My holiday treasures and tastes snapshot asks the question, if you love this time of year like so many of us do, why wait until after Thanksgiving to holiday it up?
Decorating one season at a time traditions, like rules, are made to be broken in favor of a richer experience.
Mix, mingle, layer, and jingle the best of the Thanksgiving into Christmas holiday season with treasures and tastes of the ho ho home for the holidays kind.
Well deck the halls- I just heard the Hershey’s Kisses commercial with the bells ringing ♫We Wish You A Merry Christmas.
It’s official- the holidays are here!
Folks, this recipe for Pumpkin Coconut Fluff Pie is easy to make and impressive to serve.
Pumpkin Coconut Fluff Pie
Ingredients
1 9″ graham cracker crust
1 8 oz container whipped topping
1 3.5 oz box vanilla instant pudding & pie filling
1 15 oz can 100% pure pumpkin
½ cup sweetened coconut flakes
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. ground cloves
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
Directions
In a large mixing bowl, add pure pumpkin, vanilla pudding mix, coconut, ground cloves, ground nutmeg and pumpkin pie spice. Using a wooden spoon, stir ingredients until combined.
Next, add vanilla and whipped topping. Fold until incorporated.
Spread the pumpkin fluff mixture into the graham cracker crust; cover with plastic wrap.
Chill covered pie for at least 4 hours to set.
Before serving dust the top of the pie with additional pumpkin pie spice.
Things are beginning to get busy as it does at the holidays.
Temperatures have dropped to baby, it’s cold outside numbers, family is on the holiday road heading home, and my kitchen cabinets and countertops runneth over with holiday dinner fixings to which I am most grateful.
Enjoy the process and the holiday treasures and tastes, dear friends.
Gathering together to feast, family, and friend during the holidays or just because on a Monday in cozy spaces with good food (fancy schmancy or crackers and can cheese) is rooted in connection, love, and celebration of relationship.
Speaking from years of experience, the kitchen is about to be a hot spot of holiday activity. Music is a must, quality kitchen tools and gadgets essential, organization the sous chef to friend, and the taste of Thanksgiving present and accounted for.
Holiday open houses at favorite antique shoppes result in treasured finds; among them platters O’Plenty perfect for plating birds baked, roasted, and fried.
Louisianans do love to do delicious fried turkey when the weather turns cold and the good holiday times roll.
Country Living – Photography by Johnny Miller
Deep-Fried Turkey
Ingredients
1½ tbsp. kosher salt
1½ tbsp. smoked paprika
1½ tsp. garlic powder
1½ tsp. onion powder
1½ tsp. fresh ground pepper
1¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
1 (12- to 14-pound) whole fresh turkey
Peanut oil (about 3 gallons)
Directions
Stir together first 6 ingredients. Remove giblets and neck from turkey, and discard. Drain cavity well; pat entire turkey dry with paper towels.
Loosen and lift skin from turkey with fingers, without totally detaching skin; generously spread seasoning under skin. Carefully replace skin and secure with wooden picks, if desired.
Sprinkle and rub remaining seasoning inside cavity and on outside of turkey. Let turkey stand at room temperature while oil heats.
Meanwhile, pour oil into a deep propane turkey fryer 10 to 12 inches from top; heat to 350°F over a medium-low flame, according to manufacturer’s instructions (about 45 minutes).
Place turkey on fryer rod. Carefully and slowly lower turkey into hot oil with rod attachment.
Fry 35 to 45 minutes or until a meat thermometer inserted in thickest portion of thigh registers 165°F (about 3 minutes per pound plus an additional 5 minutes. Keep oil temperature between 300°F and 325°F). Remove turkey from oil; drain and let stand 25 minutes before slicing.
Louisiana pecans harvested from area farms characterize the taste of home.
Cinnamon Candied Pecans
Ingredients
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 cup pecans
½ teaspoon cinnamon
Directions
In a cast iron skillet over medium heat, melt together butter, cinnamon and granulated sugar until the sugar starts to caramelize. Add pecans and stir to coat; stirring often to keep from burning.
