FATHER'S DAY 2011

                                                           

Point your children in the right direction,

And when they get old they won't get lost.

Prov 22:6, The Message

Happy Father's Day To All The Dads!

ON THE MENU MONDAY~ STONEGABLE'S NEW LINKY PARTY

StoneGable is having a party and YOU are invited!

I am hosting a brand new weekly linky party,

ON THE MENU MONDAY!

ON THE MENU MONDAY is a menu planning meme (linky party).

If you are a menu planner, than this the place for you!

BUT...

ON THE MENU MONDAY is NOT limited to to those of us who weekly or monthly menu plan.

If you are planning an event, party, soiree, bash, celebration, brown-bag lunch, affair, coffee-klatch, feast, take-out dinner, cozy meal, luncheon, reception, picnic shindig, barbecue.. you get the picture, and have a menu this is the place for you too!

Bring your menu ideas, recipes, photos, tips, and anything else you have to share!

I hope ON THE MENU MONDAY will be more than just weekly menu planning (very important too!) meme, but a place where readers can get great tips, creative ideas and ready made menus for whatever the day or occasion.

Please join me, June 26th, for StoneGable's first ON THE MENU MONDAY. I hope to have the link up by 9:00 PM.

And PLEASE help to spread the word. I'm asking my blogging friends to give ON THE MENU MONDAY a shout-out!

Grab the ON THE MENU MONDAY on my sidebar.

Get those menus ready and

 LET'S PARTY

I am participating in::

Pink Saturday at How Sweet The Sound



HANGING LANTERNS TABLESCAPE

I found the perfect spot to spread a table... Under the huge weeping cherry tree at StoneGable.

It's bowing branches drip down close to the ground and form a "room" inside the branch perimeter.

A gorgeous secluded spot for a lantern-light supper for two.

The table is a mix of beautiful dressy elements and rustic simple pieces. Some call this Rustic Luxe, I call it comfortable! I love that visual juxtaposition~ it is so surprising, interesting and easy to live with.

My Nani's chippy table is covered with a vintage Italian crocheted lace tablecloth. A beautiful ecru tone, this treasure of a tablecloth offers the perfect base for this tablescape.

It is full of intricate patterns.

Grapevine chargers with an organic feel rest on the refined tablecloth.

The dinnerware is a very detailed embossed ivory ironstone (HomeGoods).

It is very lightly accented with burnt sienna scuffed onto some of the embossed areas.

A vintage linen napkin edged with Italian crocheted lace is rolled up and tied with wide linen ribbon with French lettering.

The ribbon is wired and makes it easy to tie with a twist. The edges of the ribbon are simply frayed keeping a rustic look.



More ornate flatware have brown marbleized handles giving them an elegant look.

Forgoing the crystal champagne flutes, mason jar mugs are used to mimic the lanterns. To dress them up with whimsy, ribbons are tied to each handle.

Silver Art Deco salt and pepper shakers with an aged patina add that touch of sophication and sparkle to each place.

I have a love affair with Art Deco and combine pieces with almost any style!

The centerpiece is a footed bowl (same pattern as the ironstone dinnerware) laden with a profusion of white Annabelle hydrangeas. They grow like big giant weeds around my front porch!

The opening of the bowl is quite wide. To contain the hydrangeas and add interest, a twiggy willow wreath is placed on top of the bowl and the hydrangeas added to it. The look of this arrangement is organic, rustic, soft and upscale all combined into one! I can think of so many variations of this kind of arrangement. I hope this inspires you to try this technique.

Bringing light to the table, simple "lightning bug lanterns" are hung on champagne ivory satin ribbons from the branches of the tree.

Just tie pretty ribbons onto the wire handles. Turn plain handles into a very lovely accent!

These little lanterns are easy to make and fun to have on hand. To see a tutorial for making these cute little lanterns click HERE. I use them to light walks, put on crooks, sit around my porch and sit in crocks. And now I am hanging them from trees! I think I will hang them under my porch too!

They gently swing with small motions in the breeze.

One hanging jar hold a tiny willow wreath and more hydrangeas.  Wouldn't these look lovely at a wedding?

This hanging bouquet mimics the large table arrangement.

As afternoon...

Turns to early evening...

And then to dusk...

Dining under the cherry tree is a magical event!

THE MENU

Roasted Beet Garden Salad

Pan Seared Scallops with White Wine Reduction

Zucchini Souffle

Prosecco

Watermelon With A Balsamic Reduction

Next week's table is exciting for me! The kind people at Mikasa let me pick out some gorgeous dinnerware to use on my blog. Here is a sneak peek~ I used Indigo Bloom to plate a Blueberry Ricotta Coffee Cake.

To see more images and the recipe, click HERE.

 Next week StoneGable will hold an exclusive Mikasa  GIVEAWAY for my dear readers.

Mikasa is generously going to give away 5 place settings of Midnight Bloom, a $299.99 value, to a lucky StoneGable reader .

I am participating in:

Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps On The Porch

Seasonal Sundays at The Tablescapers

Blueberry Ricotta Coffee Cake~ Pillsbury Celebrity Cook-Along

My friend Lynne, at Happier Than A Pig In Mud hosts a monthly celebrity cook-along.  This is just the most fun party! There are so many amazing cooks who share great recipes from the chosen chef that month.

This month the celebrity cook is that darling pokable rotund Pillsbury Dough Boy! So cute!

Here at StoneGable, sweets are not often baked. I am not much of a baker and don't have a big sweet tooth. One big exception is coffee cake. YUMMY! I delight in a great piece of coffee cake with a good cup of coffee. And I found a wonderful coffee cake from Pillsbury that would be a great summer treat.

Blueberry Ricotta Coffee Cake

This recipe appears as it is on the Pillsbury site.

CAKE

2 1/3 cups Pillsbury BEST® All Purpose Flour

1 1/3 cups sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup Crisco® Butter Shortening

OR 3/4 stick Crisco® Butter Flavor All-Vegetable Shortening Sticks

2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 cup milk

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

FILLING

1 cup ricotta cheese

1 large egg

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon grated lemon peel

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries, drained

TOPPING

Reserved crumb mixture

1/2 cup chopped nuts

1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preparation Directions:

 HEAT oven to 350ºF. Coat a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan with no-stick cooking spray. (I used an 8x8, and increased my cooking time.)

COMBINE flour, sugar and salt in large bowl.

Cut in shortening with pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

(This pastry cutter belonged to my Grandmother. It has been worn by years of work from her precious hands.)

Reserve 1 cup crumb mixture for topping.

 To remainder, add baking powder, milk, eggs and vanilla.

 Beat on medium speed of electric mixer for 2 minutes, scraping bowl constantly. Pour into prepared pan.

 BLEND ricotta, egg, sugar and lemon peel in medium bowl until smooth. Sprinkle blueberries over batter in pan.

 Gently spread ricotta mixture over blueberries. Combine reserved crumb mixture, nuts, brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle over top of ricotta layer.

BAKE 45 to 50 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

 Cool slightly before cutting

The kind people at Mikasa sent me some BEAUTIFUL dinnerware! This is a little sneak preview of the dinnerware I'll be using to set a tablescape! And they want to spread the love around... they are hosting a fabulous giveaway exclusively at StoneGable! More details tomorrow!

Visit Happier Than A Pig In Mud and join in the fun!

For a printable recipe please visit the Pillsbury web site.


I am participating in WOW US WEDNESDAY at Savvy Southern Style.

I am participating in Foodie Friday at Designs By Gollum.