Every Friday we pick up our share of the weekly harvest at the organic CSA we joined called Amber Waves Farm in Amagansett. The two farmer ladies who run it are so cool, incredibly knowledgeable about organic farming and really care deeply about nourishing our community. They don’t just dump 50 radishes in your basket and send you on your way, you get a gorgeous selection of fresh picked produce, two loaves of Eli’s bread and a recipe that’s usually to complicated for me.

This week between Amber Waves and my own bumper crop of zucchini, I had to get creative. I had weekend guests as usual and I wanted to make a nice presentation to go with what my husband was masterfully creating on the bbq. I decided to make a zucchini, squash, tomato and fresh mozzarella terrine, plain baked zucchini with herbamare and a touch of butter (not worth photographing) and a few loaves of zucchini bread.

What I learned is that first of all, one can make a delicious terrine with just about anything and its even better the second day.  The secret is in the crust of breadcrumbs, shaved parm and butter and draining the tomato slices on a tray before layering them in so the terrine doesn’t get soupy.  (I apologize for not photographing it out of the oven, it was magnificent but everyone was hungry and impatient…that won’t happen again. I ‘ll have the camera ready next time.)

Second, and perhaps more important, is that zucchini bread doesn’t just happen because you’re feeling farm-y and want to impress your guests. Grating several large zucchini by hand is a serious workout and should be treated as such. Furthermore, if you run out of cinnamon, just stop.  Don’t throw in pumpkin pie spice plus a handful of chocolate chips and think you’re back on track.  You’re not, ginger is a powerful spice and doesn’t try to hide. This loaf looks better than it tastes but I did my best. This isn’t a cooking blog for good reason.

If anyone would be kind enough to share some of their zucchini recipes, I’d be most grateful.

Allison

We were blown away when Alejandra James of Liapela Modern Baby sent us these gorgeous pictures of her store in Florida. Liapela has 2 locations: Miami and Hallendale Beach. We love how she displayed our WallCandy Blossoms flower wall decals and our WallCandy Seasons Tree wall art. They look fabulous!

If you’re in the vicinity of Liapela you must go check it out. It’s a beautiful store. Thanks for sharing it with us Alejandra!

My friend has a little boy who loves hurricanes and tornadoes, volcanoes and shipwrecks. He is the fantasy demographic of The Weather Channel and National Geographic. Whenever I see a TV special I know this boy will love — or an educational toy — I email his father. This week he’s enthralled by the sinking of the Titanic and next week it might be Iceland’s sputtering volcano that’s powerful enough to stop airplanes.

Whatever the fascination, I keep my eye out for his favorite stuff. That’s what friends do for friends. And parents do for other parents.

So I am absolutely thrilled that WallCandy Arts has just added a Facebook “Like” button and a Twitter sharing button on all of its products. It’s just like if you are in a cool store, the kind that doesn’t just sell that mass-marketed stuff that every place has, and you see something you JUST KNOW your friends will like. You rummage through your wallet for the back of a business card to scrawl down the Website to look up later and then email to them.

Well, when you are window shopping from home and the computer screen is your window, one click will share everything you want to share. Your favorite removable chalkboard decals, your favorite erasable whiteboard decals and your favorite glow-in-the-dark decals!

These Facebook and Twitter buttons are even ideal if YOU want to drop hints to your friends and relatives about what might look fantastic in the baby’s room or your son and daughter’s room when they go through their next phase.

And speaking of phases, if your son happens to be into race cars right now, he’ll surely love these new Race-Me designs that bring the racetrack right into the bedroom. More details to come, but here’s a sneak peek!

Race-Me car decals hit the ground running on May 12!

Take a bite out of the rest of the school year by giving our big apple chalkboard wall decal to your child’s teacher.

Let your teachers know they are appreciated with this variation on the classic “apple for a teacher.” Teachers can use it to write daily messages to students, class to-do lists or to write out class lessons or homework assignments.

Or pick up a bushel of the chalkboards to give to family and friends who like to cook. Pick one up for a housewarming gift.

