Monday, November 29, 2010

Celebrating Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving morning

SAS & EAS

It was a very chilly morning with temperatures in the 30s.

Gearing up for the Thanksging Fox Hunt.

The hounds were ready to go.

EAS & JCW

Time to start cooking...

We decided to make Alice's Baltimore Bomb Pie...JCW is a stickler for homemade pie crust so we substituted the ready made crust.

Crab Dip is a must for every holiday.

MD Club dressing

Carving the bird.

The Baltimore Bomb Pie.

My mom's beautiful table.

I arrived home to a very thoughtful gift from BLC of The Company She Keeps ...everyone can use stationary and it's even better when it's Lilly Stationary.

Special thanks to our tailgating neighbors who were able to dislodge our jammed tailgate lock and to BLC for the sweet gifts. I hope everyone had a lovely holiday. xx

Friday, November 26, 2010

Simon Pearce

Simon Pearce opened it's first glassblowing workshop in 1971.

"A Way of Living" contains favorite recipes from the Simon Pearce restaurants and photographs of the Pearce’s home, gardens, workshops, restaurants and more.

Horn accessories are one of my obsessions.

Has anyone ever been to one of the Simon Pearce glass blowing studios or eaten at one of the restaurants?

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Deep Fried Turkey

One of my favorite things to eat for Thanksgiving is deep fried turkey. Last year we followed Alton Brown's recipe and the turkey was magnificent!

Ingredients
6 quarts hot water
1 pound kosher salt
1 pound dark brown sugar
5 pounds ice
1 (13 to 14-pound) turkey, with giblets removed
Approximately 4 to 4 1/2 gallons peanut oil*
*Cook's Note: In order to determine the correct amount of oil, place the turkey into the pot that you will be frying it in, add water just until it barely covers the top of the turkey and is at least 4 to 5 inches below the top of the pot. This will be the amount of oil you use for frying the turkey.

Directions
Place the hot water, kosher salt and brown sugar into a 5-gallon upright drink cooler and stir until the salt and sugar dissolve completely. Add the ice and stir until the mixture is cool. Gently lower the turkey into the container. If necessary, weigh down the bird to ensure that it is fully immersed in the brine. Cover and set in a cool dry place for 8 to 16 hours.
Remove the turkey from the brine, rinse and pat dry. Allow to sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes prior to cooking.

Place the oil into a 28 to 30-quart pot and set over high heat on an outside propane burner with a sturdy structure. Bring the temperature of the oil to 250 degrees F. (We found the peanut oil at Bass Pro)

Once the temperature has reached 250, slowly lower the bird into the oil and bring the temperature to 350 degrees F. Once it has reached 350, lower the heat in order to maintain 350 degrees F.

After 35 minutes, check the temperature of the turkey using a probe thermometer. Once the breast reaches 151 degrees F, gently remove from the oil and allow to rest for a minimum of 30 minutes prior to carving. The bird will reach an internal temperature of 161 degrees F due to carry over cooking.

Carve as desired.

If you are going to try deep frying your bird I suggest watching Alton Brown's series of videos on YouTube...he is a wealth of knowledge. JCW killed our turkey this year and it's 20 pounds which unfortunately is too large to deep fry so we will be roasting our bird and of course brining it over night. I am fully confident that our turkey will still be delicious with JCW at the helm.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

The Pink Palace

After the Warehouse Sale we went to the Lilly Pulitzer headquarters (also known as the Pink Palace) for a tour...yes the building is a very light pink.

I thought my green and pink Gucci mocs were the perfect shoe for such an occasion.

The lobby walls are lined with framed Lilly fabric. I never knew Lilly made a Mickey Mouse print or...

a Streaker print.

The decor and airiness of the building create such a cheerful atmosphere. It would be virtually impossible not to be happy if you worked there. The first stop on the tour was the distribution center.

The Lilly Pulitzer E-Merge

Next we headed to the common area and then the design room. I got to see the prints they were working on for Resort 2011 and all of the mesmerizing inspiration boards.

We walked through a hallway that was lined with collages depicting the history of the brand. This photo of Lilly and her husband was my favorite image. Before the tour was over we saw the samples for Summer 2011. It was so exciting to get a preview of whats to come this Summer. I hope a certain tunic makes the production cut.

The Lilly Story framed on the wall.

EAS & SAS

Special thanks to Jack for such an amazing opportunity and for the tote filled with Lilly goodies. Visiting the Pink Palace was a dream come true and an unbelievable inspiring experience! xx

Monday, November 22, 2010

Fall Warehouse Sale 2010

We hit the road for the Fall Lilly Pulitzer Warehouse Sale...

Waiting to get inside.



The line for the fitting room.



Sifting through boxes of seconds & samples.

There was a surplus of Murfee Scarves.


BLS, EAS, SAS