THE MORNING STAR BED & BREAKFAST, LLC  

617 Houston Street � Manhattan, KS 66502

[email protected]www.morningstarbandb.com   

The Morning Star Update                                                                                                                                                                   October 2011

The Morning Star B
Welcome to The Morning Star B&B Update!
Greetings!

   October is one of my favorite months of the year. I love the sunny days and the foggy days, the changing colors of the leaves and the last little bits of warm temperatures before winter hits. Moreover, even at my age, I still get a kick out of Halloween. When I was growing up back East, it seemed as though hordes of costumed little kids would go out in the neighborhood trick-or-treating and having a grand time. Though we don't get many trick-or-treaters in our current neighborhood, I still enjoy All Hallows Eve. It has been a lot of fun preparing the October issue of The Update ... I hope that you enjoy the Halloween theme.
Fever Moon Cover
Fever Moon by Carolyn Haines
Set in New Iberia, Louisiana during the 1940's, Fever Moon is about deputy and WWII veteran Raymond Thibodeaux as he endeavors to solve the murder of wealthy plantation owner Henri Bastion. In the process, Thibodeaux must fend off superstition and small town ways in order protect himself and the vulnerable Adele Hebert whom locals take to be a loup-garou (wolf shape-shifter) and Bastion's murderer after she is found covered in blood and out of her mind hovering over Bastion's mutilated body.
    I read this spooky mystery during the foggy afternoons and evenings of late October last year and made a mental note to remember to recommend it this year. Haines is the author of over 50 books across several different genres. Pass along
your book recommendations.
Devil's Own Cocktail
Devil's Own
Based on the Devil's Own recipe from my favorite cocktail book, The Art of The Bar by Jeff Hollinger & Rob Schwartz, this is a potent and delicious cocktail - a perfect hot drink for a chilly October evening. (I'm not sure whether it is called "Devil's Own" because of how much alcohol is in it or because of how fattening it must be, but either way, it is really good.)

    For each serving, whip together 1/4 c. heavy cream and 1 tsp. granulated sugar until cream holds soft peaks. Lightly whip in 1/2 oz. Grand Marnier.
    Pour 1 1/2 oz. reposado tequila* and 1/2 oz. Frangelico into an Irish Coffee glass or mug. Stir in 1/2 c. hot chocolate (very hot). Pour whipped cream over hot chocolate.
    To garnish, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and fresh grated orange zest.
 Serve immediately.
Enjoy! Pass along your favorite holiday cocktail recipe.

* A reposado tequila is a tequila that has been aged in oak barrels for 2 months to 1 year and the label on the bottle of such a tequila will say "reposado" on it.
Orange Punkin's Cookies
Orange Punkin's

Makes about 36 cookies.


Delightful anytime of the year, these pumpkin cookies are moist and caky.
(Recipe from

Confectionately Yours.)  

 

1/2 c. + 3 T. all-purpose flour 1/8 t. baking soda
1/8 t. salt
1/4 c. unsalted butter, softened
1/4 c. granulated white sugar
2 T. light brown sugar, firmly packed
3/4 t. freshly grated orange zest
1/2 c. packed pumpkin
1 T.  of beaten egg
1/4 t. orange extract
1/4 c. finely chopped pecans

    Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
In medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In large bowl, beat together butter, sugars and orange zest until light and fluffy.
    Add pumpkin, egg, and orange extract. Beat until well combined. Stir in dry ingredients until incorporated and then stir in pecans.
    Drop rounded teaspoonfuls of cookie batter onto baking sheets. Bake for about 9 to 11 minutes or until batter is set. Place baking sheets on wire racks and allow cookies to cool.

Serving Suggestion: Drizzle with Orange Icing and/or Bittersweet Ganache.

Orange Icing
Place 1 c. confectioner's sugar in a small bowl.  Stir in 1 t. orange juice concentrate. Gradually stir in 1 T. orange juice or orange liqueur until the mixture is perfectly smooth and a workable consistency. (Icing should run off a spoon in a thick stream.)

Bittersweet Ganache
Place 2 1/2 oz. chopped bittersweet chocolate in a small bowl. Bring 3 T. half-and-half or heavy cream to a simmer, watching closely. As soon as it starts to simmer, pour cream over the chocolate. Place bowl in a warm spot and let sit for about 4 minutes. Stir until perfectly smooth and shiny.
Verona Tulip
Forcing Tulips

 I love tulip blossoms in the Spring. Many varieties of tulip bulbs, however, are short-lived (i.e. only come back for a few years) and tulip bulbs are a favorite treat for squirrels and rodents. (You should hear Bill tell stories about me yelling "Shoo, squirrel, shoo!" out of the window as I watched a pesky critter dig up bulbs which I had so carefully selected and planted.)

