Cranberry Salad

I love Cranberry Salad.

I rarely make it, only and Thanksgiving and Christmas,  and then only when my schedule allows.

This year, my schedule allows! Yay!

The Methodist Church in Harrisburg has a Bazaar every year, complete with a meal.

And a YUMMY meal at that.

Its all to bait us into buying one of their cookbooks...

You have to watch those Methodists; they are a tricky bunch!

Anyhow, they have the BEST cranberry salad. I have altered it slightly from their original recipe (increased the cranberries, decreased the sugar)

The original recipe is called Maxine's Cranberry Salad, submitted by Debbie Noah, by the way!

So, without any further ado, here is the recipe:

2 pkg raw cranberries

2 oranges

2 apples, cored

Grind the above all together in the food processor (that I only use once a year....)

Add 1 c sugar

Add 1 lg prepared package of Jello, just stir it in once it sets

Add 1 1/2 cup of chopped pecans

Evie has eaten half of my cherry jello this morning-I'll have to make some more!

I love cooking with her, even if she steals the jello.

Thanksgiving Suprise

Today while loading my car for another Christmas client, I had a most welcome, unexpected suprise.

I noticed a group of children walking down Poplar Street....

How nice, I thought, last day of school and a little outing....

Then they began to walk up the drive to the studio doors.

Oh no, they WANT something, I thought...

They wanted something, all right, they wanted to give me a treasure and melt my heart.

Two little guys approached me tenatively, and said

*Happy Thanksgiving, Maam*

They proceed to hand me a tiny cellophane bag filled with snack-y things.

The tag attached read:

The Bugles are a symbol of the Cornucopia, a horn of plenty.

The Pretzels represent arms joined in thanks and unity.

The Candy Corn reminds us that during the first winter, 

the Pilgrims were only allowed 5 kernels of corn per day

because food was so scarce.

The fruit is a reminder that Thanksgiving is the celebration of the harvest.

The Peanuts represent seeds, the potential of the bounteous harvest for the next season,

if they are planted and well tended.

Happy Thanksgiving 

from East Side 5th Graders

Wow! What a great thing to do.

What a blessing!

It stopped me in my tracks.

As I was in such a rush to load my car and carry decor to yet another home, I had to stop and give thanks.

I believe a letter to the editor of our local paper is in order.

I believe a heart of gratitude is in order.

A huge thumbs up to Harrisburg East Side 5th graders.

And a huge thumbs up to heaven.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Fresh Christmas Tree Decorating Tips

OK, for all you purists out there, here are the big secrets of decorating your fresh cut Christmas tree. The challenging thing about decorating a fresh tree is making it look decent. Some fresh trees I have seen look like all the ornaments are about to slide off in the floor. Its an unpleasant look and I would love to help you avoid this. For the sake of sanity and asthetics, please read:

First of all, fresh trees are best left with a minimal amount of decorations. If you have to pimp out your tree, then get an artificial. Fresh trees are beautiful, and require very little. Don't make them into something they are not. Left in their natural state, they are quite lovely. If you insist on decorating your fresh tree with lots of stuff, choose things that are light in nature. Heavy ornaments and lights just weigh down the branches. I am getting ahead of myself. Lets talk about lights.

Lights:

The strands of 100 mini lights are not your only choice. I like to use the c7 clear bulbs. They have clips and you can attach them to the branches to hold them in place. It also does not take that many strands. A minimal amount of c7 is great for a fresh tree. The bulbs do burn a bit on the warm side, so place paper and dried materials prudently. C7's are the best choice for a fresh tree. Work the lights from the inside trunk to out near the tips, do NOT hog tie your tree with lights. Round and round is out. In and out is the way to light a tree. Any tree.

Decor:

Poly mesh is your friend. It fills in the bare spots and adds no weight. It comes in every color and it is fabulous. Imagine a loose weave mesh with metallic thread. It is wonderful. It costs about 15 to 20 dollars for 20 feet and it is about 18-24 inches wide. It is a must have for fresh trees.  If you chose to wire your branches to support heavier decor, it covers that as well.

Wrapping paper is great IN your tree. Just cut into strips and used as a garland. Cut it lengthwise. Long strips. You can even wrinkle it up then smooth it back out; its great. I like to use kraft paper or a stripe. If you use wrapping paper in the tree, you can use the same paper to wrap gifts. Its a great look. Do the garland from the inside trunk to the outside, and weave it thorough the branches. And you can cut it into sections to make the paper easier to work with. When you finish, it looks like all one piece anyhow.

Sticks are great. And light. And free. Free is good. And you can paint them any color.

Dried hydrangeas and pods are wonderful but keep them away from the lights. PERIOD. I don't want you to burn your house down, for heavens sake.

Ornaments should be lightweight. Bows are great and don't add weight. Silk flowers and ivy are wonderful additions. Burlap is terrific, too. It just depends on the look that you want; organic or bling is king? Whatever direction you choose, just remember to keep it simple, use lots of the same materials to achieve a look of unity, and keep it lightweight. And safe.

Since I put up more trees in one season than normal people put up in a whole lifetime, I thought I could share some tips to make your Christmas fun and more attractive. Let me know if you have other Christmas challenges and I will try to answer them in a future post.

Oh, and about the picture. It is a close up of my tree. Do you think it is fresh or artificial?

Christmas Comfort

This Christmas season, I have a few clients and friends that have suffered the loss of a loved one this year.

I have mourned with those that mourn and been a shoulder to cry on.

I have cried myself.

*Sigh*....

Watching these dear ones navigate their first holiday without a husband or a child is painful.

