Easter Appetizers

I thought I would share this post with you again from 

several years ago, because they are a 

Family Tradition to us.

Southern Ham Biscuits and Drunken Tea

I think you will love the ease of preparation.


Btw -I do apologize about the poor photo quality.  I am 
by means a good photographer, but wow.
I've come a long way, baby.

Enjoy!!!!

==================================

Welcome to My Easter "Foodie Friday!"

This weekly event is hosted by our lovely friend, Gollum at

Designs by Gollum

Please stop by her blog to view her creative genius, as well as,

see a list of all the other culinary participants.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Easter dinner is a special time in 
The Grits home.

We get to celebrate our Lord, Jesus Christ...
and praise him for our many blessings. 
It is a time of spiritual renewal.

I look forward to hosting this special family gathering each year.

It has become tradition that I serve several Southern-styledishes for dinner, 
but there are two items that are

always well-received.

I think it's a great way to begin a family celebration...

Southern "Egg" Ham Biscuits

and

Drunken Peach Tea

I serve them buffet-style in my Dining Room.

Now I'm sure you remember my

Southern Rosemary and 
Butter-Rubbed Biscuits

from my Tablescape Thursday post.

These are similar, accept the herbs are
 actually cooked into the dough - giving 
them a more intense flavor.

I know, I know - I can hear you saying it now...

"I don't know nuttin' bout cooking no biscuits!"

I promise you this - if you make these, you will have success.

(and best of all, no one will know they are not
 made from scratch!)

What? Not made from scratch? Well....they kinda are!

Let's get started....

Here are the ingredients...basic items you can get locally 
or you probably already

have in your pantry...accept the bourbon, maybe. :-)

1/3 Brown Sugar, 3 Tbs Bourbon, 
1 Tbs finely chopped Rosemary,

1 Tbs finely chopped Chives, 
1 can Grands Southern-Style Biscuits

(yep! .. canned biscuits!)

...and I know you are wondering about this....

I will share that with you a bit later.

Hint: It has to do with the "Egg" of the "Egg" Ham Biscuits.

You will also need an 8oz package of Country Ham...

For all of you die-hard salty ham haters (hiss, hiss) - 
yes, you can use plain ham -

but I promise you will not be disappointed.

(1) can of Eight-Count Biscuits and (1) 8oz Package of 
Ham will create about16 mini biscuits, 
perfect for pre-dinner appetizers.

Let's create the dough...this part gets tricky... :-)

Flour your surface...

Pop open the biscuit can...

Squish together all those pre-made biscuits into a loose ball.

(At this point, you might wanna flicker some flour onto your face so your family thinks you are working reaaaally hard!)

Next... create a well in the dough and add the chopped herbs.

Remember - they need to be finely chopped.

..

Gently knead dough until herbs are worked through. 
Not too much, as the

biscuits will lose their flakiness when baked.

Wow....all that dough making sure wears a person out...

My Sous Chef tuckered out on me.  
Way too much chopping and kneading.


So, let's get back to that tomato paste can.

And a few whacks with your rolling pin create the 
shape of an...EGG!
An egg-shaped biscuit cutter.

Hence... "Egg" Ham Biscuits.

Bake your biscuits in a 375 degree oven for about 
13-16 minutes or until golden brown. 
I like to coat the inside of my ham biscuits

with mustard. I start with a dark mustard and add 
just a pinch of herbs.  I used some leftover chives.

After you have baked your ham slices, add a little bit of 
the au jus from the cooked ham pan. This turns an 
average mustard into a fantastic flavor-filled mustard!

Now for the ham glaze...start with 1/3 cup brown sugar...

.... add 3 Tbs bourbon.

Mix well. 
Lay your ham in a baking pan...

Brush generously with the Brown Sugar/Bourbon mixture.

Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes...
and then you get this!

(sorry this pic is blurry)

This ham retains some of it's saltiness, but has a subtle 
sweetness and a very mild hint of bourbon. 
It's the perfect combination of savory and sweet.

Mr Grits could eat a pan of this ham all by itself.

Don't forget to add some of the pan drippings to the 
mustard herb mixture also...

This is a yummy mustard!

So before I show you the plated biscuits....
let's prepare the

"Drunken Peach Tea"

As you know, I am an iced tea afficienado. 
I love iced tea in all forms and flavors.

I created this tea many years ago for a summer BBQ. 
My family loves it!

Here's all you need...

4 cups Brewed Tea, 1/2 cup Sugar, 
1 can Peach Nectar, 1 small bottle

red wine, 1/2 lime, 1/2 orange, 1/2 lemon.

*you can substitute Equal or another sweetener, and grape
 juice for the wine.

Simply add all the ingerients into a large pitcher
 and stir well...

Serve chilled over ice with a lime or lemon wedge.

I set up the sideboard with the biscuits and tea...

I used my cloche and Bordallo cabbage leaf plate
 for the biscuits.

I am using my gold-rimmed champagne flutes for the tea. I purchased this

crystal in Prague, where crystal can be purchased sooo inexpensively.

Does it make the tea taste better? Nah! But, it sure looks pretty. :)

My little egg-shaped biscuits are easy to hold and eat...perfect little bites.

