Our Easter Table

This year we were fewer in number and we had a full day of pouring rain but with the two of my grown children, their spouses and five grand children we enjoyed a wonderful and blessed day. There was no yearly Easter Egg Hunt that we normally do outside and honestly I opted not to do it inside. My house would have been turned upside down so we enjoyed a quiet indoor celebration of cocktails, appetizers, later a mid afternoon dinner and ended with our traditional dessert, Cointreau Cake.

 

 



The grown ups sat in the dining room with the exception of our youngest grand. She is still a little young to be eating with the other older grand's. She would just want to play instead of eating and still needs to be under our watchful eye.

 

I set a special setting for Baby Turner, a plate that has characters from Peter Rabbit.

 

 

Our table was set very simply with a tablecloth that I had bought many years ago from William Sonoma. It has shades of a cherry red in it which compliment the cherry red of the walls in our dining room. The green water goblets I bought long ago, a sale I came upon and couldn't resist them and the clear etched stem ware I found at my most favorite place to shop, Boxwood Gifts in Atlanta. I always make a point to visit this shop while in the Atlanta area. I have running rabbit napkin rings but this year chose to use my collection of sterling silver napkin rings.

 

 

Most of my collection have been bought over the past ten years most often when I am at an antique show. They are all very old, most of which are in the late 1800's and early 1900's. I have enjoyed the "hunt" while adding to my collection and I started the collection when I discovered that a very dear friend had a collection as well. I thought it to be a fascinating item to collect. Most in my collection are European, American and one from Czarist Russia.

 



 

 

I have a natural tendency to gravitate to the more ornate napkin rings most of which are French or English but I do add some from time to time that look a little more masculine to be placed at a gentlemen's place.

 

Then there is this one that happens to be my husband's favorite so it is always placed where he will be sitting. This is the one from Czarist Russia with it's red enameling and two rows above and below the enameling of tiny seed pearls.

These are but just a few in my collection but a collection that has been an enjoyable one. I often get a little history along with each napkin ring and always wonder who used these rings before I did.

 

The other grand's were seated on the screened porch just beyond the dining room. We open the doors so they feel a part of our table.

 

I always have a fresh arrangement that I put together for our Easter celebration.

 

 



A few other Easter decorations in the dining room.

 

 

 

 

 

And our traditional dessert, Cointreau Cake.

 

 

This cake is amazing with an angel food cake type of cake and the frosting does have the Cointreau liquor in it. I found the recipe many years ago in an old Southern cookbook by Camille Glenn. In her book she wrote that she most often made this for debutante parties. I smiled when I read that, times gone by but the cake...............a KEEPER and has become our families traditional dessert for Easter. I most often decorate the cake with pansy's from my garden but this year failed to plant them in time. I did however, have nastiruim's blooming so had to make do with them.

 

 





CAMILLE's GOLDEN COINTREAU CAKE
12 to 14 servings

8 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup fresh orange juice
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons Cointreau or other orange-flavored liqueur
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Cointreau frosting; recipe follows

 Heat oven to 325 degrees.

 Separate the eggs. Put the yolks in one large mixing bowl and the whites in another large mixing bowl.Beat the egg yolks with an electric mixer until they have thickened and are smooth. Beat in the sugar slowly, then continue beating until the mixture turns a lighter shade of yellow and is smooth. Add the orange juice and blend thoroughly.

 Measure the flour, then sift it twice. Sprinkle the sifted flour over the egg yolk mixture and gently fold it in by hand with a whisk or a rubber spatula, or with the electric mixer on a very low speed. Fold in the Cointreau and vanilla.

Add the salt to the egg whites and beat until they begin to turn white and foamy. Add the cream of tartar and continue to beat until the egg whites hold a stiff peak but are not dry and grainy, about 4 minutes more.Fold a few spoonfuls of the egg whites into the batter to lighten it. Then add the remaining egg whites to the batter, gently folding them in.

Spoon the batter into a 10- by 14 1/2-inch ungreased angel food cake pan (a tube pan with a removable bottom). The pan should be no more than three quarters full. Place the cake pan on the middle shelf of the oven and bake until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, or until the cake springs back at once when lightly touched, about 1 1/4 hours.

Remove the cake from the oven, turn it upside down on the tube leg pans and allow it to rest overnight before frosting.

Loosen the cake with a thin sharp knife and unmold it. Put the cake on a plate or on a flat surface covered with wax paper or foil. Spread the frosting over the cake.

COINTREAU FROSTING

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 3/4 cups confectioners` sugar, sifted
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 large egg yolk
6 to 8 teaspoons Cointreau or other orange-flavored liqueur, or more as needed

 Put the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add the confectioners` sugar and salt. Beat well with an electric mixer. Add the egg yolk, then slowly add 6 tablespoons of the Cointreau. Continue to beat the frosting until it is smooth, thick and pliable, about 3 minutes. Add more Cointreau as needed; it usually takes at least 8 tablespoons. This frosting must be thick.

 Frost the cake generously in a swirl design. Allow the frosting to firm for 30 minutes, then lift the cake to a serving platter.

 

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I hope each of you reading had a wonderful Easter Sunday. We did in spite of our continuing rain.

 



 

Thank you for stopping by and I do hope you will come again. I'm sharing this post at Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch and Foodie Friday hosted by Rattlebridge Farm.