Angela Webster McRae's Blog, page 134

The notecards winner is …

Joy! And since I have your address already, Joy, I'll get these headed your way. Congrats!

Valentine's Week Giveaway #3

I haven't found too many valentine postcards, so I was happy to pick up this one this year! I think this image is so sweet, and I love the thought that such sweet sentiments used to sail so openly through the mail!
Originally sent in 1920, this card reads: "Dear Aunt, I am well and hope you are the same. I am sorry my birthday is so near. from Leo." I wonder why Leo felt he needed to apologize to his aunt for his birthday being so near … Valentine's Day, presumably? Thoughts?
For today's giveaway, I thought I'd give one of you something that was a real hit when I shared my own copy of it the other day, this "I Love Tea! Stickers" booklet by Teresa Goodridge. If you'd like to be entered to win it, just leave an "Enter Me" comment to this post between now and 7 a.m. EST tomorrow, Feb. 11, and you'll be entered to win. Kindly include an email address or have a link for me to contact you if you're the winner. US and Canada only, please. Good luck!

The tea infuser goes to … Misty!

And I've just sent her an email, so hopefully she'll soon be sipping tea with the assistance of this new infuser. Congrats, Misty!

Valentine's Week Giveaway #2

One of the things I most enjoy about collecting vintage valentines is that they don't take up a lot of room! I'm out of storage space for many more teacups and teapots, but I don't think I'll ever be able to pass up a sweet valentine like this one that was once sent to someone's teacher!
I had a teacher named Gayle years ago, and I can easily picture her as a little girl, sending this card to a favorite teacher. I have no way of knowing whether this could possibly be true, but it's fun to imagine!
And while I don't give away my vintage cards, I'm happy to share a package of brand-new ones! These cute teacup thank-you notes were one of two boxes I found at a T.J. Maxx the other day, so I got one box for me and one for one of you! If you'd like to be entered to win it, just leave an "Enter Me" comment to this post between now and 7 a.m. EST tomorrow, Feb. 10, and you'll be entered to win. Kindly include an email address or have a link for me to contact you if you're the winner. US and Canada only, please. Good luck!

Valentine's Week Giveaway #1

Welcome to my annual Valentine's Week of giveaways! Every year I think I've probably discovered the last of the tea-themed vintage valentines, and yet each year I seem to find more. I found quite a few new ones this year and already have a head start on next year's valentines, so I'm hopeful that we'll have at least one more year of Valentine's Week giveaways. This valentine appealed to be because of the Kewpie-like little girl holding the tea tray next to a tea trolley like mine!
And it is signed "Bobby" on the back. I love the signatures and invent stories to go with all of them!
And for the first giveaway, I have a heart-shaped tea infuser I found on eBay and ordered from China weeks ago! I got the one on the left for me and the one on the right for one of you. If you'd like to be entered to win it, just leave an "Enter Me" comment to this post between now and 7 a.m. EST tomorrow, Feb. 9, and you'll be entered to win. Kindly include an email address or have a link for me to contact you if you're the winner. US only, please. Good luck!

Getting ready for Valentine's Week!

In preparation for Valentine's Week, which kicks off here tomorrow with seven days of giveaways, I thought I'd share a few of the pink and heart-themed goodies I've displayed on my tea trolley for the month. I was delighted to realize that family and friends gave me almost everything in this display, from the teapots and beautiful handcrafted cards to the teacups and even a teacup stand. (A friend who is downsizing had that in her car at Christmas and said she wondered if I wanted it or if she should just throw it out. I'm trying to downsize a little too, but let's not be ridiculous about it!) At any rate, please be sure to check back in the coming days as I share vintage tea-themed valentines as well as some goodies I'm so excited about giving away this year. The fun begins tomorrow!





 

"Kitchen Sink" Chocolate Chip Pan Cookies

Have you ever made chocolate chip cookies where you tossed in everything but the kitchen sink, as the saying goes? I experimented with a mash-up of several recipes this weekend, and the result was so good ("Perfect!" in the estimation of Mr. Tea With Friends) that I was asked to hurry up and write down exactly how I made these so that I can (perhaps) duplicate this success again! This recipe was actually prompted by two things. One, I had a lot of partial bags of baking chips left over from Christmas baking and …


Two, I had a pretty new cookie sheet I wanted to break in! This was a $5.99 find at T.J. Maxx the other day, and because of the pretty mint green color, I decided this pan might find its way into one of my future columns for The Coweta Shopper. (Which technically makes this a business expense. Ahem.)


