Hmm, I suppose it's totally crass to suggest you skip the ceremony and then go to the reception with his mother... yeah, that didn't sound right when I was typing it, LOL. If his mom is a sweetie, you'll enjoy spending an evening with her, regardless.
Why don't you join the pre-party expedition to DPF, too? That would give you more time for visiting (I know, it doesn't help you intersect with Happy).
Think Spring! Tea Party & Seed Swap on Sat., Feb. 23
Would do, but remember Ricks coming too. He's tolerant of my addiction, but not so much as to go to the nursery with me out of season. He thinks I have too many plants in the house as is.
Now I know you said no one is obligated to bring food and you will "provide savories for lunch", but you know me. I thought I'd bring Scotch Eggs. I don't think they serve them at tea, but it's still in the english theme (even though they're Scotch). Please ya got to let me bring something, please, please, please!
I'll bet somebody is coming up past Brunswick... maybe they can swing by for you in the morning, and then Rick can come over at his leisure.
Of course you can bring whatever strikes your fancy! I'm easy. And I know you're a spectacularly good cook.. :-) That reminds me, I know it's not a "crusts removed" fancy tea party technique, but I'm going to use your trick of spreading sandwich filling on a whole raft of pull-apart rolls at once...
If there is anything I can bring let me know... I love to cook.
Jenn, if you'd like to bring a sweet treat for afternoon tea, that'd be great! I'm not going to be very formal about it; my plan is to just set out lots of goodies and let people "graze" as they visit, much as we did at the fall swap only with a "tea party" theme.
Let's stick with finger foods, though, because that'll be a little easier on this end. I've got lots of platters to set things out on to look pretty, thanks to an obsession with pressed glass and cake plates... :-)
I do want to repeat that nobody should feel obligated to bring a thing... but I know some people will want to, and that's certainly fine. For those who don't know me yet, I'm pretty flexible!
I can definitely vouch that Critter is the hostest with the absolute mostest!
Naw, but I'm easy-going, and that counts for a lot! LOL
How are you fixed for drinks? Sodas etc?
I'll do my best to be there, weather permitting.
Sodas? We'll be sipping tea! :-)
LOL, anybody is welcome to simply bring whatever they would like to drink. That's probably the easiest way to handle it. Then I don't have to try to figure out who drinks colas (Pepsi or Coke?), diet, caffeine free, Sprite, Ginger Ale, etc. (Are you really going to come to a tea party and not drink tea? *blink blink*)
If your "whatever you'd like to drink" contains alcohol, please be sure you don't have any left in your system when you get back into your car, or have somebody else do the driving. Thanks.
While we're on the subject of tea, I could use a volunteer (or two) to help keep the teapots full. I'll be juggling the food, so if I don't have to think about the tea, that would be great! I've got a couple of ceramic teapots, so we could use one for decaff, one for regular, and if you like you can switch varieties with each brewing. We could keep coffee going, also.
The feelings mutual everyone! I'm looking forward to meeting all of you in person too! Now I can finally match up names and faces!
Jill, I'm bringing some yummies to nibble on. I haven't figured out what they are yet, but they'll be scrumptious!
Not a great tea drinker here, coffee will be fine. Well then, what can I bring?
I want to go!!! Place me on the list as tentative... I'll have to wait a bit to see how my new work schedule will pan out.
Karen
Karen, it would be great if you could make it! "Swing shift" couldn't mean Saturday afternoons... we'll cross our fingers!
Cat, any sweet treat would be welcome, if you want to bring something. (I'm still looking for a volunteer to bake those fresh scones people were clamoring for on the other thread... !)
Scones I've never made, but I'm sure I can come up with something yummy.
Classic British Fruit Scone Recipe by Delia Smith:
Quoting:
Rich fruit buttermilk scones
Makes 12
Preparation time less than 30 mins
Cooking time 10 to 30 mins
Ingredients
8oz self-raising flour
1½oz granulated sugar
3oz butter at room temperature
2oz mixed dried fruit (currants are most common)
1 egg, beaten
3-4 tbsp buttermilk, to mix
a little extra flour for dusting tops
pinch of salt
You will also need a lighlty greased baking sheet and a 2in biscuit cutter.
Method
Preheat the oven to 425F.
Begin by sifting the flour and salt into a bowl and sprinkling in the sugar, then rub
the butter in lightly until the mixture looks crumbly.
Sprinkle in the dried fruit, pour in the beaten egg, and add 3 tbsp of the buttermilk.
Start to mix the dough with a knife and finish off with your hands - it should be soft but not sticky, so add more milk, a teaspoon at a time, if the dough seems too dry.
Next, form the dough into a ball and turn it out on to a lightly floured working surface. Now roll it out very lightly to a round at least 1in thick, then cut the scones out by placing the cutter on the dough and giving it a sharp tap. Don't twist the cutter, just push the dough out, then carry on until you are left only with trimmings - roll these and cut an extra scone.
Place the scones on the lightly greased baking sheet and dust lightly with the extra
flour. Bake them in the top half of the oven for 10-12 minutes or until they are well risen and golden brown. After that remove them to a cooling tray and serve very fresh, split and spread with butter.
