Halloween Lia Sophia Party: Better Late Than Never!

Life is busy!  I'm finally getting around to posting some pictures of a little get-together I hosted a few weeks ago.  My sister just became a lia sophia advisor so I thought it would be the perfect time to host a party.  This was the first time I've ever had a party like this!  It was a lot of fun.  The party took place a week before Halloween so I decided to make it an Autumn/Halloween party too.

I don't usually use many Halloween decorations, but I found some easy, inexpensive Martha Stewart decorations at Michaels.  This guy was just relaxing in one of the drawers.

 I love using branches from our Burning Bush to decorate in the fall.  A few pumpkins and some creepy spiders crawling up the wall completed the look.

I kept the food simple.  I had a few little cans of soda with some vanilla vodka and some wine.  I served some of my favorite party foods.  Chips and salsa, my special pickle mix, and some homemade pretzels from a local bakery with honey mustard and spicy mustard for dipping.

I also served some hard cider and cheddar fondue, but I forgot to get a picture of it.  Ugh!

My sister did a great job with her presentation.  We played several games and three people walked away with prizes.  It was a successful party, and I think everyone had a good time.

Lavender Margarita

After enjoying a delicious lychee margarita at a local restaurant, I started thinking about what might make an interesting flavored margarita.  I wanted to use something I had on hand and wondered if lavender might work.  I have two bushes in my garden.  I know people use lavender in baking and became intrigued by that idea.  Luckily I found some ideas on Pinterest, of course!

The first step is to make some lavender simple syrup.  Simple syrup is sugar dissolved in water, typically in a 1:1 ratio.  The Perpetually Chic recipe uses a 2:1 ratio.  I used a little less sugar than she did.

Lavender Simple Syrup

Recipe adapted from Perpetually Chic
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 handful of fresh or dried lavender buds

Mix the water and sugar together in a small pan.  Bring it to a boil, and dissolve the sugar.  When the mixture is dissolved and has come to a boil, stir in the lavender buds.  Turn off the heat, and steep for 30 minutes.  When the mixture has cooled, strain it through a sieve.  Store the simple syrup in the refrigerator.  Keep in mind the more lavender you use and the longer you let it steep, the more lavender flavor the simple syrup will have.

Now we're ready to make the margarita.  This a good recipe, because the margarita doesn't have a strong taste of lavender.  It's lightly scented.

Lavender Margarita

1 1/2 ounce Tequila

1/2 ounce triple sec

juice of one lime

1-2 tablespoons lavender simple syrup

Mix ingredients together (I shake mine in a cocktail shaker with some ice), and strain into a glass.  I like to top my margarita off with a little soda water.  It makes the drink a little less strong, light, and refreshing.  You might also try adding a little sparkling wine.  

Head over to Perpetually Chic for some ideas on how you might use the leftover simple syrup.  I have a picnic coming up this weekend, and I'll be trying the simple syrup in some lavender lemonade!

If you like margaritas, try these recipes too:  Peach Margarita, Hibiscus Margarita.

Linking up at Tatertots and Jello.

Quick and Easy Pickle Mix

Here in central Pennsylvania we have a sandwich restaurant called Isaac's.  They serve a delicious mix of pickles as you are waiting for your sandwich.  I've been thinking about trying to make these pickles for years.  I think I finally cracked the code.  These pickles are very mild and slightly sweet.  They are the perfect thing to gnosh at a picnic or any kind of get together.

You'll need a jar of mild pickle mix, a jar of your favorite dill pickle slices, and a medium sized cucumber thinly sliced.  You'll also need water, distilled white vinegar, salt, and sugar.

Drain the garden mix and dill pickle slices of all of the brine, and thinly slice the cucumber leaving the skin on.    Mix these three things together.

Now it's time to make the new brine.  I like to use this pot that I got last summer.

It even has measuring marks on the inside so there is no need for a measuring cup.

For the brine you need:

3 cups of water
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons sugar
3/4 cup of distilled white vinegar

Bring the water to a boil, and add the sugar and salt.  Stir so they completely dissolve.  When it boils take it off the heat and stir in the vinegar.  Let the mixture cool.  Once the mixture is cool (about an hour) tightly pack the pickles in any container and pour the brine over the pickles.  Refrigerate over night.  These pickles should last a week or two in the refrigerator.

Enjoy!

Tea Time!

Today I'm excited to share some pictures with you from the Mother's Day tea that I hosted over the weekend.  A few weeks ago I shared the invitations.  My sister Larissa came down on Saturday and helped with all of the baking and decorating.  I couldn't have done it with her.  Thanks, Riss! 

We used a simple piece of burlap as a table runner.  I mixed and matched the dishes for the place settings.  I used my wedding china and some plates that I picked up at TJ Maxx.  I used some colorful tea cups that were a gift a few years ago.  The napkins are from Target.  

We decided to give each place setting a personal vase of flowers.  Larissa put all of those together.  

The first course was tea and scones.  We served cream scones and strawberry ricotta scones.  I forgot to take a picture (grrr!) of the second course, a spring salad with an herbed white wine vinaigrette.

I used this recipe to make tea punch.  It is a great recipe!  I'll definitely use it again.  It's a little sweet.  I might not use so much sugar next time.  The recipe calls for orange juice which I used, but I'm thinking it would be delicious with pomegranate juice.  It will be fun to experiment with this drink this summer.

The third course was a potato leek soup.  Larissa garnished the soup with a few dots of cream and some fresh chives from my garden.

The fourth course was an assortment of finger sandwiches.  We had a spring ham sandwich with sun dried tomato aioli, cucumber canapes, white cheddar cheese and pimento sandwiches and broccoli salad roulades.  I would like to point out that I did not serve Easy Mac at my tea party.  My adorable 3-year old niece was sitting across the table from me.  She's the one eating the Easy Mac.  How low brow!

Finally, it was time for dessert!  Larissa made this gorgeous strawberry lemon bundt cake.  It was amazing--not too sweet--not too heavy--perfect!  She's a wonderful baker, which is great, because I don't really enjoy baking all that much.  I handle the savory, she handles the sweet.  We make a good team!

A few more shots for your viewing pleasure!

Dreaming of Tea

This weekend I am hosting a small Mother's Day Tea.  I've been busy getting the house ready.  I've also been spending some time planning the menu and thinking about the tablescape.  I can't help but get lost in pictures of pretty tea cups and vintage china.  Take a minute and dream with me.

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How will you be spending Mother's Day?  Do you have any special plans?