My favorite Mother’s Day memory is the year my brother, sister and I (all in elementary school) pooled our money together and bought as much chocolate fudge as we could afford from our mother’s coveted chocolate emporium. As Mom is a chocoholic, she was thrilled. And so were we, since, for some reason, we bought way too much chocolate for just one person.

The memory inspired me to create a Mother’s Day menu designed with children in mind. Adult supervision is required, but the kids can do most of the work.

Breakfast in Bed for Mom

Breakfast is the easiest meal to prepare. And after all the tedious work that Moms do, they deserve a day to sleep in and enjoy a day off. Start the day off right with the most important meal of the day. And if there’s chocolate involved, prepared by loving hands, it’s sure to be an extra good day.

Breakfast Menu

• French Toast au Chocolat
• Sage seasoned sausage patties
• Fresh strawberries
• Coffee or tea
• Freshly squeezed orange juice

Recipes by Jennifer Mitchell

French Toast au Chocolat Recipe
This is easy for children to help prepare, as it bakes in the oven instead of cooking on the stove.

• 1 baguette – a day old
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/4  cup sugar
• 1  teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4  teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar
• Chocolate sauce

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Lightly butter a 9 x 13-inch baking pan, slice the baguette into 1-inch slices, and place the slices into the pan.
3. In a bowl beat the eggs, then whisk in the milk, sugar, vanilla and salt. Pour over the bread, and let it soak for 15 minutes.
4. Bake the French toast for 30 to 40 minutes, until the egg mixture is set. Remove from the oven.
5. Place the French toast on plates, dust with confectioner’s sugar. Finish by drizzling the chocolate syrup over the top.

Sage Sausage Patties Recipe
You can always buy the ready-made variety. But if you’re in the mood for a special treat, why not make your own?

• 1 pound ground fresh pork, chilled
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh sage
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon canola oil

1. In a bowl combine the ingredients, except for the oil, in a bowl and chill for an hour.
2. Divide the mixture into 8 balls and flatten into patties.
3. In a skillet heat the oil over moderate heat until it is hot but not smoking. Fry the patties for 3 minutes on each side and drain them on paper towels.

Presentation
Moms love a nice place setting. Start with a breakfast tray lined with a personalized placemat. This can be made from any kind of paper you have around the house. Have the kids make a special drawing or decorate it with stickers, glitter or whatever art supplies you have in the house.

A flower, cut from the garden, adds a nice touch. For extra fun, garnish Mom’s plate with photo cutouts of the kids taped or glued onto toothpicks.

>>> Sourcing:
Buy online: Mother’s Day Card by scarycarriecreates [etsy.com] – price: $3.75 USD
Buy online: Cooking Owl – Limited Edition Print by barkingbirdart [etsy.com] – price: $9 USD
Buy online: Joy Bed in a Bag [Target] – price: $71.99 – $109.99 USD
Photo credit: French Toasts covered with oatmeal, picture by Kim Vallee – rights reserved
Guest Blogger: Jennifer Mitchell [Design Hole]

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On each half-hour episode he’d complete an oil painting – usually a landscape with lots of “happy trees”. He made it looks so easy! Suddenly I had a great idea for a party.

Tag Team Painting with Bob

Why not host a painting party? Fine art is so refined, right? Not in this case, because in order for this party to be truly fun, alcohol is a must. Best of all, no artistic talent is needed. I call this party Tag Team Painting With Bob (Drinks on the Side).

Basically, your guests are divided into groups of two or more. The show begins and painter number one paints along with Bob. After five minutes, the next person takes over while the first imbibes. And around they go until the show is over.

The team with the best painting is declared Master Pieces and wins a prize. Caution: your guests will want to paint another one, so have supplies ready.

Party Preparations

First, rent or buy a copy of The Joy of Oil Painting. All the TV seasons are available in DVD on Bob Ross’ Web site. Skim through the episodes until you find one or two you like. Then, make a list of the paint colors and brushes ‘ole Bob uses.

You don’t need to spend lots of money and you don’t have to use oil paints. Acrylic paints in large bottles and cheap brushes are perfect. The same thing goes for canvases. They can be expensive, so substitute with large sheets of watercolor paper or poster board. Michaels is a good place to shop. And they often have coupons. A good prize is a frame for the big winner.

You need easels. I borrowed mine from a private school via a friend. You can buy tabletop easels made of foam core. Or, have your guests pull double duty as both artist and easel.

Party Time

Be sure to serve the Pisco Sours, or your favorite adult beverages, as your guests arrive. The dip and other nibbles can be set out, too. I recommend serving the dinner in between painting sets. Don’t skip on the prizes! A frame for the winner is nice – you know they’ll want to hang it over their mantle. Or, have a trophy made up. They’re very inexpensive and lots of fun.
Peace, love and painting, dude!

Menu

Feel free to go wild with this menu. The idea is munchy food to go along with our mellow, hippy artist scene. Groovy.