Pour candied pecans onto parchment or wax paper allowing to cool.
Southern sweet potato casserole, candied sweet potatoes, and Dave the Builder’s requested favorite, sweet potato pie- Louisiana sweet potatoes are synonymous with Thanksgiving.
3 large sweet potatoes, washed, peeled and sliced French fry style
1 stick butter, sliced
1 cup sugar
1 Tbsp water
Directions
Places prepared sweet potatoes in pot. Add sugar and butter slices. Add water and cover with lid. Cook on low about 40 minutes or until tender. Do not stir during cooking time.
Place candied sweet potatoes in casserole and serve.
Preheat oven to 350°. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, and add asparagus. Top with canola oil, salt, and pepper, and brush evenly with basting brush. Bake until tender, 8 to 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, add water to a large saucepan, and bring to a simmer. In a stainless steel bowl, add egg yolks, lemon juice, salt, and cayenne. Hold bowl over simmering water making sure bottom of bowl does not touch water, and whisk vigorously until volume of egg mixture doubles. Slowly whisk in melted butter until sauce is thick and combined.
Remove from heat, and stir in crawfish. Serve immediately over asparagus.
It dawned on me that going with my heart this year and decorating according to the current mood is exactly the theme for this year’s Thanksgiving of it all.
Nothing too elaborate or over the top, just simply going with tried and true pieces that speak Thanksgiving to me.
Opening the cabinet doors of the section of the kitchen reserved for the good china and holiday appropriate plates proved to be the hardest part of the decorating plan.
Simple elegance is rooted in a cozy and comfortable ambiance.
To me it simply isn’t a Thanksgiving table without serving pieces and figurines denoting a pheasant and turkey pattern.
My great-grandmother, Mama Two, went to great measures to set a lovely Thanksgiving table each year she was with us.
Mama Two entertained and adorned with grace and what appeared an effortless command of the feast setting. At least one pheasant and one turkey plate, platter, or figurine always found a planned path to the tabletop.
Antique finds gathered over the years such as accent flatware pieces connect the dots to family tablescape traditions.
Posts of Thanksgiving past prove my tried and true favorites don’t seem to waver. Color combos and patterns continue to lean neutral to nature with at least one new or new to me addition added for good measure.
Inspiration is everywhere as proven in this eye catching photo.
Accent and accessories used in expected ways and in unexpected placement have the ability to impress and add charm to the spaces and places in and around the home.
Autumn Harvest Rice hits the spot when you’ve got a craving for a delicious hearty and cozy.
In my experiences with bouquets picked out and picked up in the grocery store floral department reduced for quick sale buckets, a next level look is super easy to obtain by simply tucking in stems, cuttings, and seasonal greenery from my at home lawn and garden department (the yard/garden).
Adding to never seems to take away from the finished result.
Late fall hydrangea blooms thrive until the arrival of the first frost.
Homey for the holidays or cozy fashioned in fall, creating a cozy ambiance will tick all the boxes of seasonal decorating success while leaving warm cozy impressions.
Spooktacular Halloween decorating suggestions come in Halloween handy for the decorista who dares to bedazzle house and home in haunted fashion destined to thrill and delight the eye.
Halloween is a prime time for showcasing your decorating creativity.
From fraught with frightful or a lavish display in spine-chilling style, doors, windows, fireplace mantels, staircases, porches, lawns, gardens, and sidewalks become prime players in a game of Halloween decorating dress-up.
Affordable is the trick.
Eye-catching is the treat.
I like a little fright mixed with a tad of harmless haunt so the theme appeals to kids of all ages.
Be sure to add by Black Cat by Janet Jackson to your Halloween playlist.
Seasonal, special event, and holiday decorating can wreak double, double toil and trouble on one’s wallet; top reason why I like to source and suggest items that pull double decorating duty.
