Tuesday, October 5, 2010

October Tea


It's cold and foggy outside.
Won't you join me for some Cream Caramel tea,
toasted bagels and "homemade" apple butter?
(easy peasy recipe in a minute)


The teacups are from my wedding set for "every day."
2 tea cups and 3 dessert plates are all that's left.
The cup is chipped
and the plate is crazed.


I remember registering for this set at Crate and Barrel ...
that would have been over 15 yrs ago.
It felt so luxurious to fill out a wish list there ...
I was so used to shopping WalMart and Target for everything.


The tea today was a special gift from a fellow blogger
It turns out she has connections at Ceylon Tea Co ...
and she thought I'd like to taste test it.
Oh My Goodness!
This tea is so smooth.
There is no bitterness or harshness.
With this particular tea, I can really taste the cardamom.


Which brings me to the easy peasy "homemade" apple butter.
All I do is get a large jar of unsweetened apple sauce,
add 
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
and simmer until super smooth.

***

I told you about our foggy morning.
Walking to school this morning,
my daughter informed me,
"Charlotte's web was made visible
when the fog descended."

"The next day was foggy. Everything on the farm was dripping wet. The grass looked like a magic carpet. The asparagus patch looked like a silver forest.

"On foggy mornings, Charlotte's web was truly a thing of beauty. This morning each thin strand was decorated with dozens of tiny beads of water. The web glistened in the light and made a pattern of loveliness and mystery, like a delicate veil."

- e.b. white


s o m e    p i g

***
I hope your day is filled with salutations and uncommon friendship.

For more October tea, please visit the tea blogs listed in my sidebar.



24 comments:

lynda Howells said...

hi. I love spider's webs and when the dew or rain is on them like these...they are so beautiful. wonderful images.x lyndax

sarah said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
sarah said...

ok let me try this again... somedays it's not so fun being a ding dong! i love your post! those spider webs are beautiful! i thought of you this morning and the work you have done on your gulf project... we were working on some poetry to go with a prompt on monday's child... the image made me think of all of God's creations stuck in what is dark and scary... enjoy your tea! i will be trying out your recipe! blessings....s...

my cup of tea said...

I loved that book as a child and as an adult! Thank you for the sweet reminder! Happy Fall!!!
~Donna~

Caterina Giglio said...

well that is a simple recipe and I shall try it of course and as for the tea, sounds yummy!! but that web is just spectacular and the fog with the out of focus background makes it perfect for the season! great T post!! oh and your china is wonderful, crazed and chipped! xox

BadPenny said...

ooh Charlotte's webs are too beautiful - like jewels.

I quite like crazed china ...we have some wedding china left. It was put together by an Aunt from the Potteries area of the Uk ( midlands )...two different sets made up one ! For years we kept it as " best "..then realised we only used it twice a year so now we use it again & again !

Anonymous said...

Oh Kimmie, Lovely tea cup, crazed glaze is beautiful too! I was so crushed when Charlotte died, but I still am fond of webs, and this one is a beauty! Hugs, Christen

Steph said...

Excellent post dear Kimmie!! where do I start....the tea sounds delish, and the quote and the photos....love the spider webs...such details.....thanks for the recipe as well!!!

hugs steph

Gayle Price said...

i have loved visiting you today for tea..... 'cream caramel'.... sounds amazing. I don't enjoy sweet tea but this sounds delicious. Your photos of the web are just beautiful !!! Can you tell me the camera you have and the lens you used, I am a learner photographer and I know 'webs" are difficult to snap, thanks for sharing your beautiful foggy morning.

teresaS said...

The creme caramel is my favorite. I knew you would enjoy it! You'll like the other flavors, too, I'm sure.
The web photos are spectacular. I don't know anyone that doesn't love Charlotte's Web.
What a lovely autumnal blog post indeed!! I am SO happy to have found you in blogland!

Unknown said...

Gayle - the camera I use is a Nikon Coolpix S60. (It's just a little pocket sized all purpose camera) I get good results when I set it to the macro setting - or use the scene choice: flowers. And I learned from photography class years ago - to shoot LOTS of pictures. There's bound to be one good one in there. For todays post I shot 60 pictures - and only had about 12 good ones.

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

Here it is dinner time in my neck of the woods, and I am hungry for bagels and homemade apple butter. That recipe really IS easy and I'll be making some soon. You are right. I would LOVE to have that tea pot. It would go very well with my blue collections.

I never knew that was what cracked glaze was called before. I have some of that, including a pitcher that belonged to my Grandmother that I used in one of my tea posts this summer. Now I know: CRAZED.

Those spider webs are gorgeous. I am like you on the concept of taking lots of photos. I usually take about 40 and hope for two or three good ones in a post.

Sorry I'm late getting here. I actually made it to my studio today for the first time in a week. Happy rather late Tea Tuesday.

Odd Chick said...

oh my, those spider webs looked like crystal jewelry uniquely pinned across the landscape - really great photographs! And thank you for the apple butter recipe- I needed a good one.

Yvonne said...

Oh my that tea does sound like it's smooth. Will hve to find it if I can. The first photo of the spider web took my breath away. Thanks for a wonderful tea day.

sukipoet said...

ooooh, gorgeous photos. your daughter is quite articulate and sweet. and the easy peasy apple butter sounds fun! I thought you were going to give me a way to get rid of these apples sitting on the counter. Well, I could make applesauce and then apple butter.

Elizabeth said...

I love this post. It makes me feel cozy and happy to be alive in such a beautiful, mysterious world.

Terri Kahrs said...

I love your wedding dishes, Kimmie! And it's so very perfect that they're cracked and crazed. They were used and loved and have gone through many changes - much like a marriage!

Your spiderweb shots are AMAZINGly STUNNING!!!! Blew me away this morning! Awesome post!!!! Hugs, Terri xoxoxo

foxysue said...

Your pics are gorgeous, speaking of taking loads of shots, I've just remembered I have some spider's web pics in my camera will have to see if they're blog worthy! Thanks for commenting on my paper post too.

margie said...

good heavens. look at those spider web shots. glorious.

Nancy said...

I would love to have joined you for tea and bagels.....your photos of the webs are so beautiful, natures jewels :)

*jean* said...

what a beautiful post...some pig, indeed...one of my favorite books..i'll bet that tea smells divine! your web shots are gorgeous

Victoria said...

Woe..super beautiful post! and your spider webs are enchanting and gorgeous...wow!!
Victoria~

Teri said...

Isn't nature so beautiful? Who would think that a spider web could looks so gorgeous? It is dripping with jewels. They are sparkling like diamonds really. Excellent photos Kimmie! Make some cards and put them on ETSY...I would buy some! Funny word verification: terbil My name (ter) my husband's (Bil)

ELK said...

oh . such . uncommon . beauty