Backyard BBQ, Baby!

Gearing-Up For The Three-Day Weekend!

Every year I set out to plan the be-all end-all Memorial Day Blowout. And every year I get sidetracked and we end up eating pizza and potato chips.

But this year I found inspiration right here in The Attic! I was admiring a shiny new set of Betty’s Aluminum Tumblers (above) and it hit me–GO RETRO! The decor, music–even the food!

So slide into your clam diggers! Button up those camp shirts! We’re fixing a shindig and you’re invited!

To get people in the mood, I’m going to play the Fabulous Fifties CD Set! Over 3 hours of cardigan sweater classics like “Smoke Gets In Your Eyes,” “Blueberry Hill,” “Rags To Riches,” and “Too Young!”

Out back, I’m going to hang these Hula Girl Party Lights. They’re designed for end-to-end connection, so I can string up to 3 sets around the patio and deck. They bring back memories of summertimes past, smothered in cocoa butter, toes in the sand, not a care in the world!

And then...there’s the food!
Wanna know my secret weapons? Read on!

Our Campbell's Recipe Card Set packs a mighty 76 quick, delicious favorites from your childhood! Baked Macaroni & Cheese! Chicken & Biscuits! And oodles of mouth-watering, cheesy, creamy delights!

Patio Daddy-O is a super-hip cookbook bursting with backyard flavor! 45 sizzling recipes you won’t believe! Roasted Banana Splits! Jazzed-Out Blackberry Thyme Mojitos! Big Daddy’s High-Style Cheese-Stuffed Burgers! And Mr. Betty’s Attic gets to show off at the grill (you know how men are around fire...)

And just when they think I can’t POSSIBLY outdo myself, I’m going to unleash the chocolate!

Tucked inside my Hershey's Recipe Card Set are 99 ooey, gooey sinfully-sweet treats! Hershey's Best Brownies! Orange Streusel Coffeecake! Strawberry Chocolate-Chip Shortcake!

Oh yeahhhh...it’s gonna be good!
Help yourself to seconds! And have a fabulous fifties weekend!

Home Sweet Home!

What Aunt Betty Learned On Vacation

Sorry the blog is a bit late today, but your Aunt Betty is still recovering after a fabulous week-long vacation in San Francisco last week! The whole family went and we hit all the landmarks: The Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman’s Wharf, Chinatown­–we even ventured down to Santa Cruz (what a boardwalk!), Monterey and Carmel. No, we didn’t see Clint Eastwood, but we did see baby sea lions sunning on rocky cliffs with their roly-poly moms nestled close-by!

But like every great vacation, the West Coast adventure taught us just as much about “home” as it did about the city by the Bay.

No matter how many rolled-up balls of socks, Ziplocks full of shampoo and toothpaste, or cell phone chargers I carefully pack, there’s always that one thing I kick myself for forgetting! This time it was my Marilyn Monroe Glamour Purse! It’s the perfect size for my wallet, maps, digital camera, hand sanitizer and every other “mom” travel essential. Plus, its soft, sateen retro-style would’ve been oh-so-chic in San Francisco! Nostalgia is very cosmopolitan!

And speaking of nostalgia, healthy California cuisine is fine and dandy, but I’ll tell you–when it’s 2 a.m. in a hotel room and you can’t sleep, you dream of White Castle hamburgers! My son wore his White Castle t-shirt one afternoon, and thereafter, I couldn’t wait to get home to sink my teeth into 3 or 4 or 12 of those tiny slices of Heaven!

And speaking of snacking, getting the family together for an in-room movie over 2 mini bar packets of crackers was not exactly a cinematic event. We were exhausted after a day of hiking steep Frisco streets so we made due, but once we got home to Florida, I popped a fresh buttery batch of popcorn and filled our Disney Popcorn Bowl that includes a cute Mickey Mouse-shaped salt shaker.

I still have laundry to do and it’ll be weeks before our photos are emailed and printed, but all of that can wait. For now, I’m enjoying the best part of every vacation: relishing how much I love being home.

Have An Indoor Picnic!

