GARDEN CLUB CHRISTMAS PARTY - UGLY SWEATERS CONTEST NOT SO UGLY AFTER ALL

OUR SUPREME HOSTESS, BEVERLY RIGGS

 An annual event - Four Seasons Garden Club Christmas Party at Beverly Riggs' beautiful home in the country. Bev goes all-out in the gorgeous decorations throughout every nook and cranny of her house, including the bedrooms! She's amazing, articulate and a great cook!! Bev is our Hocking Hills Hostess Supreme!

Note: Be sure to scroll all the way down to the end of this post where I have placed photos of an old cabin that Bev and her husband, Bob, reconstructed on their property. Stepping inside the doorway will take you back in time to a place where there is no electricity, no running water, and only the warmth of a fireplace to fight the chill of a frigid winter night.

99 YEAR OLD MIDGE - BEV'S MOM

 The holiday guests were greeted at Bev's front door by her mother, Midge, who will be 99 years old in March. Midge is a very tiny (I think she only weighs like 78 pounds!!) woman with a great big heart and friendly smile. Midge is absolutely adorable!!

BEV'S DINING ROOM FIREPLACE

BEV'S AWESOME MANTLE DECORATIONS

 THE GUESTS BEGIN TO ARRIVE

NEW ARRIVALS AT THE PARTY

LINDA WEAVER KING  READY TO PARTY

MEMBERS - DEE MCCLAIN AND NANCY GREEN

THE UGLY CHRISTMAS SWEATER CONTESTANTS ARRIVE!!!

Libby is de-LIGHTED to be at the party!

Carol Showman  is ready to Party

NINA AND CHERYL IN THEIR UGLY SWEATERS

NINA'S  BACK-VIEW CONTRIBUTION TO THE UGLY SWEATER CONTEST

CHERYL IS DRESSED IN UGLY ALL THE WAY DOWN TO HER TIPPY TOES (NICE SHOES CHERYL)

Debbie and Evelyn - The Twin Ugly Sweater Gals

LET THE PARTY BEGIN!!!

LOTS OF CHIT-CHAT AND PHOTO TAKING

OF COURSE, THE FOOD!!!

BEV'S LOVELY DINING ROOM READY FOR THE GARDEN PARTIERS

CHRISTMAS AUCTION FOR SCHOLARSHIP FUND

THE WINNERS!! UGLY, UGLIER, AND UGLIEST CHRISTMAS SWEATERS

I stole a quiet moment and walked over to the old log cabin and took some photos. Bev and Bob really created a truly authentic step-back-in-time. 

BEV AND BOB'S LITTLE LOG CABIN

A COZY DINING TABLE - IMAGINE HAVING NO ELECTRICITY

THE CABIN FIREPLACE

An added room for guests - Don't ya just love the decor???

A GOOD DAY IN THE WOODS!!!

Rocky the Squirrel

This morning I had a little greeter outside the bedroom window. This little guy was eating the dogwood berries left on the tree limbs. He gave me a disconcerting look and then a brush of his tail as he scooted down to a lower limb.

Morning coffee. The morning light was fantastic, begging for photographs. Inside the cabin, couldn't resist taking a photo of the ridge pole and beams, the light giving the beams a golden hue.

The morning light was so inspiring inside the cabin

Mickey staking out his winter rocking chair by the fire

Cash in his usual in-the-house pose

Garden Cabin - ready to clean and prep for next guests

Ohhhh the laundry - bedding and towels

The Garden Cabin emptied out this morning, so that means a "clean" to get ready for a new set of guests tomorrow. Stripping off bedding and towels, putting them through wash and dry cycles. Dusting and mopping, putting dishes away. All in day's work during the cabin rental season.

Chicken broth ready for chicken and veggies

Cooler weather means soup on the stove. We decided on making a chicken/rice soup. Dropping the chicken into a stock pot, Tom seasoned with creole seasonings, onion and a couple of hot peppers. We let it cook on the wood stove for about an hour until the chicken could be taken out of the pot and cooled. I sliced peppers, carrots, chopped celery, minced some garlic, then added to the simmering broth while the chicken cooled enough to take the meat off the bone. After this, I added the chicken to the soup, along with some cooked brown rice.

And, a special treat: Shiitake mushrooms harvested from our "plugged" logs.

The soup simmered the rest of the afternoon, adding the Shiitakes to the soup about an hour before we ate dinner.

