Peeps Easter Cupcakes

Anyone who knows me knows I love peeps! You can visit the peeps website here:

http://www.marshmallowpeeps.com/

So here is a recipe using one of my favorite "foods"

Easter Peeps Cupcakes

1 cake mix (or scratch cake recipe)

white frosting

grated coconut, colored with green food coloring

Marshmallow Peeps® (yellow, pink, white, blue or lavender)

jelly beans

Bake cupcakes according to directions. Let cool and frost with white frosting.
Sprinkle colored coconut on top of each frosted cupcakes and place a Peep® in the center. Add a few jelly beans around the Peeps®, so they look like eggs.If you choose not to use coconut you may pipe a "nest" of green icing around the top of each cupcake and place a Peep® in the center. Sprinkle with colored sprinkles for a festive ending. How to Tint Coconut Place an amount of coconut into a bowl. Add a few drops of food coloring and mix well. Continue until desired color is reached. Be sure it is mixed well and be cautious as food color is concentrated.

St. Patrick's Day Wish

May the road you walk be a smooth one,
May your troubles be few, if any,
May the days and years that lie ahead
Be healthy, happy, and many...
May you find friends in abundance,
May the sun shine bright above you,
May the world be a wonderful place to live,
May you always have someone to love you.
Wishing You a Wonderful St. Patrick's Day

We Need a Helping Hand

In a semi-tea related post I am asking for help from all my readers. I volunteer with the Arc of Northern Bristol County and have enjoyed tea parties with many members of the group as well as produced a cook book. We like food and friendship and I have noticed many do not have the skills to cook or do a tea of their own. We have submitted a project to Hamburger Helper to help us with a new kitchen in our building. This would allow cooking classes and basic home skills to be taught and shared with others. Please take a moment to send in a comment to the link below.
With a little help from our friends we may be chosen as part of this project.
This is through Hamburger Helper and has been posted on myhometownhelper.com, and we would like to get as many people as possible to the site and submit a comment in support of the project. The site will be up until the end of March, then they pick 12 projects to fund. The competition is high, but we can try. The direct link to the site is http://www.myhometownhelper.com/ViewProject.aspx?id=35214.Please submit a comment and pass it on to others for their help as well. Thanks! Valerie Zagami on behalf of: The Arc of Northern Bristol County141 Park StreetAttleboro, MA 02703

Upcoming Spring Events

On March 16th we will be once again be working with the Chartley Garden Club for a Mad Hatters Tea. Flyers are popping up around town. http://chartleygardenclub.com/March.html This is a wonderful group of very talented gardeners who produce the most wonderful flower and plant arrangements. They also maintain many gardens in town and donate time to help others. I know what a fun time this will be. Visit their site here and see some local projects and gardens. http://chartleygardenclub.com/index.html

Friday I will be tea hostess for a group of Professional Women. There is a large variety of careers and business owners going to be represented at this event. This will be a very fun time also.

In April I will be having a tea with one of my favorite long time friends and her friends. This is a much smaller scale event and I know it will be a great time to chatter.

High Heeled Cake Server

This is a great gift I received from some very dear friends for Christmas and I love it. It is such a fun way to serve dessert. Here it is shown with my hidden jam cake.

The beauty of china

As I get ready for a few upcoming tea events I have been checking out my china plates, cups and saucers. Each one is so lovely and though each one is different they all feel wonderful to touch. I have been polishing silver and matching up cups and saucers. This is often necessary as each event I end up losing one or two pieces. Many of these broken pieces are through no fault of anyone but simply the age and the delicate nature of some. I have had tea cups break upon pouring hot tea into them. Many are due to my own fault such as the shelf of holiday tea pots I knocked down last season. It is a little like losing an old friend when this happens. I have many special ones that do not travel and even some that are only to look at, but I love them all.
It is fun to see the many different designs.

My Valentine Tree

Here is the valentine tree, something to replace the dullness after the Christmas tree comes down. I keep a tree in the tea room most of the year and decorate it according to whim or holiday. Mr. Cupid sits at the top of the tree protecting those who enter. There are assorted cute ornaments such as hats and shoes.

A few of my favorite websites

Here are a few of my favorite sites to visit:
http://mommydoodles.blogspot.com/
http://www.sweetremembrancestearoom.com/
http://www.therosemaryhouse.com/
http://www.liber-teas.com
http://www.windsorteashop.com/index.html
enjoy, Valerie

Why Tea?

Why tea? Tea us usually one of our earlier memories from childhood. Tea was often served when we were not feeling well, we would hold tea parties with our dolls, stuffed animals, cats or dogs or even better an adult to spend time with. If there was good news to share tea was usually served and if there was bad news the kettle would be heard whistling. Tea invokes memories of feelings from our past. I actually think our early ancestors would discuss the world problems over tea that was boiled over a fire as the history of tea dates back to before 2700BC.
Tea is usually a more calming beverage than coffee. Whether one uses a tea bag or loose leaves there needs to be steeping time. This evokes a calmness that coffee just can't top. Tea was carried around the world and convenient as leaves or when it was dried into cakes that one would break off and boil.
Very close to where I live the Boston Tea Party was fought and was blamed for the American Revolution. Shortly after the United States declared independence from England. Coffee lovers are very loyal but never have fought a war over their beverage.
My beginnings were thanks to an Irish grandmother who also collected lovely china tea cups and saucers. She shared with me her love of cooking and entertaining and I thank her for that.

We are up and running

Today is the launch of the new and improved Tea & Trinkets website and blog. Thanks to my daughter Melanie, her creativity, talent and patience we are here. Feel free to send ideas, comments and topics to me and I will try and keep this fresh and exciting.