Its awkward, its yukky, its sad, and there is no way around it.

Ya gotta go through.

Easier said than done.

So, I have been observing their foray into the holiday season, with heavy hearts.

The question remains:  How to "do" Christmas on the other side of great loss?

I am not sure that I know, but I do have an idea on how to creatively face Christmas

with regards to decorating a tree....

How about a live tree?

A ball and burlap evergreen that can be planted in memory after the season?

It is meaningful, honorable, hopeful, speaks of life, growth and purpose.

It does not have to have much, a few lights, perhaps a touch of ribbon, and a select few ornaments.

Friends & family could come and bring an ornament or two and help decorate it.

Christmas will never be the same again after loss.

Just maybe, this is a way to move through with hope and purpose.

Psalm 1:3

He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
       which yields its fruit in season
       and whose leaf does not wither.
       Whatever he does prospers.

Remembering my friends and family this season who have lost someone dear.

May you find comfort and hope and peace.

Praying you encounter Christ this Christmas Season.

Cool chair

Found this at one of my favorite blogs,

Desire To Inspire.

LOVE this chair.

Now, if I only had time to SIT in it...

Maybe in January.....*sigh*

Just finished weddings for 09 and it was a great season.

Lots of exciting things on the horizon.

Right now I am facing weeks of Christmas decorating for my home and corporate clients

Also looking forward to decorating at the Governor's mansion for Christmas!

So sitting in a cool chair like this will have to wait until 2010.

Oh well, at least it is pretty to look at!

A florist loves soup weather

It's SOUP weather!

One of my clients fed me this soup when I was installing their Christmas last year, and I asked her for the recipe. Thankfully, she was glad to share. Thanks, Nina!

With the unseasonably cool temps, (an average of 8 degrees less that usual for the past month!)  it's time to whip out those soup recipes.

I love making soup!  Its easy, it reheats well, its quick, I can drink it in the car from a travel mug, and makes great leftovers.

When I make soup, it gets me out of cooking for a few days! (insert maniacal laughter here)

Here is the recipe for Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup. A few of my tweaks are after the recipe.

Happy Fall, Y'all!

Creamy Chicken & Wild Rice Soup

8 C. chicken broth

4 C. water

1 or 2 carrots, chopped 

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 roasted chicken, boned (I use Kroger herb roasted from the deli)

2 pkgs quick cooking long grain & wild rice mix with seasoning packs

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

¾ C. flour

1 C. butter

4 C. heavy cream

Large pot, medium heat: combine broth, water, boned chicken, carrots & celery.

Bring to a boil, stir in rice. Reserve the seasoning packs.  Cover and remove from heat.

Small bowl:  combine flour, salt & pepper.

Large saucepan, medium heat:  melt butter. Stir in contents of seasoning packets until the mixture is bubbly. Reduce heat to low, then stir in flour mixture by tablespoons, to form a roux.  Wisk in cream, a little at a time, till fully incorporated and smooth.  Cook till thickened, 5 minutes.

Stir cream mixture into broth and rice mixture. Cook over medium heat until heated through, 10-15 minutes.  Stir often, as rice and chicken tend to sink to bottom of the pot and can stick if the heat is too high.   Serves many!! 

Jodi’s note: I add more milk, and less cream. I also use ½ the butter.  Sometimes I add more wild rice from the co-op, and then just increase the liquid with more bullion or water.  The soup tends to swell up and lose liquid, so I always add more, esp. to the leftover soup.

Also, Kroger marks their cooked chickens down in the late evening-great time to snatch some up and freeze it for later use! 

Amish Adventures!

If you  are in the Southern Illinois/Tri State area, have I got a road trip for you!  It is a terrific weekend adventure, so get out there and enjoy this Autumn weather!

From Southern Illinois, just head across the ferry to Marion, KY, via Cave In Rock.  Its free!

By all means, don't forget to stop and have some fried catfish on the way (The E-town River Restaurant or Kaylor's in Cave in Rock Park.)  We like them both, but we ate on the hill at Kaylors.  YUM!  And the view is terrific!

Amish abound in that area of KY, and it is so much fun to visit this time of year.  Steve and I made a trip over last Saturday and it was a much welcome change of pace.  After being on the road doing flower related work for nearly 2 weeks, I needed some downtime in the worst way.  Hanging with the Amish will do the trick!

First of all, ditch your GPS. It will show you are driving on nothing-just out there in thin air...no roads, no landmarks.  I finally turned it off and we just wandered through the countryside, stopping at different Amish settlements that looked interesting. We found all manner of baked goods, preserves and canning, as well as a few greenhouses, along with crafters and artisians. It was a wonderful way to be lost. I highly recommend it.

We found a 2 story home with a huge mum patch. There was a man mowing...he had a mowing attachment harnessed to his horse, and away they went!

The yard had wheelbarrows and shovels for mum harvesting, as well as tables full of fresh produce and pumpkins.

The rains had soaked the mum patch the day before so it was a mudddy mess.  We took off our shoes and just went barefoot-sinking up to our calves!  Nothing like mud squishing between your toes to calm your soul! It was delightful. And its waaaaay easier to clean bare feet than shoes.  I washed off in a nearby mud puddle while an Amish mother watched with her daughter. She was smiling and nodding her head---I think I got points for being resourcesful and using the puddle to wash.

So what did this afternoon cost us? Not much-lunch, gas, and a few mums.  I gained rest for my soul, an opportunity to appreciate and observe the simplicity of Amish life. (I wonder if they are accepting applications?)  It was an afternoon well spent, and the memories are priceless.

And my mums look pretty dogonne nice, too.