More Christmas

26 Friday Dec 2014

Posted by Julia Monroe in baking, Christmas, family, food, sparkling, Uncategorized

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baking, candy, Christmas, Christmas tree, cookies

I will be away for a bit but want to leave you with a couple photos. I’ll post more when I return.

Making gingerbread.

Gingerbread snowmen with wood pick arms and raisin buttons.

Decorating gingerbread.

The fun part of making cookies.

Lots of sprinkles!

Italian Sienese Nougat Candy

Wrapping each little square of Sienese Nougat Candy in cellophane. Washi tape worked great.

Springerli. The rolling pin and cookie mold are from House on the Hill http://houseonthehill.net/index.php?p=home

The first cookie tray for the company office.

My mom made the miniature tree under the cloche. I have several small forests of trees; this one is on top of the tall dining room book shelf.

We never see our tree lit until Christmas Eve. Every light in the house is turned off and the house is very dark. The light sets are turned on one by one according to the scripture. Here is the very first set, lighting the star at the top of the tree over the manger scene down below.

With a completely fused spine, I’m unable to get down to floor level to look through my camera lens so focus is hit or miss. But I love this photo and I can identify with a clueless sheep. Yet my Lord still watches over me tenderly.

The tree completely lit about 40 minutes later, Christmas Eve.

The tree completely lit later Christmas Eve. We didn’t have time to put the ornaments on so there are very few. But the lights make the tree lovely!

Tea by the Sea

15 Monday Sep 2014

Posted by Julia Monroe in family, food, grandkids, nature, sunlight, tea time

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beach, cakes, cookies, family, food, Mom, ocean, picnic basket, sunlight, sunset, tea, tea time, waiting

She’s six now. Last year she carried a ship to the beach. This year she carried a picnic basket.

The delicious treats filled the tray.

The blooming tea was still warm.

Coconut Cream glaze dripped down the blueberry pomegranate jam-filled cakes. Some were topped with toasted coconut and macadamias, others were topped with sugared rose and lilac petals. Vanilla pearls were sprinkled on top of shell-shaped spice Madeleines. Tiny oranges looked like blooming lotus blossoms and green and Concorde grapes filled the bowl. Crumbly Lavender Lemon Shortbread squares and tea cups were piled on the picnic basket top.

On the top tray: Vanilla Bean cakes filled with Blueberry Pomegranate Jam and topped with Coconut Cream Glaze, toasted coconut & macadamias, sugared lavender and rose petals. On the bottom tray, Spice Madeleines sprinkled with vanilla pearls. On the dessert plates under the tea cups: Lavender Lemon Shortbread.

She poured a cup of tea and waited by the sea.

The sunset was soft and dreamy.

The breeze was warm and welcome.

The colors were slipping away and still she waited.

She didn’t stop hoping

And finally her mom sat down. Even when the sunset is gone, Tea by the Sea is best with mom.

[We had a wonderful time making the treats for this, setting up the table and photographing it all. Thank you, Gabriel Monroe, for being second shooter and lighting expert. Thank you, Uncle Butch and Aunt Dilly, for the use of your beautiful chair! We had a splendid time and it was perfect.
The lovely lace-embossed Filigree appetizer plates, bowl and infinity tray are by Rosanna, Inc.]

On my worktable – Dress Cookies

25 Friday Jul 2014

Posted by Julia Monroe in All Sparkled Up, baking, food, On my Worktable

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cookie, cookies, dessert, flow icing, food, painted cookies

Today I have cookies on my worktable. This is the second time I’ve topped a cookie with flow icing. It’s not too hard if you get the Royal Icing consistency right. Fortunately, we were glad some cookies didn’t turn out so we could eat them. This is the first time painting on a cookie. Easier than I thought and quite fun.
In the little dish – kirsch mixed with edible gold dust. In the shot glass – more kirsch that needed stirring into the mixture as it evaporated.

Painting the cookie with gold dust mixed with kirsch.

The designs were inspired by Rosanna’s beautiful white and gold Luxe Moderne mugs.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

14 Friday Feb 2014

Posted by Julia Monroe in American Girl Dolls, baking, dolls, food, Uncategorized, Valentine's Day

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American Girl dolls, baking, cookies, dolls, Valentine's Day

American Girl dolls, Kit, Nellie and Josefina, bake Valentine cookies together.

Last year we made shortbread hearts. You can see that post with the recipe here.
https://allsparkledup.com/2013/02/20/we-finished-off-the-valentines-day-cookies/
Today I’m baking cherry raspberry tarts. It was Valentine’s Day 1974 and I arrived home from school to a wonderful surprise. My mom had made heart-shaped tarts filled with a pink fluffy cherry filling of cherry jello and cool whip. Ever since then, my must-have Valentine’s dessert is tarts… but I’ve never made them. I was always too busy or didn’t have the ingredients. I’ve made cherry tarts just a handful of times all these years but never on Valentine’s Day. Today will be the day!

Happy Valentine’s Day to you all! May your day be full of sweetness that lingers in the most pleasant way.

Gingerbread Valentine – Gold & Yellow

20 Monday Feb 2012

Posted by Julia Monroe in baking, food, recipe

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baking, cookies, food, heart, recipe, tea, teacup

I live 500 miles away from my hometown and miss my dear sister, Donna. Boo hoo. I was delighted to find a teacup in her favorite shade of yellow at the local thrift store last week. So of course I had to decorate some Gingerbread cookies in yellow and gold to go with the teacup. The water for tea is in the kettle. All that is missing is my sister. The next time she visits, she will drink from this cup.

To my sister, Donna: a pale yellow teacup and Gingerbread await you!

Ok, I’ll be honest, I almost ate my sister’s gingerbread! But I stopped in time to wrap it up well in plastic wrap and then foil and then freeze it. It will last well that way at least 6 months. In the meantime, I’ll eat one of the pink decorated hearts.

Click for recipe.
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Snowglobe Cookies

28 Monday Nov 2011

Posted by Julia Monroe in baking, Christmas, food

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baking, Christmas, cookies, food

I finished making Julia Usher’s Snow Globe cookies, as featured in her book. They were a lot of work but so worth it! The cookies are amazing! They’re delicious too; the whole house is scented with their buttery goodness.