Valentine's Day Dinner for Two

Sometimes, when I'm not feeling inspired, I rely on the flowers to speak to me.  This year my husband came home with a couple of mixed bundles that were so beautiful and looked so fresh, especially the mini-carnations, that I just knew this would be the starting point.

The whorls continued with the ruffles in these soft pink napkins.  They really did remind me of the pedals of a flower.  

I pulled out the lace placemats from Horchow, which I've had for a while.  I first used them here when my husband and I celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary.  Unfortunately, they are no longer available.  The flatware is Jefferson by Reed and Barton, for Monticello.  I've also had it for a while, and have used them here and here, among many other tables.  I love the gentle heart-shaped curve of the handle, perfect for the day of Love!

The goblet and wine glasses are part of my wedding crystal collection — Chartres, by Atlantis.  After all these years I still love them!

The rose gold chargers were a lovely complement to the pink . . . 

So, I decided to pull out the copper tube napkin rings . . .

And the copper hobnail votive holders.

The salad plates are part of the Williams-Sonoma Citrus Salad Plates.  This one is supposed to represent a pink grapefruit.  The set of four comes with a lime, lemon, orange, and grapefruit plate.  It seemed to go so well with the copper that they just fell into place.

And, voilà the table is set!

Time to start thinking about the food, my least favorite part.

To start, a Grapefruit Avocado Salad on a bed of Romaine, with Goat Cheese Crumbles, and a simple vinaigrette with Dijon mustard.  I should call this the Costco salad since all the ingredients were picked up there.  The grapefruits may be the sweetest and juiciest I've ever had, so if you live near Costco, run and pick up a bag!  

The salad was followed by Pan-fried Garlic Shrimp, served with Quinoa Fiesta — a quinoa salad with corn, red bell pepper, jalapeño, scallions, dressed with lemon and olive oil.  

The dinner was delicious and it left us filling satisfied, but not stuffed so that then we could indulge in some sinful desserts!

Dark-chocolate covered strawberries . . .

My vanilla custard (Natilla), decorated with a powdered cinnamon heart in the center.  This is one of my husband's favorite desserts.  Actually, my entire family loves it.  I make it all the time, so to dress it up and make it seem special, I created my own stencil in the computer, cut it out, and used it to create the heart.  

The sugar cookies came from our supermarket, but balanced out the plate, and my husband loves cookies!

And once dinner was finished, the flowers remained, to delight and make me feel loved.

Joining Susan at Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday.

My little heart sachets are a delight. I scatter them through drawers to keep them fresh with their lavender scent. They are fun to spot as I rifle through drawers, and then, once a year, I gather them in a pretty basket and display them on my dresser.

To line the basket, I used my wedding handkerchief, handmade in Cuba and brought to me by my beloved godmother, Mamá Lala.

The sachets have been collected through countless years; some are gifts, others I found in unexpected places.

Here's the basket from a few years ago, in which I used a different handkerchief to line the basket. Love is in the air. ❤

Black Friday Tea

I'd rather have tea than go shopping on Black Friday.  This year, of course, with COVID-19 raging through our cities, it was even less appealing.  Besides, I'd been experimenting with a recipe or two...

I already had a head start with the pretty bouquet of flowers I had purchased and used for Thanksgiving dinner the day before.

Preparing a simple afternoon tea kept me busy most of the morning.  Oh, but I had fun!  My husband relaxed in front of the TV while I puttered in the kitchen.

The Clotted Cream:  Oh, my Lord!  There's no going back!  They say that converts are always the most rabid, well, please find me a church because I'm ready to go preach!  I made it in the Instant Pot the day before, and it took all day, as the cream has to be cooked on very low heat for a long period of time.  The whole project was interesting because I had never even tasted clotted cream.  I knew, however, that it was an essential part of a proper English tea and, since it's very difficult finding it in American markets, I had to learn how to make it myself.  Here's the link to the recipe:  Clotted Cream.

Once I made it, it was a true epiphany.  Now I understand what all the fuss is about!  It was creamy, slightly nutty, moist, but not wet, smooth, but thick.  I could have licked the entire bowl along with the pot, and the spoon, and my fingers . . . I tried to keep the moaning to a minimum as I cast weary glances to see if my husband was watching me.

The Scones:  A dear FB friend, who shall remain nameless so that she doesn't have to hire the Secret Service to keep herself safe, sent me a package with various scone mixes.  I followed the directions, but here's proof that there's no such thing as a foolproof baking recipe when entrusted to me.  The scones tasted delicious, but they turned out rather flat.  I always have a hard time working with such a sticky, wet dough.  Must try again.

The Curds:  This lovely not-so-secret-Santa also included two delicious curds, Cranberry Orange, and Lemon — and I know exactly how to use these.

Thanksgiving Sandwiches By Way of Havana.  There's a famous Cuban sandwich called the Elena Ruz, which consists of cream cheese, sliced turkey, and strawberry jam, made on medianoche bread, sort of a sweet brioche, then buttered and toasted on a press.  Elena Ruz was a Havana socialite who asked for this very sandwich so often, that it was finally added to the menu of her favorite café, El Carmelo, in the Vedado neighborhood of Havana (isn't interesting how many details we know about Elena and her sandwich?).  

Instead of strawberry jam, I used the Cranberry Orange Curd, and I didn't toast the bread.  I dare not call it my version of the Elena Ruz on pain of being cast out of my tribe, so for now, the sandwich remains nameless . . . perhaps you can suggest a good name for it?

Finally, scone, clotted cream and the lemon curd came together, and it was heavenly!

