BLOOMING CHRISTMAS on Americas-Table.com
flowers

Blooming Christmas

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What a feast for the senses the flowers and evergreens of Christmas are! This year I’ve been unusually short on time and didn’t have the option of a leisurely comb through the cold rooms of the floral wholesalers. Much of my Christmas flower shopping was done at the grocery store – the apples, cinnamon, and astilbes came from Safeway and Whole Foods! The rosemary wreath was a very thoughtful hostess gift from one of my daughter’s friends. With a little doctoring, these basic ingredients became homey and […]

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Bourbon Cake
food

Bourbon Cake

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There are two recipes in this post because I just couldn’t decide which one I liked better. The original plan was for a simple bourbon bundt cake, moist and redolent of alcohol, like a fruit cake without the sticky fruit and soft nuts. But then I found a recipe for a chocolate bourbon cake that I made for Thanksgiving and liked so much that I couldn’t leave it out. (The photos are of the bourbon bundt cake; I forgot to […]

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Hanukah Dinner
recipes

Shalom, Y’all!

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One of my husband’s cousins who lived in South Carolina had a sign in her kitchen that said, “Shalom, Y’all,” which I always thought was a charming way to express both her faith and her geography. It’s the Hanukah season, and these three simple recipes combine both Jewish and southern traditions: rosemary roasted chicken, rustic cinnamon applesauce (my husband’s favorite condiment on a latke), and oven-roasted potato latkes baked in a cast iron cornbread skillet. It’s the kind of meal […]

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LOUISA ADAMS’ CLAM CHOWDER
food

Louisa Adams’ Clam Chowder

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Louisa Adams was the sixth first lady of the United States, the daughter-in-law of John and Abigail Adams, and the wife of John Quincy Adams. She was one of the most experienced and formidable hostesses the White House has ever seen, living in Prussia, St. Petersburg, and London while her husband was in diplomatic service, and then entertaining frequently when her husband became Secretary of State and later President. When I found her four-ingredient recipe for clam chowder, I was […]

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TEXAS SHEET CAKE
food

Texas Sheet Cake

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If you’re not familiar with Texas sheet cake, the holiday season is a terrific time to get to know it. It’s a delicious way to make dessert for a crowd in no time at all, and the flavor is unique: it’s not a brownie, and it’s not really a cake. It’s more like a chocolate pecan tray bake that has an indefinable end flavor that reminds me of a malted milk ball. They’re one of those treats that immediately makes […]

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