Coriander Cream Dip with Apples

Coriander Cream Dip

1- 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened
1/4 c. light cream
1/4 c. honey
1 tsp. crushed coriander seed

Mix all ingredients together. Let flavors blend overnight. Serve with fresh apple slices.

Celebrating the 2017 Herb of the Year Cilantro/Coriander at our annual Garden Tour and Tasting Party. One plant, three ways to enjoy it. We served Lemon Coriander Bars with ground coriander, Coriander Cream Dip and apples. The coriander seeds were crushed using a mortar and pestle. And, fresh Cilantro in the Herb of the Year Salsa. It was a tasty night! Lemon Herb Tea was the beverage of choice among most attendees, although Peaches and Ginger was also available.

Lemon Coriander Bars

Celebrating National Herb Week with the 2017 Herb of the Year Coriander/Cilantro. We served Lemon Coriander Bars as a dessert using ground coriander seed.

Lemon Coriander Bars

Crust:

1/2 c. butter

1/4 c. powdered sugar

1 c. flour

Filling:

2 Tbsp. lemon juice 

grated zest of 1 lemon

2 eggs, beaten

1 c. sugar

2 Tbsp. flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. ground coriander seed

Combine butter, flour, and sugar. Mix well until small crumbs form. Press into bottom of 8-inch square pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. In same bowl, prepare filling. Combine remaining ingredients, pour on baked crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Cool and cut into bars.

2017 Herb of the Year Salsa

Herb of the Year Salsa

2 large tomatoes, diced

1/4 c. onion, diced

1/2 c. cilantro, finely chopped

1 Tbsp. jalapeno, minced

1 Tbsp. lime juice

Combine all ingredients, and allow flavors to blend. 

Coriander/Cilantro Herb of the Year 2017

The herb of the year for 2017 is Cilantro/Coriander. Two different flavors on the same plant. It is like a BOGO - buy one, get one free. The leaf of the herb is called  Cilantro and is sometimes referred to as Mexican Parsley. It is the very distinctive taste found in fresh made salsa. It seems to be one of those flavors that you either love or hate. 

The seeds of the annual cilantro plant are referred to as Coriander. Coriander, either ground or seeds, is commonly used in baking and frequently found in Middle Eastern and Indian dishes. It has almost a spicy/lemony flavor.

As part of National Herb Week (which is the week leading up to Mother's Day) Susanna hosts a seeing-tasting-touching garden tour where we discuss the herbs in our garden. Following the tour, guests enjoy a sampling of some refreshments featuring the Herb of the Year prepared by Nancy. Depending upon the weather, either hot tea or iced tea is served. This year, a pleasant evening for a garden tour, once inside the tea room we enjoyed hot tea.

Fairy Cakes

Much to our delight, a fellow vendor in the 'Rainbow Court' area of the Spoutwood Faerie Festival makes and creates these fabulous Fairy Cakes that she graciously shares with neighboring vendors. What a true labor of love to make these tasty little gems, each more beautiful and more creative than the previous design. 

In addition to the intricate details of each cupcake from tiny mushrooms to even tinier lady bugs, although difficult to see in the photos, they are sprinkled with fairy glitter which causes them to sparkle and shine in the light.

Petite little flags silently announce the flavor of each homemade cupcake, making the decision of which one to eat first even more difficult! Which would you choose? And do you select your favorite Fairy Cake by flavor (as did Angelica) or by design?

Angelica's Favorite

Nepal Tea Golden Needles

At a recent meeting for the Mid-Atlantic Tea Business Association, we received Swag Bags that contained an amazing variety of tea samples. One of the samples was this Golden Needles, a limited edition from MATBA member Nishchal Banskota of Nepal Tea. With the brewing instructions conveniently placed on the package, and a lazy rainy morning, I proceeded to brew these beautiful long thin tea leaves at a temperature of 195 degrees for 5 minutes.

Upon opening the sample pack, there was a hint of chocolate fragrance with the leaves. After brewing and tasting the tea, I was immediately drawn to the complex layer of flavors. Even though originally smelling chocolate tones, there seemed to be delicate floral undertones to this full bodied tea. As the tea cooled, the floral undertones became faint, and the chocolate flavor surfaced. Overall, the tea was quite smooth with no astringency. It yielded a perfect cup of tea that ended much too quickly!

Nischal will be offering a variety of his teas from Nepal to purchase when he joins us for the Pennsylvania Tea Festival in late September. Nepal Tea is a proud sponsor of the Tea Festival. We look forward to his contributions to the festival as a vendor and a speaker. 

Blueberry Coffee Cake - Morning Snack

We're off on a Rosemary House Traveling Herb Seminar, stepping back in time to the 18th Century and visiting a colonial plantation and a medical heritage foundation. It'll be a fun day of learning about history and life over 250 years ago. But to start the day right, we have a Blueberry Coffee Cake to share with our time travelers. And, the recipe to share with our readers.

Blueberry Coffee Cake

1/4 c. butter, room temperature

3/4 c. sugar

1 egg

2 c. flour

2 tsps. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 c. milk

2 c. fresh blueberries

Topping:

1/2 c. sugar

1/3 c. flour

1/2 tsp. apple pie spice

1/4 c. butter, room temperature

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9" x 13" pan. Cream the butter, sugar, and egg. Combine the flour with the baking powder and salt. Add to the butter mixture, alternating with the milk, mixing well after each addition. Gently fold in the blueberries. Spread mixture evenly into the prepared pan. Note: it will be a fairly thin layer of batter. Prepare the topping. Combine the sugar, flour, apple pie spice, and butter until fine crumbs form. Sprinkle evenly over the blueberry base. Bake 40 - 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool. Enjoy!