I pulled out my pedal pink placemats to match the carnations on the flower bouquet.  Is pink ever really wrong?  Asking for a friend.

Hopefully these pumpkin spice sugar cookies, which I picked up at Whole Foods, brought me back to the reality of the Fall season. 

The traditional three courses of an English Tea:  Sandwich, Scones and Dessert — check!  Plus a pretty table in which to enjoy it with my husband.

A much more delightful way to spend Black Friday.

A Mother's Day Tea with Roses

Happy Mother’s Day, to all my dear blogging friends! Today, I’m missing my boys terribly, and in Illinois, we are still sheltering in place. The weather is also dreadful, still in the low 50s, and it's been raining all day, so I decided to cheer myself up and dedicate this little tea party to me, myself, and moi.

Yes, indeed, I've given myself the kind of tea party I would love to attend, and, since it's all about me, I've chosen my favorite dishes, my favorite colors, and my favorite foods without having to think of anyone else's tastes or wants.  It seems a little selfish, I grant you, but just once, I wanted to indulge in a harmless fantasy.  I'm also married to the most agreeable man in the world, and, fortunately, our tastes coincide in most things, so he was more than willing to humor me, and ate with gusto everything I put in front of him, especially the sweets!

The first thing I did was to surround myself with roses.  The universe was aligned with my wishes, because I was able to get them at my local grocery store for $9.99 a dozen, and, since my peonies, hydrangeas and even the day lilies are still sleeping, and, after all, it's Mother's Day, I decided to indulge.  I may have to invoke Mother's Day privilege now and then throughout this post.

If you truly want to understand Maria (notice the 3rd person), you only have to look at these colors.  I play with all kinds of colors throughout the year, but this is where home is. This is what says peace and happiness and love to me. I also think of Audrey Hepburn, Coco Chanel and all the women who define chic and they’ve never shied away from this oh-so-female shade.  It can take a bit of work to find the right pinks, but when you do, it's pure delight.

Remembering Mae West’s quote that “Too much of a good thing can be wonderful” I added the flowers that my children sent me today. This bouquet came from David, my youngest, his wife, Erica, and my granddaughter, Piper.  Another lovely shade of pink on that rose.  Isn't it lovely?

This one, made of paper roses, was sent by my son, John. John is always looking for a new way to send me flowers that's creative and amusing.  I loved them!  However, it's not as wonderful as those handmade cards of long ago with childish handwriting and funny looking flowers. I get sentimental thinking about them.

I pulled out my trusted white quilt from Restoration Hardware, that I almost threw out once. I was very frustrated at the time because after the first wash, it had shrunk and no longer covered the Queen Size bed for which it was intended. But throwing out a white quilt that didn't even have a single stain seemed criminal, so I kept it. Now, of course, I’m very happy I did. The placemats and napkins are Sferra, the color is Petal.  I want a job naming colors!

Do you like the fringed napkins?  I liked them because they added a casual touch to the table, but now I'm being told that once you wash them, the fringes get matted.  Hmm . . . 

I love bees. Our poor honeybees are endangered, and now we have Killer Hornets threatening them! So, there’s plenty of room at my tea table to honor those hardworking bees that pollinate our crops, and also provide us with delicious honey. 

A big crystal honeypot, given to me for Christmas by John, was placed in the center of the table. Next to it, is its cousin, a hand-painted snuff box by Limoges in the shape of a bee skep (from my hubby).

 And look at the cute little fella that lives inside!

I brought out the Wedgwood Nantucket Basket dinner plates. Nantucket Basket is my latest love. I adore the basket weave texture that makes them so appropriate for spring and summer, or any time I want a pastoral or garden setting. They are paired with Johnson Bros Rose Chintz salad plates, which I've used before here and here.

These bee napkin rings by Joanna Buchanan are making their debut today. They were a birthday gift from a dear friend that probably knows a bit too much about me. Aren't they gorgeous?

More bees can be found in the Bee goblets by La Rochère.  They are holding Pink Lemonade.

I found these flower-shaped sugar cubes at a local baking supply store that has now closed, but they are also available at Fancy Flours.

Egg Salad with Pimiento Sandwiches . . . And, by the way, these were made at my husband's request.  It made me feel a little bit more generous, and not quite so self-absorbed.

Tomato Twiddle with white onion and Cheddar cheese. Meh! I was intrigued by the name (I also buy wine if the bottle is pretty). What can I say, I'm easily amused. However I don't think I'll make these again.

All I need is love . . . and Lemon Herb Cucumber Sandwiches . . .

Open-faced Radish with Garlic Goat Cheese, sprinkled with Chives . . . These were very good!

Would you care for a sweet treat?  How about a honeycomb of Lemon Cake, dusted with powder sugar. But be careful with those little sugar bees!

I used only egg whites in the batter so the detail from the pan would show better. It was so light and moist!

Or perhaps a petit four? We pre-ordered them from my favorite bakery and traveled 35 miles to do a curbside pick up.

We also picked up some Strawberry Tarts and Chocolate Eclairs. Never waste a trip to the bakery, that's my motto. 

However, the Strawberry Mousse (from the Silver Palate Cookbook) was made with my little ol’ hands . . .

What will you choose?

How about one of everything?

The tea was completely delightful and everything I'd hoped for.  I wish all my blogging mothers a happy Mother's Day.  May you be healthy.  May your children be healthy.  May your parents be healthy.  May they all be safe from this virus that is currently traveling throughout the world.  May your Spring be filled with flowers . . . and with love.

Linking to:  Between Naps on the Porch