Martha Stewart?

Posted by: Dotsie

Martha Stewart? - 12/09/03 07:20 PM

Okay so I got your attention... [Big Grin]

I'm about to share the most Martha Stewartish project I've ever done. [Razz]

So you can either click to anothe rpost or read on.... [Razz]

Hopefully some of you will be able to use this idea during the season.

Since the kids were little we would always bake for our neighbors and on Christmas Eve my husabnd and the kids would drive around the neighborhood and deliver the goodies. TRADITION!
Still doing it last year at ages, 14, 15, and 17. We baked all kinds of cookies and always a Baby Jesus Cupcake on each glass plate that I bought from the dollar store.

The Baby Jesus cupcakes were simple to make. Cupcake mix, chocolate icing, coconut with yellow food coloring as hay and a plastic baby plunked down on the hay.

Well with the diabetics in the house I chose to bake less and do something else.

Are you ready for this ladies?

You know the clementines you buy in little crates this time of year? My family loves them, and so do I.

I save all those little wooden crates, spray paint them silver or gold, fill them with greens (all kinds), and put fruit and Christmas candy that I buy at Sam's Club, along with some little ornament that I buy at the dollar store (8 for a dollar), couple candy canes, and call it a gift/center-piece.

What do you think? Would Martha be proud or what?

If you don't buy the clementines, you could use boxes.

They look very Christmasy!

Anyone else have gift ideas?
Posted by: jawjaw

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/10/03 08:32 AM

sounds kewl Dotsie...but what the heck is a clementine?
Posted by: Maggie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/09/03 09:34 PM

Thank you, Jawjaw, I too wondered what a clementine is. If the Queen doesn't know what they are how are the rest of us supposed to know? [Big Grin]
I may have to try this with the little crates
taking up space here.
Yes, you definitely have a Martha Stewart idea.
Thanks,
Maggie
Posted by: Evie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/10/03 12:06 AM

I'm guessing a clementine is some type of orange..........or somebody's darlin'

(oh my darlin', oh my darlin', oh my darlin' clementine.......jawjaw I'm surprised you didn't know that [Razz] actually I'm surprised you read the post considering Martha Stewart was the title.....)
Posted by: Dotsie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/10/03 12:28 AM

Oh my darlin's, what's a clementine? [Big Grin]

A clementine is this wonderful piece of fruit (not an orange and not a tangerine) but a clementine.

It's the juiciest thing you've ever tasted, simple to peel, and no seeds.

Look in the produce areas next time you're in the grocery store. they are usually at the end of the ailes stacked in wooden crates with red mesh covering the top so they don't fall out.
Posted by: jawjaw

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/10/03 01:32 AM

uh...I knew what they were...really! honest. I just wanted to see if YOU ALL knew......what?

I say we all go buy some "clementines" and mail them to Martha in the slammer...whatcha say?

We could call them MartSlammers...eh? nice ring to it, don't you think?

She would probably make a million off of um....knowing her.. [Roll Eyes]
Posted by: Julie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/10/03 04:13 AM

Glad nobody else knew what clementines were. [Wink]

Last year I did something similar for gifts but didn't use crates - I picked up some inexpensive christmas tartan tea towels (with gold thread in the pattern) and folded them in an origami pattern that makes a little box ( I used spray starch and the iron to make them stiff enough to stay in place). Quite quick to do and then I filled them with goodies and wrapped the lot in clear cellophane.

I'm going to make your baby Jesus cupcakes for my daughter's daycare party...haven't heard of those before! [Big Grin]
Posted by: Evie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/10/03 04:22 AM

well, I'm just going to march into the local grocery store and tell them I want a clementine........and then watch their reaction..... [Confused]

round here, a kiwi is about as exotic as we get.......or maybe the occasional mango...... [Razz]
Posted by: Julie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/10/03 04:28 AM

Back in the 70's when my eldest sister was living in London she went to the shops and asked for passionfruit...(something we have by the ton in summer in Oz) they thought she was joking...
Posted by: Dotsie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/10/03 04:26 PM

I guess Baltimore is a big city cmpared to some of the other locations in this neighborhood. We can get just about any type of food we want. there are all kinds of specialty food stores too. My favorite is an Italian store in the city a couple doors down from where my husband's office. They have every kind of special Italian ingredient you can imagine. mmm, mmm, good...delicious sandwiches too.

Here I am talking about food again.

He also works near a market and I just love browsing there. [Big Grin] [Big Grin]

Julie, gald yo are making those cupcakes. Just make sure no one eats the baby Jesus. [Razz]
Posted by: Julie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/11/03 12:59 AM

I might use jelly babies so that they can! [Smile]
Posted by: Dotsie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/27/03 09:17 PM

Confession, guess what's sitting by the back door at my house? [Eek!]

All the clementine crates that are half painted and empty.

I ran out of steam so there they sit. Hmm, should I throw them away or save them for next year?

We ended up giving our neighbors these really pretty tines of old fashioned hard candy. they reminded me of my youth. There was even some ribbon candy in there!
Posted by: Lynn

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/27/03 11:00 PM

I love clementines and so does my entire family! The crates turn into all kinds of things for playing with afterward.

Do look for them soon in your grocery stores. They are out of season here fairly soon. I don't know where they are grown - maybe California or South America. But they are great.

