Monday, August 2, 2010

Tuesdays at the Table: Prosciutto Stuffed Dates

Prosciutto Stuffed Dates



Ingredients


Dates (found in the produce section)


Parmesan Cheese –cut into slivers (see below)


Prosciutto de Parma – cut into strips (see below)


1. Place a date on a cutting board, then using a paring knife incise down the longitudinal axis to the level of the seed. Then, retract the edges if the date, and remove the seed. Toss out seed.


2. Insert a sliver of parmesan (about the length of the date and about 6-8 mm in diameter), then close the date back up.


3. Wrap the date in prosciutto (the width of prosciutto strips should be long enough to make 1-2 wraps around the date, while the length of the strip should equal the length of the date).


4. Refrigerate (we have done up to a day) until 15 minutes before serving time.


5. Preheat oven to 400°F.


6. Transfer wrapped dates to a cookie sheet.


7. Cook in oven for 10-15 minutes.


8. Enjoy!


Dr. Jennifer Peterson

The recipe above was created and written by
our daugther-in-law. I get a kick out of reading her method of writing the directions.
She spends much of her time in surgery,
so her choice for describing this delicious
treat... well, sounds a little "surgical".
Love it!
And we are so proud of Jen!



Visit
All the Small Stuff
for Tuesdays at the Table


Sunday, August 1, 2010

Mosaic Monday: It's all about family...

It's all about family...

We just put our son, his family and his mother-in-law on the plane this morning, headed south to their home in Mexico. They were here for
three weeks. Lance is our oldest son and our business partner in our farming operation.
The farms are located near Manzanillo.
Lance and his wife, Marcela,
their two small children and Marcela's mother,
our youngest son, Ryan, my husband and I all
went to South Padre Island, Texas
to enjoy the beach, Schlitterbahn,
shopping, seafood and just a lot of fun.
Our granddaughter enjoyed two weeks
of swimming, golf, raquetball and
making new friends at the summer camp
sponsored by the club we belong to.
This will probably be the only visit up here for the whole family. Now we will have to make
trips down there to see them.
My son proposed a new idea this visit
which I am thrilled about.
He wants his daughter to learn more about
U.S. holidays, so we are going to
go down there for Thanksgiving!
Lance baked a turkey last year,
complete with gluten-free dressing
(our granddaughter has celiac disease)
and other traditional dishes.
So, we will be spending Thanksgiving
in Mexico!
I just wanted to share with you a few
of the pictures from the past three weeks.
The top left picture in the mosaic is
my granddaughter and me. She helped to
serve birthday cake for a joint birthday
party we gave for our sons.

I'm linking over to Little Red House
for
Mosaic Monday

http://dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com/search/label/Mosaic%20Monday

Saturday, July 31, 2010

It's Summer Sunday and I Solved A Silver Mystery!

Jean's Silver Tablesescape
September 25, 1954

I just wrote about Jean a couple of days ago, so if you missed my posting and
are a bit curious about Jean, please go back to my posting on Thursday.

Jean loved to use her silver. This table was set for the small wedding of
my aunt and uncle.

This evening as I looked at this picture which came from an old slide of my father's, I enlarged the picture to see what was in the hutch.

You may need to put your glasses on, but if you look at the picture below
and focus on the hutch, look on the bottom shelf at the white round plate.
Just in front and a little to the right of that is a set of salt and pepper shakers.
I am sure they are lusterware.
AND they are on my family room shelf with the rest of my lusterware and with a tiny sticky note
on them and in my mother's handwriting it just states, "Old!"
Okay... "old" but I had wondered for quite some time
whose "old" S&P shakers these were.
They were Jean's!
Yayyy!
Mystery solved tonight.




I'm linking to

Visit The Tablescaper
It's a Summer Sunday!

Miss Mustard Seed outdoes herself with an amazing give-away!!

Thank you, Kim, from Savy Southern Style! She tipped me off about Miss Mustard Seed's 2000 Follower Give-away. And what a give-away it is!!


Antique Baby Dress
(hanger and drawer not included)


Six Bakelite Knives


Antique Postcards

This isn't all. Not by a long shot!
Visit Miss Mustard Seed
at Miss Mustard Seed in a Box - 2000 Follower Giveaway


While you're at ...
become of follower of both these
talented ladies!

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Show and Tell Friday - "Jean"


"Jean"
Giovannina (Genevieve) Elizabeth Teti DePasquale
(October 1, 1903 - April 16, 2001)

Jean was about 16 years old when she had this photograph taken in
Ithaca, New York. She had already been in the United States, for seven years, having come from Italy, learned English and graduated
 from high school.
I love this photo even though it is cracking. I am not sure where to get it repaired but I will start researching that soon.


This photograph that I also own was taken when my grandmother was about 14 years old and was a bridesmaid in her oldest sister's wedding.


This is a photograph of Jean taken in 1963.

"Jean" was my maternal grandmother. She insisted that we call her by her first name as she insisted she was much too young to be a grandmother... 45!
What a character she was.
She loved to cook, organize and entertain.
She decorated her home beautifuly.
There will be many stories about Jean in this blog as she made such an impression on me in my life.

I love Show and Tell Friday
from My Romantic Home


Jean would have loved the many beautiful things
on Cindy's blog. Be sure to visit her!
http://romantichome.blogspot.com/




Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Vintage Thingie Thursday - Carlsbad Caverns, a boy in a basket!

Carlsbad Caverns
White City, New Mexico by Jim White

As a little girl I remember stories about Jim White, the man who discovered Carlsbad Caverns.
I made two visits there.. one as  a child and one as an adult with our sons.

The story goes, Jim White and my grandfather
were friends in New Mexico. My grandfather was in the hotel business in Roswell and Portales, New Mexico.
Around 1926 Mr. White was busy promoting Carlsbad Caverns. He had told my grandfather about his discovery several years earlier. It wasn't until 1926 that he offered to show my grandfather the caverns and would even take my father who was only about two years old at the time.
Mr. White is pictured displaying the bucket that
was used to lower the first tourists into the caverns. The means by which my grandfather and father were lowered was described to us
was a basket. My father says he remembers
going "down, down into pure darkness".
Personally I would have found that incredibly
frightening, however, my father never let on if he was scared. But he did remember the experience!


Here is a picture of my grandfather and father
about the time of their "journey into darkness".

I was very fortunate to find this publication with
the pictures of Mr. White in an antiques mall in Austin, Texas. It is autographed by Mr. White.
It's a great story and it was obvious that he was an amazing adventurer.

I wonder now how much this childhood experience for my father
led him into further experiences in his life that would call for
extreme bravery... combat in WWII, living in Africa, Syria, Iran, Pakistan during a times of
government turmoil. Viewing the Kyber Pass knowing that it was probably the most dangerous spot in the world.
His close calls were many.
Most of us would never consider lowering our small child into a dark cavernous pit. I'm not sure what my grandmother was thinking
when my grandfather took my father on an adventure of
a lifetime. But one thing my father learned that day... he set a high standard for surviving danger.

I wonder if I allowed my children to ever have such an experience.
I can't wait to ask them what was their first memory of
danger... and did I condone it?


I am linking to
Colorado Lady


for
Vintage Thingie Thursday

If you enjoy vintage items as well as the search for
family, you will enjoy her blog!