So I decided to try to bake chocolate chip pan cookies, which I don't believe I've ever actually made before. They were quick and easy because I didn't have to take pans out of the oven every 10 minutes, and they were absolutely delicious!

I definitely suggest trying one (or two) of these cookies while they're hot from the oven. Oh. My. Goodness! If you'd like to try these for yourself, here's my recipe. I had my cookies with a nice strong cup of hazelnut tea, and it was a perfect afternoon tea treat!


"Kitchen Sink" Chocolate Chip Pan Cookies

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter, softened
2 large eggs
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1-1/4 cups light brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-3/4 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1-3/4 cups chocolate chips or other flavored chips (I used a combination of semisweet, milk chocolate, white chocolate, and caramel chips)
1/2 cup pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a 10 x 15-inch cookie sheet with aluminum foil, or prepare with cooking spray. In large bowl, cream butter using an electric mixer. Add eggs and combine using high speed of mixer. Add sugars and vanilla and combine. Next, use a spatula or large spoon to add the flour, soda, and salt, and combine well. Then fold in chocolate chips and pecans. Spread mixture evenly in prepared pan and bake for 23-25 minutes, just until edges are beginning to brown. Let cool for a few minutes (if you can wait that long!) and cut into cookie squares of desired size. Enjoy!

Some Varsi-tea from the Varsity

The Varsity is an Atlanta institution. Founded in 1928, it's said to be the world's largest drive-in restaurant, although I've always dined in when I have visited. The Varsity is part of the city's culture, the kind of place where sports fans love to go on game day, but celebrities and politicians know to go there as well. The Varsity is known for its cries of "What'll ya have? What'll ya have?" at the order counter. The other night, Alex and I were headed back from Atlanta when we decided to stop by for an early dinner.
In warmer weather, I get the Frosted Orange, a creamy orange milkshake, but on this visit, I was surprised to find a new Peach Iced Tea on the menu.
A chili dog, onion rings, and a drink is my go-to meal here. In fact, I'm not sure I've ever ordered anything else, and when I see someone at the Varsity who is ordering something like a chicken salad sandwich or, heaven forbid, a salad, all I can think is, "Amateur." Their chili is perfection, and the onion rings are lightly breaded and crispy, the kind where you get more onion than breading. In my none-too-humble opinion, there's not much reason to order the abominations known as onion rings anywhere else. And I have to report that the new Peach Iced Tea is quite sweet but quite good, a very nice accompaniment to a classic meal.
And we got fried pies to take home for dessert—the peach pie for me, the apple for Alex. So, friends, who all has eaten at the Varsity? If you're from Georgia, I assume you have, but I'm curious whether non-Georgians know about the Varsity as well!

New stickers for tea lovers

Back before Christmas, I was window shopping (browser shopping?) for tea books on Amazon when I noticed a new postcard-sized booklet of tea stickers was coming out. I pre-ordered it, and when it arrived the other day, I wished I had ordered a few more copies of "I Love Tea! Stickers" by Teresa Goodridge.


From Dover Publications, of which I have been a fan for many years, these stickers are perfect for when you stuff a card with a tea bag or some other lumpy gift and need a little extra oomph securing the envelope's seal on the back. These would be great for dressing up a package as well!

There's such a fun variety of stickers in this little booklet, and I think this was an absolutely brilliant idea for a new sticker booklet. It's just $1.99, so next time you place an Amazon order, you might want to add one of these to your electronic cart!

Two-thirds of a new tea set

On Saturday, I visited one of the big T.J. Maxx/HomeGoods stores, the one in Smyrna, and I was delighted at all the new teawares I found in colorful spring pastels. There are some really pretty new teacups, and I almost came home with one of them, but instead, I bought a new Gracie's teapot ($12.99) and creamer ($4.99). I had $10 on a gift certificate left to use, so my "set" was really more like $7.98. Not bad!

I'm still in my "blue phase," I suppose, because these lovely shades of blue are so appealing to me. And for some reason, I found this simple banded design quite charming. I think it could be dressed up or down very easily, and it reminds me of china from the sixties!

Here's a close-up of the detailing. Curiously, another blue-toned design I saw had only a teapot and creamer available as well. Do you suppose someone in Smyrna is collecting sugar bowls and going around and scooping them all up? Whatever the case, I'll be going by at least three (possibly four) T.J. Maxx stores this week, so I'm hoping to find the matching sugar bowl—just in time for a little springtime decorating!