Nest Decorating & Designs by Tamar

A summer dinner al fresco

 

I love our summers here in Vermont, there's always a good reason to celebrate and when friends come to town what can be more fun then a dinner outdoors! our friend Ginny invited us to dinner out in her lovely barn and gardens, here is a glimpse.

The barn

 

Ginny her dog and the troop on the way to dinner

a gorgeous Vermont sunset

 

xox

 

New Item! A set of 4 Napkin Rings

My heart skipped a beat when I saw these beautiful photos taken by Susana Oliveira from one of my favorite blogs Citrus and Orange, the talented Susana is a master in setting the most delightful table tops and I was so honored she chose my Napkin Rings for her festive holiday shoot!!

Thank you Susana!! xox

Sweet Paul

Are you ready for a real treat???  do you love to cook?  do you swoon over amazing photos?  check out the new issue of one of my absolute favorite online magazines "Sweet Paul" :

 

xox

Another dreamy house

Yesterday afternoon we were invited to our good friends Diane and Tom for dinner, I love going there, they have a gorgeous 200 year old farm house which they bought in a very sorry state and did wonders with!

Situated high up on a hill overlooking the Green Mountains it is so peaceful that you just melt away into total relaxation...

 

 I love the old stairs leading up to the second floor

 

the open and airy living room was once an animal shed

 

I even love the bathroom!

a quiet corner in the garden

 

the red barn

 

the garden

 

 

 

 

 

freshly picked for the dinner table

 

to good friends!

xox

Crispy curry chicken tenders recipe

I don't usually give out recipes on my blog (I should probably do it more)  but I've had many requests from friends for this one recipe, so here it is :

First of all I start with organic or natural chicken breasts that I slice into thin strips about 4-5" long and about 1"-2" wide.

I put them in a bowl and mix them with about 4 tablespoons of oil that I mix with 1 tablespoon of curry, 1tsp of salt and some freshly grated black pepper. The  curry powder really makes it super yummy!

Then I have a little assembly line going:

Chicken, flour, egg, bread crumbs (or Panko)

 

first cover with flour

 

then dip lightly into the egg

until it's covered with egg on all sides but still has the flour underneath

then dip into breadcrumbs and completly cover and really press those breadcrumbs in with your fingers (that also flattens the pieces and makes them extra crispy).

 

Then into the pan, Med-High heat , when they are nice and golden on one side flip to the other side.

I pat them dry with lots and lots of paper towels to get the oil out.

This recipe is my sons absolute favorite dish! the curry in the oil mixture really gives it an extra something, and the flour makes them super crispy.

xox

Apple Pie

Remember this Apple Picking post? well I made the yummy apple pie recipe that was printed on the lovely bag and what can I say it was the best apple pie I ever made!!! 

The recipe is Nick's, who is the owner of Shelburne Orchards, with a few little changes made by me and some photos I took of the process, enjoy!!!

APPLE PIE RECIPE

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

CRUST (for one pie, two crusts)

2 cups of all-purpose flour

1 and a half sticks of cold butter

1/3 cup ice cold water

pinch of salt

Mix flour, butter (cut into 1/2" chunks), water and salt in a food processor, mix until the mixture starts to thump around, less than a minute. Cut the ball of dough in half and press down to form two discs, cover with Saran Wrap and place in the fridge to cool.

when the filling is cool (see bottom for the recipe for the filling) take the discs out, roll out the bottom crust, using plenty of flour on the rolling pin and on the dough. When the size is right (a 10" circle for a 9" pie), brush off the extra flour and set the dough in the pie plate. Roll out the top crust.

Filling:

8 good sized apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2" to 3/4" pieces (I used all kinds of apples I had at home)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup maple syrup

cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice to taste

1 tablespoon instant tapioca (it's optional but I loved this little addition!)

simmer everything in a large skillet until the apples have softened.

 

Put the apple filling into the crust lined pie plate

trim away the excess dough, slightly wet the top edges of the bottom crust, pop on the top crust

pinch and trim the dough and work your way around the crust pushing the dough between your fingers to make a ruffled edge. Cut holes in the top of the crust for air escape (I am sure you can be a little more creative with your design then this...)

OK, now into the 350 degrees oven for 35-40 minutes.

If desired you can use this optional crust treatment at 15-20 minutes, I thought it really made a difference!

you'll need:

3 tablespoons butter, 1 egg white, sugar.

Soften the butter and mix with the egg white, if the butter is soft enough it can be brushed on the crust while it's hot. Brush it on the ruffles and all over the top of the pie after 15-20 minutes of baking, sprinkle sugar over this and return to the oven.

When the pie is done the crust will be slightly golden brown and the filling will bubble and ooze a little. You can also poke a fork into one of the holes to see if the apples are soft but NOT sauce!.

let cool.

eat!

yum!

If you have any questions you can always email me or comment.

xox

It was GREAT!

Hello all!! yesterday's party went great! true, it was unbelievingly hot but at least it didn't rain!
I managed to do everything I dreamed of from the decorations to the food and a great big thanks to my mother in law Ruthi and sister in law Lili  that helped me in the kitchen, and the rest of the boys helping my husband in the garden, we could never pull it off with out them!Thank you so much my sweet family.
The Birthday-Bar mitzvah boy was delighted even though there was a little to much pink going around but he didn't say a word and let his mama go wild!
Here are some photo:

The long table from afar with tissue paper  balls

A mix of flower fabrics created a long tablecloth

Plastic flowers in funky colors in buckets

Cath Kidston paper plates beefed up with white plates in between ( they are so expensive...)

Cutlery in little colored watering cans

Long ribboned silk roses hanging from a tree

A little part of The dessert table, almond cookies,chocolate covered strawberry sticks,brownies,tarts and wild cupcakes

was soooooo tasty!
xox <3