Tea on Tuesday

There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea. ~Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady

Whenever I need a healthy snack to keep me going through that afternoon slump, I have something like this ...

dates and almonds with ginger mandarin tea. I'm a grazer so, rather than having three large meals, I like to eat many small meals and snacks throughout the day. How about you? What's your eating style?

Hope you are having a terrific Tuesday! Best wishes and blessings, Tammy

Eid Mubarak

The holy month of Ramadan is over and the Eid holiday begins.

Remember the Arabic sweet, qatayef, I posted about before? Traditionally it is stuffed with cream or nuts, fried and served with a simple rosewater syrup. I have made mine two ways: filled with cream and served with a lemon syrup.

And then I filled some with chopped pecans and cinnamon sugar and baked them in the oven.

Once they cooled, I sprinkled them with powdered sugar. I don't fry anything anymore, so my family actually prefers them this way.

Eid Al Fitr is the festival of fast-breaking which is celebrated for three days after the month of Ramadan is completed.

It is a time to give in charity to those in need, and celebrate with family and friends the completion of a month of blessings and joy.

Wishing you a beautiful day and a great week ahead. Tammy

Silent Sunday

Weekend Wrap-up

Good morning! I hope you are having a great weekend. Even though it is too hot to go outside, Jingles likes to have the balcony door open so that she can feel she is communing with nature. I open it for about 10 minutes before it gets too hot.

Things are quiet around here. As I write, Hurricane Irene still hasn't made landfall. First the earthquake and now a hurricane. Crazy times indeed!

Our temperatures are still well above 100 every day but thankfully the humidity is low. Early mornings don't feel so bad, if you consider 90 degrees to be cool.

I noticed this new weed popping up in one of my pots. I like anything than can survive the heat and dust.

Although I should be doing so many other things, I continue to find a moment here and there to crochet. I seem to be a bit addicted at the moment.

Guess it is time to break myself away for a bit of cleaning. Have a wonderful day! Friendship blessings, Tammy

Quick and Simple

With back to school and busy days, quick and simple meals are necessary. While frozen broccoli is boiling, I saute several cloves of minced garlic in olive oil til softened but not brown.

Add chopped walnuts. Saute for a minute or two (add a bit more olive oil if it gets too dry).

Stir in broccoli.

And serve over brown rice with a dash of soy sauce.

Quick and simple projects are also necessary in order to be a bit creative every day.



Quick and simple in 30 minutes or less.

Hope you are having a beautiful day! Best wishes and blessings, Tammy

This Made My Day!

A friend from school who was in the States for the summer just came back and look what she brought just for me!

We don't get very many magazines in Kuwait so receiving these three really made my day.

For those who experienced yesterday's earthquake, I hope all is well. When Zack, my 12 year old, told me about it late afternoon, I didn't believe him. He's always got a story! So I was a bit surprised to learn it was true. And now there is Hurricane Irene that is threatening the southeast.

Whatever is happening, wherever you are, I hope you are okay. Best wishes and blessings, Tammy

Tea on Tuesday: Elegant & English

I've had such a sweet tooth lately so when I came across these Elegant & English biscuits, I decided to give them a try. They are actually made in England and even had a quotation from Samuel Johnson (English Author 1709-1784) on the side of the box.

A hardened and shameless tea-drinker, whose kettle has scarcely time to cool; who with tea amuses the evening, with tea solaces the midnight; and with tea welcomes the morning.

I'm joining Kimmie at Art in Red Wagons for tea today.
Chocolate Raspberry biscuits along with Asian Plum White Tea make for a perfect afternoon snack.

Hope you are having a terrific Tuesday. Friendship blessings, Tammy

Being Entertained

Jingles could barely contain herself this morning. As I was getting ready for work, she was being entertained by birds on the balcony.

First the sparrows.

Then the doves.

I get a kick out of seeing her try to get to them through the window.

After school I headed over to Shereen's place for lunch.


Vegetarian Indian food.





And Gulab Jamun for dessert.

She was in India this summer visiting family and brought me back these two pillow covers made in Rajasthan.

Our weather hasn't been quite as hot the past couple of days but the humidity has been high.

I tried to take a picture of this evening's sunset but my camera immediately fogged over when I opened the door.

I have quite the headache at the moment. Definitely will be hitting the hay early tonight. Hope your week is off to a great start. Best wishes and blessings, Tammy

Progress

Hello there! I hope your day is going well.

The granny squares are adding up. There's no real plan involved, just working with what I've got. Looks like I am gonna have to work in some solid squares since I am running low on white. I would say I've made pretty good progress since I just started this on Monday.

It's late so time to hit the hay in my corner of the world. Back to school tomorrow. Have a good one! Best wishes and blessings, Tammy

A Quiet Start

Happy Friday everyone!

One week back at school is over and the weekend has arrived. I made biscuits this morning so that I could try out the Fig and Ginger Jam I bought the other day. It brought back memories of my Mammaw who used to make the best fig preserves and my Aunt Dot who made the most scrumptious homemade biscuits and gravy. I cheated though and used Bisquick for the biscuits.

Although it was already well above 100 degrees, I opened up the balcony and went out to water weeds and wildflowers.

Jingles is always happy when that door opens. She loves being outside.

But she is not very happy when the door closes and she is still out there.

My girlfriend Melissa stopped by with homemade banana cake so I had to try it right away. Yummo! Delicious with a cup of ginger tea.

For the rest of the day, crochet is at the top of my list of things to do. I will only clean what needs to be cleaned and cook what needs to be cooked.

Have a great day and a wonderful weekend. Best wishes and blessings, Tammy

Simple Pleasures: A Big Bowl and lots of milk

I know I've mentioned this before, but it is something that I seriously crave ...

sometimes for dinner, sometimes for a snack ...

a big bowl of Special K with frozen mixed berries, walnuts and lots of cold skim milk.

It's like having a big bowl of dessert without the guilt. Delicious and healthy!

I'm joining Dayle for Simple Pleasures.


Have a healthy, happy day! Friendship blessings, Tammy

Wednesday Wishes

“A single rose can be my garden...a single friend, my world.”
(Leo F. Buscaglia)

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Wednesday. Internet here is very slow. Not sure if it is because of excess users or all the dust out there clogging up the atmosphere. Our afternoons the past several days have been very hot and dusty so it was quite a surprise to find this little purple bud when watering plants on the balcony.

“I’ve learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends on our dispositions and not on our circumstances.” —Martha Washington

Wishing you happiness and blessings, Tammy

Tea on Tuesday

"What is the most wonderful thing for people
like myself who follow the Way of Tea? My answer:
The oneness of host and guest,
created through 'meeting heart to heart',
and sharing a bowl of tea."

Soshitsu Sen, Grand Master XIV, Urasenke School of Tea

Kimmie at Art in Red Wagons is our host for Tea on Tuesday.

I recently tried a new recipe from the blog Bountifully called Ginger and Pears, Upside Down

I had to figure out measurements since I'm not familiar with grams; divided the batter up between two mini-loaf pans and they turned out beautifully.

It was the perfect treat served with a bit of fresh cream and lemon, ginger & ginseng tea.

Unfortunately, not all recipes are as successful. I won't even tell you what this was supposed to be.

I hope you are having a terrific Tuesday. Friendship blessings, Tammy