 

*Diced ham, ¼ lb. (125g), is also good in this recipe in place of the bacon or along with. All other ingredients and process remains the same. 

**No need to buy white pepper if you don’t have it. Use black pepper only a little more as it is not as strong as white pepper. 

Fresh Fruit Salad
1 banana
1 pear
1 tbsp. (15ml) lemon juice
¼ pineapple
1 kiwi
10 seedless red grapes, halved
10 blueberries
10 raspberries, optional

 

Peel and slice banana into bitesize pieces. Scoop into a medium-sized bowl. Core and dice pear then add to bowl. Sprinkle lemon juice over fruit to stop it from turning brown and mix well.

 

Remove rind and core from pineapple then dice the fruit. Add ¼ to banana mixture. Store the extra pineapple in a glass bowl or plastic bag. Refrigerate for future use.

 

Peel kiwi and slice then stir into salad. Gently fold in remaining fruit.

 

Spoon into a glass bowl, cover with cling wrap, and chill until time to serve. Leftovers are still good the next day.

Zucchini Bread for Dessert

Make this bread a day or two in advance to free up your Mother’s Day morning.


2 cups (200g) grated zucchini
2 cups (200g) sugar
3 cups (300g) flour
1 cup nuts, chopped, optional
¼ tsp. (1.25ml) baking powder
2 tsp. (10ml) baking soda
1 tsp. (5ml) salt
1 tbsp. (15ml) cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup (250ml) vegetable oil
1 tbsp. (15ml) vanilla

Preheat oven to 350° F (180°C). 

Grease 2 loaf pans with butter. Cut and fit a piece of parchment paper to the bottom of each pan. I do this because my pans are old and food sticks to the bottom. Nothing attractive about serving zucchini bread with a big hunk missing. 

Combine all dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. This includes the zucchini. Adding fruit or veggies to a flour blend helps them to not sink to the bottom of the bread while baking. 

Beat wet ingredients together in a large bowl. 

Slowly stir dry mixture into wet mixture. Be sure to blend well. 

Pour batter into pans. Bake 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

Cool on a rack before slicing. This bread freezes great. 

Mimosas
1 bottle sparking white wine or champagne, cold
1 carton orange juice, cold
Tall slender glasses

Fill glasses half full with wine. Tip the glass slightly as you pour to retain the fizz. Top off with orange juice. Don’t stir. That will destroy the bubbles. 

Enjoy your day and remember to tell your mom you love her.

Sloane

 

Monday, May 03, 2021

Make Mother's Day Extra Special

 from Emma Lane

My son brings me a gigantic fuchsia plant every year for Mother’s Day. I love it. I confess, it’s for my favorite small bird, the Hummingbird. She shows up right around Mother’s Day every year and it’s a perfect gift for my deck. The female nests close by and some years bring her off spring to the flowers. So darling, so sweet, so tiny, as they cling to the perch, all wobbly and delicate. You watch and wonder how she managed to raise three babes in a demitasse nest. They love to sip from fuchsia blooms of this plant and I skip artificial feeders for that reason. Some years a second plant joins the first. I am honored on Mother’s Day. My son understands me well. No roses, no candy. Feed my birds.

In the greenhouse, I’m creating a Succulent Bowl. These collections of various, and there are many, varieties of succulents live peacefully together in one container. They are perfectly suited to indoor dwelling in a sunny window. These plants require very low maintenance, water once a week, if that; and they tolerate well the dry indoor air. Caution: do not over water!  My good friend swears fairies live amongst hers. I place meaningful messages on small decorative rocks. It’s easy to add your own favorite sayings. Another friend creates a fairy garden complete with toadstools and small winged fairies. It’s fascinating to find small lovelies hiding between the different succulents. Enjoy! These bowls are a perfect Mother’s Day gift for a busy Mom with their easy-care maintenance.

