When I was growing up in Upstate New York We couldn’t wait until Valentine’s Day because after we went to sleep the evening before, when all was quiet in our home there was something very special taking place.  A lovely lady in red and pink with lots of lace would fly in to our home and leave us treats.  Sometimes Cupid would accompany her Loveliness.

When we awoke in the morning there were a few special gifts wrapped in lovely shades of pink, violet and red and a some chocolate treats for us to enjoy later in the day.

Growing up without a lot of money, one often must rely on their imagination to create magic.  To this day The Valentine’s Day Lady still comes and now she leaves gifts and bonbons for my three sons.~

~The Following are several ways you can celebrate this Loveliest of Holidays.We have many delicious recipes and craft ideas for the entire family to enjoy….I hope you like them!~

We live close by The Botanical Gardens in NYC and one of our favorite things to do in the Winter is visit while the train display is up.  It really is quite remarkable, the boys especially love the elaborate trains and I of course, enjoy watching them weave in and out of spectacular flowers.

If you had a case of ‘WINTER BLUES’ going in, You won’t when you leave.

So then, What is one to do apres leurs visite???  Like I have encouraged so many for years…start a little indoor garden.  I love how Julie Marie of Idyllhours brings in her prized and precious geraniums that sit in her lovely breakfast window.  Many of my friends in Manhattan have herbs growing in their windows.  I do have friends, lucky little devils, that have massive sunrooms and the staff to come and care for the plants.  Though with all that help, I don’t think they are involved in the nurturing process and most likely miss out on the rewards and benefits of tending to your garden during the Winter Months.

No matter how large or tres petit, even one plant can add to the quality of the air you breath.

Last year I think I posted a few pictures on our “Candy Train’ party that coincided with Valentine’s Day Week.  I set a table with some of our ‘left over’ poinsettia plants and various pink and purple plants and flowers in our  ’Jardin Hiver’, then I set a table using my favorite Limoge China from my wedding Registry and wove a train in and around our table setting.  Because I live with all boys, I thought it appropriate fun to add lots of bonbons of course!!

When I tell you even the ‘coolest’ boys will stop playing their video games and are drawn like a magnet to our candy train I am not exaggerating one bit, even the grown up men seem to turn into little boys when in the presence of a train chugging joyful around a table filled with treats.

If time permits this week I think I may change it up a bit but still using my ‘inspiration’ from the wonderful Botanical Gardens, I may just need to break out that old train set for one last bit of winter fun before I am back outdoors in the dirt, where I so love to be.

A SNOWY WEEKEND IN THE COUNTRY:

We had snow over the weekend and spent the days baking, cooking, eating, playing in the snow, watching an ‘I Love Lucy’ marathon, and of course, watching the Superbowl. One of our favorite things we did this weekend was bake these yummy cookies.

I used Susan Branch’s Butter Cookie Recipe and regular butter cream icing.  Although I enjoy the ‘Flooding’ technique and the glossy outcome of the icing, all of my boys prefer a softer icing. And it is easier, we used off set spatulas in place of pastry bags.

I am savoring the last days of Winter.  It is so cozy to be snowed in with a roaring fire going, a cup of tea, a good book and an inviting French antique bed, especially one with my Grandmother’s vintage linens on it.

~ the hearts that are sprinkled on my gold bar tray are from the dollar store in Vermont.  They were two bags for a dollar! ~

These are our ‘Cookie Cutter’ drawers.  Some were my grandmothers and some that my mother gave me, many much older than me!! I still collect them on my travels.

I love opening this drawer, it always puts a smile on my face.

I spent hours making these cookies and the time flew by.  Baking is so relaxing to me.  All three of my sons seemed in a meditative trance while decorating their cookies, even my 16 year old son!! Who of course is way too cool to be photographed doing such on his mother’s blog.

Oliver had a lot of fun early on SuperBowl Sunday while I started to make some grown-up S.B. Food.

~These are the cookies I decorated.  I have a variety of candy flowers in my pantry.  My favorite one is the LOVE with the purple pansy on it.

SWEETHEART’S SUPPER:

Last year I was asked to teach a class on entertaining for the ‘Newcomer’s’ in our town.  I don’t know anyone in that class since I have lived in this area for over 20 years.  But my web designer is a member and they invited me to teach.  I still can’t believe I actually get paid to do the incredibly fun things I do!  I enjoy giving classes and helping others entertain.

The following is just a quick outline of the class with a few easy delicious recipes you may enjoy making over the weekend.  I used several books for inspiration they can all be found in my Amazon Store.

VALENTINE’S DAY BY THE PARIS HOUSE DESIGNS

“ A SWEETHEARTS SUPPER FOR TWO”

asparagus spears wrapped in prosciutto spread with a garlic herbed Montrachet cheese

Sweethearts Salad

parslied buttered potatoes

steak au poivre

chocolate coconut truffles

sugar cookie hearts dipped in chocolate

The Cupid cocktail;

The Paris House signature Strawberry champagne cocktail

Asparagus Spears with Prosciutto and garlic herbed Montrachet cheese-

Apprx. 4-5 ounces of good Montrachet Goat cheese

2-3 cloves of garlic, less if you prefer a more subtle garlic flavor

1 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper

if using salt , be careful to add just a pinch as the Prosciutto is very salty

32 Asparagus spears, trimmed of the woody bottoms

16 pieces of thinly sliced prosciutto

cook asparagus in a large pot of rapidly boiling water for apprx. 5minutes and remove and immediately plunge into a prepared ice water bath to shock and stop the cooking, you want the asparagus to be firm! Drain and pat dry.

