LoveFeast Table

LoveFeast Table wants to know….how big was your bird?

Happy ThanksGiving Friends!  We hope your day is full of laughter, friends and delicious eats!

Enjoy every moment and savor every bite!

Thanks for joining us at the table!

Kristin and Chris Ann

Word on the street, is that some of our readers, especially those in southern Minnesota are wanting the recipe for Yifta.  Now, that’s a complicated order.  ’Cause for one thing it is a secret family recipe.  For another thing, you can only get the recipe if you join our family’s Thanksgiving table and pass the quiz of guessing what the ingredients of Yifta are.  Then, you have to promise to eat it for breakfast for the following week after you make it.

If, and only if I can trust you with at least that last item, eating it for breakfast, you are probably worthy of getting the recipe.  An added vote in your favor would be if you had say perhaps, voted for us in the Mobbies this year.  What?  You did?  Well, then, I guess I’ll give it to you.  But, first pinky swear you’ll vote again next year…..cause a little bird told us that Strawberries in Paris is going to go bizerk with campaigning over this thing next year….and well, like it’s never too early to let our readers know we are going to, like… need your votes again…..next year.  Right, Dara?

So here is the recipe.  Again, preparing this is complicated…anything could happen to botch this up.  For instance you could get the ingredients placed out of order, say like if you’re not paying attention.  Or, if you are a little messy the ingredients could smear together, creating a non-pretty-layering-effect.  Another thing that could go wrong is that you could forget to take your dish selection seriously. It is crucial- I repeat crucial- to make Yifta in a glass bowl. Using say a dark red bowl and thinking it’s going to be Christmas-y and all, but then totally wasting the layering effect, will just say that your Yifta making is amateur and of less quality than that of the glass bowl variety.  You have to know what you are doing when it comes to making Yifta.  But, since many of our readers are very loyal…and perhaps the ones requesting this recipe a little more loyal than normal..readers that voted us up to the top of the Mobbies!  What????  That was awesome and we thank you!!  Seriously…if you are going to do math all day though….don’t you like need a little artsy break to rest like the left side of your brain and all?  I would say yes.  At any rate, all you southern Minnesota math-y types or friend of math-y type people, here is the recipe you requested.  Any other readers, who happen to read this recipe, you are like sworn to secrecy AND you have to vote for us next year at the Mobbies.  Ok, pinky swear.  Ok, then, here’s the recipe.  Follow it closely and adhere to all guidelines.

YIFTA

1st Layer:  Whipped Cream (about 2 Cups)

2nd Layer:  Saltines (about 2 rolls)

3rd Layer:  Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce (about 2 cans)

Notes:  Whipped Cream cannot under any circumstances be replaced with Cool Whip.  This would compromise the integrity of this recipe.  Cool whip is cheating.  I am sure you are not or have never been a Cool Whip Cheater.  The Saltines.  I use Premium brand.  Why?  Because this dish is a premium dessert.  Cranberry Sauce.  Use only canned whole cranberry sauce.  If you try to go high end and do something ridiculous here like make homemade and/or relish-y type cranberry sauce you will totally and completely botch this up.  The recipe says Cranberry Sauce, use canned.  Don’t stray.  Stay authentic.  It will work.  Fer’ Sure.

Do you have a top secret holiday specialty?  Share yours!

What a day yesterday was!  Now that I’m relaxing in my yoga pants with a double espresso downed and doing laundry, I can barely figure out how to recap!  Let’s just say that Saturday I hit the ground running-but at least I didn’t hit a deer (ahem! Kristin).  First of all, I was double booked.   I had committed to being on the hostess committee for a benefit for Healing House, an amazing residential recovery for women and their children.

My friend Teena Dietz, founder of Intentional Serenity was the co-chair of this event, Fashion With Compassion.  She has tons of enthusiasm for dreaming big and can always…

……she and so many other volunteers made the benefit a big success!!

