Retro Tea: Magic Marshmallow Crescent Puffs

These were one of my favorite weeknight desserts when I was a kid. They still taste just as good today.

Rolls:
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 (8-oz.) cans Pillsbury® Refrigerated Crescent Dinner Rolls
16 large marshmallows
1/4 cup butter, melted
Glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 to 3 teaspoons milk
1/4 cup chopped nuts

Heat oven to 375°F. Spray 16 medium muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray. In small bowl, combine sugar, flour and cinnamon; mix well.

Separate dough into 16 triangles. For each roll, dip 1 marshmallow in melted butter; roll in sugar mixture. Place marshmallow on shortest side of triangle. Roll up, starting at shortest side and rolling to opposite point. Completely cover marshmallow with dough; firmly pinch edges to seal. Dip 1 end in remaining butter; place butter side down in sprayed muffin cup.

Bake at 375°F. for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. (Place foil or cookie sheet on rack below muffin cups to guard against spills.) Cool in pan 1 minute. Remove rolls from muffin cups; place on wire racks set over waxed paper.

In small bowl, blend powdered sugar, vanilla and enough milk for desired drizzling consistency. Drizzle glaze over warm rolls. Sprinkle with nuts. Serve warm.

Retro Tea Party: Frozen Fruit Salad

This old fashioned dessert is perfect for a hot summer day. Keep this in the freezer to pull out for unexpected guests or as a treat for yourself.

1 can(1 Ib.) fruit cocktail
1 can (1 Ib.) apricot halves
1 can (1 Ib) chunk pineapple
4 oz. miniature marshmallows
1 pkg. unflavored gelatin
1 jar (4 oz.) maraschino cherries
4 oz. soft cream cheese
1/2 cup salad dressing
3/4 cup whipping cream, whipped
Extra apricots and mint for garnish

Drain fruit cocktail, apricots and pineapple. Reserve juices. Place fruit into large bowl. Add marshmallows Set aside. Place fruit juices into saucepan. Stir in gelatin. Place over medium heat. Heat, stirring, until gelatin is dissolved. Cool slightly. Pour over fruit. Stir in diced cherries and cherry juice.

In separate bowl, blend together cream cheese and salad dressing, Add to fruit mixture, mixing well.Cover and chill until partially set. Fold in whipped cream. Transfer to 7 1/2-by-11-inch serving dish.

Cover and place in freezer 4 to 6 hrs. or overnight. Cut into squares to serve. Garnish with apricots and mint sprig.

Retro Tea: Swedish Meatballs

Swedish meatballs served in a chafing dish used to be on every buffet table. I wouldn’t normally recommend a saucy meatball for a tea party but since these fit the theme so well and taste so good, I thought I’d add them just for fun.

2 slices fresh white bread
1/4 cup milk
3 tablespoons clarified butter, divided
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
A pinch plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 pound ground chuck
3/4 pound ground pork
2 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 cups beef broth
1/4 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

Tear the bread into pieces and place in a small mixing bowl along with the milk. Set aside.

In a 12-inch straight sided saute pan over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and sweat until the onions are soft. Remove from the heat and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the bread and milk mixture, ground chuck, pork, egg yolks, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt, black pepper, allspice, nutmeg, and onions. Beat on medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes.

Using a scale, weigh meatballs into 1-ounce portions and place on a sheet pan. Using your hands, shape the meatballs into rounds.

Heat the remaining butter in the saute pan over medium-low heat, or in an electric skillet set to 250 degrees F. Add the meatballs and saute until golden brown on all sides, about 7 to 10 minutes. Remove the meatballs to an ovenproof dish using a slotted spoon and place in the warmed oven.

Once all of the meatballs are cooked, decrease the heat to low and add the flour to the pan or skillet. Whisk until lightly browned, approximately 1 to 2 minutes. Gradually add the beef stock and whisk until sauce begins to thicken. Add the cream and continue to cook until the gravy reaches the desired consistency. Remove the meatballs from the oven, cover with the gravy and serve.

This is an Alton Brown recipe. You can tell that by the weighing of the meatballs. :)

Retro Tea: Crabbies

These used to be served at every party. I think that’s why they fell out of favor with hostesses; no one wants to offer the same treats over and over again. But these little crab bites are soooooo good. They are perfect for any party because they can be made, frozen and simply heated just before needed.