The removable wall decal is the perfect accessory for a kitchen warmed by a home-baked pie. It is a great spot to jot down shopping lists, dinner menus, and quick recipe ideas. Or for a friendly greeting to guests. The removable wall decals are better than chalkboard paint because they can be moved around the room as you redecorate.

Pair the apple chalkboard with this homemade apple pie from Grandma Ople for a memorable and scrumptious gift. I’ve been making this pie for years and it is yummy!

- Allison

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in flour to form a paste. Add water, white sugar and brown sugar, and bring to a boil. Reduce temperature and let simmer.

• Place the bottom crust in your pan. Fill with apples, mounded slightly. Cover with a lattice work of crust. Gently pour the sugar and butter liquid over the crust. Pour slowly so that it does not run off.

• Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven. Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Continue baking for 35 to 45 minutes, until apples are soft.

Grandma’s Apple Pie Recipe

When all the presents have been opened and played with, don’t wait around for your kids to complain that there is nothing to do. Grab a Wall Candy Arts decorating kit and turn redecorating into a fun family project.

Here are a few ideas to get you started..

Read a book about dinosaurs, our favorite is How Do Dinosaurs Love Their Dogs?, and let the dinos come to life on your walls with the Dyno-mite wall decals. Give your child free rein to move them around and create the scene. Maybe the T-Rex and the Stegosaurus are battling at first and then they turn around and march together to eat a parachuting man.

Enjoy the adventures of the adorable polka-dot loving puppy, Lily, in Little Lily’s Polka Dot World as she discovers polka dots everywhere – even on her tongue. The colorfully polka-dotted houses and clothes can give you ideas for decorating with the Dottilicious wall decals.

Don’t leave baby out. Sing Old MacDonald with your little one and point to each animal as you build a farm scene with the grazeland wall decals (now discontinued). Make the sounds for each and encourage your child to mimic you as you look at the nature wall stickers together.

Or hoot, hoot, who through the irresistible book In My Tree with baby and then create a cozy nest for your little one with the Nightly News wall decals.

- Allison

WallCandy Arts is getting ready for Christmas, and we know you are, too! To celebrate the season, we’re offering 30% off selected wall decals. Don’t miss this fabulous sale!

And don’t forget – place your order by midnight, Dec. 15th for delivery before Christmas!

Happy holidays!

- Allison

WallCandy Arts appreciates our loyal customers and recognize that some of you were unable to make purchases on Monday due to the overwhelming demand on our site. We want to extend our Cyber Monday promotion to you for the next 24 hours.

Please enter the code cybercandy30 at check out and you will receive a 30 percent discount off your entire order of anything in our online store.

Happy Shopping!

- Allison

Wanna get 30% off everything in our store on Cyber Monday? All you need to do is sign up for our newsletter before Monday November 30. We’re sending out the promo code on Monday morning at 4am EST which you can use at checkout to save 30% off everything between 5am and midnight on Monday November 30.

Sign up for our newsletter here

- Allison

Kudos to all entrants, and to our voting readers, as well!

Time to announce a winner! Our polls are closed, the popular vote has been tabulated, and the people’s choice in our My Sweet Room Contest rings loud and clear! Drum roll, please ….

Congratulations to home decorator extraordinaire, Christy Snook, who decorated her daughter Delaney’s room to perfection with a happy combination of our wallsticker kits.

Christy ran away with the large majority of votes in our Contest, but we still must congratulate all the entrants, who each demonstrated marvelous creativity in his/her own unique way. And extra congratulations to Rick Joens and  Karen O’Campo, who both received special mention.

Allison Krongard, President of WallCandy Arts, remarked about Christy’s entry: “Delaney’s room is bursting with fun and intrigue. I love how Christy combined Candy Factory with the Seasons designs. I would have never thought of it but it looks fantastic. I really appreciate all the entries;it’s such a joy to see what people do with the product.”

To reward her excellent work, Christy will receive her choice of WallCandy wall sticker kits.

Thanks so much to all participants, and we hoping everyone is looking forward to our next Sweet Room Contest. We’re planning for it to be bigger and better than ever! Look for details soon.

- Allison