Here I am with some wonderful ladies that joined LoveFeast Table at this event!  We enjoyed a wonderful lunch, fashion show, and a silent auction.

LoveFeast Table donated our signature silver framed chalkboard!

So, while I was enjoying tea, fashion, and friends for a wonderful place…my posse was wrangling toward Nordtrom’s court at the Mall of America for a book signing by Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, for her new cookbook, The Pioneer Woman Cooks.

Because, I didn’t think I would make both events, I had to send my willing entourage instead.  Pioneer Woman likes to brag on her Marlboro Man but, I’d like to take a minute to brag on my Suburbia Man.

My Suburbia Man, suggested, yes SUGGESTED that he go to the Pioneer Woman signing on my behalf!  He got into line at 12:30 pm and waited for three hours…

with my Punks from the ‘burbs and five cookbooks!

He chatted with others in line…

and according to some, proudly tweeted his endeavors.

“LoveFeast husband standing in line at Mall of America for Pioneer Woman Book signing – new definition of payback! 1:39 PM Nov 21st from Echofon”

“OMG,Lovefeast husband still in line at MOA for Pioneer Woman book signing. The honey-do list just got a lot shorter. about 24 hours ago from Echofon”

There were a lot of things that went on in those three hours they waited in line, some of them that I would not have approved of…such as children dribbling smoothies over future Christmas presents!

Eventually, I finished up at the Healing House benefit and made it to the Mall of America in time to still see The Pioneer Woman.  Suburbia Man continued to hold my place in line, while I went to get Marlboro Man (Ree’s husband) to sign the back of my cookbooks.  At first I thought one of Ree’s Punk’s had a scar on his face from like a barbed wire fence or somethin’ at the ranch, but then I saw that it was only pen.

Punks in Suburbia like blue pens too..maybe one of your punks can marry my punk..

After I wake up and get her some etiquette training…

But, I digress, I’m getting ahead of myself here.  So, after three hours of waiting in this line, Suburbia Man was free to do more carpooling and soccer games.  Ava and I continued to wait for three more hours.

And, look who I found in line?   It’s my blogging friend, Jessica, that I met at the MckMama & Friends outing at Mudd Lake!

Finally, we got our turn on the MOA stage to meet The Pioneer Woman.

Ree, is incredibly gracious and patient signing all my cookbooks.  I am wondering how she is able to multitask so effortlessly signing books and making conversation for 7 hours straight.

Here, I asked her where she went for dinner last night.  Manny’s.  She had lobster.  It was fabulous.

And here I am explaining who I am.  Who am I anyway?

Here I am saying who knows what…

about to get starstruck and black out…

Everything went into a haze at this point, my mind went fuzzy, my brain is multitasking: Who am I?  Who is Ree?  Where are my real questions like how do you do it all?  What kind of hair product do you use?  How do you cook, clean, blog, parent four kids, and book-sign?   This apparently bored Ava to sleep.  I tell Ree I’m new at this food blogging thing.

But, hold over folks, LoveFeast Table seemed vaguely familiar to Ree!  Was it my attempt to make her Strawberry Shortcake Cake in a coffee can (Note to self: do not repeat this offense).

Maybe it was my pathetic attempts at being her Minnesota weather radar.

@thepioneerwoman If you need a play-by-play for the weather when coming to MN, I can look out the window and let you know. 8:38 AM Oct 13th from web

Unfortunately, there are more of these tweets out there in tweet-land!

@thepioneerwoman MN Weather update, come prepared for snow, sleet, fog, warm sun or blizzard. Just sayin’ 8:32 AM Oct 17th from web in reply to thepioneerwoman

This poor lady was put to work, she’s still signing…she’s thinking too, why is LoveFeast Table so familiar?  Is it the tweets, the Strawberry Shortcake? Facebook?  The sequestering of her former guest blogger, Ryan of This is Reverb, in a LoveFeast TakeOn.