Tom begins stacking the dried firewood for the winter

Cash and Brutus out for a romp

Don't ya just love fall colors? 

Mickey, too

Also, this is really cool!!! Last weekend Tom bought an old deck chair from the antique mall. Obviously, it had once been on an ocean liner at some point in time. The chair was a dreary weathered gray, but all in all, in good shape structure wise. Tom convinced me that he could have the old deck chair looking beautiful again.

Well...he did...and it is gorgeous. Look how the brass shined up!! Amazing. I'm especially partial to the little brass plate that says 'FIRST CLASS ONLY"

I told Tom that the chair probably fell off  the Titantic when it went down, then floated in the water until it came to shore somewhere, and now it sits in Ohio!! Okay, I might be exaggerating just a tad, but it's a good story anyway, don't ya think?

Just look at how that brass shined up!!

Okay, this sold me the chair: First Class Only

Glass of wine before dinner

A glass of wine before dinner, and then....

Soup and salad - who can beat that combo? 

PIÈCE DE RÉSISTANCE, 

Sherry is the author of Three Moons Over Sedona, Island Passage and Chasing Joe,

 Sherry Hartzler's books can be found on Amazon.com

A CELEBRATION OF FALL

Oops! Rod Serling (Twilght Zone) on TV

Fall is my favorite time of year!! The guest cabins are moving into the final months of the season and there's a chill in the air that begs for SOUP!! 

Two days before my son's wedding, I decided to have a little gathering of a few friends at the house. A little insane what with all the activity of the wedding preparations, but it was a good way to alleviate the stress of worrying about all the final details of the wedding. 

A simple menu: gumbo simmered in a cast iron kettle over an open fire, homemade bread that a friend brought, and a field green salad. For dessert, I made "from scratch" hot fudge and served over vanilla ice cream. I'll save the hot fudge recipe for a later date. I will tell you that the hot fudge recipe is easy and tastes like the the best childhood memory you can possibly think of. (Please excuse the "prep"  at the end of the sentence). :) 

A few years ago, Tom and I had a wonderful Louisiana couple as guests staying in one of our cabins. They had these beautiful Louisiana Cajun accents, a blending of English, heavy on Acadian French and even some Native American influence, I knew beyond a doubt that they could fill me in on what went into making a truly authentic gumbo. Clue: IT'S ALL IN THE ROUX. Of course, some of the ingredients I would have liked to have added, like craw fish meat and a few other things, I did not have on hand, so I kind of took liberty with the ingredients. And while some people might be partial to okra, we are not big fans of this oily pod food, although filled with Vitamin C and antioxidants. Hmm, maybe I should reconsider, huh? Be aware that the following is not a precise recipe, I feel that gumbo is not to be prepared with exact ingredients or measure. I'm sure gumbo originated with a "throw it all in the pot" kind of attitude until it looks really good and has the most enticing aroma that your nose will ever smell. Good and wholesome, to be seasoned by your personal taste buds.  So be creative and fun preparing this dish. 

Gumbo

Make a roux by taking a ¼ cup of oil and 4-5 T flour (I quadruple the measure of oil and flour because this will make a nice big pot of gumbo). Constantly stir this mixture (about 30 minutes) until it turns a dark brown and has a lovely nutty aroma. The roux can be made and stored in the fridge several days before making the gumbo.

Boil one whole chicken in a stock pot, along with seasoning of salt and cracked pepper, or whatever seasonings you prefer) until tender. Remove the chicken from the bone and leave separate.

In a pan, sauté chopped onion, green pepper, celery and a clove of minced garlic in olive oil, and then add to the stock. Let simmer for 20 minutes

Add roux and work into the stock. Then add a can of Cream of Shrimp soup. Let the stock thicken a bit.

Brown Andouille sausage. Add to the stock, along with the deboned chicken meat.

Let this simmer for several hours, letting all the juices and meats and veggies make the most wonderful aroma in your kitchen. About half an hour before serving the gumbo, add a pound of large cooked shrimp and a bit of chopped parsley. I like to do this because the shrimp don’t toughen up in the gumbo before serving.  

Serve your gumbo in a beautiful soup bowl over cooked brown rice

I do not give specific amounts, because I believe seasonings (Tom and I like SPICY, so we add Creole seasonings, jalapeño peppers, etc. to the simmering gumbo) and the amounts of veggies and meats of a personal preference. Just go with the flow and let the gumbo evolve. You will end up with a scrumptious winter dish. I serve the gumbo with warm homemade bread. 

