Save While You Savor: 2 Favorite #DIY Desserts in Jars!

Peach Crisp in a Jar Recipe

Ingredients:

Peach Crisp Filling: 6 fresh peaches, peeled and chopped 1 cup sugar 1/2 tsp. cinnamon 2 eggs beaten Juice from one lemon (I used a lime because I didn’t have a lemon on hand) 1/2 cup of flour

Graham Cracker Crust: 16 graham crackers crushed 6 tablespoons melted butter 2 tablespoons sugar

Crumble Topping: 1 1/4 cups flour 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/4 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. cinnamon one stick of butter, melted

Instructions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare peaches. In a large bowl, combine peaches along with the rest of the peach crisp filling ingredients. Set aside.

Place crushed graham crackers, melted butter and sugar in a medium bowl and mix thoroughly. Press several tablespoons of the mixture into each jar and press down with a measuring cup. Mix ingredients for crumble topping using a whisk.

Set aside crumble topping. 

Add peach filling to the jars, making sure you leave room for the crumble topping.

Spoon crumble mixture on top of peach filling. If you are planning to add a lid, do not overfill. Place jars on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 30-35 minutes on a low oven rack.

Banana Bread in a Jar Recipe  (Makes one dozen 250 ml jars)

Ingredients:

2/3 cup shortening 2 2/3 cups white sugar 4 eggs 2 cups mashed bananas 2/3 cup water 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 2 teaspoons baking soda 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon ground cloves (I used half a teaspoon because I didn’t want mine too ‘clovey’.) 2/3 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

You might also need:

12 250 ml canning jars funnel

Instructions: If you are planning on storing these for a while, you will need to sterilize your jars. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease insides of a dozen 250ml canning jars. In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy.

Mash bananas. Beat in eggs, bananas, and water. Sift together flour, baking powder, soda, salt, cinnamon, and cloves. Add to banana mixture. Add nuts and stir them in with spoon. Insert canning funnel into mouth of jar and pour mixture into greased jars, filling half full. Place jars directly on rack in oven. Do NOT put lids on jars for baking. Be careful to keep the rims clean, wiping off any batter that gets on the rims. Bake for 45 minutes. Don’t worry if a few rise over the top of the jar a bit like this one. You can press it down with the lid.

Note: To be safe, I wouldn’t make these more than a week before your wedding or event. We don’t endorse keeping for long periods because we are not food scientists and cannot speak to longevity canned bread.

Source: All recipes adapted from allrecipes.com

Real {Texas} Wedding: Tiffany & Her African Prince Charming!

There's something about bringing two cultures together in a marriage. Like any other relationship it takes alot of love, patience and understanding. A friend of mine told me about a wedding she attending a couple months ago and said that it was beautiful to see two completely different backgrounds unite. The bride is African-American and the groom is from Sudan. Here are some pictures from their intimate wedding in San Antonio, TX. The Bride, Tiffany said "I choose to keep the feeling romantic, vintage, warm, and celebratory". Her wedding planner, Sandy Colon of Elegance by Sandy in San Antonio also created her gorgeous brooch bouquet.

How beautiful is this bridal brooch bouquet? I love how the design mixes different styles and colors without clashing.

In the vintage theme, the couple incorporated old jewelry boxes as center pieces with simple lavender roses. The tables were surrounded by brown wooden Chivari chairs which gave it a bit of a timeless feel. Each guest was given a favor bag with the note "Welcome to Our Wedding". Overall the decor was very simple but went with 

Love the personalized coaster cards on each table setting. It's a great way to add detail without spending too much!

Bling Bling! Never can go wrong with some sparkly wedding shoes or the bride's gorgeous wedding rings below! Brides make sure to work with your photographers to get all of your favorite shots on a list so that every detail is pictured for you to have and to hold after your special day!

 In the United States, a groom's cake is a wedding tradition typically associated with the American South. While a wedding cake may often be decorated in white and light in texture or color, the groom's cake can take a variety of forms, many incorporating chocolate similar to the one above. The theme of the cake table was bride and groom; from both cakes and the adorable matching tuxedo and wedding gown champagne bottle covers!

Congrats to the bride and groom! Your dreams came true and you had a wonderful wedding. I love this moment of the wedding when the two enter the room and take their positions on the dance floor, the music starts and they enjoy their first steps as husband and wife while getting lost in each other's eyes! 

