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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

Where Ideas for your Home Meet Inspiration for your Heart

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December 16, 2015

How to Make an Appetizer Tree

Good morning, and Merry Christmas from redheadcandecorate.com!

Last year, I tried something new for our annual Christmas appetizer party and I’m so excited to share it with you here today hoping maybe you will try it. Keep in mind, this is an appetizer you can use for any celebration.

We don’t usually have a large party, but we do invite our closest friends over, and everyone brings something to share. Then we all lounge around the fire in our kitchen chatting up a storm and sometimes even playing games. It’s one of my most favorite nights of the year. Here’s a couple of photos of our kitchen all decked out for Christmas…

Merry Christmas

That’s the table we all gather around for the party and I usually put out a shrimp cocktail platter, cheese and crackers, and my homemade spinach dip. Our friend Scott brings his crock pot full of his amazing hot cheese dip, and our friends the Miller’s bring the best homemade chocolate chip cookies I ever had. Scott is the funny guy who will get us all laughing with his fantastic stories, and the Millers are even funnier. Sometimes they even share their latest karate move. Now, that is fun! The kids all get along great and honestly act more grown up than we do. I love to watch them sneak into the kitchen for food, and then slowly slip away without the grown ups noticing. Oh, and then there is Sylvia, who always make a special appearance…

Redhead Can Decorate Christmas Kitchen

Oh yeah, back to that new appetizer idea I mentioned. Well..how about I just show you what it looks like?

Party Appetizer Tree

We call it our “Appetizer Tree”…

Now, when our friends walked in and saw this antipasto, veggie, pickle, olive, cheese masterpiece they flocked right to it. At first, I think they may have thought it was just for decoration, or maybe one of my projects I needed to photograph. It was then I surprised them all and grabbed one of the tooth picks and said, “Go ahead, pick one!”

Appetizer Tree

So, yes…it was quite a hit, and can also be fun to make. I had my teen daughters help out and it was put together in about 30 minutes. Here’s how we did it:

Instructions for Appetizer Tree

I used a FloraCraft white foam cone from Michaels which are available in multiple sizes. Choose the size that you are most comfortable using and consider how many guests will be enjoying it. You’ll then need to decide what food you want displayed on the Appetizer Tree. You can use olives, pickles, cheese, ham, and tomatoes like I did, or try something completely different. Unfortunately, I did not keep track of how many items were needed for this large cone, I just winged it. To assemble, I kept the plastic wrap on the cone, and stuck the food in with old-fashioned wooden toothpicks. I started at the top and worked my way down. You could also cover the cone with tin foil before you stick the food in, but it is not necessary. Don’t forget a little bowl will be needed for used tooth picks, and you can store your tree up to 1 day in the refrigerator, or cold garage covered with plastic wrap. Another tip I learned later on, is to glue the cone onto a base like a plate so it doesn’t tip over. For the record, mine did not tip over. Pin Appetizer Tree for later HERE.

Let me know of you decide to make an Appetizer Tree, and send me a photo so I can share it on my Facebook page.

Happy New Year from our home to yours!

Love, Julie

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10 Comments Filed Under: Adult Party Ideas, Appetizer, Christmas, Holiday Parties, Holidays, Parties, Recipes, Side Dishes Tagged With: Christmas, Christmas recipes, parties, recipes

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Comments

  1. Nancie says

    December 16, 2015 at 3:37 AM

    My Mom used to make an appitizer tree for Christmas. She also used a cone and wrapped it with curly endive to make the cone look like a tree before she added all the ingredients. She made a star tree topper too, made out of cheese by using a mini cookie cutter. To hold the tree in place she used floral gum. It worked real well. Everyone loved it!

    Reply
  2. Julie Fiato says

    December 16, 2015 at 5:46 AM

    Sounds perfect, Nancie. The cheese star idea is one I will try!!

    Reply
  3. Shirley@Housepitality Designs says

    December 16, 2015 at 6:03 AM

    OK…totally making that appetizer tree!….I always love your creations Julie!!!…Have a Merry day!

    Reply
  4. Jeanie says

    December 16, 2015 at 6:25 AM

    It looks delicious!

    Reply
  5. Gloria says

    December 16, 2015 at 6:56 AM

    I make my tree covered in curly endive with a cheese star and stick cooked shrimp on toothpicks in a spiral pattern. Everyone loves it. I put the tree in a large shallow bowl filled with ice and put more shrimp on the ice.

    Reply
  6. Cathy says

    December 16, 2015 at 1:50 PM

    I just got my Better Homes and Garden magazine. Congratulations!!!!