Anyway, at this time my mind, like our outfits was in shades of gray…I don’t even recall thanking you for the moment…so THANK YOU, Ree for such a kind conversation and enduring my stack of books with a smile!!  I am sure if I lived on a ranch next door instead of Minneapolis suburbia, we’d be great, fast friends.  And, thanks for visiting our blog LoveFeast Table!!  Maybe, if we work real hard we can follow in your blogging shoes..we have what means the most..the support of our families.  Here is my Ava-girl soliciting Mall of America shoppers with a LoveFeast Table flier.

It’s never to early to work toward your own Mall of America book signing!!

**Pioneer Woman Cooks cookbook GiftAway coming soon!!**

Fancy Friday’s is a place at LoveFeast Table to get inspired and to awaken the eyes to the beauty in the everyday.  We find it in a platter of vegetables, peeling fruit, an art car found in a shopping mall parking lot in Minnesota, a Baltimore porch swing or a street in New York City.  Ahhh, or how about the beautiful dilemma of Sienna or Florance?  What have you discovered for your inspiration?

Thanks for sharing this conversation at our table!  Kristin & Chris Ann

As “bi-city” bloggers, Chris Ann and I have been trying to connect and meet fellow bloggers in our home cities.  Chris Ann connected with our guest blogger, Kate, from Kate in the Kitchen in Minneapolis.  I started talking to Elizabeth from Strawberries in Paris and Dara from Dining Dish both from Baltimore.  I had been invited to a crab feast this past summer, but was unable to make it because of previous plans.  Then, when the Mobbies Award Ceremony was set, after a crazy, whirlwind campaign, Chris Ann and I realized it was the same night I was to fly out to see her in Minnesota.  So, when Dara and Elizabeth hatched a Baltimore Food Bloggers night…I cleared my calendar!

Last Friday, Dara hosted a gathering of Baltimore Food bloggers at her home!  We were all supposed to bring an appetizer and a beverage.  I have to confess here, as I did to the other bloggers, I enlisted my husband Devon to make it!  He whipped up a yummy cranberry chutney that I put on brie, wrapped in phyllo dough and put in the oven.  It is one of our favorite ways to serve brie en croute!

I arrived and was warmly greeted by co-host Elizabeth with a great big hug!  It’s like we were old friends!  I walked right into a room of friendly faces.  Dara was in the kitchen cleaning a pomegranate in cold water, “It helps keeps the seeds from spreading their red-juice with the rest of the kitchen” she explained.  Elizabeth took my coat and bag and I headed to the bar to pour a glass of wine.

It didn’t not take long for the conversations to turn from introductions to talk of food, blogging and travel!  I met so many wonderful people and it was so good to finally put names with faces with blogs!  I’m still not sure I have it all down, but seeing as this looks like it will be a regular event,  I have no worries I’ll get it!

I met Mary from Sweet Mary!  Mary is amazing!  She’s a woman who left her career to pursue her passion.  She went to Johnson and Wales and finished with a pastry degree.  She picks up and moves with the wind and has currently settled in Baltimore.  She teaches classes to people all over Baltimore.  We brainstormed other types of classes she could teach and I shared some of the crazy catering gigs we had done in the past.

I spoke at length with Meg from Pigtown Pigout.  She also writes the blog Pigtown*Design, which I sense embodies more of her passions!  We exchanged travel stories and stories of hosting people.  She, like us, loves to have people from abroad stay with her.  She went on to share that not all have been pleasant experiences, but that even those that were challenging, left her with great stories to share!!  She is a true hostess at heart!  (p.s. Meg, I love your Pigtown Design blog!)

Beth from 990 Square recounted her recent trip to Paris for us.  She began to talk picture taking (which most bloggers inevitably end up doing!) and how she filled her memory card with an ungodly amount of photos!!  I just want to know where you find the time to edit them all!!

