Thanksgiving is almost here and I have been preparing menus, recipes and shopping lists for ages! For foodies Thanksgiving is a wonderful time. A time to plan, prepare, cook and eat. It is heavenly.
The dessert buffet we offer our guests is probably the most fun for me. I mean really...how often to you get to make an unlimited menu of desserts? Usually one, maybe for a special occasion two, but not many other times do you get the joy of making as many dessert choices as you could want.
This Thanksgiving our guests will be indulging in their choice of any or all of the following:
Pumpkin Cheesecake
Chocolate Pecan Pie
Caramel Apple Pie
Iced Lemon Cookies
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cake
Chocolate Pumpkin Cake
Triple Chocolate Cheesecake
With gourmet flavored coffees & teas plus a little hot mulled cider we will be blissfully happy come Thursday evening!
I can't personally decide what the most enjoyable part will be, making these decadent creations, watching others enjoy my work...or eating them!
To all of you who love food as much as we do, knock yourself out this Thanksgiving. We hope that your kitchen will be full and busy, your hearts will be full and happy, and your tummies will just be full.
Happy Thanksgiving
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Halloween Pumpkins
It was pumpkin carving time at the Spencer House last Saturday. Our friends joined us for some good old fashioned messy fun. (Mine is supposed to be my Chihuahua Lilliput)
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Apples & Pumpkins & Leaves...Oh My!
Oh what a beautiful time of year in the North East! As September slowly fades into October and the leaves begin to change, the air is crisp and clear and every road side stand has an abundance of pumpkins and apples...I get excited about the change in my cooking and baking menu. Now don't get me wrong, I love the fresh berries and local fruits and veggies that dominate my summer menu but a change is always fun. And...fall weather has brought such a change!
My head is full of ideas for warm spiced creations of pumpkin and apple, local maple syrup and mulled cider by the fireside! I've pulled out my recipe box, favorite cook books and back issues of Everyday Food compiling ideas and notes and ingredient lists. I've been browsing the spice isles at the market, the road side stands and the local orchards. Next step...
My head is full of ideas for warm spiced creations of pumpkin and apple, local maple syrup and mulled cider by the fireside! I've pulled out my recipe box, favorite cook books and back issues of Everyday Food compiling ideas and notes and ingredient lists. I've been browsing the spice isles at the market, the road side stands and the local orchards. Next step...
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Meeting New Friends
One of the things I love most about my job running a B&B is that I am constantly meeting new people. Each week as new folks walk through my door they bring with them new ideas, new stories, and very often times they become new friends.
Such was the case this past week.
Since it was the weekend after the Labor Day holiday anyone with children was wrapped up in the act of sending their little ones back to school, college students were already on their way to being settled into new dorm rooms and teachers were busy back in their classrooms once again. That meant it was relatively quiet here in the Berkshires for the first time in months. But, quiet often can mean more time to spend with individual guests. And that is exactly what happened with Sherrie and Michael.
When they arrived and happened to be the only ones in the house for the night it was great to be able to tell them they had the whole house to themselves. Sadly, they were only here for one night as we were a stop over in a longer travel plan but even so I told them to make the most of their stay. And I really hope that they felt that they did.
Such was the case this past week.
Since it was the weekend after the Labor Day holiday anyone with children was wrapped up in the act of sending their little ones back to school, college students were already on their way to being settled into new dorm rooms and teachers were busy back in their classrooms once again. That meant it was relatively quiet here in the Berkshires for the first time in months. But, quiet often can mean more time to spend with individual guests. And that is exactly what happened with Sherrie and Michael.
When they arrived and happened to be the only ones in the house for the night it was great to be able to tell them they had the whole house to themselves. Sadly, they were only here for one night as we were a stop over in a longer travel plan but even so I told them to make the most of their stay. And I really hope that they felt that they did.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Hummingbird Voices
I started to realize just the other day that with the evenings getting cooler and autumn getting closer my hummingbirds may soon be leaving me. I asked my mother if she knew when they started to head for their winter homes and she thought that it was about mid September.
Hmm, that is just a few weeks away and I will be sad to see them leave.
This year I hung our humming bird feeder right off my screened in back porch behind a large Rhododendron shrub and just outside the window over my kitchen sink. Apparently it was a good choice. Not that we've had oodles of hummingbirds mind you, but the ones we have had are full of personality. The shrub has given them a place to perch between drinks and apparently, for one precocious male, it provides a look-out to keep everyone else away from his favorite feeding spot.
Though there seemed for the longest time to be just one pair of hummers frequenting our feeder I have discovered over time a smaller less prominently colored male and began to recognize the difference between two unremarkable colored females. But, at no time did any of my pretty little friends share space at the feeder. Now I've seen photos in "Birds & Blooms" magazine of feeders just loaded with thirsty hummers. But not at mine, apparently my little buddies do not like to share.
Which leads me to my original thought when I sat down to write today...hummingbird voices.
Hmm, that is just a few weeks away and I will be sad to see them leave.
This year I hung our humming bird feeder right off my screened in back porch behind a large Rhododendron shrub and just outside the window over my kitchen sink. Apparently it was a good choice. Not that we've had oodles of hummingbirds mind you, but the ones we have had are full of personality. The shrub has given them a place to perch between drinks and apparently, for one precocious male, it provides a look-out to keep everyone else away from his favorite feeding spot.
Though there seemed for the longest time to be just one pair of hummers frequenting our feeder I have discovered over time a smaller less prominently colored male and began to recognize the difference between two unremarkable colored females. But, at no time did any of my pretty little friends share space at the feeder. Now I've seen photos in "Birds & Blooms" magazine of feeders just loaded with thirsty hummers. But not at mine, apparently my little buddies do not like to share.
Which leads me to my original thought when I sat down to write today...hummingbird voices.
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