Happy New Year From Positano!

I'm trying to figure out what the new year will be like if one starts the year with pasta and Lemoncello instead of black eyed peas and greens! Guess we will try it out and see. Wish I could figure out how to post photos on my iPad but I guess those will have to wait until we get home. Here's to peace, love, joy, good health and prosperity.

Continuation…

Year's end is neither an end

nor a beginning…

but a going on

with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.

~Hal Borland, Outdoor writer

May the year 2012 meander in with grace...

The In Between Time

This time of year is one to savour - the gap between all that frantic rushing around, cleaning, cooking and never ending shopping and before the arrival of an unchartered year, full of hope and promise. Hibernation is the order of the day with studying seed catalogues and reading high on the agenda along with other gentle seasonal pursuits such as playing Scrabble.

The weather here over the Christmas weekend was extraordinarily warm - on Boxing Day we sat with the window open and no heating on until darkness fell.  A complete contrast to the sub zero temperatures of the 2010 festive season when snow lay on the ground. The following day saw me more than ready to venture out and about -  to be doing rather than sitting. Top of the list on the jobs to be done was to remove the old foliage from the hellebores. This is one of those tasks where there seems to be much debate as to the whether to and if so when to do it. The leaves are evergreen so you could leave them on  but can they become rather tatty. They are also rather large and floppy and can obscure the flowers. There is also the risk if you leave them on, of them carrying leaf spot disease throughout the winter, which could affect the flowers when they open. As to when some books recommend autumn and others early winter. It is one of those jobs best done though before the flowers buds start to open so you limit the risk of cutting them off, which if ever done brings out loud shrieks from both flower and pruner. I think that I would not have liked to do this job any later this year. Now all that remains to do is a bit of tidying up as well as give the plants a mulch. I have been saving a bag of worm compost in readiness for this but yesterday was too windy and cold to venture out whilst today is not looking any more promising so far. Oh well back to having my head stuck in a book until conditions are more favourable.
P.S. We made a last trip of the year to the garden centre yesterday morning and what should come home with me but another hellebore.

How to Caramelize Onions

Dear Farah as you asked last night on how to caramelize onions. Hope you'll like this recipe, Enjoy ;*

 ( About 1 Cup )

Ingredients

• 2 tbs olive oil
• 3 large red or brown onions, sliced
• 2 tbs brown sugar
• 1-2 tbs balsamic vinegar

a pinch of salt

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large frypan over low heat. Add the onions and a good pinch of salt and cook very slowly for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent them from catching. Don't be tempted to turn the heat up, as you don't want the onions to burn.
2. When onions are softened and tinged golden, add sugar and balsamic - this will start the caramelisation process. Cook onion over low heat for a further 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sticky and caramelised. Use immediately, or store in the fridge, in a sterilised jar or plastic container, and use when required.

via here

Fridge Mount for your Apple iPad 2

This handy case will keep your iPad securely attached to your appliance without causing any damage to the iPad or the refrigerator. These thing is extremely simple to install, and adds a nice design touch the kitchen as well. You can purchase Fridge Mount for your Apple iPad 2 now. From here

Tea Kids Collection

Have you seen the girls pajamas at Tea Collection? They are all very sweet, and I know how hard it is to find good pajamas, so I am so excited to find these!

Let your napkin speak for you

Did you like or dislike the food? Let your napkin speak for you. Buy it here 

Quote Of The Day

Onion Rings

Ingredients

½ cup all-purpose flour, divided

1 large egg, at room temperature

½ cup buttermilk, at room temperature

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

½ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

30 saltine crackers

4 cups kettle-cooked potato chips

2 large yellow onions, sliced into ½-inch thick rings

6 tbsp. vegetable oil

Instructions

1. Adjust oven racks to lower- and upper-middle positions. Preheat the oven to 450F. Place ¼ cup of the flour in a shallow baking dish. Beat the egg and buttermilk together in a bowl. Whisk the remaining flour, cayenne, salt and pepper into the buttermilk mixture. Combine the saltines and potato chips in a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Place half of the crumb mixture in a second shallow baking dish; reserve the other half.
2. Working one at a time, dredge each onion ring in flour, shaking off the excess. Dip the onion rings in the buttermilk mixture, allowing the excess to drip back into the bowl, and then dredge in the crumb coating, turning to coat evenly. When the crumb mixture is low, add the reserved crumb mixture to the dish to coat the remaining onion rings. Transfer the coated rings to a large plate or platter.
3. Pour 3 tablespoons of the oil onto each of 2 rimmed baking sheets. Place the baking sheets in the oven and heat just until smoking, about 8 minutes. Tilt the heated sheets to coat evenly with the oil.
4. Lay the onion rings out in a single layer on the oiled baking sheets. Bake, flipping the onion rings and rotating the pans halfway through baking, until golden brown on both sides, about 15 minutes total. Transfer to a paper towel-lined rack briefly before serving.