Speaking of time, the one thing I took away from meeting fellow bloggers was a sense that Chris Ann and I are doing okay.  You see, we are always worried we aren’t getting enough posts up, spending enough time twittering or sharing enough of ourselves.  But, as MinxEats pointed out to me, we have kids (I have 5 Chris Ann has 4)…I don’t think any of the fellow bloggers I met that evening, have kids.  MinxEats said, “We have time.”  “Oh,” I thought, “that’s the one thing I don’t have a lot of!”  So, I guess considering we already have full-full-time jobs, the fact that we’ve kept this thing running for over a year is pretty good!

I also met Wendi from Bon Appetit Hon (love that name!) and Nakiya from Taste of Baltimore (good luck house hunting!).  I briefly talked to John from Baltimore Snacker…his Cambodian dish, loaded with garlic, was delicious!  Julie from Kitchenography was there too!  Can I just tell you, her pictures will inspire you to want to eat prunes!

Dara passed out little baggies…full of her favorite spice, Schezwan peppercorns.  (My husband already used some of them in a bulgar dish!)  Elizabeth was like an old friend!  She did unload a little frustration about the Mobbies contest, feeling like we overdid our campaign.  I quickly explained to her, it was all in fun (all’s fair in love and war…right?) Elizabeth, I hope you feel better getting it off your chest…clearing the air…’cause watch out for next year!  We are already getting our strategy ready!

Their dishes were delicious and their stories so entertaining!  I really felt like I was among old friends!  Oh, I almost forgot, there was another friend there, tucked in a corner of the dining room!  Dara had a party peacock too!!  So, we are going to use Dara’s party peacock to announce the winner of our Ace of Cakes: Inside the World of Charm City Cakes Gift-Away!!

Drum roll please!

The winner is George@CulinaryTravels!!!

Thank you all for playing!  Keep an eye out next week as we have a special Gift-Away in honor of Thanksgiving that is sure to “Pull” your socks off and “Awaken” all your morning senses!

I just want to start by saying, I really couldn’t put this book down!  I bought the book, Ace of Cakes: Inside the World of Charm City Cakes,  thinking it was an Ace of Cakes cookbook, but it’s not.  This book is a LoveFeast kinda book!  I felt like I was sitting at the table with the gang at Charm City Cakes and hearing their stories and getting a glimpse into what drives each one of them to do what they do!  Each person at Charm City Cakes is featured in this book.  They share their backgrounds and the events that lead them to Charm City Cakes.  They also share what they’re passionate about.  Most of them have some kind of creative background that they have brought to cake shop. I love the page that lists all the bands the Charm City Crew are members of!

Yesterday I shared how Baltimore really is a quirky and creative city.  Duff and his brother capture this in the book!  They break down why Baltimore was the perfect stage for launching this dream!

They show picture after picture of the creative process of building a Charm City cake!  Looking at their set up, I really felt like I was getting a glimpse into an art studio!  Fun Fact: The building that they chose for Charm City Cakes used to be a funky little art gallery!

This book also gives you the Duff Goldman story from childhood to now.  It introduces the people that have inspired him (his momma for one!) and where his art began to take route.  He has done performance art, with Fluid Movement as well as graffiti.  I think the thing I realized from his story, is that every event in his life, really lead up to him running Charm City Cakes!  It never ceases to amaze me, that if we follow our passions and let that be the goal we run to, somehow all of our life experiences lead up to the point!

Duff and his brother, Willie (who saw the makings of a TV show and now produces it!) include the “behind the scenes” people that helped launch Ace of Cakes and the crew that keeps it going.  There are so many amazing people involved to giving us a half hour glimpse into cake making!

