a magazine for the artfully domestic
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hello
welcome
Up a tree am I. This magazine has been a long time coming. Many names, many looks and many sleepless nights have come and gone since I first
thought about creating a publication that would encompass all the possibilities I envision. Here at last...a magazine to honor the flair of all artfully domestic women I know. This is a demi issue that was inspired by the Moll Anderson book, Seductive Tables For Two: Tablescapes, Picnics, and Recipes That Inspire Romance. Inspire it did and I share the resulting casual, beachy and oh so Southern birthday bash for HIMself. Among the pages you will find lush decorating ideas, a beautiful tablescape plus some of my favorite southern breakfast dishes. So I invite you to grab your favorite libation and meander among the pages for some inspiraion of your own.
rebecca
Rebecca E. Parsons Publisher, Editor, ArtDirector (for now)
a magazine for the artfully domestic ISSUU 1
PHOTO
Michael B. VIckers
EDITOR
Rebecca E. Parsons, cre8tiva@gmail.com
PUBLISHER REP MEdia
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TIPS FOR VIEWING FLAIR MAGAZINE ~ HOW ISSUU WORKS
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Three Minute Eggs from Rebecca’s kitchen... large eggs - I for each person
tap water
Place eggs in tap water. Cover with water. Heat on hign until boiling, then set timer for three minutes. This will make them soft boiled with runny yolks. For medium yolks, boil for 7 minutes. For hard yolks, boil for 15 minutes. Serve in egg cups with butter and salt.
4- When you see this button, you can click and it will take you to a place where you can see more information or you can actually purchase the product. So click, but come back to read more.
The recipes are all formated for 3” X 5” recipe cards and are easy to cut and keep.
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CONTENTS The Vision
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The Setting
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The Birthday Boy
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The Spread
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The Recipes
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The Libations
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Decadent Details
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The Book
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Socialize with Us
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The Vision
Each weekend, HIMself and I go on an excursion together. We head out, without any goal in mind except to stop for garage sales, thrift stores and flea markets. The weekend before his birthday, I found this beautiful signed print that was the perfect gift and inspiration for the party.
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It’s not about the size of the table; It about what you put on it!
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The Setting We love to have casual meals around our living room table. Since moving last year to simplify and downsize our lives, we have limited space. The coffee table is almost as large as a small dining table, so it is the perfect place for us to share a quick lunch, a leisurely dinner or a sumptous Southern breakfast. That is just what we did for A Southern Sunrise Birthday Breakfast!
Have you tried a meal on your coffee table or even a low bench in your bedroom? You could turn two to four square baskets upside down and cover with napkins. I know you are creative...what are the possibilities you see?
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The Tablescape Entertaining at home is one of the pleasures of life for me. Planning, creating, cooking...I enjoy it all. HIMself loves to eat; so we make a great food blogging team. I look for any opportunity to bring out some of my vast collection of china, glassware, flatware, table coverings and serving pieces. I am thrilled by the concept of using cherished items to set a mood or “create a surprise,” as Moll says, to create a sensory experience. Ah yes…an experience for all the senses.
The circa 1950s set of aqua dishes was a score. We have place settings for eight and all the delightfully odd shaped serving pieces. It works well with our beachy theme.
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These bottles add shine and sparkle to the table. When the morning sun hits them, there is a warm glow. Flowers are always a must in our house.
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Aqua glass bottles of all sizes and shapes are a favorite collection of ours. We enjoy the hunt as much as the find in most cases.
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This antique aqua medicine bottle is filled with tiny pebbles we gathered on a vacation in Virginia. Every time we use it, we remember the fun.
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Don’t be afraid to mix and match dishes. The place settings for the birthday table are a mixed bunch of odds and ends dishes, gathered on our hunts and paired for this beautiful breakfast table.
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HIMself looks at the roasted oyster amuse-bouche (a small bite before the meal begins). Below he takes the first bite of his birthday breakfast.
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The Birthday Boy A big après meal smile for the chef. Sir Chancelot had a few bites too. Both say the meal was a success.
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The Spread
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Be playful and creative when laying a table. Matchy, matchy is out. I was going for beachy so I chose aquas, yellows and creamy colors to set the mood. Remember, color has energy...so bring the colors in!!!
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A strand of pearls or even beads from the Mardi Gras add texture and movement when woven among the dishes.
I borrowed some beads meant for a Christmas tree for this party. I love the color and use them year round.
