Friday, January 23, 2015

The girls catch up, and apple jelly...

On Wednesday I had the best surprise because 'finally' dear friend Wendy had a day to spare and could come north to visit!
Our little sewing group have not had time with Wendy since Heather's birthday last August and five months between catch ups really is toooooo long. 
We only had a day's notice that we could meet up so Wendy drove the 100 klms to my house, and from there I took us another 25 klms north to Heather's house for some relaxed stitching and some fun in the kitchen.

I've been promising the girls for about two years that I'd bake them some of Nana's Rice Pudding and guess what, I actually kept my promise this time - they are so patient and forgiving.  In fact, I even made some fresh apple jelly (jello) to serve with it. (recipe later)

Heather is a great hostess, and her home exudes 'welcome'...

She even let me wear her favourite apron, which has polka dot pockets and pom pom trim!
(I tried to sneak it home with me but she has eagle eyes, you know...)

After some of Heather's yummy cake for morning tea, sandwiches for lunch, and wonderful cappuccinos, I set about preparing the dessert I'd brought...

Wendy snapped photos between fits of laughter...

...and pretty soon I was ready to serve!

Nana's baked rice custard, fresh apple jelly, fresh mango and blueberries...
We missed Barb as this get-together was such short notice, but when an opportunity to catch up with Wendy comes along we grab it.

If you want to make my very quick fresh apple jelly (jello) the recipe is below the photo...

You'll need:

These are Australian measures-

400 ml of fresh apple juice 
(or the 100% cloudy kind like Nudie Juice that you find in the cold section of the supermarket -you can also make this using fresh orange juice)
100 ml boiling water
1 tablespoon powdered gelatine

Dissolve the gelatine in the boiling water.
Pour the apple juice into the gelatine water and stir well.
Place in your blender for 30 seconds (this creates the foam top, kind of like marshmallow!)
Pour into a tray to set. This takes about 15 -20 minutes.

Enjoy!

US measures are:  1¾ cups of juice / 7 tablespoons boiling water / 4 teaspoons gelatine powder


Good friends, good food, a welcoming home. You can't ask for more.
Hopefully next time all four of us can catch up.
Blessed.

hugs

26 comments:

Kaisievic said...

Looks like you ladies had a lovely time together on your catch up. How nice!

Sherri said...

I have never made apple jelly. Thanks for the recipe. It looks like you all had a fun day.

Anonymous said...

Thankyou for sharing your awesome day and recipes my friend,can't wait to try the jello,I hope you have a wonderful day today.xx

Petra said...

Looks like you had a great time; it is always lovely to meet friends at short notice, makes it a nice surprise! I will try the jello, never had that before. Loving your new posts this year!!☺

Baa. xxx said...

Yippee! Friends - they are the best!

Tammy said...

Oh that's does sound yummy and it all looks delicious. I so envy you having such like minded friends...All crafty and creative and so fourth. It looks like it was a great fun filled day.

Leeanne said...

Yum!!! Love that apron too.

Little Quiltsong said...

That looks soooooo delicious and refreshing!! Thank you for the apple jelly (jello) :) recipe! I always love seeing pictures of your girlfriend get-togethers.

Anonymous said...

Love your reports on the get-togethers. I'll bet it was a mile a minute talking with Wendy on the way there and back, too. A journey with a friend is never long. I didn't know that about the blender and the foam! I'm going to try that!

Martha Roberts said...

What a lovely way to spend the day--with good friends and stitching. Can't wait to try the fresh apple jello.

Larissa said...

What a lovely chance to catch up!! I've never tried to make any kind of jelly other than the packet-kind, but I MUST try this one!! :D It sounds lovely!!! Thank you for sharing the recipe!!! xxx

Kaylee said...

What a wonderful catch up for you girls. Umm the Apply Jelly sounds lovely Jenny,

Jane said...

looks like you all had fun, and desert looks delicious

Anonymous said...

Loved reading this.
Thank you ��

Julie said...

Good friends, good food, a welcoming home ... you are so right there Jenny. I love that apron ... when you come to my home to cook, I will let you wear my apron too ... it has doilies all over it :-) x0x0

cucki said...

i love reading your post
Thank you x

Anonymous said...

Looks like you had an amazing day with your friends - and the food looks so yummy!

selina said...

wow awesome post! you all looked like you had a really fun day
cheers

Águeda said...

¡Yo Quisiera estar ahí con ustedes! Me gusta mucho su reunión de buenas amigas. Y por supuesto, me gusta mucho la exquisita comida que preparan. Gracias por la receta. Por último yo confieso: ¡Habría intentado también "acomodar" el bonito delantal en mi equipaje. ;)Besos a todas.

Ingrid said...

Hola Jenny!
Qué grupo de amigas tan lindo! Se nota que pasaron un excelente día. Me encantó el delantal favorito de tu amiga y el postre facilito de hacer y luce delicioso y refrescante. Me encantan tus publicaciones porque resultan muy inspiradoras. Recibe un fuerte abrazo desde Venezuela!

ChitterChatterDesigns said...

That looks like the most wonderful afternoon! Adorable. x~Cori

Quilting Nonnie said...

I agree with Ingrid. I love your posts and look forward to reading yours every day! I've only been following you for a month but already I'm making the vintage kitchen BOM. I don't get enough hand-stitching in my life. Thank you for your sweet designs. I'm glad you had such a happy day with your friends. I love getting together with friends!

my2siamese said...

I just read today's weekly newsletter. I'm thrilled for you and Mr. E on his new job. Is this job in your town? Will you be able to stay where you are living now? I really enjoy your blog and creativity. I'm so glad things are looking up! From Gainesville, FL USA

TerriSue said...

It sounds like fun was had by all. It's so nice to have a catch up day with good friends.

Jenny of Elefantz said...

Yes, Jill, we made the decision not to move towns anymore, and then he got this job! God is good all the time. :-)

Createology said...

Great time with friends and lots of laughter equals Happy Bliss. Good food too always adds to the festivities. Yes to the Apron Love. Thank you for sharing the Apple Jelly recipe.