    Reply
    • At The Picket Fence says

      December 16, 2015 at 6:24 PM

      Thank you so much Cathy! 🙂 ~ Vanessa

      Reply
  7. Barbara says

    December 16, 2015 at 4:09 PM

    Yes! I’ve been making these for over 40 yrs! I found one of these in an old cookbook back in the 70s and loved it. I covered the styrofoam tree with green foil and then stuck all my goodies on the tree – fresh veggies and cheese cubes, olives, etc. Yours is just as beautiful!

    Reply
  8. Sharon says

    December 17, 2015 at 5:04 AM

    What a special way to dress up an evening. This Appetizer Tree is really beautiful!

    Reply
  9. Katherines Corner says

    December 19, 2015 at 8:09 PM

    this is so creative ,please tell me you shared this at the Thursday hop xo

    Reply

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“Ah, Lovely October, as you usher in the season “Ah, Lovely October, as you usher in the season that awakens my soul, your awesome beauty compels my spirit to soar like a leaf caught in an autumn breeze and my heart to sing like a heavenly choir.” Peggy Toney Horton.

Happy October dear friends! 🍂
On Monday my heart just felt so heavy. Yes, the po On Monday my heart just felt so heavy. Yes, the pouring rain outside contributed to my feelings. But the primary cause was this overwhelming flood of thoughts about how much in our world and in our culture is going off the rails. I’d planned to make pumpkin bread that day but I was tempted to just curl up in a ball on my bed, pull the covers over my head and pretend that this would actually solve something. I didn’t give into that temptation though. Instead, I got out my favorite pumpkin bread recipe and found that, as I worked and prayed and hummed worship songs, my spirit began to settle. When the world feels very loud, the demands of family and home can actually help to quiet our souls. As each family member walked through the door later in the day, they commented on how wonderful the house smelled. It’s better than any fall candle in my opinion! And I knew that the extra loaf that I get from the recipe would be a welcome treat for my widower neighbor. So, if your heart is feeling a bit unsettled this week too, maybe this recipe will come in handy!

Pumpkin Bread:

Ingredients:
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup water
3 cups white sugar
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour three 7Ă—3 inch loaf pans.
In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water and sugar until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans.
Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. 🍂
Happy first day of Autumn!! 🍂 Here’s a super Happy first day of Autumn!! 🍂 Here’s a super simple centerpiece that you can make in five minutes (or less) with just a few pumpkins and extra faux greenery. Let’s spend less time decorating and more time enjoying this season. It’s my favorite!! 🧡

#fallcenterpiece #falldecor #centerpiece #fiveminutedecorating
"Define your day", she told me as I held my newbor "Define your day", she told me as I held my newborn son. My mom and I were talking about how blurred my days and nights had become and how easy it would be to just stay in my pajamas 24/7. She encouraged me to make an attempt to put on 'real' clothes in the morning even if they were just nice sweatpants (bonus if they were clean!) and to throw a little bit of makeup on. That simple advice helped chart a course for my years of motherhood that continues today. And recently I began thinking about how critical it is that we not only seek wisdom from those ahead of us in our stage of life but that we are willing to apply it as well.

So, I asked this question on my personal Facebook page; "What is something you feel you've done well to create a peaceful/meaningful home for yourself and your family?" The catch was that the question was geared towards women in the 40+ age range. The responses came flooding in and were so wonderful and insightful. So, I'm going to be starting a new series where I share this wisdom with you and will include the first name of the woman who offered it. 

Today we start with Alison who said "I learned to set my alarm early to get up and moving before my kids woke up. I showered, got dressed and did my devotions while the house was quiet. It set my heart and perspective for each day.”

Is this something you do in your life too? What wisdom would you offer to a mom of young children?

I truly think our culture would greatly benefit from more women in different seasons of life being willing to invest in each other. 🍂

#wearthehomemakers #homemaking #motherhood #parentingwisdom
If bread pudding is on the dessert menu at a resta If bread pudding is on the dessert menu at a restaurant I’m definitely ordering it! It’s one of my all time favorite treats. So I decided to try my hand at making some here at home with a little fall twist and it was SO delicious!! 🍎

Ingredients:

6 slices of day old bread (french, sourdough or even brioche works great)
2 cups of heavy cream
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon bourbon (optional)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
For the apples:
3 peeled and chopped apples of a tart variety
1 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons flour (or corn starch)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350
Cut bread into cubes and place in a greased 8 1/2 x 11 baking dish
Whisk together in a bowl the eggs, cream, vanilla, rum, cinnamon and nutmeg and then pour it over the bread cubes. In a separate bowl, mix together the apples, brown sugar and flour/corn starch. Pour the apple mixture on top of the bread mixture making sure to spread the apples evenly across every part of the bread mixture.
Bake for 45 minutes. 
Enjoy!