• Shooters, or Pisco Sours
• Cheese and Bean Dip (sounds gross but it’s awesome)
• Sliders
• Homemade Frites served in cups or the Classic Beer Batter Fish and Chips (about 3 bites per fish piece)
• Fruit (if you must)
• Rice Krispies Treats
• Chocolate cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting [Barefoot Contessa]
• All your favorite nibbles

Recipes by Jennifer Mitchell

Pisco Sours Recipe

• 3 parts Pisco (a Chilean brandy that packs a punch)
• 1 1/2 parts lemon juice
• 1 -2 tablespoons fine sugar

Cheese and Bean Dip Recipe

• One 8-ounce package cream cheese, sliced in thin slices
• One can Hormel Chili – no beans
• One package of shredded cheddar cheese
• One bunch of green onions – chopped (just the green part)
• Two bags of tortilla chips

Layer the ingredients in a baking dish in the order given – excluding the chips. Bake in a medium oven for about a half hour. Or, nuke in the microwave for about 5 minutes until melted. Serve with chips.

Sliders Recipe

Makes 12 mini hamburgers a la White Castle

• 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
• 1/2 chopped onion
• 1 package cheddar cheese slices
• One package Parker House rolls, or other type of dinner roll.

Mix the hamburger with salt and pepper. Make 12 little meatballs and flatten to form patties. Sauté the onions and set them aside. Cook up the burgers and add cheese, if desired. Place burgers on rolls, along with the onion.

>>> Sourcing:
Buy in stores: The Bob Ross Travel Easel at Micheals
Find: Store Locator of Micheals
Recipe: Classic Fish And Chips by Man-Made Food on FoodTV.ca
Recipe: Kellogg Original Rice Krispies Treats
Photo credits: Omer de Serres – art supplies pictures except the easel
Photo credit: Pisco Sour en casa by Capienzzo on Flickr – Some rights reserved
Photo credit: Cupcakes photographed by Quentin Bacon – Rights reserved picture
Guest Blogger: Jennifer Mitchell [Design Hole]

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I am thrilled to have my first guest blogger, Jennifer Mitchell of Design Hole.

I’m so happy to be guest blogging for Kim. I write about interior design and this gives me a chance to write about my second love – throwing dinner parties for friends. Did I mention that I love to cook? I do.

My favorite dinner party is the one I throw every January, when it’s my turn to play hostess for my book club. In our book club, the hostess chooses the book. And, while we all always enjoy the associated discussion, for us the evening is really all about the food.

I like to plan the menu around the location or theme of the book. Sometimes it presents a bit of a challenge, but it also makes it more fun. Here is one of my favorite book club ideas.

To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

Most people read this book in high school. But it’s amazing how much more you take away from it as an adult. This Southern Gothic novel was drawn largely from Lee’s childhood memories. Her life-long friend, Truman Capote, makes an appearance as Dill.  I also recommend Mockingbird, an excellent biography of Lee written by Charles Shields.

A southern novel calls for southern food. My favorite cookbook for authentic recipes is The Gift of Southern Cooking, by Edna Lewis and Scott Peacock. This is the real deal, with an excellent Lane cake recipe. I have my own recipe for fried chicken (which I have my southern born grandmother to thank for). The cake is a particularly good choice because it’s mentioned in the book as a secret recipe, and can be made several days in advance.

Menu

• Toast cups with shrimp salad
• Fried chicken
• Steamed asparagus
• Biscuits
• Lane cake

Jennifer Mitchell’s Fried Chicken

Throw your diet out the door – at least for one night. This recipe takes time, but don’t skip steps. Trust me, it’s worth it. Thanks go to my grandmother, who grew up in Bessemer, Alabama.

Ingredients:

• One 3-pound (1 1/2 Kilo) chicken, cut into pieces
• 1/2 cup kosher salt
• 1 quart/ liter buttermilk
• 1 1/2 pounds (3/4 kilo) lard
• 1 cup flour
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper

Step by step instructions

1. Brine the chicken (this tenderizes the meat and is essential) by soaking the pieces in a large bowl of water (about 2 quarts or liters) mixed with kosher salt for eight hours, or overnight. Drain and rinse out the bow. Return the chicken to the bowl and cover it with the buttermilk for another eight hours. Drain the chicken.
2. To prepare for frying, mix the flour with the salt and pepper in a bowl.  Heat the lard in a skillet (I use a well-seasoned cast iron one) to a temperature of 350 F (175 C). The temperature is really important.
3. Dredge the chicken in the flour mixture and fry it for about 10 minutes on each side. Start with the skin side down, fry in batches – skimming the browned bit in between.
4. Drain in a single layer on crumpled paper towels, or wire racks. Do not layer until you’re ready to serve, or the chicken will steam itself and lose its crispness.
5. Keep it warm in a low oven, until ready to serve. It’s good at room temperature, too.

>>> Sourcing:
Buy online: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee at Amazon – price: $11.16 USD
Buy online: Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee by Charles J. Shields at Amazon- price: $10.50 USD
Buy online: The Gift of Southern Cooking: Recipes and Revelations from Two Great American Cooks by Edna Lewis at Amazon – price: $19.77 USD
Guest Blogger: Jennifer Mitchell [Design Hole]

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