Jolly Good Fun: Royal Wedding Watch Party!

Like my friends and I need an excuse to have a party.  Or eat.  Or for me to cook something.  We were all feeling a little sentimental about the Royal Wedding.  I remembered getting up to watch Diana's wedding to Charles.  It was the summer before third grade.  I was spending the night at my Aunt's house and she woke me up in the middle of the night to watch the Royal Wedding.  I thought that was a bloody good time, even for a third grader.  Sadly I got up in the middle of the night in 1997 and watched as the world bid good-bye to Princess Diana as well.  Since we go way back, I felt like I owed it to Diana and Charles to stay up all night and watch the future King of England wed the Future Queen.  And well, it's an excuse to wear my cutest pajamas with the sock monkeys on them, along with a tiara.  And drink Mimosas.  Probably the closest I'll get to being a princess is that 4 a.m. cupcake I polish off just as Kate exits her carriage.  But a girl can dream, and that's why we decided to go all out!

My Black Magic Cupcake Recipe,
topped off with Royal Wedding CakeButter Cream Frosting. 

What's a party without goody bags? 
Bloody good goody bags!
I decorated them with some
scrapbook supplies and clip art.

Inside were little packages of Shortbread. 

A replica of the Royal Wedding Ring.
Complete with a
"Certificate of Authenticity." 
And it only costs:
Nineteen Dollars, Ninety...

Some baubles and beads. 
A tiara of course!  And a glow stick,
after all it will be the middle of the night...

You can't watch a Royal Wedding
without Scones.

And you can't have scones
without  Devonshire Cream...

I even made little Union Jack
flags to decorate the cupcakes.

Some of the cupcakes got fancy
little rings and some got sprinkles.

All of them are sure to get eaten!

Butter Cream Frosting: Worthy of a Royal Wedding Cake

When the girls and I decided we needed to stay up all night in our jammies and tiaras to watch the Royal Wedding, I knew we needed a dessert worthy of a princess.  That means NO FRUITCAKE (Sorry William) and no treacle or other strange British desserts.  It meant CUPCAKES!  Chocolate of course.  With lots of yummy frosting.  But not just any frosting.  Thick, white, fluffy WEDDING CAKE frosting.  The kind that you really need to eat at 3 a.m. when you're watching the Royal Wedding coverage on CNN.  Drinking Mimosas and Diet Cokes of course!

"Royal" Butter Cream Frosting

Whip shortening until fluffy.

Sift confectioner's sugar.

Add to shortening.

Mix until combined.

Add salt.

Add vanilla.  (The recipe calls for Clear Vanilla,
but since I didn't have any and this isn't the
ACTUAL Royal Wedding frosting
I let it slide and went with regular brown vanilla.)

Add cream.  Once combined, switch the mixer
on high and let 'er rip.

Meanwhile get your pastry bag ready. 
(Mine is a very fancy
kind.  Made from a zip top bag
with a hole cut in the corner.)

Fluffy Fluffy Fluffy

Fill the fancy pastry bag and pipe
on tons of frosting.  (The cupcake recipe
I used is the Black Magic Cake.  I just baked
them for about 20 minutes
in muffin tins with liners.)

Some of the Royal Cupcakes
got flags, some got fancy rings,
and some got sprinkles.

It doesn't matter as long as you
make sure there is at least
two inches of frosting on each cupcake.

"Bob's Your Uncle!"
(Translation:  "you're all set" or "you've got it made.)

Traditional Scones

A scone is a small quick bread especially popular in the United Kingdom.  They are a staple during a traditional cream tea or Devonshire tea.  They are usually lightly sweetened, but some savory varieties are available as well.  Some scones contain currants, cherries or other dried fruits.  This version is a traditional British scone, slightly sweet without any added fruits.  Scones may be served for breakfast or afternoon tea, but also a perfect snack anytime of day.  They're "bloody good" with a Diet Coke too!  Make sure you serve them with some Homemade Devonshire Cream.

Tally Ho!  The Scone Party!

Sift dry ingredients together.

Cut in butter with a pastry blender.

It should be kind of grainy and gravel-y.

Add buttermilk to egg. 
(Don't forget to reserve a tablespoon of white.)

Beat well.

Add to dry mixture.

Stir until a dough forms.
Roll out into 3/4-inch thickness.

Cut into circles with a floured cutter. 
(I use a plastic Oklahoma
Sooners cup, I'm not too fancy...)

Brush with egg white-water mixture.

Sprinkle with granulated sugar.

Bake until golden brown.

Homemade Devonshire Cream: Fit For A Queen!

Devonshire or Devon Cream is a clotted cream produced in Devon Cornwall and Somerset England.  It is traditionally made by heating unpasturized milk until a thick layer of cream forms on the surface.  It is a wonderful accompaniment to scones, alongside jam and lemon curd.  Now I don't know about you, but I'm a city girl so I don't actually have any cows in my backyard.  Therefore I don't have access to unpasturized milk.  Nor do I really want go to the trouble of heating said milk until the cream forms.  This recipe for "mock" Devonshire Cream is a more than delicious substitute for the real thing and way easier than milking your royal cows.

The Devonshire Cream Party

Add vanilla to sour cream.

Sift 2 tablespoons of confectioner's sugar
and add to sour cream mixture.

Cover and refrigerate. 
Enjoy with scones and talk in a British accent.

Easter Dinner 2011: A Re-cap...