I wasn’t certain that the Kraft Old English cheese spread was still available but I bought it yesterday. I’d normally suggest making your own cheese spread but since this is a retro recipe, I wanted to keep it original. Two pieces per person may seem to be on the short side but these are so rich that most guests really do only want two.

2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 ½ teaspoons onion powder
1 ½ teaspoons garlic salt
1 ½ teaspoons garlic powder
½ teaspoon pepper
1 (6 ounce) can crabmeat, picked over
1 (5 ounce) can of Kraft Old English cheese spread
6 English muffins

Combine the butter, mayonnaise, onion powder, garlic salt, garlic powder, pepper, crab and cheese spread. Spread the mixture over English muffin halves and freeze until firm. Remove from freezer and cut into quarters. Return to the freezer until ready to bake. Preheat oven to 375º and bake for 15 minutes on an ungreased cookie sheet. Yield: 24 pieces

I've been tagged by Rosemary at Rosemary's Sampler to do this quick meme. I won't pick anyone in particular to pass it to; if you'd like to answer, please feel free. Here goes:

Ten years ago... That summer we had painters, spouting guys and a couple stone masons. The painters were here for three months. I was so anxious about having strangers all over our house but it turned out to be a good experience. All of the guys were extremely respectful and polite and really lots of fun. We tried to make their time with us as pleasant as could be and I believe they appreciated the pitchers of iced tea, the Friday pizza parties and most of all, allowing them to come in the house to use the bathroom.

Five things on today's to do list...
1. Attend my cookbook club
2. Watch the Russia-Spain football match to find out which one will play my German team in the final
3. Make something for my husband to eat
4. Water the petunias on my front porch
5. Decide on a dessert to make for my mother’s July 4th picnic

Things I would do if I was a millionaire.... Buy lemons. Seriously at the store yesterday they were a dollar a piece. Now I’ve been known to splurge at the grocery store, a beef tenderloin for a dinner party, 10 pounds of shrimp for a holiday open house, hideously expensive olive oil and balsamic vinegar. But yesterday I put back the lemons. It’s the first time I’ve ever done that. An old boss of mine told me that she loves grocery shopping because, while she couldn’t buy what she wanted in other areas of her life, she knew she could buy any single item in the grocery store. I’m guessing those days have passed for her now too.

Places I have lived... I’ve always lived in Pennsylvania. It’s a pretty good place to hang out. With all the terrible weather others are having, in PA our only significant weather problem is an occasional winter blizzard. We get to enjoy all four seasons and are able to grow a huge variety of fruits, nuts and vegetables. We have big cities but still have open rural spaces. We have our own oil, coal and nuclear power plants. I’m pretty sure Pennsylvania could be its own country and not have to depend on anyone else. :)

Retro Tea: Party Loaf

Use bread with a tight crumb for this loaf. You might use a light and a dark bread, combining the layers for a pretty look. If you aren’t confident about slicing the bread, just ask the bakery to do it for you.

Vary the fillings if you prefer. Any purchased deli salad will work. One of the things to remember when creating this loaf is to spread the fillings evenly and not too thickly. Use a serrated knife to cut the loaf into slices.

Shrimp Salad Spread:
1/3 cup mayonnaise
¼ cup finely chopped celery
2 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
8 ounces cooked, peeled shrimp, chopped

Olive-Nut Spread:
2 packages (3 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup finely chopped walnuts
½ cup finely chopped pimiento-stuffed olives

Deviled Ham Spread:
½ cup sour cream
¼ cup sweet pickle relish, drained
2 tablespoons grated onions
1/8 teaspoon red pepper sauce
2 cans (4 1/4 oz each) deviled ham

Loaf:
2 loaves (1 1/2 lb each) unsliced sandwich bread
½ cup butter or margarine, softened
4 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup radishes, sliced thinly

In individual bowls, mix ingredients for each spread until well blended. Chill.

Trim crusts from bread loaves. Cut each loaf horizontally into 4 equal slices. Lightly spread butter over 3 slices. Place 1 buttered slice on each of 2 serving plates or trays; spread each evenly with half of the shrimp salad spread. Top with second buttered slices; spread each evenly with half of the olive-nut spread. Top with third buttered slices; spread each evenly with half of the deviled ham spread. Top with unbuttered slices. Lightly press each loaf together.