Cut each slice of prosciutto in half crosswise and spread your montrachet mixture on each piece and roll around the asparagus , you should have 32 spears, chill until your party.

I like to serve mine in a chic vase with a glass inserted, so it resembles a floral sculpture!!

PARSLIED BUTTERED POTATOES

Either, new, bliss or fingerling potatoes, and you can adjust the quantities, depending on how many people

It is very basic, just scrub potatoes , place on a baking sheet, you can line with parchment to make for an easier clean up.  Drizzle with a good olive oil, dot with unsalted butter. I use both fresh and dried parsley, and salt and freshly ground pepper. Roast for 20 minutes in a 375 degree oven and check to see then bake another 10 minutes, just keep checking and stirring them on the pan to evenly coat them.  You can also use a pyrex glass baking dish for this, you just want them to stay moist and tender and not dry out. I also like to drizzle a delicious Olive oil over the top when they come out of the oven.

THE VALENTINE’S DAY LADY’S SWEETHEARTS SALAD!!!- ( I grew up getting Valentine’s day gifts that my parents told us were from the Valentine’s day Lady and Cupid so I thought it only fitting to honor her with this

lovely

You can use canned beets, easy and quick or fresh beets delicious and a little bit more time consuming.  If using fresh beets wrap in foil and place in a 400 degree oven for 1 hour until fork tender.  Either way, then you get your heart shaped cookie cutters out and cut out heart shapes for your salad. Make as many as you like.

A mélange of salad greens

Wonderful goat cheese crumbled or any cheese you like, I will be using a gorgonzola for mine.

Candied walnuts, you can purchase these at Gary’s and specialty stores

You can make this very quick and simple by purchasing a raspberry vinaigrette or pre paring your own:

Vinaigrette-

2 Tablespoons raspberry, vinegar

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

½ teaspoon salt

freshly ground pepper to taste

6 Tablespoons good quality oil

combine all ingredients

Visit Our CHEERS for great cocktail ideas you can make at Valentine’s Day.

STEAK AU POIVRE-from Susan Branch’s Love Cookbook

This recipe is adapted from Susan Branch’s cookbook “Love” I usually double the ingredients in the sauce because I love it and want a lot of it on our steaks I also crumble in some gorgonzola cheese and occasionally add sautéed wild mushrooms as well.  You can be creative and make it however you and your Sweetheart like!

Serves two

1 – 1 ½ Tbsp. cracked black pepper                                 2 Tbsp cognac

2 Tenderloin steaks                                                           2 Tbsp red wine

2 Tbsp butter                                                                     ¼ C. beef broth

1 Tbsp. shallots, finely minced                                         2 Tbsp. heavy cream

Press the cracked pepper into your fillets, heat the butter in a heavy bottom skilled and sear steaks over medium high heat on both sides. Turning once.  Reduce heat to medium and cook until desired doneness.  Remove and keep warm. Add shallots to pan, you may need to add a bit more butter, and sauté then deglaze your pan with your cognac and wine scraping up all the brown bits. Cook on med/high heat add your beef broth cook another couple of minutes and then add your heavy cream season with salt and pepper as needed and I also like to add a little fresh herbs, such as a bit of thyme, or fresh parsley. Pour sauce over steaks and serve.

A QUICK IDEA FOR A DESSERT IF YOU ARE NOT A BAKER OR IF YOU ARE AND ARE JUST TOO BUSY

Pick up some heart shaped sugar cookies or have your children use the Pillsbury ready made dough and cut out heart shaped cookies.  Then using a fondue pot dip half of the cookie in the chocolate to coat along with some fresh fruit! Yum

SHE’S CRAFTY:

If crafting is your thing then give one of these wreaths a try.  They can be found on here on Martha Stewart.  I made the pistachio wreath about 13 years ago and also made one for my brother Michael as a Valentine’s Day Gift.  Ours is in bad shape now due to the mice in the attic snacking on it.  However the Cockscomb wreath below it, which I also made years ago held up well enough for me to photograph.

~ Remember, This Day is NOT just for couples, gather your children, family, friends, anyone who makes you happy~

This is Rufus, he is our Families early Valentine’s Day Gift.  We rescued this sweet little dog.  He is 2 years old and didn’t have a family, a name or a home.  Now he does. We are in LOVE with our little boy.  I call him Rufie.

LOVE LETTERS FROM OLIVER:

My sweet Oliver not only leaves me love letters and sweet comments on my blog, He also e-mails me daily.  Here are a couple of my favorites:

Oh My mommy i love you,

Oh My mommy,

Oh My mommy yes i dooooooooooooooooooo,

Love

Oliver

I love you soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much.

My Angel Mommy

Love

Oliver

Hi Mommy

Your a cute cute cute cute cute cute cute cute cute mommy! I Love you! & i love you all day & all night!

Love

Oliver

Have a Great Week and Lovely Valentine’s Day.  I am swamped with Paris House business the rest of the Week.  I’ll be by to visit everyone and then I’ll be back posting early next week.