Thursday, February 19, 2015

Winter Woodland Tea Party for Two


While bleak winter days can find us staring soulfully out our window searching for signs of Spring, catching a glimpse of lively furry or feathered friends romping about in the snowy landscape can always bring a bit of cheer to your mood until warmer days arrive.
Living adjacent to a wooded area, I always delight in seeing assorted birds, deer and an occasional fox scampering through the trees or stopping by for a quick snack.
In a previous post, I shared a summer woodland tea party and thought a winter version would be lots of fun as well. With a snowy palette, wintry accents and a fitting sweet treat, it's easy to embrace the best of winter and it's woodland creatures while staying cozy inside.
created using images from the Graphics fairy  

Mini Woodland "Buche du Noel"
I've shared two full sized versions of this whimsical famous french dessert, usually reserved for the holidays, and thought I'd create scaled down individual versions with the simplest "No-recipe" recipe.
You'll Need
Small cake rolls (I used little Debbie)
Vanilla icing, (store bought or homemade)
confectioner sugar, mint, or berries, nuts
 or fruit for accents  
*For 2 servings, 2 cakes will remain full size 
and 1 will be cut in half to for branches
Having a party?
A full box yields 8 servings
Ice cakes in your choice of frosting. This Pillsbury "ready to use" icing has the perfect star tip for a bark-like texture or simply use a pastry bag or tines of a fork over for similar effect. I find chilling cakes in refrigerator makes them easier to work with- the chocolate coating is very fragile.
Carefully cut ends off of cake rolls to expose "roll" center. use a serrated knife to cut one of the cakes in half diagonally
connect these branches" to cake logs and touch up icing as needed
sprinkle with confectioner sugar for snow or add sugar sprinkled fruit, nuts or mint leaves
 I arranged them on individual plates for easier serving
Create tiny mushrooms by gluing Hershey kisses Mini marshmallows with a dollop of frosting 

For my previous full size versions of this dessert visit our posts
& a walk in woods


Winter Mini Garden
While it seems fairy gardens are all the rage, I have seen few winter varieties and thought I'd give one a try to use as a centerpiece. 
I added some wintry branches to a planter holding a mini pine leftover from the holidays. Faux snow layered with epsom salts ($1 a bag) enhances the "landscape" while a mini mirror creates a frozen pond. 
I accented with faux silver frosty branches and flocked deer from my Christmas decor
  
Tea is Served
Toilet paper rolls turn into napkin rings keeping utensils neat, when wrapped with strips of faux wood contact paper and twine.


With hints of cinnamon, clove and ginger, Chai is a delightful choice for winter.

Pennywise Tips

This is an easy and fun dessert to have kids help make, no oven needed. Let them Customize using different flavor icing and  gummy bugs or candy flowers.

When making for a group, you can frost and assemble beforehand. Cover with plastic and chill. Add garnishes just before serving.

Thank You for Visiting!


29 comments:

  1. Such an inviting tea! My son would love the dessert as I put swiss rolls in his lunch all the time! Pinned!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks so much- I haven't had them in years - I forgot how yummy they were! :)

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  2. What a darling and on-so-clever teatime!

    Well done, looks wonderful!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks so much!- we've been stuck inside with the weather so needed a fun tea :)

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  3. Replies
    1. Thanks so much! The snow is lovely but I think I'm ready for Spring lol

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  4. very nice article !!!
    i love the small garden
    rosa

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  5. The Camus quote is one of my favorites.

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    1. Thanks Susan!
      I sort of chuckled when I realized I had Camus and Little Debbie in the same post

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  6. Oh I love your tea! The invitation is lovely and your setting gorgeous! I used to make the large Buche do Noel every Christmas when the kids were at home...always a request, but if it;s the 2 of us...not usually. Love your darling still life! Come link to Tuesday Cuppa Tea...the meme's still open!
    Ruth

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    1. Thanks so much Ruth!
      I've made some Buche du Noels for the holidays as well- some turned out better than others - they are tricky to make - so I found some shortcut versions :)
      I'd be delighted to stop by your tea party
      Cheers!

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  7. I do believe you have one of the prettiest blogs I've seen in the years I've been blogging. Just beautiful.
    I am now following you thru Google Friends Connect....OOO, and your dessert looks amazing. :)

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    1. Oh How sweet of you!
      So glad you enjoyed it and delighted you'll be following on Google (I'm still figuring out how Google+ works so sometimes I miss things there)
      Thanks again for popping by
      Cheers

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  8. What a fun, lovely and inviting post today. I am a little late getting here but oh so happy I did. Lots of clever ideas in this one!

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    1. Thanks so much Beth! So glad you enjoyed it
      Stop by anytime :)

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  9. Christina you never cease to amaze me with your creativity! I absolutely adore this sweet Woodland tea! Thanks for sharing with SYC.
    hugs,
    Jann

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    1. Oh You're so sweet! So glad you enjoyed it! Its been record cold here so trying to warm up these long winter days :)

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  10. Well that is just adorable! I love the Buche de noel! Thank you for joining Home Sweet Home!

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    1. Thanks so much!
      and as always many thanks for hosting Home sweet Home!

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  11. What a beautiful decoration! This plate with the deer is wonderful! Great idea to you swiss rolls to make and easy andfast dessert which looks amazing!

    Carpet cleaning Bromley

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    1. Thanks so much! This was fun to put together-
      I love "no recipe" desserts as truth be told I'm not a very good baker :)

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  12. Beautiful post, I so love it and enjoyed your beautiful setting and all the yummy stuff too. The dishes are gorgeous too!
    Who said you are not a good baker? I'm sure you are and can do a perfectly great job!
    Enjoy your weekend.
    FABBY

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    1. Thanks so much Fabby!
      So glad you enjoyed the post and thanks for your encouraging words! :) - sadly I'm not a good baker- LOL - but it doesn't stop me from trying- I just love sweets too much
      Cheers

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  13. So lovely! Thank you for sharing. You are one of the fan favorites at the Sunday Showcase from the Make it Pretty Monday party at The Dedicated House. Here is the link so you can check out your feature. http://www.thededicatedhouse.com/2015/03/the-sunday-showcase-from-make-it-pretty.html Hope to see you tomorrow at the bash! Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse

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    Replies
    1. Thanks so much! I'm delighted!
      Can't wait to pop over to the party tomorrow! :)

      Delete
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    ReplyDelete

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