Summer is Here, Let's BBQ

     Do you love outdoor entertaining as much as we do?   If so, why not invite friends over for a Patriotic Backyard BBQ on July 4th!   We have tons of ideas to make the day special.  Our Designing Dishes YouTube video goes into great visual detail with decorations, games and food.
     Decorating in red, white and blue has so many possibilities.  Purchase small and medium flags at a dollar or craft store and line them down a walkway or driveway.  Fill inexpensive blue plastic pots with sand and cluster large groupings of flags.  Use banners, windsocks, paper lanterns and a large flag to set the ambience.  Set the buffet table with plaid tableclothes over long white linens and use white lanterns and candles wrapped with ribbon as a centerpiece.  Use blue square plates, red bowls, blue crystal glasses and red and blue napkins wrapped in patriotic ribbon.  And finally, add a little whimsy to the decor.  For our whimsy, we used a bright blue Smart car with the top down and set up a beverage area on the tailgate and then placed a large patriotic umbrella out of the top of the car.  It was the talk of the party.
     Kids will have the best time if you plan games and activities for them.  We had a bike decorating contest with judges and prizes.  There was coloring of "lady liberty" masks, paddle ball, egg toss, races, and sparklers for everyone. 
     The food was also a hit.  There was popcorn, taffy and red licorice to snack on.  We chose food that we could make on the grill.  We made chive buttered corn in the husks, stuffed turkey burgers with red pepper relish and herb marinated flat grilled chicken.  Deviled egss and a summer vegetable salad were great sides dishes.  The dessert table had decorated pound cakes with buttercream icing and fresh raspberries and blueberries, sugar cookies with red and blue m&m's and finally white chocolate covered strawberries dipped in bright blue sugar sprinkles and accented with gold fondant stars.  Blue and red raspberry lemonade with decorated homemade stirrers completed the table. 
     Our Patriotic Backyard BBQ was a success.  Hope yours is too!

Simply delicious corn chowder!

This mouth watering corn chowder recipe is on You Tube under Designing Dishes.  Here are the ingredients and directions.
Melt 1/4 cup butter in a large saucepan.  Add 1/2 cup flour and stir for about 1 minute as you cook over medium high heat. Add 2 cups chopped onion and cook for 5 minutes.  Add 2 1/2 cups chicken stock and stir to blend.  Cook over medium high heat for about 3 minutes.  Stir in a 15 oz can kernel corn, 15 can cream style corn, 2 cups diced potatoe, salt and pepper to taste, 1 T. worchestershire,1/2 tsp. dried dill, 1/4 tsp. marjoram, and a dash of nutmeg.  Cook on low heat until potatoes are fork tender.  Add 1 cup heavy cream.  This serves 4 to 6. Every body says this is the easiest and best tasting corn chowder ever! Try this and let us know what you think!!

"WOW" Food

Have you ever wondered why some food doesn't taste good?  Well, it could be that it was prepared incorrectly or not appetizing to look at.  Eggs cooked at too high a heat taste rubbery, meat not seasoned correctly tastes bland and dessert without the right ingredients doesn't have that "WOW" melt in your mouth experience.  That's why understanding foods and flavors that work together takes time to master.  We want to make that journey easy for you.  .We're going to help you make the best dishes possible.   Our New England Clam chowder recipe - you'll taste one of the "BEST".  Our Green Apple Bisque - it will be a show stopper.  Guests will love the Prime Rib recipe - they'll think you're a genius.  And the Mother Daughter Tea -  you 'll wish you were there.  That's just a sampling of "Designing Dishes" on YouTube.

We Love What We Do

     Last year there was a TV special talking about YouTube and how much you could learn on the site.  That's when a bell rang in my head.  That's when Designing Dishes started.  Why not teach on YouTube?  Everyone else was doing it.  That's when Ronnie and I said "YES".  Let's do this.
     It was a slow start.  There were lots of questions.  We're professional teachers but getting behind the camera was different.  What exactly should we teach?  Where would we film?  How would we look on camera?     What close ups were needed?   Who would direct us, decide on lighting, move equipment and tell us when to start and stop?
     Well, everything came together.   We're exited to share what we love,  teaching about food and entertaining.  We have 23 videos on YouTube with more to come.  Follow us through this journey.  We know you won't regret it.
     And as a special tip for the day -------  Entertaining can be as simple as one theme, one drink, one entree, one side item, one dessert and one "BIG" smile from your friends!!!!!!

What Jan forgot to tell you.

Jan forgot to mention those dresses were made out of gingham fabric, the same fabric as checkered table clothes.  Also they had a big old ruffle on the bottom of gingham and eyelet.  As silly as that sounds, they were in style for the times! We still match up everything from our jewelry, to our shoes and everything in between!

HOW IT BEGAN

      We've been friends for years.  It all started when we taught school together.  Who knew "TWO" Home Economics teachers would reinvent themselves years later?  Yes, that's Jan and Ronnie, we're now called Designing Dishes and teaching on YouTube.  That's us!
       In the early years of teaching , we thought alike and sometimes even completed each other's sentences.  We were two peas in a pod.   Yes, we loved our profession and dressed for the part.  Our heels matched our outfits and everyone waited to see if we would ever dress alike.  Well, that happened!  There was a great dress pattern that both of us wanted to sew.  We made our dresses, one was pink and one was green.  We wore them the same day and we're sure everyone thought we wanted to be twin sisters.  We laugh about that today!
      We loved our students.  Our goal was to teach them as much as we could.  Our ideas for teaching were unique. We never backed away from a novel idea.   We challenged ourselves to teach about life and making goals for an occupation.  That's why we started teaching about the restaurant business.  Parents and teachers would be our guests.  Students designed the restaurant, made the uniforms, cooked the food and of course served great dishes.  The kids loved it.  It was a hit!
       So now, years later we're doing it again.  We've come up with a new idea.  Why not teach everyone what we know and love?  That's Home Economics with a new spin.  Our YouTube teaching videos are  about how we cook, bake, design and entertain.  Our blog will feature recipes we love, tips on designing, expounding on our videos and sharing our love of entertainment.   It's going to be FUN!!!!!