Keep Cozy With Vintage Coca-Cola

I know the expression says “April showers bring May flowers,” but could Mother Nature cool it with the rain already? Checking the national weather forecast for today, it looks like much of the country is going to be wet and soggy. Again.

Rainy day blues call for one surefire cure: an indoor picnic! Call off the fire department; there’s no propane involved here, just good old-fashioned skillets on the stove sizzling with juicy burgers and bakery buns toasting in the oven. For the kids, slather a pan with butter and melt them some grilled cheese sandwiches (crusts optional) just like mom used to make. Slice some pickles, red onion and tomato. Peel off slivers of tangy swiss and cheddar. Break off hunks of crisp, market-fresh salad fixings and rip open a bag of salty chips. Top it off with sweet fizzy Coca-Cola in every glass!

In our house, we break out the portable radio (actually, these days, my kids insist on their mp3 player plugged into speakers because they think “radio” is hilariously barbaric) and we whip out the party tunes. We take turns: the kids get some Hannah Montana and Arctic Monkeys and Mom gets The Beatles and at least one Cher song (usually “Half Breed.” I like to dance and horrify the kids).

Mr. Betty’s Attic wields the spatula wearing his Personalized Diner Apron. When he signals that the burgers and sandwiches are “up,” I put the finishing touch on the whole day: the vintage diner-style Coca-Cola luncheon set. I’ve got the plates, butter dish and salt and pepper shakers and let me tell you–there’s something about their nostalgic ‘50s drive-in design that makes a hamburger cooked indoors on a rainy day taste like sweet, sweet summer.

If you close your eyes, turn up the radio and take a big bite you can almost feel the sunshine on your hair.

And it sure beats video games all day.

Here's to sunny days right around the corner!!!

I Love Lucy & Chocolate!

What Else Could We Want?

As a woman “over that certain age,” I’m easily suckered by advertising that promises me a fountain of youth. But I’m not about to fork over $75–$150 for designer face creams!

So when I read about the connection between antioxidants & chocolate, the angels began to sing!

Chocolate contains high concentrations of antioxidants. Antioxidants keep us healthy, inside and out, by canceling out free radicals–cells in our body which are believed to cause various types of damage.

Now, you could get your antioxidants from broccoli, spinach, or prunes...

Or–unwrap a succulent chunk of chocolate and plop it on your tongue!

Welcome to Lucy’s Chocolate Factory!

It’s a sweet shoppe loaded with classic I Love Lucy laughs and lunacy–with tons of chewy chocolate on top! And did I mention that all the chocolate is made from scratch by the world-famous Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory­®?

Just listen to the names of some of the candies: Chocolate Clusters, Cashew Dippers™, Pecan Dippers™, Macadamia Dippers™, Peanut Butter Cup™—hang on a minute, I have to mop up the puddle of drool on my keyboard (macadamia does that to me every time).

All of this chewy, ooey oodness comes bundled in beautifully-packaged gift sets that combine the kooky cool of vintage Lucy with the greatest medicine Mother Nature ever made!

Click here and start eating your way to beauty!

Enjoy!

Have Yourself A Merry Little Kitchen!

Fire Up The Oven! We’re Going Retro!

Need another reason why the fifties rocked? The Bundt baking pan was invented in 1950 when Minneapolis engineer Dave Dalquist was approached by a sweet little lady who wanted to recreate the dense, heavy European cakes her Old Country family had once made. The hole in the center of the bundt pan proved to be the key­—it allowed heat to evenly cook the thicker European batter. The result was a glorious symbol of Americana that created a cake craze!

Harvey Wallbanger Cake, anyone? Maybe some sparkling 7UP® cake? I discovered long ago that baking is highly therapeutic! There's something about rolling around in dough that melts stress away and what better way to bake than with the Pillsbury® Best Of The Bake-Off® Cookbook? Everything from the famous (bundt-style) Tunnel Of Fudge Cake to an Orange Kiss Me Cake will have you licking the bowl when no one’s looking!