via here

Honor Pre-Fall 2012

I absolutely adore Honor pre-fall collection. This particular collection is tailored and chic, but still full of girlie colors and ladylike silhouettes. Check out Honors Spring 2012 collection here

Via Fashionista

Portrait Stamps

Get a rubber stamp with your portrait on it! Just send in a pic of yourself and the artist will turn it into a drawing then a rubber stamp. Great way to add more personalization to letters, invites or notes. Buy it here 

Margarita Georgiadis

Beautiful paintings by Australian painter Margarita Georgiadis. Her work is very intense. It vibrates with contained emotions and movements. 

Picture Of The Day

Lanvin Veil
From here

Music, Movies and Memories - Mimi Naja & Parker Smith

 We started the holiday off with a great night of music at The Five Spot in Atlanta.   Mimi Naja (of Fruition String Band) and her good friend Parker Smith put on a late night show on the eve of the eve. 

Members of Mimi's Girlband from Junior High

Here are 3 of the same girls in 2000. 

Wits End 2000

Alicia is a true friend.  Still up at midnight waiting for the show to begin

Once the music started, the dancing began

 

Sweet Hannah

Christmas eve for our family has always included a movie along with a trip to Waffle House and this year we decided to see Hugo.

  I loved the film and especially enjoyed seeing it in 3-D.   A beautiful movie and a wonderful story too.  

We do things by vote in our family and this year rather than eating Christmas dinner at home and preparing our usual feast of lobster we decided to go to the Melting Pot.  I'd gotten an email from them saying they would be open on Christmas with very limited seating and we got a spot.  We had so much fun dining out and enjoying fondu.  

Now we are off to pick up the grandgirls to start our holiday.  

My husband added photos instead of gift tags to the presents this year

Tomorrow we leave for our overseas adventure and I'll post pictures when I can. 

Keeping the holiday spirit, 
Jojo

Surfer Girl

Juliane Grüner photographed by Craig Mcdean for the editorial Surfer Girl in Interview Magazine November 2011.

To view more click here

Quote Of The Day

A Chocolate Christmas gift for you…

While the chocolate hazelnut Nutella

cake is cooling

And our traditional Christmas Eve fondue Bourguignon is awaiting…with umpteen delectable sauces

I thought I would gift you with the most wonderful recipe.

It truly tastes like it is from a European Bakery

Fine chocolate, cognac, hazelnuts…

D I V I N E

Nutella Cake with Chocolate Hazelnut Ganache
Adapted from Nigella Lawson

Cake:
6 large eggs, separated
pinch salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 13-ounce container Nutella
1 tablespoon cognac or brandy

1/2 cup finely ground hazelnuts
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, melted and
cooled

Ganache:
4 ounces whole hazelnuts
1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon cognac

4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

Preheat oven to 350 degrees; butter a 9-inch springform pan. In a large bowl (preferably metal),
whisk the egg whites and salt until stiff. In another bowl, cream the butter and Nutella, then add
the cognac, egg yolks, and ground hazelnuts. Fold in melted chocolate.

Add a blob of beaten egg whites to the chocolate batter, and mix gently until well-combined. Fold in the remaining whites, one-third at a time, very gently but thoroughly. Pour into springform and bake for 40 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting tester, which should come out mostly clean; lightly pressing finger into top to check for a slight bouncing-back; and observing edges beginning to separate from pan. Let cool completely, in pan, on a rack.

Toast the hazelnuts in a dry skillet, or toaster oven shaking them around frequently. Do it for about 4 minutes, or until they are lightly browned, then let cool completely. If hazelnuts came with skins on, put them in a towel after toasting and rub around; this will remove most of the skins.

Chop chocolate, and add to sauce pan with half and half and booze over medium-low heat. Once chocolate is melted and components are combined, whisk until mixture reaches desired thickness, then cool. Remove rim of cake pan and pour cooled ganache over, spreading lightly to create a smooth, shiny surface, and apply hazelnuts all over.

Rich and heavenly…what Christmas is all about!

To all of my blog readers and friends.May your

Christmas or Hanukkah include some chocolate

and LOTS of LOVE.

Love Me.

Last two images from google…mine is not ready to pour the ganache on yet...slurp.