Pumpkin decor far exceeds the plastic orange jack-o-lantern decor of yesteryear.
Although I still love the vintage and throwback to childhood days pieces, I am over the harvest moon for many of the new traditional offerings found on sites and retail shelves.
Take a spiced pumpkin candle in deep amber orange and pair it with a faux maple leaf wreath in candle ring fashion and voilà- a fall themed pumpkin palace centerpiece.
Bring the spooky-the creepy-the painful memories of stepping on these as a kid with a scattering of sweet gum tree balls in close proximity to the wreath.
When the clock strikes midnight on November 1st these accents find new life added to your home for the Thanksgiving holiday decorative accessories list.
About ten days from Halloween (or party date) pick up a dozen or two of roses. I stick them in a vase with very little warm water, and allow them to wither and dry out.
Come the day of the dead roses place the stems in a freakishly gorgeous vase.
Tulle by the yard is my go-to inexpensive solution to table wraps and centerpiece accessory.
Vintage style eyeglasses, a novelty pipe, magnifying glass, and a Victorian style top hat(Halloween decoration now, Christmas tree topper for the holidays) and you’ve got yet another themed Halloween decorating suggestions centerpiece.
Ambiance is an essential component in the entertaining equation.
Serving Halloween decorating suggestions for decades, the ever appropriate orange and black plastic jack-o-lantern pail makes for the perfect pumpkin ice bucket.
You’re traveling through another dimension, a dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind. A journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination.
Your next stop, the Twilight Zone and the buffet table.
Fun, frightful, and fabulous Halloween decorating suggestions offer affordable ideas and easy tips ready to help transform your home into the spooktacular showcase it’s sure to be.
October observations run the gamut from events to design to decor and just about everything else fallapalooza in-between.
Halloween is definitely October happening numero uno. Man, has this
31st of October event become a celebration powerhouse.
Anticipated Halloween spending according to the National Retail Federation is estimated to reach $10.6 billion in 2022, breaking last year’s record of $10.1 billion. Approximately 68% of consumers plan to participate in some sort of Halloween celebration, up from 65% last year, 58% in 2020 and 69% in 2019.
Artist Carlos Amorales exhibition at Salone del Mobile Milano,“The Accursed Hour,” is as striking as it is haunting. Copy the look by covering walls and ceilings with swarms of paper butterflies stickers found on Amazon or Etsy.
Fall fixer up time sees new wood molding atop the antique corbels on the front of the house, and a while we’re at it let’s touch up the colors paint session.
Neighbors are precious friends-friends who come to call with skill saw, molding, primer and woodworking talent to save the day.
Recipes accenting the flavors associated with homey and hearty hit the spot on chilly fall night or game day afternoon.
Crisp days are coming into view, and with that brings the retail offerings, nature’s color parade, thrills, chills, tastes and trends that round out my October observations.
Creature comforts of the season go a long way in setting a cozy scene.
Nestling in with a hot cup of cinnamon spice tea, a hint of pumpkin wood in the air, and this month’s Country Living is the best of fall.
Two darling nephews and one picturesque pumpkin patch delights little ones and this Auntie to no end.
Cooking remains my diversion of choice.
Honing in on the flavors best known to the season and putting your stamp on a recipe to make it your own is a delicious way to create a house favorite.
Apples and spices, fresh lemon and rum extract, refrigerated pie crust (easy is the name of the game) and sprinkles of sugar mix and mingle in a flavor gala befitting a recipe you’ll label a must make.
Pie crust will roll out better if allowed to be at room temperature for ten minutes. Roll pastry out onto parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
In a large bowl combine apple slices, lemon zest, lemon juice, flour, allspice, nutmeg, almond extract, granulated sugar and salt.
Lightly dust center of pie crust with flour mixed with allspice and nutmeg.
Pour filling into the center of the crust.
Gently fold the border up over the edge of the apple filling.
