Host a Wintertime Picnic in the Park: Fig-Pear Tarts in a Jar

By Manvi Drona-Hidalgo, Mochatini; Photo by Sweet Tea Photography

Hi Friends,

These fruit-and-cream tarts are easy enough for novice chefs to make, thanks to store-bought pie crust and a simple filling. Make the components up to two days ahead of your picnic, then just assemble the morning of the party.

Pear and Fig Tart in a Jar Recipe
These fruit-and-cream tarts are simple enough for novice chefs to make, thanks to a pie crust shortcut. Individually portioned in portable clear glass jars, they're perfect for a holiday picnic or cocktail party.

Makes 8 8-oz jars

Ingredients
8 (8-ounce) clear glass jars with lids
2 rolls ready-to-bake pie crust

For the Filling
1 cup dried black figs quartered
2 pounds canned pear halves in syrup
2-1/2 cups apple cider
1 cup fruit brandy
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt

For the Cream Topping
1 cup mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup creme fraiche
2-1/2 tablespoons honey
2-1/2 tablespoons maple syrup
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For Garnish
1 bottle caramel syrup
1/2 cup English toffee bits

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Roll out both pie crusts on a floured surface. Using the lid of a jar, cut crust into 8 rounds and ease each piece into an 8-ounce jar. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. Set jars on a cookie sheet, add pie weights and bake for 15 minutes. Take out weights and bake for 35 minutes. Tip: The crusts can be made up to two days ahead of time.

Meanwhile, drain syrup from pears. Set aside 1/2 cup of the peaches for garnish, then cut the remaining peaches into half-inch cubes. Combine figs, brandy, diced pears, honey, lemon juice, cinnamon and salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Cook until pears are soft, about 18-20 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and strain liquid into a bowl. Set fruit mix aside and return fruit liquid to saucepan and simmer on moderate heat until it turns into thick syrup. Set aside.

Whisk together mascarpone cheese and creme fraiche in a medium bowl. Add honey, lemon juice, vanilla extract and maple syrup.

When ready to serve, slice saved pears. Set jars on even surface. Using a ladle or ice cream scoop, distribute half of the fruit mixture evenly among the jars. Add two tablespoons of cream topping to each jar, followed by the remaining fruit mixture. Next, add another tablespoon of cream topping to each jar. Add a drizzle of the fruit syrup and a few sliced pears to each jar, then finish with caramel sauce and toffee bits.

Bon Appétit...

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Yvonne

Host a Wintertime Picnic in the Park: Portable Buffet Table

By Manvi Drona-Hidalgo, Mochatini; Photo by Sweet Tea Photography

Hi Friends,

Designate a food and beverage station using foldout tables covered in basic linen tablecloths to keep the main table clutter-free and allow guests to move about the picnic area. Old rugs also function well as table covers. Style with feathery wreaths, reclaimed wood pieces, favors and fresh flowers.

Bon Appétit...

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Live well,
Yvonne

Celebrating Martin Luther King, Jr.!

Photo Compliments of Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Hi Friends,

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech on Wednesday, August 28, 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial for the March on Washington, DC. Words that resound in our history today, however, most publications only reveal a portion of the speech and we thought this would be the perfect opportunity to share the speech in it's entirety.

I HAVE A DREAM
By Martin Luther King, Jr.
Wednesday, August 28, 1963

"I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of captivity.

But one hundred years later, we must face the tragic fact that the Negro is still not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize an appalling condition.

In a sense we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check which has come back marked "insufficient funds." But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this check -- a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to open the doors of opportunity to all of God's children. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to underestimate the determination of the Negro. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.

We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny and their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot walk alone.

And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow cells. Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive.

Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.

I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day the state of Alabama, whose governor's lips are presently dripping with the words of interposition and nullification, will be transformed into a situation where little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. This is the faith with which I return to the South. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."

Happy Martin Luther King Day!

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Live well,
Yvonne

Host a Wintertime Picnic in the Park: Pistachio Soup

By Manvi Drona-Hidalgo, Mochatini; Photo by Sweet Tea Photography

Hi Friends,

Throw an unexpected party this season by inviting guests outside for a warm winter picnic in the park. Start the meal by serving each guest a cup of spiced pistachio soup. Bring the soup in an insulated beverage container and pour just as the guests are seated. Garnish with chopped pistachios. Here is an delicious recipe.

Pistachio Soup Recipe
This spiced winter soup can be served warm or at room temperature. For an open house or cocktail party, serve petite portions in shot glasses or small mugs.

Serves 4 as an entree; 8 as an appetizer

Ingredients
1-1/2 cups unsalted shelled pistachios, plus 1/2 cup for garnish
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 small shallots finely chopped
1 large garlic clove crushed
2 tablespoons rice flour
12 cups chicken broth
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Directions
Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a large pot. Reduce heat and add 1-1/2 cups pistachios for about 2 minutes. Drain and remove pinkish skins. Transfer to a food processor. Pour in 2 cups broth and puree.

Add olive oil to a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add cumin and turmeric and cook for about 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add shallots and garlic and saute until soft but not brown, about 3 minutes. Whisk in pistachio puree, remaining broth, rice flour, salt and pepper. Cook uncovered for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and carefully pour into blender. Pulse for a minute and bring back to saucepan.

Ladle into bowls or shot glasses for appetizer-style serving. Garnish with chopped pistachios.

Bon Appétit...

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Live well,
Yvonne

Host a Wintertime Picnic in the Park: You're Invited!

By Manvi Drona-Hidalgo, Mochatini; Photo by Sweet Tea Photography

Hi Friends,

Custom invitations reflecting the rustic setting of the party are lovely, handcrafted reminders of your event that also inform guests about the venue, dress code, directions and time. Print the invitations on brown kraft paper and mount on 4-inch by 5-inch precut wood veneer sheets. Finish with plain linen fabric strips and gold string. Allow guests to RSVP online or via email.

Get the Printable Picnic Invitation designed by Little Bit Heart

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Live well,
Yvonne

Happy New Year!

Hi Friends,

May the New Year bring you joy, prosperity and good fortune...

Happy New Year from your friends at Interior Design!

Your kind contribution will allow us to continue sharing great, no cost and cost saving ideas for your space. Click the "Donate" button below to make a contribution. Thank you!

Live well,
Yvonne