My last suggestion for your Mom’s special day is a gift certificate to her favorite plant nursery. Even for a novice gardener, a visit to the plant world is an “upper” for these still dreary covid days that are still hanging around. The visit is outside in the fresh air and, by the first week in May, many perennials and annuals are already in bloom Stick to the locals who will give individual attention to their customers that the ‘big boxes’ can’t. Honor your Mom on her special day and she will keep this event warm in her heart for a long, long time. I know I do.


Another lovely gift is a copy of my latest Cozy Adventure/ Mystery, Whispers of Danger and Love

 The heroine is a landscape architect who speaks gardening. She struggles with a client who demands a cutting garden mid summer, (and a hunky detective who seems bound to destroy her plants.) I enjoyed relaxing in her garden even as I created it from my own imaginings. It was also fun to watch the sparks fly between a couple who knew each other as children but must readjust their thinking as adults.

 


Emma Lane is a gifted author who writes cozy mysteries as Janis Lane, Regency as Emma, and spice as Sunny Lane. 

She lives in Western New York where winter is snowy, spring arrives with rave reviews, summer days are long and velvet, and fall leaves are riotous in color. At long last she enjoys the perfect bow window for her desk where she is treated to a year-round panoramic view of nature. Her computer opens up a fourth fascinating window to the world. Her patient husband is always available to help with a plot twist and encourage Emma to never quit. Her day job is working with flowers at Herbtique and Plant Nursery, the nursery she and her son own. 

Look for information about writing and plants on Emma's new website. Leave a comment or a gardening question and put a smile on Emma's face.


Stay connected to Emma on Facebook and Twitter. Be sure to check out the things that make Emma smile on Pinterest.

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

A TREAT FOR MOM




Do something really nice today for the lady who does so much for you throughout the year. This brunch  will show her how much you care. A few fresh flowers on the table are a nice touch.
 

MENU
Quiche
Fresh Fruit Salad
Croissants
Raspberry Jam
Butter
Zucchini Bread for Dessert
Mimosas
 Quiche
1 frozen deep-dish pie shell
1 tsp. (5g) butter
6 bacon strips, cut into ¼ in. (.64cm) pieces*
¼ cup (30g) onions, chopped
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
1¼ cups (230ml) heavy cream
3 pinches white pepper**
¾ cup (85g) swiss cheese, grated
2 tbsp. (25g) butter, cut in small bites

Preheat oven to 375° F (190°C). 

Place pie shell on cookie sheet. Use a fork to poke several sets of holes in the bottom and around the sides of the shell. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside. 

Melt butter in a heavy skillet. Add bacon, and ham if you’re including it, and onion when foam subsides. Cook until meat is lightly browned. Remove from skillet with a slotted spoon to paper towels. 

Beat or whisk eggs, yolks, cream, and seasonings in a large bowl. Stir in cheese. 

Scatter meat, into pie shell. Gently ladle in egg mixture. Sprinkle the top with butter bits. 

Bake for 25 minutes or until a sharp knife inserted in the middle of the quiche comes out clean. 

The dish may be served hot, warm, or room temperature. It also makes a wonderful appetizer. Leftovers reheat in the microwave beautifully. 

*Diced ham, ¼ lb. (125g), is also good in this recipe in place of the bacon or along with. All other ingredients and process remains the same. 

**No need to buy white pepper if you don’t have it. Use black pepper only a little more as it is not as strong as white pepper. 

Fresh Fruit Salad
1 banana
1 pear
1 tbsp. (15ml) lemon juice
¼ pineapple
1 kiwi
10 seedless red grapes, halved
10 blueberries
10 raspberries, optional

 

Peel and slice banana into bitesize pieces. Scoop into a medium-sized bowl. Core and dice pear then add to bowl. Sprinkle lemon juice over fruit to stop it from turning brown and mix well.

 

Remove rind and core from pineapple then dice the fruit. Add ¼ to banana mixture. Store the extra pineapple in a glass bowl or plastic bag. Refrigerate for future use.

 

Peel kiwi and slice then stir into salad. Gently fold in remaining fruit.