Real {Ethiopian} Wedding: Solomon & His Bride's Authentic Portland

One of the most impressive aspects of this wedding was the size and supportive nature of the grooms party and brides party. They marched as a collective whole with Solomon as he went to deliver flowers to his bride to be and see her for the first time at this authentic Ethiopian wedding.

Family, friends, and elders gather around the living room awaiting to greet the couple at this Authentic Portland Ethiopian Wedding.

In case you missed breakfast or cant eat from wedding jitters, Ethiopian culture can help you with a goorsha, which I refer to as a handful of food and love. Its customary for the family to feed the groom before he meets his bride.

Its Ethiopian tradition for the couple to walk past everyone after the first look and are welcomed with cheers and well wishes from all guests. In many cases be prepared for singing, clapping, and sometimes the sound of musical instruments like a drum.

When having a "so called" Ethnic Wedding its nice to have authentic symbolic items and wedding favors to showcase and educate wedding guests which are from a different county or have a different ethnic background.

I'm in love with these bright colors and infusing special cultural traditions in weddings. Authentic Ethiopian gift and food baskets, called messobs were presented to the wedding couple before the ceremony. You will find these in most Ethiopian homes which are used as decor, storage, etc.

Its always great seeing how much a family comes together for a wedding. The women are all in the kitchen cooking and the men are running around taking care of vendors like transportation, venue, etc. More and more I see the younger generation seeking professional wedding planners like myself to take the stress away from the family so they can really take part and enjoy the full day or week of wedding festivities. Authentic Ethiopian food was in abundance at this Ethiopian wedding. All prepared by friends and family for the 600+ guests.

That's a lot of cooking! I bet the bride and groom were very thankful.

Photo credit: Evrim Iconz Photography

5 Easter DIY Party Ideas

Easter Brunch Chair Ties

 

Step 1 Cut short pieces of flowers from bushes.

Step 2 Gather several flowers to create small bouquet

Step 3 Tie flowers together with piece of ribbon.

Step 4 Layer colored ribbon and burlap ribbon together and tie around chair backs.

Step 5 Slip flower bundle into tie.

Bell Jar with Nest Centerpiece

Step 1 Cut moss the size of the charger plate.

Step 2 Glue in place.

Step 3 Glue some reindeer moss into nest, add eggs.

Step 4 Glue nest in center of plate, add twigs and sprig of floral.

Step 5 Add bell jar

Easter Brunch Place Cards

Step 1 Whitewash pots with white paint (fill brush with paint and wipe almost dry on paper towel) and dry.

Step 2 Fill each pot with dry foam, then cover with reindeer moss.

Step 3 Put branch into pot.

Step 4 Use flower heads from small floral bush and hot glue to branch as shown.

Step 5 Add name written or printed on paper and wrap around branch for name placement.

Step 6 Glue few small flower heads into reindeer moss in pot.

Easter Table Centerpiece

Step 1 Use white acrylic paint to paint dots, swirls, rickrack lines on pots. Let dry.

Step 2 Cut stem from bunny pick and insert into each pot, as shown.

Easter Godiva Chocolate Egg Favors

Step 1 Only GODIVA could make Easter eggs as delectable as this. Shop Online or Create an Assortment at a Boutique.

Step 2 My favorite are the Truffle Crème Egg Assortment which includes: chocolate ganache and marshmallow mousse in a milk chocolate shell, milk chocolate ganache and dark chocolate mousse in a dark chocolate shell, raspberry ganache and dark chocolate mousse in a dark chocolate shell, and caramel ganache and hazelnut mousse in a milk chocolate shell.

Step 3 For best results, place on tray or plate, as shown and enjoy quickly.

Hope you enjoy these easy #DIY tips to plan a festive Easter Brunch to celebrate the holiday with family gatherings, spring parties & delicious gifts to share!

Redskins Football Party Ideas

Whether your jumping onto the Redskins bandwagon or have been a longtime fan like my older brother, Binyam (his whole basement is Redskins inspired)! You too can celebrate this amazing time for our hometown team!

Here are some fun ways to incorporate the "Burgundy & Gold" at your next Redskins football party, a get-together while watching the game, or tailgating! #HTTR