Hallonsylt (Raspberry Jam)

I just returned from vacation to visit my family in Sweden. My Farmor (or grandmother) has always made homemade jam to serve with Pancakes and other Swedish recipes. I finally asked my Farmor how she does it and it is much eaiser than I thought. This recipe can be used for Strawberry and Blueberries...or anything else you would like to use.

Ingredients for recipes

• 1 liter of raspberry (I used frozen raspberries that I had left over, but you can use fresh as well.)
• 500 g jam sugar (I used Organic Cane Sugar and it turned out great. I also used less sugar. I just added a little and then tasted)

1. Boil the raspberries and add sugar. Cook for about 10 minutes or less if using fresh fruit. Raspberries natural acidity will preserve sustainable. But the berriess do not have much pectin, which makes it gelled, so that it can be a good idea to add some pectin. (I did not use)
2. Make sure to boil the jars in water (sterilize) before you pour in the raspberry jam.
3. Close the jars very tightly.
   
4. Opened jar raspberry jam can be kept in the fridge.
5. Enjoy!
   

Servings:

1 liter of raspberry jam

Getting Ready for LilyAnne Sue - Baby Shower

My friend and previous co-worker JulieAnn is expecting her first baby in October. She is having a little girl. Her name will be LilyAnne Sue. Isn't that an adorable name?! Well, I wanted to throw an adorable shower to match that sweet name. JulieAnn has picked a pink and light sage green lady bug theme for the baby bedding. So that was my start. I wanted to stay with pink as the main theme color and throw in a little bit of sage green accents when available.

I actually only rented white table linens, and was going to keep it clean and simple, but there was an error on the rental company's end, and they gave me two different pink color table coverings along with the white table linens. I'm glad that there was an error because I loved the two different color pink table cloths. It matched the pink Martha Stewart Pom Poms made from tissue that I purchased at Michael's. I also hung baby clothing to look like a clothesline from the patio, which was also my gift to the soon to be new mom. I also purchased three pairs of Lill Curtains from IKEA at only $4.99 a pair. What a steal! I added whimsical color butterflies to the curtains. The butterflies were only $1.99 for 12 (six large, 6 small) at Michael's. I also added the butterflies to the floral arrangements and diaper cake. This was my first attempt at a Diaper Cake and it turned out wonderful! Everyone loved it. I added wash cloths, lotion, baby soap, rubber ducky, hair bows and spoons to the cake. If anyone is ever interrested in having one made please feel free to e-mail me for pricing and details. I ordered cupcakes from Ontario Bakery at $.75 each. I brought in my own baking cups and baby decorations to go along with my theme. I had made the invitations, so I had plenty of scrapbook baby left. I used some of it as place mats and the rest I cut into two inch strips and wrapped them around the water bottles. It was a hot day at about 90 degrees, so it was a good thing that there was plenty of water to go around. As favors I set up a Candy Buffet. I have been collected apothecary jars for the last few weeks for the shower. Now I will have them for future parties and as decoration on my new hutch. Everyone received a take away box with a little tag that read: "Sugar and Spice and Everything nice....That's what Little Girls are made of." As you can see from the picture, everyone loved that candy! I didn't have much left... A good thing:)

It was a fun day and I think everyone had a great time.

Menu:

Strawberry Lemonade

Salad with Raspberries, Blueberries, Pine Nuts and Raspberry Vinaigrette.

Veggie Chips with Ranch Dip

Assorted Fruits

Frog Eye Salad

Croissant Sandwiches with Turkey and Roast Beef

Stepping Stones for Women Tea

On June 20th, I will be hosting my first table for a woman's tea. While I was a little intimidated at first at the idea of decorating a table surrounded by other "professional" tea hostesses, I realized that this was a perfect opportunity to get out my tea sets and have a chance to fellowship with other women while fund raising for a great cause.

Stepping Stones Summer Tea

Saturday, June 20
at 11:00 am - 2:00 pm

Location: Neighborhood Fellowship Church
18821 E. Arrow Hwy.
Covina, CA 91722

Tickets are $25.00 each

My theme is going to be Cherries with the colors of Aqua and Red. Here are some of my inspirations. I will post pictures of my finished table after the event.