In medium bowl, mix 4 packages cream cheese with the half-and-half. Spread half of mixture over sides and top of each loaf. Decorate the top with sliced radishes. Refrigerate about 30 minutes or until cream cheese mixture has set. Cover tightly; refrigerate.

Retro Tea: Deviled Eggs

Back in March, I gave a recipe for how to hard boil an egg and for basic Deviled Eggs. There is so much more you can do with a Deviled Egg though. Extra ingredients, toppings, garnishes are all ways to jazz up your eggs.

Start with the basic recipe, add:
Anchovy paste
Pickle, dill or sweet
Wasabi
Olives
Celery
Bacon
Avocado
Blue cheese
Tabasco
Pickled jalapenos
Parmesan cheese
Pesto
Spinach
Basil
Dill
Ranch dressing
Sour cream
Horseradish

Or top with:
Caviar
Crab
Lobster
Anchovy slices
Sliced olives with pimento
Baby shrimp
Green onion
Red pepper
Chives
Parsley leaves
Cayenne
Radish slivers

Some fun combinations:
Lime juice and ground Chipotle powder
Tarragon and capers
Sour cream, cumin, salsa, cilantro
Soy sauce and ginger
Salmon, green pepper and curry powder
Dried apricots, heavy cream and curry powder
Feta cheese, black olives and mint
Olive oil instead of mayo, parsley, grated garlic
Finely chopped pecans
Tarragon and honey mustard
Red apple, celery, pecans, honey, lime juice

You don’t need to use only the traditional shape for deviled eggs either. Try:
Cutting through the middle of the egg; slice off a piece on the bottom so they stay upright
Cutting diagonally
Using a large serrated chopper to cut through the eggs leaving ruffles

And finally, since eggs are not only a tea party treat but also a great picnic food, transport them easily without a special deviled egg carrier. Take the eggs and the filling separately to the picnic. Mix up the filling and put it in a zip lock bag. When you get to the party, snip off a corner of the plastic bag and squeeze the filling in the eggs.

Retro Tea: Seven Layer Salad

Seven layer salads make a lovely presentation on the buffet table but after the first couple people take a serving, it looks downright messy. To solve this problem, serve the salad in tumblers, glass or plastic. The same visual effect is there but it is much more simple.

A traditional seven layer salad contains lettuce, tomatoes, shredded cheese, bacon, peas, red onion and green peppers with a creamy and thick dressing. The salad pictured above is a Greek version of a seven layer salad. It contains chopped cucumber, tomatoes, feta, onion, sardines, olives and an herb dressing of oil and vinegar with lots of oregano and parsley. Use whatever salad ingredients you like so long as you keep them in neat layers.

A good Buttermilk Salad Dressing goes well on the traditional version. Using reduced fat buttermilk and fat-free mayonnaise lowers the calories significantly. In fact, 2 teaspoons of dressing has only 19 calories and 0 fat.

2 cups low-fat buttermilk
2 cups fat-free mayonnaise
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon very finely minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon onion salt
1 teaspoon coarsely ground or cracked pepper

Whisk all ingredients together until well combined. Store in fridge. Yield: 4 cups.

Retro Tea Party: Tomato Juice Cocktail

The ad says "When 35-23-35 is a goal..." Wow! I'm going to start drinking more tomato juice! :)

This tomato juice is best when homemade. Unfortunately we have to be careful about the tomatoes we eat. Unless you know where your tomatoes come from, don’t make your own juice. Start with bottled juice instead of freshly made.

It isn’t difficult to make your own tomato juice. Start with about 8 pounds of ripe tomatoes, quartered. Add 1 large onion, sliced, 3 celery ribs, chopped and 3 carrots, chopped. Cook the vegetables until they are soft and mushy, about 45 minutes. Put the mixture through a food mill and you’ll have tomato juice.

Put the tomatoes back in the pan and add:
½ cup finely chopped basil
¼ cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon hot pepper sauce

Bring back to a boil. Remove from heat and cool the pan of juice in a sink full of cold water. When cool enough, transfer to a pitcher and refrigerate until completely chilled. Garnish small glasses of juice with lemon or lime slices. Vodka can be added to the juice; use your own judgment about how much to use. Makes about 2 ½ quarts.

