How to Make Sugared Violets

nfdp

You know all those sweet little wild violets blooming all over your yard?  Well, they are edible and make easy and pretty candied garnishes.  It is simple to sugar them and toss them in salads or top off some cupcakes.

How Sweet, right?  Perfect for Mother's Day Treats or a fairy garden tea.  Here is how you do it:

What you need: 

 -wild violets (not the house plant kind) In my yard I have the all purple and the purple and white flowers - pick both!

-1-2 egg whites

-sugar

-parchement paper

-paint brush and spoon

Snip off most of the stem.  Brush some egg whites on the petals with a clean artists brush.  You may want to hold the stem with tweezers.  After covering with egg whites, sprinkle with the sugar.  Then place on a baking sheet lined with parchement paper.  I like to put them in a 200 degree over for about 15-20 min. because I don't want to wait but you can set them aside for 24 hrs to harden.  Google some recipes to see which you prefer and for info on how long they can be stored etc.   

 

Roasted Asparagus

Make your own dried lemon verbena tea

nfdp

Missing my garden so I decided to brew up some of that summer flavor.
 Last year I grew lemon verbena in my little veg patch and all summer I made iced tea with it and some fresh mint leaves - so refreshing!
In the fall I cut some sprigs of the lemon verbena and dried it in my kitchen then popped it into an airtight container to use on a day just like this. A little bit of the garden when there is no garden.
Today it got brewed into a splendid pot of tea. 

Malassadas!

nfdp -
Strove Tuesday, Fat Tuesday, the night before Lent - what ever you want to call it, it meant one thing in my Grandmothers house - 

A sinfully delicious treat made by women of Azorean descent for generations.  My Grandmother and Great Grandmother would fry batches of them, filling the house up with the most amazing smell and trays of sugared fried dough.

 This was my first year carrying on the tradition and I think I did my Grandma proud.
I used her go-to recipe from this book and her favorite big bowl.

 You can still get this book HERE  - and you should it is a great collection of recipes and a little history too

QUICK-  get the last one!

Valentine Sugar Cookies and free printable Valentines

 nfdp

 Never one for a store bought holiday - my Valentine's Day treats are homemade and simple.  It is such a sweet little holiday, why muck it up with "stuff"?  My father brought home heart sugar cookies from the bakery one year when we were kids and they have become a tradition for my family ever since.  This year I decided to bake my own using my trusty Christmas Sugar Cookie recipe.  There are many, use whichever you like best.  Grab a heart cookie cutter and some red sugar and bake up a batch.

   Now for the gift tags... 

                                                            Simple AND sweet, right?
 Now for you my dear sweet readers a free printable of my little Valentine tags!  Download HERE.
Print them out on some card stock, cut them, use your little 'corner rounder' if you have one and punch a hole to create tags. Sweet.