 

Gnome Home

Also tucked in the gardens of The Rosemary House and Sweet Remembrances is this adorable Gnome Home. Another creation of Steve Hoke, we are so pleased to be able to provide a location for the gnomes to shelter. Steve's original career was as a prison counselor, but once he retired, he discovered enjoyment in building a variety of gnome homes. Eventually, he received permission to place them throughout Little Buffalo State Park in Perry County, PA for young and old to discover these hidden treasures while walking along the trails. 

Sadly, in early 2016, because of the increased attendance to the park to find the homes, and guests leaving trinkets for the gnomes, Steve and his gnome homes (just shy of 40 homes) received an eviction notice. Apparently it was stated that the homes were not the right for for a park focused on wildlife and conservation. This garnered world wide publicity and when we heard about the displaced gnome homes, we sent an email to Steve letting him know that our backyard was a welcoming habitat for gnomes and fairies alike. 

Much to our surprise and delight, just about a year after we had sent our email, Steve contacted us and asked if we were still interested in some gnome homes. Of course we were! He put the Gnome Home and the Gnome Condo in his truck and came down out of the mountains to hand deliver his creations. We are so pleased to have these little treasure tucked in the garden! A special thank you to Steve Hoke for entrusting us with the care of these adorable little homes. 

Gnome Condo

When you have the opportunity to stroll the public herb gardens behind Sweet Remembrances and The Rosemary House (open from dawn to dusk), be sure to find the newest addition to the garden. Nestled in a little corner near the elderberry tree is this adorable pink Gnome condo.

This quirky perky pink condo has been hand crafted by local gnome enthusiast Steve Hoke. Retired and looking for something to keep himself busy, Steve has taken to creating welcoming habitats for the wee folk. We are so thrilled to add his artwork to our gardens.

Spoutwood Farm Fairie Festival

The following is a guest post from intern Molly Sams regarding her experiences at the Spoutwood Farm Fairie Festival in 2016. Held annually in early May, we hope to see you there this weekend : May 5 - May 7, 2017!

On May Day,  I, Intern Molly Sams, was lucky enough to attend the fairie festival. It was a bit chillier and soggier than I imagined but it was still beautiful and full of magic.

I was able to work with Susanna and her stand for The Rosemary House and once I was finished covering lunches and helping everyone find the lavender plants, I was able to run around the gardens, shops, and woods like a fairy possessed. It was wonderful.

There were plenty of stunning shops and the wild flowers were popping up and beginning to bud. There were fun little touches all around the farm and I could not get over the beauty and detail.

Thank you so much Spoutwood! Can’t wait to come back!

Happy May Day!

May Day celebrations are held all around the world. One enchanting little tradition involves secretly putting a pretty bouquet of fresh spring flowers on your neighbor's doorknob. If they discover you doing this, they must give you a kiss! What a sweet little tradition! This lovely little nosegay includes smiling pansies, sweet lily-of-the-valley, a petite spring tulip, and lovage greens. This delicate little bouquet is in an embroidered hankie that has been folded and neatly pressed into a cone. A satin ribbon, with two bows is attached to the hankie in order to hang it on the door.

(This blog post is a reprise from May 1, 2010.)

A delicious TasteBuds Luncheon

Sweet Remembrances and The Rosemary House have joined together with Linda Gauvry of TasteBuds Personal Chef services to bring fabulous seasonally fresh luncheons to the tea room. We recently held our second Lovely Luncheon in Sweet Remembrances. The appetizer featured Sweet Pea and Mint Parmesan Spread with Crackers and a beautiful Berry Lime Ginger Fruit Cup.

Linda offers two options for the entree. We request your selection when you make your advance reservations. For this luncheon, she offered Roasted Asparagus and Tomato Pasta with homemade Garlic Bread. This combined roasted tomatoes, asparagus, black olives, and fresh arugula tossed with a lemony vinaigrette and topped with goat cheese.

The second entree was a Salmon Cake (tender salmon cake made with fresh salmon, parsley, Old Bay, and a touch of Parmesan) served on a bed of mixed greens and topped with a creamy lemon dill sauce with a crusty homemade roll and fresh burnet and garlic chive herb butter.

Dessert featured Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake garnished with a colorful edible flower.

We are so pleased to welcome Chef Linda to the tea room. Her culinary skills add a delightful new opportunity to visit Sweet Remembrances. She is a creative personal chef who is passionate about preparing fresh quality food. And all of this is accompanied with bottomless pots of properly brewed tea.

Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Squares

We hope you will be able to join us when the next luncheon is held on Friday, May 26th at 1:00. The menu is posted on our website, here. We do request advance reservations, please.


Additional luncheon dates are: Saturday, June 10, Friday, July 14, Saturday, August 26, Friday, September 22, Friday, October 13, Friday, November 10. These luncheons are all served at 1:00 and cost $28.00/person (all inclusive). In December, Linda will be serving on Saturday, December 9 and Saturday December 16. These holiday luncheons will be served at 1:00 and cost $35.00/person (all inclusive) and will be festive for the season. The menus for the luncheon dates will be posted on our Calendar of Events page about one month in advance.
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