Retro Tea Menu

I hope this menu brings back memories. I wanted to recreate a ladies' tea from about 1960. I remember so well going to Ladies' Aid meetings with my mother where tea was served after the programs. The hostesses were some of the best cooks around and took great pride in the food they served guests. One lady in particular delighted in using unusual ingredients and asking everyone to guess what the secret ingredient was. I remember a cake with tomato juice and another that contained Coke. No secret ingredients in this menu though, just good food.

Offer your guests a Tomato Juice Cocktail when they first arrive. Use a bit of alcohol or not; you know your guests' preferences.

A 7-Layer Salad begins the tea. These were so popular when I was a kid. Use your prettiest glass bowl so all the layers can be seen.

Do you remember when everyone was making Crabbies, a melted cheese and crab spread on English muffins? They are super rich but each muffin is cut into quarters to prevent overload. Although don't count on your guest eating only one.

Fancy Deviled Eggs are a treat that almost everyone loves. I'll give lots of options for fillings, garnishes and shapes.

Pictured at the top of the page is a Party Sandwich Loaf. The illustration and recipe come from a little magazine called The Workbasket. This particular issue was from May, 1957. More about the magazine below.

The dessert course begins with a Frozen Fruit Salad. It can be made a month in advance.

One of my favorite desserts as a kid was Marshmallow Crescent Puffs. I'm sure a lot of you remember these too. They were a Pillsbury Bake-Off winner in the '60s.

It doesn't sound especially attractive but a Dump Cake tastes good and is fun to make. Be sure to tell your guests the name of this cake so they can remember that their grandmothers baked this too.

Since this is a Retro Tea Party, use a favorite old tea bag tea. Yes, I said it, tea bag. Lipton, Red Rose or Tetley Tea is probably what a lot of our families used when we were kids. No one will mind that you aren't using a high quality loose tea. Just be sure to offer sugar, lemon and milk along with the tea.

I mentioned The Workbasket and perhaps some of your mothers or grandmothers subscribed to this magazine. Mine didn't but I found dozens of them at a flea market years ago. Today you can't find doily, tablecloth or bedspread crochet patterns like the ones this magazine featured. And there wasn't only crochet but also knitting, tatting, rug making, embroidery and just about any other craft from that time. There was a recipe section each month and a plant or gardening section too. If you happen to find an old collection of this magazine, pick it up!

Retro Tea Party

A Retro Tea is an especially fun way to host a tea party. Transport your guests back to their childhoods, to happy times when everything was fresh and new. All will love remembering “the old days.” One person’s memory will spark something in another’s mind and the reminisces will fly around the room.

Invite good friends of about the same ages for this tea party. Someone who has never known life without computers won’t find the conversation especially interesting when everyone else is remembering black and white TV. Send paper invitations to set the mood from the beginning; use ones you create yourself or ones with a retro theme from a card shop. If your tea will be in the summer, send the invitations about a month in advance, if possible. Summer weekends fill up quickly.

Decorate with a particular time frame, ‘40s, ‘50s or ‘60s, in mind. I’m going to use the 1960s because those are the years I’m most nostalgic about. Whatever decade you use, there are lots of inexpensive decorative items to be found at yard sales and flea markets. Pick one item and build the rest of your decorating around it. Geometric shapes, especially anything satellite shaped, really defines the time.

If you don’t have dishes that match the theme, ask around. Borrowing what you need shouldn’t be too difficult. Same with the tablecloth and napkins. But again, these items aren’t hard to find at shops. If you can only find serving pieces, go ahead and use decorative paper plates and cups. I don’t usually recommend paper but in this case, they’ll fit just fine.

Pull out all the vintage items you have, lamps, clocks, ash trays, vases. Use them around the room. Any vintage magazines you have could be laid on lamp or coffee tables just as you’d find in 1960. You might want to leave out the plastic flowers but a few large artificial plants like philodendron or dumb cane would look just right.

Flowers for this tea should be simple. Use flowers that your mother or grandmother grew in her garden. Gerbera daisies, black-eyed Susans, snap dragons, some Queen Anne’s lace all have a nostalgic feel but use whatever flowers you remember.

Music should be easy to pick. And for this tea, it is okay to use vocals. Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin set one mood and Elvis and Little Richard set quite another. Make a mixed CD timing the tunes to where you think you’ll be in the tea. Quieter music for eating and more upbeat music as guests arrive and after the food is served.

