MY WEEKEND AT BOOKMARKS BOOK FESTIVAL

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I just got back from a fantastic weekend at the Bookmarks Book Festival in Winston-Salem, NC. This was my second trip to Winston-Salem -I visited when I was in high school and considering going to Salem College. The downtown area has changed quite a bit since then -it is so vibrant with restaurants, bars, galleries and shops.

The people couldn't have been nicer -I feel like I made lots of new friends! Here are some of them:

 

 

It was a very quick trip but we were able to find time to try the killer Pimento Cheese at Sweet Potatoes (so good that I've been working on my own version, which I hope to share with you soon), the delicious, falling-off-the-bone barbecue at Bib's Downtown, and the refreshing cocktails at Tate's Craft Cocktails were the perfect end to a wonderful day.

Thank you so much to Ginger Hendricks, Susan Wiles, Liz Morton, Jimmy, Ashley and everyone at Bookmarks who helped to make it such a great experience and for showing us the true meaning of Southern Hospitality.

The history of the apron

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My Mom, Patty Powers (referred to as Patty P in my book) sent me this and it reminded me of when I was a kid.I don't think our kids know what an apron is.

The principal use of Grandma's apron was to protect the dress underneath because she only had a few. It was also because it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and aprons used less material. But along with that, it served as a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.It was wonderful for drying children's tears, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.

From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven.

When company came, those aprons were ideal hiding places for shy kids..

And when the weather was cold grandma wrapped it around her arms.

Those big old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.

Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.

From the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls.

In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees.

When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds.

When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and the men folks knew it was time to come in from the fields to dinner.

It will be a long time before someone invents something that will replace that 'old-time apron' that served so many purposes.

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Bloomingdale's Opening at Santa Monica Place part 2

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The staff was dressed by theory and keds who is generously donating the outfits to Ocean Park Community Center in Santa Monica. The beautiful table settings were done by Classic Party Rentals.

The first course served was a fresh salad of Burrata with heirloom tomatoes, crunchy kale and grilled asparagus sprinkled with edamame beans which we paired with Wild Oak Chardonnay which was provided by St. Francis Winery.

Sophie Elgot was nice enough to send over pictures from the event. You can check out more of those photos on my fan page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/LuluPowers/301028975315?ref=ts

Liddabit Sweets

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If you are in New York City you must check out these delicious beer and pretzel caramels which are made with Brooklyn Brewery's Brown Ale and East India Pale Ale as well as chunks of salty pretzels. Liddabit sweets is dedicated to using as many local, organic and seasonal ingredients as possible and make their candy by hand every few days. http://www.liddabitsweets.com/

Candy for A Cause

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These stirrers and sippers are a fun twist to your favorite summer time drinks. Add them to your iced tea, lemonade or water! Hammonds also has delicious candies for every holiday as well as classic treats such as hand made twisted lollipops and taffy. Visit Hammond's on August 19th to raise funds and awareness of cancer in woman. http://www.hammondscandies.com hammonds_candies_logo