    So if you want to grow tulips, even if your bulbs are long-lived varieties such as Darwin hybrids selections, you will probably need to replant every few years or so. This can become a problem if your tulip bed happens to be in a perennial garden or around shrubs where over time the other plants fill in making it impossible for you to plant new bulbs without interfering with the root systems of these other plants. One way around this problem is to plant your bulbs in pots and force them come Spring which is what I'll be doing this year.  I have selected three varieties of double early tulips (Abba, Orca,and Verona - the creamy yellow/white tulip variety pictured above) and will be potting them up at various times between October and December so that I can enjoy them January through March.  

    Plant tulips in ordinary potting soil in a pot with drainage holes. You can put about 6 bulbs in a 6" pot. Fill pot part way with soil. When you place the bulbs in the pot, the tips should be 1/2 to 1" below the top. Place each bulb on top of the soil with the pointed end up, the flat end down, and the one slightly flattened side facing the outside of the pot. (The first leaf on each bulb will come from the slightly flat side.) Top off with more soil - the bulbs should be just barely covered. Water bulbs. This will reveal the tips of the bulbs. Once the bulbs are done draining, place pot in a cold dark place. Tulips require a 3 to 4 month chilling period during which time they should be held at about 35 to 45 degrees F. Once the chilling period is finished, small  yellow shoots should be starting to emerge. Move tulips to a cool spot with low to medium light- about 50 to 60 degrees F. After a few days, once the shoots turn green, you can move the pot to a brighter, warmer location. Expect blooms in about 3 weeks. Throughout the whole process, bulbs should be watered regularly. Pass along your gardening tips

    As always, I hope that you have enjoyed this issue of The Update. Have a great October!

Sincerely,
 
Laurie Pieper
In This Issue
Fever Moon
Devil's Own (Cocktail)
Orange Punkin's (Cookies)
Forcing Tulips
Confectionately Yours
Lisa Lala & Callie Seaton
Dates to Remember
Penny Pieper, Garden Protector
Cover of Confectionately Yours

Confectionately Yours 

    The book on which I have been working so hard - Confectionately Yours: A Collection of Cookies, Candies & Yummy Confections - is at the printer and will be here by Thanksgiving! Yippee!! With over 100 recipes for every season, from easy to make goodies to fancy treats, Confectionately Yours can help make any occasion sweeter.
    The 8 x 9" oversize volume has 30 full-color pages. With photos of almost every recipe - a few frosting photos and photos of cookie variations didn't make it into the book - this is a handsome volume as well as a wonderful collection of sweet finger foods.
    The retail price of Confectionately Yours is $23.99, but we are giving a $2 discount on preordered copies. To purchase copies for $21.99 + tax, just send us an email stating how many copies you would like to reserve. To receive the discount, preorder your copies by November 15th, 2011. (Shipping and handling $5 for first copy sent to one address, $1 for each additional copy to the same address. No sales tax is charged on orders shipped out of state.)
Lisa Lala

Featured Artists:  

Lisa Lala  & Callie Seaton

    Lisa Lala (left) and Callie Seaton (right) recently stayed with us at The Morning Star while they were in town for the opening of "Look and See" at The Strecker Nelson Gallery. This was really delightful for us.
    Lisa is well known for her light yet vibrant, thick oils painted on glass and canvas. Her new work abstractly depicting apples and floral images is the featured exhibit at the gallery.
     Callie paints abstracts in oils ranging from the darkest tones to brilliant colors. Her work is gaining more and more regional attention. Callie's paintings are in the central gallery room at Strecker Nelson.
    Both artists are lovely and interesting people as well as being talented painters. "Look and See" is open through November 5th.
Autumn Foliage along Juliette Street

Dates to Remember 

October 1st and 21st: Haunted Manhattan Ghost Tour
October 1st: K-State Football v. Baylor
October 1st:  Yellow Brick Road Bike Ride
October 1st:  Kaw-lloween Canoe Race, Manhattan to Wamego on the Blue River
October 1st - 2nd: Oztoberfest, Wamego
October 5th: Promenade on Poyntz
October 7th - 9th: The Wiz, Columbian Theater in Wamego
October 8th: K-State Football v. Missouri
October 9th: Bill Cosby, McCain Auditorium
October 14th:  K-State Equestrian v. Baylor
October 14th: Yamato Drummers of Japan, McCain Auditorium
October 15th:  K-State Volleyball v. Texas
October 15th: Central States Marching Band Festival
October 16th: Beach Museum's 15th Anniversary Open House
October 16th:  Feast of the Fields
October 21st: Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, McCain Auditorium
October 22nd: Underground Railroad Tour
October 23rd - 29th: K-State's Homecoming Week
October 23rd: K-State Homecoming Race
October 25th: Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real, McCain Auditorium
October 26th: K-State Volleyball v. Missouri
October 29th: K-State Football v. Oklahoma
October 30th: Munich Symphony Orchestra presents Mozart's Requiem 
Penny Pieper, Gardener
Penny Pieper, Garden Protector
Readers have been asking for it - more dog photos! Here's one of Penny protecting the garden from squirrels of course. 
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