Pleat crust with fingers to create a border design.
Brush border with egg.
Next, sprinkle border with coarse sugar.
Bake for 25 minutes or until crust is golden brown.
Tradition beckons the baking of the first Apple Nut Cake of the season.
Trying out a new recipe or whipping up one tried and true celebrates the taste of the season and dishes cozy toasty fall happenings.
On a personal note, I would like to ask my dear readers to please be patient with me as I slow the frequency of postings at this time due to devastating health news received over the last two weeks. Prayers for comfort and strength are most appreciated.
Today makes it official, friends. I am so excited to greet the season with accents and accessories, tastes and scents that welcome fall home.
One would not know today is the first day of fall by the current weather in the Deep South.
Hot and humid with temperatures rising lands us in full-on fallsummoween.
High heat and humidity zaps the feel of fall, but apples paired with pears, cloves, and cinnamon offers the taste of fall refreshment.
Fall Fruit Facts:
Did you know there are 7500 varieties of apples grown throughout the world with 1oo varieties grown commercially here in the United States.
Cinnamon (also called quills) is the perfect spice compliment to sweet and salty drinks and dishes.
Pears are members of the rose family (no, not the Rose family of Schitt’s Creek fame). Origins of the pear date back to 1000 B.C.
Autumn Apple Pear Cinnamon Water
Ingredients
6 cups water
2 Gala apples cut into thin slices
1 Granny Smith apple cut into thin slices
1 pear (I used Bartlett) cut into thin slices
2 cinnamon sticks
3 whole cloves
Directions
Fill pitcher with water. Add apple and pear slices, cinnamon sticks and whole cloves. Give a quick stir to mix; cover and refrigerate overnight to allow flavors to blend.
Why stop there?
Crisp mornings, afternoons, and evenings go splendidly with a warm beverage or warming cocktail.
Simple syrup or spiced concentrate added to your favorite fall hot or cold beverages amplifies the spice which in turn brings out the flavors so closely associated with fall.
Vanilla Simple Syrup
Ingredients
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Directions
In a small saucepan over medium heat bring all ingredients to a soft boil; cooking until sugar dissolves making sure to stir the entire time.
Remove from heat and allow to completely cool. Transfer syrup to a heat safe jar or container and store in refrigerator.
Autumn Spiced Concentrate
Ingredients
2 cups water
3 cinnamon sticks
3 whole cloves
Directions
In a medium saucepan bring water, cinnamon sticks, and whole cloves to a to a boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for 5 minutes.
Your house will smell amazing during this part of the process!
Remove from heat and allow concentrate to cool before transferring to a heat safe jar or container. Store in the refrigerator.
Seasonal touches here and neutrals there decorate the dining room.
Faux stems and bushes usually don’t tickle my fall decorating fancy, but this Japanese Maple bush from JOANN is absolutely lovely.
Never underestimate the visual impact of the simple yet elegant seasonal décor accessory.
DIY wreath project success means I like the way it turned out and find it too pretty to hang on the front door just yet, so it calls the foyer welcome fall home for now.
Don’t you love when an item you’re sure will work does just that.
Our welcome fall home 2022 wishlist is almost complete.
Vintage or in the style of vintage prints never fail to catch my eye.
Tennessee has really been on my mind and heart of late.
I purchased my first Anton Pieck print from an antiques shop in East Tennessee thirteen years ago, and last week I purchased this vintage Anton Pieck 3D Paper Art print of “The Ship” to add to the collection.
Hunting dog prints hung throughout my grandparent’s house, and the vintage porcelain figurine immediately took me back so in the cart it went.
Wishing my fellow fall fans a happy first day of fall is a Places In The Home tradition.
How do you welcome fall home?
Show & Tell
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
Cookie
Duration
Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional
11 months
The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance
11 months
This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy
11 months
The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
To me it simply isn’t a Thanksgiving table without serving pieces and figurines denoting a pheasant and turkey pattern.