I love the chapter about “Why Cakes Suck!”  Duff (obviously) doesn’t think cake sucks, but as an artist choosing a medium to work with, well this is not a predictable medium!  I’ve made a few wedding cakes in my day, but never (except for the time I tried to recreate a crumbling cake into a tee-pee cake) have I attempted to sculpt and shape the cake!  Hello!  Recipe for disaster in my opinion!  But, Duff has learned to wield knives, air guns, spatulas and chainsaws (I’d guess) with the skill of a master!  His crew make it look easy and fun!  Without a doubt, you know these guys love what they are doing and appreciate the fact they all have jobs that bring them joy!  This comes through the book with screaming clarity!

It’s beautiful to look at.  Inspiring to read.  Raw in the transparency of sharing who they are.  It’s personal.  It’s quirky.  It’s adventurous and creative!  It really captured the essence of the city that has embraced Charm City Cakes and gives a great snapshot of what makes Charm City Cakes so successful!

Now to the fun stuff!  We are going to GiftAway a signed copy of Ace of Cakes; Inside the World of Charm City Cakes, from the signing event at Atomic Books.  In order to get two chances to win you need to do two things.

1.  Leave a comment here at this site, telling what kind of cake you would have Duff and his crew create for you if given the chance!

2.  For a second chance to win this book, copy the link to this post and share it on your Facebook wall.  But, remember to leave a link here at our site to your wall, so we can verify you’ve done it!  (We won’t go and hunt it down!  So, please remember to let us know here that you have done this!)

We will be drawing a winner using RANDOM.ORG.

The contest starts now and will end on Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 9:00p.m.

Baltimore is known as Charm City.  I have to tell you, I love my city!  It’s quirky.  It’s loyal.  It’s diverse and very creative.  It’s home to the O’s and the Charm City Roller Girls!  The Inner Harbor is a great tourist stop.  The Star Spangled Banner was written here and I promise, no other city has the Hon Fest!  Edgar Allan Poe found inspiration here!  And Duff Goldman has found a great spot to dig in his heels and sprout a delicious dream!  Baltimore is home to Charm City Cakes.  (We are so lucky!)

The Charm City Cakes crew just released their new book, Ace of Cakes; Inside the World of Charm City Cakes.  I received an invitation to come to their first book signing at Atomic Books (another killer Baltimore dig) and headed down with a friend and one of my sons.  My son, “Najay”, was beyond excited to meet Duff.  You see, he’s the kid that has aspired to be a chef for the better part of his life.  He loves to shadow his dad in the kitchen, sharpen up his knife skills and I can vouch he has quite a sophisticated palette.  This would be his first time meeting a celebrity chef.  It was late, really at the time he should have been getting to bed for school, but I knew this would be a fun adventure!  We arrived in Hampden and headed to Atomic Books.

It was toward the end of the book signing, so it wasn’t too crowded.  We went in and purchased a book.  My friend, bought a graffiti magazine for her kid and thought it would be cool to have Duff sign it for him.

We got in line.  “NaJay” was a bit nervous.

He stretched his neck to get a glimpse of the infamous Duff Goldman.  Spotted!  He was at the end of a long table of people!  Oh my!!  The whole Charm City Cake Crew was here!  Cool!

We gave our book to the first signer, Joe.  He quickly signed the book and off it went!  They had this signing thing down pat!  Our book moved four people a head of us and left us time to chat with some of the Charm City gang!  We met Erica Harrison, whose inspiration was Kermit the Frog!  We also met Sherri Chambers Fisher a decorator from my hometown, Catonsville!  Fun fact, she has directed the play, Earth, Wind and the Baltimore Fire, for Fluid Movement, with Duff Goldman acting as mayor of Baltimore circa 1904!  Sherri had on a great shirt!  I introduced myself and Erica took down the LoveFeast url!

We made our way down the line, with one person in front of us to Duff, I glanced at my kid to find him smiling nervously.  Duff began to put pen to paper on our book and I quickly requested he put in a personal note to our LoveFeast readers.  “Thanks for joining us at the table” he wrote!

