Goat Cheese Spread
With the holidays approaching, an easy appetizer that can be made a couple days ahead is a convienient option. Try a Goat Cheese Spread which is sure to please any crowd.
You will need:
1 stick butter at room temp, 10-11oz fresh goat cheese, 2 or 3 garlic cloves mashed to a paste with 1tsp sea salt, 1/2 C. toasted, cooled and chopped pistachio nuts, 1/4 C thinly sliced chives & leave a few whole blades for garnish
Preparation:
Beat all ingredients well with electric mixer. Spoon into a serving bowl, garnish with chive blades.
It's ready to serve but actually gets better if made a couple days ahead. Let it get to room temperature before serving. Serve with sliced baguette bread.
To learn more...
Join Pasquesi's Culinary Consultant for "What Can I Bring? Easy & Elegant Appetizers" cooking class on Friday, November 20 at Pasquesi's Lake Bluff location. For more info about cost and times or to sign up visit www.maryrosecooks.com |
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Wreaths are not only for hanging on your front door anymore! They can also be transformed into a beautiful table centerpiece with a few simple additions.
How To:
Place a wreath in the center of a table. Place a hurricane or glass cylinder candleholder(with a candle) inside the center of the wreath. Your table will instantly have a whole new look that's quick & easy. | |
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November: A time for reflection & planning
by Susan Randstrom, Pasquesi Home & Gardens
As summer becomes a distant memory of coneflowers, butterflies and juicy tomatoes, autumn takes hold in our gardens and psyche. Sizzling scarlets, mellow golds and orange pumpkins decorate the crisp, cool days that lead to another season of abundance. Is it November, already?
Generally, this chilly month marks the end of our outdoor gardening activities with its heavy, gray clouds lumbering across the sky, sometimes warning with the scent of snow to come. However, the procrastinators among us still have time to dig in some monster Allium bulbs. Those silvery, lavender lollipops will look stunning- blooming along with a carpet of perennial blue Salvia, ('May Night') and orange-red Oriental Poppies (Papaver orientale 'Turkenlouis') in the June garden. There's still a little time to plant those bulbs before the ground freezes-if Mother Nature allows.
Even though the days are turning dark earlier and you trade your gardening shorts for your fleecy sweats, there still is much to do and plan for-garden-wise. The endless carpet of fallen leaves needs to be raked and recycled. Doesn't it seem crazy to have to dispose of all the leaves that graced every tree? But that defines us as city dwellers, I guess. Autumn is also a smart time to fertilize the lawn. It puts energy into the roots so that the grass is off to a good, green start next spring. Try fertilizing the lawn on Thanksgiving Day as a way to work off that feast of a meal and give thanks for the beauty it will provide next year.
And for the fun part... generously, fill clean winter-proof containers with the texture and contrast of scented, evergreen boughs, orange bittersweet, or cuttings from your garden-such as berried branches, dried hydrangea flowers or wispy grasses. Add a feeling of the 'harvest' with pumpkins, gourds, sage and hardy kale. These containers will become the perfect way to welcome guests for Thanksgiving with a feeling of abundance from the garden. Enjoy! |
Ask Melinda
Q: Should I cut my perennials back to the ground in fall or wait until spring?
A: I like to leave perennials stand for winter. Research shows perennials left standing have a better chance of surviving our often severe winter weather. Plus the seedheads add winter interest to the landscape, provide food for the birds and habitat for some beneficial insects. Always remove disease or insect infested plants to reduce the risk of these pests in next year's garden. Cut back your plants in late winter or early spring and add the debris to your compost pile. I find most of us are anxious to get started gardening in March and April. So make spring the time to do a bit of cleanup, evaluate winter damage and get a taste of gardening when there is not much else we can do that time of year.
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Feed the Birds this Winter
The key to survival for birds in winter is the same as for other animals that must endure the cold season. They must find enough food each day and protect themselves against the cold, and they must remain alert to outfox their natural predators. To do this, birds need a great deal of food.
Not only the quantity of food, but the type of food birds eat in winter is critical. They need richer food to boost their metabolism. These types of feed will help birds get the nourishment they so badly need in winter.
Pasquesi's Bird Seed Sale November 12 - 22
All bird seed & bird accessories are 25% off | |
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We appreciate your business and hope to see you again soon! |
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Sincerely,
Pasquesi Home & Gardens
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