 

Spoon into a glass bowl, cover with cling wrap, and chill until time to serve. Leftovers are still good the next day.

Zucchini Bread for Dessert

Make this bread a day or two in advance to free up your Mother’s Day morning.


2 cups (200g) grated zucchini
2 cups (200g) sugar
3 cups (300g) flour
1 cup nuts, chopped, optional
¼ tsp. (1.25ml) baking powder
2 tsp. (10ml) baking soda
1 tsp. (5ml) salt
1 tbsp. (15ml) cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup (250ml) vegetable oil
1 tbsp. (15ml) vanilla

Preheat oven to 350° F (180°C). 

Grease 2 loaf pans with butter. Cut and fit a piece of parchment paper to the bottom of each pan. I do this because my pans are old and food sticks to the bottom. Nothing attractive about serving zucchini bread with a big hunk missing. 

Combine all dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. This includes the zucchini. Adding fruit or veggies to a flour blend helps them to not sink to the bottom of the bread while baking. 

Beat wet ingredients together in a large bowl. 

Slowly stir dry mixture into wet mixture. Be sure to blend well. 

Pour batter into pans. Bake 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

Cool on a rack before slicing. This bread freezes great. 

Mimosas
1 bottle sparking white wine or champagne, cold
1 carton orange juice, cold
Tall slender glasses

Fill glasses half full with wine. Tip the glass slightly as you pour to retain the fizz. Top off with orange juice. Don’t stir. That will destroy the bubbles. 

Enjoy your day and remember to tell your mom you love her.

Sloane

Wednesday, May 07, 2014

MOTHER'S DAY CONTEST

Celebrate Mom with Musa Publishing


Grand Prize
$10.00 Musa Gift Certificate
6 Paperback Books
Beyond the Third Garden by I.J. Sarfeh
Outlaws by William Wendy
Seducing Kate by Emilia Mancini
Send Off For A Snitch by KM Rockwood
Typical Day by Gary K. Wolf
Unforgettable You by Marci Boudreaux

1st Place Winner
$5.00 Musa Gift Certificate
6 Paperback Books
The Andersen Ancestry by Addie J. King
For His Love by Nya Rayne
Outlaws by William Wendy
Seducing Kate by Emilia Mancini
Send Off For A Snitch by KM Rockwood
Typical Day by Gary K. Wolf

2nd Place Winner
5 Paperback Books
Outlaws by William Wendy
Seducing Kate by Emilia Mancini
Send Off For A Snitch by KM Rockwood
Typical Day by Gary K. Wolf
Wilder Mage by CD Coffelt

Plus
Each day we draw 2 new winners who will each receive 3 books

And
All participants receive a download of Cooking with Musa.
All entrants are eligible for Grand Prize Drawing May 10, 2014

Winners announced May 11, 2014

Enter daily to win!

No particular order to the daily drawings for the books below


Baiting the Hook by Mary S. Palmer and David Wilton
3.99 by Richard Satterlie
Amanda's Return by June Kramin
Buried Biker by KM Rockwood
Enter to Win by Kirsten Janey

ICE blue by Susan Rae
Lies in Wait by Donna Del Oro

Love Lies Bleeding by Lainie Giles
More Tomasewski by Del Staecker
Random Survival by Ray Wenck
Runt Wade by Robert G. Rogers

Steeled for Murder by KM Rockwood
Tales of Tomasewski by Del Staecker
Annabel Horton, Lost Witch of Salem by Vera Jane Cook
2012: The Rising by Joanne Hirase
Crazy Greta by David Hardy
The Dominus Runes by Peter Lukes
The Grimm Legacy by Addie J. King
Reunion by Joanna Fay



a Rafflecopter giveaway



Winners who reside outside the Continental United States will receive their prize in e-book format.

All must be claimed by May 15, 2014 or they are forfeited. Prizes will be shipped May 17, 2014.

Giveaway begins May 1, 2014 and ends midnight CST May 10, 2014