Activities aren’t usually necessary for a tea but it is especially fun to ask each guest to bring a photo of herself from the time. Everyone tries to guess to whom each picture belongs. Just seeing the clothing and hairstyles will cause lots of giggles.

For a little favor, send your guests home with paper lunch bags of retro candy. Decorate the bags with stamps or stickers or simply write phrases from the time; for example you might use Sock it to Me, Right On, Groovy, or Outta Sight. There are a lot of web sites specializing in nostalgic candy sales. I’d pick candy necklaces, Bazooka Bubble Gum, Pez, Charm’s Blow Pops, Sugar Daddy, Tootsie Rolls, and marshmallow cones. The list could go on and on.

Please return this week for the Retro Tea Party Menu and the recipes.

Retro?

Have you had the experience of seeing something from your past that is now referred to as retro or vintage? It is a bit disturbing. But my new tea party theme will be a Retro Tea. To get in the mood, does anyone remember:

Bikes with balloon tires, bells and handle bar tassels;
Spot and Puff;
Forts in the woods;
The Man from U.N.C.L.E.;
White Go-Go Boots;
The Beatles on Ed Sullivan;
Daniel Boone coonskin hats;
Poor Boy Shirts;
Roller skates that strapped onto your shoes;
Take the Last Train to Clarksville;
Ernest T. Bass;
Rat Fink;
The Prettiest Girl, I Ever Saw, Was Sipping Ci-der, Through a Straw;
Mint growing wild along every small stream;
Goldfish bowls;
Hopscotch;
Aluminum Christmas trees and color wheels;
Slipcovers and the corkscrew pins that held them in place;
Mini skirts;
Hassocks;
Banana seats and high sissy bars;
The cracks and pops of heavily-played records;
VW Beetles;
Baton twirling;
Accordion players on Amateur Hour;
Watching Lawrence Welk on Saturday nights with your grandparents;
Cooking pork for an hour to kill bacteria we no longer worry about;
Suede jackets with long fringes;
Pressure cookers;
Measuring cups without metric markings;
Melmac;
The things your parents said about boys with long hair…until your brother had long hair;
Draft dodgers;
Wearing stockings because pantyhose hadn’t quite been invented yet;
Hot pants;
Being required to wear only dresses or skirts to school;
Green uniforms and berets for Junior Scouts;
Sit-Upons and Som’mores;
Candy and gum for 5 cents;
Coke coolers that had water in the bottom, reach in and take a bottle;
Plastic artificial flowers;
Fostoria;
TV dinners in silver foil trays;
Walking on the railroad tracks;
Chinese Jump Rope;
The Onesies, Twosies, Threesies of Jacks;
Gray and red Farmall tractors;
Rain barrels;
Women wearing hats and gloves to church;
Formica tables;
Pass-throughs;
Kool-aid and Fizzies;
Wax Lips and fingernails;
Polio Sugar Cubes;
Starting the school day with the Pledge of Allegiance and saying grace before lunch;
Twinkies in your lunch box;
Milkmen who delivered milk in glass bottles;
Super Balls;
Wicker clothes baskets, wooden clothes pins and wringer washers;
Grandma wearing her apron from morning to night;
Crocheted vests;
Headbands;
Chains of pop tops from soda cans;
The Ladies’ Aid Society;
Black lights and posters;
Jello Salads;
Flyswatters and fly tape;
Dirt floor basements;
Buying Savings Bonds at school, 25 cents a week;
Almost everyone’s home had a piano;
Collecting books of Green Stamps;

45s;

Troll Dolls;
I’m ‘enry the Eighth, I am;
Skin the Cat;
Believing you’d get warts if a toad peed on your fingers;
Children’s Day at Sunday School where every kid had a “part” to recite before everyone;
Peanut scrambles;
The Name Game, Alice, Alice BoBalice, Bananafanna FoFalice;
Ice houses, smoke houses, chicken coops and outhouses, no longer used but still standing;
Gas pole lights and the seasonal decorations most people used on them;
Watching punch come out of your brother’s nose because he was laughing so hard;
Cone-shaped pole lights;
10-4 Good Buddy;
Weekly Readers;
The annual church picnic, especially the grab bag.