I asked him if my son could get a picture with him.  Then a man sitting next to him answered, “Just have him stoop down in front of the table.”  Evidently, this guy was the “gate keeper” to Duff.  I can appreciate that.  I’m sure there are a few crazed fans out there trying to get a piece of Duff’s cake!  But, seriously, my kid is harmless, he just wanted to get a picture with a guy that inspires him!  Duff, rising to the occasion, stepped out from behind the table to put his arm around my kid (so glad, there’s a kid still inside of him that remembers what it’s like to be 12!) and get a picture with him!  Thank you Duff!

Duff sat down and took a look at my friend’s magazine.  She apologized it wasn’t one of his books, but explained she had an artist for a kid and thought he’d like this better.  Not knowing, Duff was once a “wall artist” himself!  He quickly bombed that mag!  How fun!

Then, I turned back to have Duff sign my kid’s phone (he wanted something to show his friends at school) only to find the “gate keeper” blocking my path.  “No, he won’t do that.  We don’t let him sign phones.  Move on, there are other people waiting.”  I glanced back to see two more people in line.  “Really?” I said.  “Yes, now move on.”  “But, this is for a 12 year old boy…he just wants to show his friends.”  He quickly flagged me away without a thought.

Let me just say, the crew at Charm City is the real deal.  They are just like you see them on  Ace of Cakes.  They were joking with one another!  They smiled and looked us in the eyes.  They were approachable and really, I knew we could be fast friends if given a minute to chat!  They are fellow artists and after reading, and not being able to put down the book, I just knew they were kindred spirits!  But, the “gate keeper” about left me with a bad taste in my mouth.  I understand the need for some protection…I get it.  But, dude, we are in Duff’s hometown, Baltimore, in Atomic Books…his backyard, trying to get an autograph for a 12 year old kid, who just happens to be inspired by Duff!  “Najay” could be a Duff one day!  His parents embrace his art, encourage him to explore his gifts, and just like Duff’s mom, we set a stage for creative endeavors!  But, “gate keeper”…he couldn’t get an autograph on his cell phone?  Really?!  It would have been worn off in a few days from the use.  Maybe you don’t have any kids.  In that case, I guess I can kind of understand, but, speaking from experience (I have five kids) this one kind act, would’ve gone a long way!

I calmed down as I drove home because my friend and I realized that while I was arguing with “gate keeper” he was distracted from the special tag she received for her kid!  (Thank you Duff!)  We know you bent the rules for that one, and we appreciate it!  We love the young and budding graffiti artists!  We even LoveBomb them on a regular basis! So, thank you, again!

Like I said, I couldn’t put the book down…I’ll give you a glimpse…but, come back tomorrow and I’ll show you more!  We will also give this copy to one very lucky reader…but, now I have to run, go to the gym, do some laundry and set some stages for my kids to explore their dreams!

My kitchen is my favorite room in my house.  It is full of things that make me happy.  Like a little hand painted bowl my mom brought back from Spain.

A hand made flower that I received in the mail from a friend (Chris Ann to be exact!)  Hand painted tiles from my daughter.

A beautiful dish our friend from Morocco gave to us.  We shared a lamb and cous cous dish, his mother prepared for us, off of this plate.

My knobs!

A vintage plaque that reminds me to give thanks for all things.  A little ornament I found in Florence.

A vintage creamer that cost $1.19.

My drawer of coffee mugs that all tell a story.

Containers that are are full of possibilities.

My daily inspiration…Americano served in my mug and espresso served in his!

The kitchen aid, that really is a member of the family.

Even my dish washing station, is a happy place.

The colors on this plate, the staining around the edges…ahhh…let’s just say, it’s my favorite.

My paintbrushes just waiting to be picked up!  My Anthropologie dishtowels turned curtains.

A medicine cabinet pretending to be a spice rack.  My olive oil jar from Tuscany.

Hand made and well worn, pot holders.  They make me smile every time I use them.

Flea market finds.

The people in my life.

What is your favorite room?