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The Recipes
Biscuits fr om Rebecc a’s
Biscuits with Jam or Syrup Of course, I make my own jam and biscuits. Doesn’t everybody? If you buy jam for a special occasion, make sure it is a really good brand.
1 C all pur pose flour 1 heaping ts p baking po wder 1/2 C butter milk
kitchen.. .
1/2 tsp sa lt 2 heaping T shorten ing
Sift flour ; add bakin g powder and salt. S bowl. Cut in ift again in shortening to large un til it make slowly unti s a fine m l the righ ea l. A dd milk t consisten cy, not too times and sticky. Knea then roll on d about 5 to floured Bake on un surface. C greased s ut. Prick w heet at 5 ith fork. 00ºº for 12 warm with -15 minutes jam or ma . Serve ple syrup. Makes 1 doz en.
Roasted Oyster Amuse-Bouche Say what? An Amuse-Bouche is very chic today. It is a small bite before the meal begins or a greeting of the Chef de cuisine. It is just to amuse the mouth and invigorate the palate. Of course you know what they say about oysters! These are very easy to make. I use fresh oysters, but you can use canned if you don’t have access to fresh seafood. I boil for one minute to make them more solid. Then I roast them, with a small amount of olive oil in a warm (250º) oven for three minutes. I top with fresh herbs from my garden. Parsley, mint, thyme, rosemary are all tasty.
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Soft Boiled Eggs HIMself loves soft boiled eggs with runny yolks over biscuits. They are so easy to make, even the most novice cook can master these quickly.
Three Minute Eggs from Rebecca’s kitchen... large eggs - I for each person
tap water
Place eggs in tap water. Cover with water. Heat on hign until
Three Minute Eggs
boiling, then set timer for three minutes. This will make them soft boiled with runny yolks. For medium yolks, boil for 7 minutes. For hard yolks, boil for 15 minutes. Serve in egg cups with butter and salt.
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Best Grits Ever No Southern lady would serve breakfast without grits. I recently found the best grits when I visited Bob’s Red Mill in Portland, Oregon. Yes...grits from the north. Be still my heart!!! They are awesome. If you cook them low and slow, stirring often...they won’t be lumpy. Lumpy grits are for the dogs (if they will eat them). Here’s the thing about grits... don’t put sugar or sweet stuff on them. It’s just ground corn. Would you put sweet stuff on corn on the cob? Of course not...I hope.
Best Grits Ever from Rebecca’s kitchen... 11 cup Corn Grits Polenta
1/2 tsp Salt
3 cups Water Bring water and salt to a boil. Add Corn Grits and reduce heat. Cook slowly for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, stir and cover. Let stand for a couple minutes. Serve with butter and salt. Makes 4 servings.
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Shrimp and Grits....Oh YUMMMMMM Everyone from Bobby Flay to Rachel Ray are making versions of this dish. We first had it on Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina. Oh My Goodness, I fell in love with this dish. I have made many versions over the years since that first bite. Here is my favorite so far. Hope you love it as much as we do.
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Shrim
p and
Grits
from 1/4 C Rebecc onions a’s kit choppe d chen.. 2 gar 1/2 C lic clov . white es, ch w o p in p e e 1 lb S d hrimp 1 tsp , well herb cleane de pr d (I u ovance se tin y, 100 -150 Place o count) nions and g arlic in Add s s aute p hrimp an. Co and c ok in ook un herbs olive o t il shr . Brin il until imp ar g to a soft. e j ust pin slow b reduce oil ove k. add heat r w medium ine an to low d high e for 15 over at. Co minute grits. ver a s. unt Makes nd il wine 2-3 s is red erving uced. S s. erve
30 s Famou ’s a c c Rebe agne Champ au Cointre
s
Mimosa
Juice range O d e z squee Fresh
re r befo an hou r o f r freeze h of in the s e a splas t lu d f d A e . n e g ic pa ange ju e cham distely. with or Chill th ll u f 2 e imme 1/ v r e e t S lu f ne. g. Fill hampag servin with C p o t en au. Th Cointre
The Libations
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Coffee, Tea, Mimosa? Don’t just think of drinks as ordinary...make them special. Add whipped cream and blue sugar to the top of the coffee and tea for a luscious sipping experience. And no breakfast in my home would be served without my world famous Mimosas. Try them, you will love them...I promise. My secret ingredient Cointreau is a brand of triple sec (an orangeflavobeccaered liqueur).
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decadent details
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The Book that Inspired it All
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