But why stop at dessert? Go to town on an entirely retro-themed feast with our Food Of The ‘50s Cookbook (chicken fricasse, Swedish meatballs, lemon bars), the Retro Hot Dog Stand (for quick fixes) and the über cool Milkshake Maker!

Share some goodies with your neighbors in your very own Personally Engraved Baking Pan, perfect for everything from pot luck casseroles to holiday cookies!

That’s what’s so great about the holiday season—it’s completely acceptable to eat until you pass out! So, bring on the meatballs, I say! Ladle some more gravy onto that roast, and save me some frosting on the big wooden spoon!

The Age-Old Dilemma: Coke® Or Pepsi®?

When I was sixteen I broke with family tradition and switched from Pepsi to Coke. My father, the most die-hard Pepsi drinker you’ll ever find, tried to hide his disappointment, but it was pretty obvious. Had he not raised me well? Instilled proper values and ethics?

What, one wonders, causes such headstrong loyalty to a soft drink? Perhaps the rivalry can be traced to the sock-hoppin’ fifties when hamburger joints and juke boxes ruled teenage life and nothing soothed a flunked exam or a pimple on date night like a frosty glass of pop with your pals. It was during these “Tutti Frutti” times when favorites were born over plates of fries—and most of us still drink what we drank then.

Whatever your preference, one thing’s certain: retro Coke and Pepsi memorabilia adds a touch of class. It’s a potent combination of “idealism” and “nostalgia” that evokes our warmest memories. It says to the world “I respect the generations before me and I’m also passing down my own traditions.”

Pledge your allegiance with our plethora of pop-related goodies! On the Pepsi side, there’s our adorable Ice Cream Float Cookie Jar and accompanying Salt And Pepper Shaker Set. And why not offer friends an ice-cold Pepsi in a genuine Pepsi cup straight from your own Cup Dispenser?

Leaning more towards Coca-Cola®? Serve up cheeseburgers and fries on this set of Soda Shop Placemats, complete with retro-look advertising. Don’t forget to display the ketchup, mayo and relish on the Lazy Susan and top it all off with the Juke Box Shaker Set!

I’ll be enjoying the cool autumn days with my own frosty glass of Coke. Unless my dad visits, of course.

I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream!

Let's Celebrate: The Ice Cream Cone Was Invented 103 Years Ago Today!

In junior high, my friend Cheryl and I rode our bikes everywhere. It seemed like the suburbs were smaller back then, so pedaling to the corner store for a Slushee® or to the local mall was a safe, practical endeavor.

And in the summertime, there was only one place to be­–The East India Ice Cream Parlor!

It was home to the best ice cream I have ever had! The waffle cones melted in your mouth and the ice cream was thick with home-made ingredients like milk, butter, cocoa, vanilla bean, fresh strawberries and chunky peanut butter! Sprinkle on some crushed pecans, colored candy dots, white chocolate or drizzles of hot fudge, and you were looking at the mother of all sugar highs!

With all the cones I devoured and dribbled down my shirt (from that pesky hole in the bottom you never notice until it's too late), you'd think I knew where these scoops of heaven came from.
Turns out, the origin of the ice cream cone we know today goes all the way back to The St. Louis World’s Fair of 1904!

Accounts vary as to who, exactly, concocted it, but its genesis came about when ice cream vendors sold so much ice cream on that hot July afternoon that they ran out of dishes. Coming to their rescue was a pastry vendor named Ernest Hamwi, who sold a wafer-thin delight called a “zalabia,” which the ice cream merchants hurriedly rolled into cones, filled with their cold creamy treats, and served to parched patrons who fell in love with the crunchy-creamy combo!

The East India Ice Cream Parlor is long gone now, but my love of the ice cream cone lives on. Whenever the mood strikes us, my family fires up our Soft Serve Ice Cream Maker which does all the work for us while we fill lots of bowls with nuts, sprinkles and other decadent delights. We unwrap some store-bought cones, fill ‘em with freshly-made ice cream and spoon on the extras! There’s always a moment of collective silence as we take that first delectable crunch...followed by all four of us saying,“Ahhhhhhhh!”