Stepping Stones for Women:

Their goal is to provide a path of self-sufficiency to single mother families through a safe home environment where life transformation can occur. This path includes training single mothers in life skills, emotional development, education and job rehabilitation which allows them to create a family environment of positive growth and self-sufficiency.
The Program:
The program of Stepping Stones for Women is to provide "handles of hope" for single mother families through a complete, comprehensive program that covers the four core areas of personal development and wellness - mental, emotional, physical and spiritual. In addition SSFW provides an avenue of resources for the children of the mothers through supervised childcare, field trips and fine arts development. A mentoring program called "Into the Heart" matches the mothers with other mature women to help them overcome loneliness. This is accomplished through strong healthy friendship. The mentor gives spiritual support and encouragement to the mother to help her achieve a balance and healthy lifestyle for her and her children.
How can you help?
1. Volunteer your time and talents
2. Financial support
3. Spread the word
4. Gifts-in-Kind Donations - Paper goods, cleaning supplies, toiletries, infant supplies, grocery store gift cards, etc.

For more information visit: www.ssfw.org

Happy Birthday Michael!

My husband turned 31 this past Friday! He spent it working a 24 hour shift at the fire department. We will officially be celebrating it with the family at our weekly dinner at his parent's place on Monday. Mattias and I went by the station and brought homemade Peanut Butter Cup ice cream and White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Bars. Kind of a weird mix, but if you know firemen, you must know that you can't come by the station without ice cream! They were both a big hit and I enjoyed spending a little bit of time with my husband and his co-workers. There are always good laughs and Michael's battalion chief just loves Mattias. I am so proud of my husband and the man he is. If you know our story, you know that Michael and I have known each other most of our lives. I always had a "crush" on him and I am proud to say I still do. My husband is so gifted and I am so blessed to be his wife. I love watching him get into his passions. I am proud of him riding his 100's of miles on his new road bike, building his dream guitars, learning new tricks on the computer, taking care of our new home and most importantly how much he loves his son and I. I am a lucky woman to have such a wonderful husband. It is such a joy watching my son and husband playing together. I try to soak up all the memories and capture every picture that I can. What a joy it is to be a wife to such an amazing man. Happy Birthday Honey! What another wonderful year to come...

*Recipe: Aida's Corn, Tomato and Avocado Salad

I can't wait to try this one out!

Ingredients

For the dressing

• 1 1/2 cups packed fresh cilantro
• 1/2 cup good-quality extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

For the salad

• 4 ears corn, kernels removed (about 3 cups)
• 1 1/2 pounds grape tomatoes, halved (about 3 cups)
• 1 pound fresh mozzarella, diced
• 2 medium avocados, diced

Directions

Combine the dressing ingredients in a blender, using 2 teaspoons salt, and pepper to taste; process until smooth. Combine the salad ingredients in a large bowl and toss with the dressing. Let sit at least 15 minutes before serving, or cover and refrigerate for up to 4 hours.

Sticky Fingers Scones Mixes

You simply must try these Sticky Fingers Scone Mixes! I recently had a taste of these delicious scones on a visit home to visit my parents and brothers. My mom had made them for breakfast. They were so tasty and the best part.... all you do is add water, mix, and bake. It doesn't get any easier than that! I had to try them for myself. I went to Cost Plus World Market during their sale and picked up a package of chocolate chip. They must be very popular because all they had left were a half dozen of the chocolate chip flavor. The sales clerk showed me the wall that usually displays all the other flavors but they were sold out. My first attempt at making these scones were a success! Absolutely moist and so tasty. I can't wait to have an event that I can make them for! The usual price is $4.99. One package makes 12 individual scones or one large piece which cuts into 8 pieces.

http://www.worldmarket.com/lev/4/productId/7175/index.pro

Create a Quick Terra-Cotta Pot Centerpiece

Create a Quick Terra-Cotta Pot Centerpiece By Madaline Sparks

Use old flower pots to make decorative topiaries for your next cocktail party.

What You’ll Need

• Sharp scissors
• Floral foam (available at craft stores or florists)
• One small juice glass to fit inside each pot
• A small dish (for soaking the foam in water)
• 2 dozen to 3 dozen ranunculus
• Standard terra-cotta pots (between 3 and 6 inches in diameter)

Also try with: Roses, lisianthus, carnations, chrysanthemums.

Step 1

Cut a piece of foam to fit inside each juice glass. Soak the foam in water for a few minutes, until it’s fully saturated. Remove the leaves from the ranunculus stems.

Step 2

Gently place the foam into the glass and the glass into a pot.

Step 3

Cut the stems at a sharp angle and stick them into the foam, starting in the center and working outward.

Step 4

Rotate the pot as you go until the surface is covered.