Martha would be proud Dotsie!

I miss passion fruit and star fruit for my holiday punch bowl. We had a bush in our backyard that grew wild in Florida with star fruit and they are way too expensive here for garnsih!

I think you should send your crates to Martha in jail. It will give her something to do. After her bars are painted and the walls decoupaged she will be at her wits end.

Maybe she can sponge paint the toilet and the bed frame. Oh well, she will have to think of her own activities. How many years is she looking at? [Confused]
Posted by: Kristin

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/09/04 03:01 AM

Martha just landed a TV deal and has 88 days to go in the slammer. After that it's house arrest. But she's laughing all the way to the prison bank.

I'm happy to hear women here support Martha. I wrote my own pro-Martha piece:

http://quincystarnews.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=91&twindow=Default&mad=No&sdetail=774&wpage=1&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repm ax=&rebed=&rebath=&subname=

I have heard of clementine oranges and clementines [Smile]

A little extra holiday opinion: http://quincystarnews.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=91&twindow=Default&mad=No&sdetail=881&wpage=1&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repm ax=&rebed=&rebath=&subname=

Anybody here live in Quincy?
Posted by: Kristin

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/09/04 03:05 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Dotsie:
Okay so I got your attention... [Big Grin]

I'm about to share the most Martha Stewartish project I've ever done. [Razz]

So you can either click to anothe rpost or read on.... [Razz]

Hopefully some of you will be able to use this idea during the season.

Since the kids were little we would always bake for our neighbors and on Christmas Eve my husabnd and the kids would drive around the neighborhood and deliver the goodies. TRADITION!
Still doing it last year at ages, 14, 15, and 17. We baked all kinds of cookies and always a Baby Jesus Cupcake on each glass plate that I bought from the dollar store.

The Baby Jesus cupcakes were simple to make. Cupcake mix, chocolate icing, coconut with yellow food coloring as hay and a plastic baby plunked down on the hay.

Well with the diabetics in the house I chose to bake less and do something else.

Are you ready for this ladies?

You know the clementines you buy in little crates this time of year? My family loves them, and so do I.

I save all those little wooden crates, spray paint them silver or gold, fill them with greens (all kinds), and put fruit and Christmas candy that I buy at Sam's Club, along with some little ornament that I buy at the dollar store (8 for a dollar), couple candy canes, and call it a gift/center-piece.

What do you think? Would Martha be proud or what?

If you don't buy the clementines, you could use boxes.

They look very Christmasy!

Anyone else have gift ideas?
My gift idea is Gifts in a Jar: http://bakingchristmascookies.com/season/jargifts.php

I love your memories of baking for your neighbors. A friend's mom always bakes a plate of cookies every year with homemade fudge I think. My mom often gave pecan sandies and German Christmas cookies. I think these homemade gifts are the antidote to the malls and the holiday debt we always seem to rack up on things we don't need. Have you ever tried to buy someone a gift who won't give you a clue about what they like, then they look disappointed when they open your gift?
Posted by: Evie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/09/04 03:49 AM

How serendipitious (is that a word??). My 11 yr old son wants to bake cookies on the weekend. We have one of those "cookies in a jar" things I got like a year ago (ok so I don't bake much)....but I'd lost the instructions to go with it! [Razz] and then I read Kristin's post and voila!!! Thanks...

PS. when I do bake everyone wants to know who's funeral it is - since that seems to be the only time I bake [Wink]
Posted by: Kristin

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/10/04 08:40 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Evie:
How serendipitious (is that a word??). My 11 yr old son wants to bake cookies on the weekend. We have one of those "cookies in a jar" things I got like a year ago (ok so I don't bake much)....but I'd lost the instructions to go with it! [Razz] and then I read Kristin's post and voila!!! Thanks...

PS. when I do bake everyone wants to know who's funeral it is - since that seems to be the only time I bake [Wink]
Happy to help! That's why I co-wrote the book. It makes a great gift for even non-regular bakers (like me). It also makes a wonderful hostess gift, mother-in-law, co-worker, boss's, teacher's, and so forth.
Posted by: meredithbead

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/10/04 03:53 AM

I knew what Clementines are but I don't think they grow here, because I work at several farmers' markets and haven't seen them. Then maybe I wasn't looking for them, as fall is my season for Asian apple pears and persimmons. I eat several lbs. of persimmons every week while they're in season! Love them! [Cool]

A few years back I collected wild gourds in the hills, dried them and then tried to drill them. They are HARD and it took hours to drill. The inmspiration was to make non-holiday-specific hanging decorated ornaments. By the time I finished drilling I had lost my steam and the gourds are still in a box. Too much work. I think I'll stick to jewelry.
Posted by: Dotsie

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/14/04 08:25 AM

Kristin, goo didea. I've never given gifts in a jar, but I've been the lucky recipient. I received bean soup in a jar and it was delicious. All I had to do was add water.
Posted by: Kristin

Re: Martha Stewart? - 12/13/04 10:11 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Dotsie:
Kristin, goo didea. I've never given gifts in a jar, but I've been the lucky recipient. I received bean soup in a jar and it was delicious. All I had to do was add water.
I love bean soup in a jar or those packages you get from Trader Joe's...mmm-mmm.