#falldesserts #breadpudding #fallrecipes #desserts
When one kiddo wakes up not feeling well after onl When one kiddo wakes up not feeling well after only a week of school, you take the opportunity to make Saturday a truly restful day. Pancakes on the griddle, puttering around the yard admiring the way the limelights have begun their autumn journey from white to green to pink. Sprinkling touches of fall around the house a little bit at a time. Savoring the slowness of it all and taking care of my people in this place that provides us all with a respite from the world even if just for a day.

Hope you’re weekend is off to a great start and that you make it a priority to slow down for a bit and soak up the beauty around you. 🍂

#wearethehomemakers #homemaking #falldecorating
As summer slips into fall, I can’t help but thin As summer slips into fall, I can’t help but think about how grateful I am for the reminders all around me of God’s Sovereignty over everything including the seasons. It can be challenging in our world today to trust that there isn’t a single thing happening that surprises Him.

In a way, decorating my home to reflect the changing season serves as a tangible reminder of this trust. Even something as simple as seeing a pumpkin on my mantel or a basket of mums on the coffee table fill me with peace because they represent the things that remain constant and true.

“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” Isaiah 40:8

#wearthehomemakers #homemaking #club31women
I’m never.going.back to stressful, time-consumin I’m never.going.back to stressful, time-consuming seasonal decorating. When I think back on the years where I would feel all of the pressure to come up with something fresh and creative I’m seriously embarrassed. Truly. Because it was such a waste. A waste of my time, my energy, my resources. Something clicked with me a few years ago. I was just done. I needed to simplify. I needed to not spend an obscene amount of time looking at fireplace mantels on Pinterest and trying to figure out how to make mine look amazing. I needed to put it all in the proper place in my heart and my mind. Which meant, it had to go waaaaayyyy down on the priority list. So far down it almost wasn’t on it. And I needed to confess to the Lord that I had allowed it to become an idol. 

Yes, I want to have a home that I enjoy. Yes, I love pretty things. But something really amazing happened when I finally released it all. When I decided to not give into the pressure and panic I would feel when I would scroll through my Instagram feed. When I just laid it all down and said…enough. There was this incredible irony in it. Because, the less time I took to decorate my home for each season, the more I found myself loving the results. I think that all along I had just been getting in my own way. It’s really taken a lot of time and prayer for me to finally be at a place where even though I still struggle with insecurities and I still have doubts from time to time, I’m becoming increasingly more confident in who God created me to be. And, just like my home, I’m finding that as I relax into myself, letting go of the comparisons and the pressure, the more I can actually lean into the calling He has placed on my life. 🍂

Leave a comment if you can relate! 

#wearethehomemakers #homemaking
“As the alluring song of September begins to whi “As the alluring song of September begins to whisper in my ear, my passionate spirit yearns for the splendor of its promise.” (Peggy Toney Horton)

Happy September dear friends! While I’m not quite ready to let go of summer and I plan to make the most out of the lingering, warm days, I’ll admit to starting to think about my fall decor this year. And one way to get inspired is to take a look back at previous years. Here’s just a glimpse at some of the ways I’ve welcomed Autumn to my home! 🍂

#september #falldecorating #falldecor #falldecoratingideas #wearethehomemakers
Labor Day weekend might mean that we’re turning Labor Day weekend might mean that we’re turning the corner and getting closer to fall but I’m not quite ready to let summer go. So I’ll just be over here continuing to whip up some super simple summer meals for my family that frankly can be enjoyed in any season. These shrimp rolls I made the other night were definitely a hit and would be great for any of your upcoming holiday weekend gatherings!

Shrimp Rolls 🍤

Ingredients
1-2 lbs of shrimp that is peeled, deveined and tail off (If using frozen make sure it’s thawed completely)
1/3 cup mayonnaise 
1/2 of a lemon
2 Tbsps chopped scallions
1 Tbsp chopped dill
1 Tbsp chopped Italian parsley
1 Tsp of Old Bay seasoning (more if you like!)
pinch of sea salt and pinch of black pepper
Hoagie Rolls
Softened butter

Directions: Gently pat the shrimp with a paper towel to remove any excess moisture. Roughly chop the shrimp and place in a bowl. Add mayonnaise, squeeze half of lemon and stir to combine before adding in the scallions, dill and parsley. Stir to combine and then add the additional seasonings. Spread butter on hoagie rolls and toast in the oven until lightly browned. Pile on the shrimp mixture and enjoy! 

#shrimproll #foodie #weeknightdinner #easydinner #seafoodlover
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