Before I say good-bye...I could not leave without sharing with you this

special picture. It was taken on Saturday morning, hours before I had to

say good-bye to my precious Cole.

All the family came over, and we had an Easter egg hunt just for him.

This is one of the pictures I took...

Note the chipmonk cheeks. How many jellybeans can a 3-yr old put

in his cheeks? We lost count.... :-D

I wish all of you, Dear Blogger Friends...a special Easter celebration.

From the Grits Family to your Family....I wish you...

Container Gardening...

I'm going to go ahead and apologize ahead of time.

My blog will be filled with Everything Gardening

for the next few weeks.

Gardening Fever has struck at The Grits House.

One of my fave types of gardening is container gardening.

I love that containers overflowing with lush flowers 

can be moved around as needed,

but even more - I love that containers allow you to add

bursts of color throughout your garden,

even in unexpected places.

I wanted to share this bevy of gardening eye candy from

Better Homes and Gardens. 

Had enough yet?

Yea I didn't think so....here's more.

I love the small sprouts of parsley sneaking

through the center.

Isn't this simply sigh producing?

Lettuces, violas and mums. 

Double sigh.

‎

A kitchen herb garden in an old box.

How's this for a unique buffet table?

You just can't beat a pot of succulents.

One of my fave gardening tips is above.  I add

herbs and lettuces all throughout my containers.

I love the texture they add, and they taste

pretty good too. :)

I really want to try this project this year.

I love these stacked pots.

This isn't a "container" picture per say, but I just had

to share.  What a dream location.

A garden and an old barn.

Heaven!

Finally, here is one of my all-time fave

gardening tips...

Wine Boxes!

I get these free at the local grocery stores.

That's right....FREE!

What do I use them for?

Lettuce and spinach and herbs.

They are the perfect size, and can be placed almost

anywhere.  Plus, I love the beautiful boxes.

So, you'll have to forgive me if Grits and Glamour

gets taken over with garden talk for the next few weeks.

The fever will break soon.

(as soon as my Lowe's card is maxed out)

:-)

I leave you with this...

‎"In the spring, at the end of the day, you should 

smell like dirt." - Margaret Atwood

Blessings, Barb

Cute Ideas for Easter...

I spent the day at home today with a sick grandbaby...

He and his brother stayed with us, and my sweet little 

Roo (Devin) ran a fever all of last night and most of today. 

 I think it was teething, because by late afternoon he seemed

 to be back to his normal, rambunctious 2-yr old self.

After he left, Grammy was pooped! 

So what does one do when you are too pooped to

do anything else?

You Pin.  Of course.

 I found some really sweet ideas for Easter.

I am going to use some of these ideas when I

host Easter dinner.  You have seen the "prettier" side of

my Easter decor, but I also like to add a "sweet" and fun

side for my babies.

For example, look at this cutie...

Source: parents.com via Barbara on Pinterest

I am absolutely making this egg garland using paint chips.  

This is one of the cutest things I have seen.

I am going to add the letters

"H-a-p-p-y  E-a-s-t-e-r" in the center eggs.

I think the boys will love to help me with this project.

I gotta go raid peruse The Home Depot paint aisle.


By the way, here are my sweet boys taken a few weeks
 ago for Easter 2012.

I couldn't resist adding a special little touch with Picnik
by adding the letters in the banner.


I am pretty sure my boys will love these little nibblers...
and what a fun snack to send home in a cute baggie.

They are made from pretzels!!!Can you stand the cuteness?These ideas are compliments of The Sugar Buzz. 
For the adults....look at this scrumptious liquid delight -

Source: feastoffun.com via Barbara on Pinterest

I think children and adults, alike, will enjoy these cuppies.

Source: delish.com via Barbara on Pinterest

I am going to make a vanilla cupcake with a 

lemon-buttercream filling.

I still give my son an Easter Basket.  I love this idea.  

I am going to make two, one for The Hubbs, too.

Source: google.com via Barbara on Pinterest

I want to make these for my employees and a few 

friends and neighbors. 

Source: thecraftingchicks.com via Barbara on Pinterest

Look at this fun flower display.  They used clear shot glasses,

but I think it would be super cute to plant the flowers directly
in eggshell halves.

Source: fanantique.blogspot.ca via Barbara on Pinterest

But I think one of the sweetest things I saw today is this...


It's called the Resurrection Sunday Garden.

Source: organic-homestead-heart.com via Barbara on Pinterest

I think this is a beautiful way to tell the story of Easter

 to my boys.  Roo is too young, but Cole is the perfect age.

I have this beautiful children's book with a simple story of how Christ arose that Grandpa can read.  If I plant the grass tomorrow,

it will be perfect by next Sunday.

Isn't this beautiful?

Finally, I could not resist sharing this.

I am sooo making one of these this weekend

with my English watering can.

Source: bhg.com via Barbara on Pinterest

I have been trying to think of something unique for my 

front door. My Spring wreath is tired and has seen 

better days.  I'm going to see if my watering can is small 

enough for this project.

I hope you enjoyed these wonderful inspirational pictures.

How is your week going?

Blessings, Barb