NOTE: Scones do not keep well so are best eaten on the day they're made. Any left over, however, will freeze perfectly well.
Hey -- I thought you told me earlier that I couldn't bake them ahead and freeze them! That's partly why I'd given up the idea of making scones for the party. Has anybody actually tried freezing them?
I did. And I disagree with what they said, but I chose not to edit it. Freeze them if you want, but don't blame me!
OK. No baking them ahead, then. I just had to check! :-)
Now that I've discovered I can arrive on time, I'm delighted to drive anyone who wants a ride, and I don't mind going way out of my way, so please let me know if you'd like a ride.
Happy, great that you'll be there! I was reading about the Open Houses at Pine Knot Farms when the Hellebores are in bloom toward the end of February and first weekend in March and thought to myself, one of the weekends is Feb 23rd??? Now what else is going on that weekend - duh! I'll have to mark my calendar for one of their other dates - I'm not going to miss the tea party :)
I wish Pine Knot Farms weren't so far away . . . .
During the tea party, we could be planning a road trip for the first weekend in March... Where is Pine Knot Farms again?
;-)
Critter, it's in Clarksville, VA - near Danville and South Boston? I'm not sure exactly where it is, just know it's in that general vicinity. Judith and Dick Tyler, the owners, have beautiful Hellebores! (Took this picture yesterday in Greensboro - love the way she displays the flowers)
It's over a 4 hour drive from my place -- I mapquested it.
Long ago, a 4 hr drive didn't stop me from checking out a nursery - however with gas prices these days, I have to be really tempted to make the trip. I'm not even sure how long it's going to take to get to Critter's (3.5 hrs?) but this is one trip I'm definitely making!
Debbie, I was figuring that whoever was making the longest trip could have dibs on the guest room... but I was talking to my MIL last night, and I mentioned the party and invited them to come up for it... she thought they might just do it! Even if somebody else ends up driving from further away than Winston-Salem NC, Jim's folks get first dibs on the guest room...
Oh Critter that's not a problem, I wasn't planning on staying anyway, but thanks for thinking of me :) The recent 13 hr trip to Maine didn't do me in, so I'm thinking 3-4 hrs will be easy!
This is going to be such fun!!! "road trip for the first weekend in March"???? Yipeee!!
Debbie, are you having your nursery open house this year? Have you decided when yet?
There will be a lot of teacups floating around that day. Thought I'd suggest, I know I will not lose my tea cup if I bring my own. Didn't know how many tea cups you might have, Jill. I have heard of parties where they bring their own cup.
I can make little poppy-seed-lemon muffins((me and Betty Crocker)
Can also bring one of those pumping carafes that lots of places use for coffee now, if you think it would be handy, to fill with hot water maybe? LMK
Sally, I appreciate the thought... we can see how many people sign up. I do have a couple of carafes, and I've got a pretty good number of both teacups and coffee mugs. :-)
I also have more sugar and creamer sets than you can shake a stick at. You know how that can happen... somebody notices that you have more than two of something, and they think, oh, you must collect those! Before you know it, you really are collecting them. LOL I'm not actually a serious collector, but I do like them. (And I have enough of them, truly I do, I am not trying to drop hints!) :-)
Giving this thread a bump!
This is the place to talk about party logistics... let me know if you think you might be able to come, post if there's something you'd like to add to the party menu (not required, but somebody asked me where the list was so I put one up), etc. Swaps and general chat goes on the other thread please... http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/808347/
And by the way, it's getting very lonesome over there on that new swap thread all by myself...
:-)
Just responded...tee, hee
I sure wish I could join in the fun!!! :( I'm going out of town 2/6-2/13 and have so much going on this month I don't think I can make it.
Jill,
Just checked the menu up above.....
With all those finger sandwiches--how about I bring some of my yummy home made dill/garlic pickles to go with them? Everyone likes them......
Gita
Sure! Those would be delicious! :-)
I was talking to Jim's folks tonight, and I think they might come up in time for the party! I've been trying to get my MIL to join DG for a while now -- she's an avid gardener and has a rose garden that would just make you swoon. She's read over my shoulder on a few occasions, but she's hesitating at taking the plunge into something beyond email. I think she needs to meet a few of the friendly faces behind the screen names, and then she'll feel at home! Cross your fingers that they firm up their plans and will be here... you'll love them!
If anybody is looking for inspiration, there's a banana bread recipe that's been recently bumped and getting raves on the recipe forum... I'm told it freezes well... I was planning to bake some, but I told Jim to pick up some more yellow bananas (which I ate) and some that were a little more green... the green ones that he picked out might be ripe by the day of the party, or maybe not, LOL.
Hope everybody is having a good weekend!
Is that's Terry's recipe for banana bread you're talking about, Critter. I can tell ya, it is too die for. I made some earlier in the week and it's gone! I sent a loaf in with DH to his job. He said he almost got mobbed......LOL I'm more than willing to bring some nanner bread to the party. :)
You're on! Thanks!
I do want to reiterate that all anybody needs to bring is their friendly, smiling self... but I know a bunch of folks mentioned wanting to bring a goodie to share, so I couldn't resist "hinting" about the banana bread...
:-)
Can you good people tell me where the link is for the recipe? Thanks. Buttoneer.