Lighten Up!

That is my plea to Mother Nature, anyway. In my part of the world, it's the end of April and this is what the view out the window looks like:

YUCK. Snow, snow and more snow. I guess the Midwest got the short end of the stick this time. I am seeing all these wonderful posts on social media with blooming flowers and green grass and warm temps...and I'm stuck in SIBERIA.

So, I decided to lighten things up. My breakfast dishes were Grace's Teaware "Rose Garden" by Coastline imports.

Unfortunately you have to own a business since they are strictly wholesale, but I got mine at Homegoods. So bright and cheerful! I have the large water pitcher and covered sugar, too, but this was what I needed for this morning. Look at the cute little egg cup!

So fun and bright and pretty. I can't WAIT to have breakfast out on the deck with this stuff and a pretty tablecloth and flowers. However, that can't happen until THE SNOW MELTS AND I CAN ACTUALLY MOVE MY PATIO FURNITURE OUTSIDE FROM STORAGE. Please, Mother Nature? Can we have spring, now? Pretty Please?

 

I'm a Convert...Of Sorts...

...to Gold Trim, that is. 

I am NOT usually a fan of gold trim on china. I don't know why. I'm more of a silver person. (Which is why my Noritake Greenbrier wedding china was silver trimmed.) But I am starting to like it. Take this Noritake Polonaise, for example. Let's be honest, they went HEAVY on the gold trim:

See? GOLD EVERYWHERE. Ten years ago I would have been like "uh uh. No way." But there's something about the trim, with the blue and white and the scrolling...it really works for me. 

I'm sure you've heard of Royal Albert Old Country Roses. Well, I had a complete Tea service and lots of pieces in the 90's. And they are GOLD GOLD GOLD trimmed:

Photo from Goddess of Eats

After a while I was kind of tired of it. Don't ask me why. O.C.R. is the most popular Royal Albert pattern ever. Like EVER. But it just wasn't working for me. I always thought it was a little "fussy." So, when we fell on hard times early in our marriage and I needed to start selling my china, guess what went first? ;-) 

Now, in my opinion, Royal Albert got it right with "Moonlight Rose." I mean, the stuff is GORGEOUS:

This is a photo from a seller on Etsy. LOOK AT THE COLORS. And of course, Moonlight Rose is discontinued. (What were you thinking, Royal Albert People?) But I scored some--that will be for another post. But the gold and the cool colors of the roses are a perfect match, in my opinion.

So, I'm getting "converted" to the idea of gold trim. I'll just have to get over the fact that it comes off after a lot of uses. ;-)

The Great Cream Tea Debate...

I honestly had no idea that there was such a raging polarization between Cream Tea enthusiasts. The question is, when you have your scones with jam and cream (or cream and jam), which comes first? I saw on Twitter there was an uproar because a popular website  showed the scones with cream first, and people wrote in in HORDES claiming they were offended that the cream came first. 

I've always gone jam first. I tried cream first once, and the jam slip-slided all over and was difficult to spread, and I ended up with a sort of jamcream (or creamjam?) instead of distinct layers of cream and jam. So, I guess you could say I'm the "jam first camp:"

The debate has always been heated. But I found this gem, where the Queen Herself supposedly "settled it."

Can't argue with HRH, right? ;-) 

Winter Luncheon

What do you do when it's cold and snowy outside? Have Luncheon indoors, of course. But at least have it by a window. ;-)

I am a huge fan of the Johnson Brothers Old Britain Castles line. In any color. And I have it in every color, except green. And yes, I am going through a big "pattern on pattern" phase, because I love busy things. Especially with Transferware. I think there shouldn't be any rules at all. Especially with Blue and White.

 Takes my breath away every time I see it. Transferware is art, in my opinion. And what is it about the light when there's snow on the ground? It's so bright and soft and everything looks amazing. Light reflecting off snow makes the winter days...brighter, when there is sun out. It's the days without sun that...suck, for want of a better word. But ah...snow days. When everyone is stuck at home. That's when you stay indoors and binge watch Downton Abbey or Jane Austen films. And have luncheon on really pretty dishes...

A Guilty Pleasure: Clotted Cream

One thing that stinks about not living in the U.K.? I can't have fresh clotted cream delivered to my door. Nope. I have to go to a specialty grocer or World Market to find it:

It's HIDEOUSLY expensive. About 8 or 9 dollars for a teeny jar. And the worst part? After you open it and enjoy it, it needs to be refrigerated, and once it is, it's UN-USABLE. The cream becomes so thick you can't spread it, and if you try to bring it to room temperature, it becomes white slime. SO disappointing. I mean, I want to be able to use it during the whole week, AS IF I am going to eat an entire jar in one sitting! No no no!

So--what to do? Well, you can make your own clotted cream, but in my opinion, it takes way too long and you waste a ton of cream for just a little bit of clotted cream and although the result is quite rewarding, who has time for that? So, I have formulated my own recipe, by looking at others' recipes and trial and error. The cream I make is more like Devonshire cream, but I don't care. It's FABULOUS:

And it makes quite a bit, that I can enjoy for up to two weeks if I keep it in an airtight container in my fridge. And the best part? It takes very little prep, about two minutes to make, and only has two ingredients!

Pshaw, you say? I kid you not. This is all I use. A lot of bloggers put in sugar and sour cream and butter, and I do have a version I used to make with those things, but if you want something as close to the original as possible, without all the work, this recipe does it for me. It's simple:

Mock Clotted/Devonshire Cream:

Ingredients:

-3 oz. Regular Cream Cheese, room temperature

-8 oz. Heavy Whipping Cream

Directions:

Set cream cheese out on counter until room temperature and totally soft. Dump it into a small mixing bowl, and beat with a hand mixer until creamy. Add whipping cream, and beat until stiff peaks form. (You can tell when it's the right consistency, it will look just like clotted cream!)

AND THAT'S IT. 

It looks and tastes A-MAAAAZING:

You can serve it right away, or put in an airtight container for up to two weeks. (Just make sure your cream cheese and cream have expiration dates beyond two weeks! Or you'll regret it haha.) 

 It's sooo good! And sooo easy. I love easy. It makes my day. ;-)