Normally we travel a little way for Easter and have dinner with relatives.  I'm sure by now most of you have heard about my car accident in 2010 and the on going foot and knee surgeries that have followed.  I have a few more weeks before I start physical therapy and walking again so we decided to do things at our house and keep it simple.  (Well as simple as it can be for us.  It was all I could do to let my Mom and Mother-In-Law bring some food.  But I'm learning to delegate.)  There were 14 of us total, and though the weather did not cooperate, it was a beautiful day.

The table in the dining room.  I actually sat up 3 tables, plus the
coffee table.  (One or both of the Dads usually choose the
coffee table directly in front of the TV.  So I've just starting
setting two places there and letting the men arm wrestle for
those two spots.) 

While I wanted a true Martha Stewart style table complete with lavender linen tablecloths, I had to face my physical limitations and be satisfied with the little plastic ones from the Dollar Tree.  It actually turned out quite cute.  I had a light blue one on one table, a light yellow one on another, and a light pink one on the third table.  And, much to my Mother's chagrin we used paper plates.  I can't stand in the kitchen to wash dishes, and I did not want the Moms in my life doing all the work.  (Really it was fine.  We just needed a way to get all the yummy food from the kitchen to our mouths.)


And speaking of yummy food, here is the menu.  Some of these recipes may already be on my blog and some will be on in the future.  (Bear with me, I'm a work in progress...)

Smoked Ham
Baked Beans
Asparagus Lima Bean and Corn in Chive Cream Sauce (I found this recipe posted by food.com ~it was wonderful!)
Veggie Salad  (coming soon)
Dill Potato Salad
Deviled Eggs
Homemade Rolls  (I made the Preston Rolls from Christy Jordan's Southern Plate Cookbook southernplate.com)
Sweet Tea
Carrot Cake Cupcakes
Banana Pudding (My husband wanted the ORIGINAL RECIPE from the back of the Nilla Wafer Box)
Coconut Cream Pie (this is my husband's grandmother's recipe.) 

As you can see, we did not go hungry.  My mom brought the baked beans and veggie salad, my best friend brought a ham and my mother-in-law brought the asparagus and coconut cream pie.  It all turned out great. 

I saw this adorable centerpiece idea using PEEPS Marshmallow Rabbits at mommysavers.com. 

Credit to Mommy Saver
Kimberly Danger for this adorable idea!

I figured I could make an attempt at this.  A word of warning.  Do not wait until the day before Easter to buy your PEEPS unless you have a very kind, patient husband that is willing to drive to 4 stores for you.  As you can see, mine turned out okay.  I don't think they were anywhere as cute as the original version.  (But I keep telling myself, when you can't walk and you depend on someone else to take you to the store, you have to make do.)

I had smaller vases, so I omitted the marbles. 
I sent my daughter to the store on
Easter morning and these colorful daisies
were about all they had left. 
But I think they turned out bright and
cheery anyway!

If you REALLY want to see some centerpieces that turned out cute, you need to visit my friend Michaela's blog: http://anaffairfromtheheart.blogspot.com/.  She sets the most beautiful tables and does wonderful party planning.  Here are Michaela's Easter centerpieces:

Adorable!  She is so talented.  (Make sure you friend her on facebook)

All in all it was a beautiful day.  My nephew got to visit from Houston.  We got MUCH NEEDED rain all day.  Hope all of you had a wonderful day as well. 

Love,
The Devilish Dish

White Wine & Rosemary Chicken

Face it.  Chicken breasts are BORING!  And since SOME PEOPLE think it's wrong to have a rib-eye steak every night, I try to throw in some chicken now and then.  I am forever in search of simple, but tasty ways to dress up plain chicken breasts.  I love a good marinade, something that will result in a juicy, flavorful piece of chicken.  Something that holds up well to grilling, and something that isn't too complicated.  Here's a solution:  White Wine & Rosemary Chicken.  The woody, aromatic rosemary and the crisp, refreshing white wine combine to create a moist, simple chicken dish, that is worthy of serving to company!

White Wine & Rosemary chicken...
You're so easy and yet you sound so fancy.

Combine the marinade ingredients in a bowl.

Remove rosemary leaves from their woody stems. 
Discard the stems.  Finely chop the rosemary leaves.

Now your marinade is ready for the chicken!

Pour marinade over chicken. 
Cover and refrigerate no more than 4 hours.

Remove chicken from marinade. 
Pat dry with paper towels.

Drizzle chicken breasts with olive oil.

Rub chicken breasts with olive oil
and re-season with salt and pepper.

Grill chicken.  Remove from grill and cover with foil. 
Let rest 10 minutes before serving. 
This helps the chicken retain its juices.

Serve your yummy entree and wow your guests!

White Wine & Rosemary Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts flattened to even thickness
2/3 cup white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons chopped rosemary
additional olive oil for rub

Combine marinade ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper and place in non-metal container.  Pour marinade over chicken.  Cover and refrigerate for 4 hours.  Do not marinate for a longer period of time as the acidity in the lemon and wine will start to "cook" the chicken.  Remove chicken from marinade.  Discard marinade.  Pat chicken dry with paper towels.  Rub with olive oil on both sides to coat.  Season again with salt and pepper.  Preheat grill to 350 degrees F.  Grill on each side until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.  Times will vary from grill to grill.  Remove chicken from grill and cover with foil.  Let stand ten minutes before serving.

Prep Time:  Approximately 4 hours     Cook Time:  Approximately 15 minutes