ENJOY!!! Or...as the French say: SAVOURER 

Homemade Hamburger Buns!

Make these soft, fluffy hamburger buns for your next summer grilling! This dough is easy and ready to bake within a few hours. And they always turn out great!

I use this dough recipe for pizza, Italian bread, pretzels, and bread sticks slathered with warm butter.
.
Burgers and home cut fries - no better summer meal. Yum.

2 cups bread flour

1 T yeast

½ teaspoon salt

2/3 cup very warm water (approx. 120 deg.)

1 T olive oil

1 T honey

First: In mixing bowl, combine 2 cups flour, yeast and salt.  Second: In 1-cup measuring cup, combine water, oil and honey; stir into flour mixture until soft dough forms.

Turn dough out onto floured surface.  Knead dough, adding some of remaining flour, if necessary, until dough is very elastic – 10 – 15 minutes ( Note: I use my dough hook – 12 minutes).  Dough should be soft, do not add too much flour. Note: I don't use extra flour and the dough goes from the dough hook to the bowl for proofing)

Wash, dry, and lightly spray oil in mixing bowl.  Place dough in oiled bowl and lightly spray the top surface  Loosely cover with plastic wrap and let dough raise in warm place, away from drafts, until double in size – 30 to 45 minutes.  

After the first proof of the dough, roll out and use a medium round cookie cutter to form buns. Place the dough circles on parchment paper - let raise for a second time in a warm place. Preheat oven to 425 deg. and bake for approximately 15 minutes, or until a golden brown. This recipe makes 8-12 buns, depending on size.

Enjoy! 

Sherry

Check out Sherry Hartzler's novels  (expressly written for women over the age of forty) on Amazon.com 

Gorgonzola and Pear Flat Bread - WHAT A TREAT!

Okay, a couple of weeks ago I went to lunch with my mom and sister at Matt the Miller's, a pub at Polaris. We shared a flat bread appetizer topped off with gorgonzola and pears. We swooned over it. Soooo I figured why not? I'd try to duplicate the appetizer and WOW it turned out yummy and my hubby loves it.

For the flat bread I use my pizza dough recipe that I've used, like, foreverrr. Love it and it has never failed me. Note: Flat Bread from start to finish should not take more than 2 hours - so it's easy and darn pretty to look at!!!)




Prepare the dough and turn out on the counter. Divide the dough in half (you will only need half the dough for the flat bread - save the other half that will keep in the fridge for a couple of days)

PIZZA DOUGH (Flat Bread)

2 cups bread flour

1 T yeast

½ teaspoon salt

2/3 cup very warm water (120 deg. To 130 deg.)

1 T olive oil

1 T honey

In mixing bowl with dough hook, combine 2 cups flour, dry yeast and salt.  In a measuring cup, combine water, oil and honey; stir into the flour mixture and mix for 10 minutes. 

Place dough in lightly oiled bowl, turning to bring oiled side up.  Cover with plastic wrap; let dough rise approx. 45 minutes.  Shape and bake into whatever you want to make. (I use this dough recipe for a variety of baked items - it's a great dough!!!)

While the dough is proofing, make your balsamic and olive oil dressing. I just kind of make up my own ratio of Olive oil to balsamic vinegar to taste, then add pepper, and a little sugar to sweeten the heart. Set this aside. 

Rinse your spring leaf lettuce and pat dry with a paper towel. Thinly slice a pear and set aside. 

Now for the fun!!! Let's make flat bread! Preheat your oven to 425 deg. 

Roll out the remaining dough into two thin flat strips.

Use a spray olive oil on a baker's pan before laying out the strips on the pan. Bake approximately 10 minutes and remove from oven. Next spread a little melted butter on the warm flat bread. Then sprinkle a little shredded mozzarella over the bread. Return to oven for five or six minutes, or until the flat bread is a warm golden brown at the edges.

Sprinkle flat bread with crumbled gorgonzola (I use crumbed blue cheese for a sharper taste). Then arrange your thinly sliced pears over the top of the flat bread. Place the pan under the broiler for a few minutes, careful not to burn the crust, just enough to give a bit of heat to the pears.

Arrange the spring leaf lettuce over the top and crumbled gorgonzola (or blue cheese). Then drizzle a your prepared balsamic dressing over the toppings (not too much). With a pizza cutter slice the flat bread into strips before serving! Tom and I eat this as a meal and it's wonderful. ENJOY!