Fresh Figs

Fig Tree Housekeeping

Okay, so today I feel like I'm doing housekeeping of various types...

Real housekeeping to be sure.
There is an ever growing pile of clean laundry that just never seems to get folded and put away. Any volunteers for help with that??? Like you don't have your own piles!

Fig Tree housekeeping [way more interesting than the real kind...]:

We got dozens of concerned emails yesterday because at various points in the day our site and connections were down. I apologize for any emails that may have been bounced back to you but we were in the midst of some internet HOUSEKEEPING and just had a few little glitches along the way....

Our new book Fig Tree Quilts:Houses
is here and on bookshelves everywhere! If you are local and would like to see my happy, shiny face LOL I will be doing a book signing in Thimblecreek in Concord CA this Saturday September 22 from 1:00-3:00 in the afternoon. I would love to see you there and as I told one of my very persistent students, Liz, the other day.... On that one day I will write ANYTHING you want in your book. I'm getting a bit scared of what Liz is going to ask me to write!

For those of you who don't have the access or desire to get to Thimblecreek, I have books to sign and send to you personally. Please email me here and let me know what you would like written. The books retail for $27.95. If you want to read a bit more about the book, go here.

Not only that, but our Allspice Tapestry yardage has hit the streets this week [I just love to say that every time a new line comes out]!! I have gotten dozens of emails from stores to let us know that their yardage has arrived and that they are busy selling it as we speak. If you have been waiting to get some to work on one of our Allspice Tapestry patterns- Cottage Tapestry, Easiest Handbags Ever [we now regularly carry those handles if you need more of them, aren't they fabulous>??] or Fresh Vintage #5, get your yardage now from your favorite local quilt shop or online fabric store and get started on that project. You can see or order those patterns, here.

Talk about a big week around here...I've been told that my Dandelion Girl yardage is now being rolled at the warehouse as we speak.... will share as soon as I can on that front! Can't wait to see it all myself. There is always that moment of truth when the boxes come...

Last but not least, we had a great little interview with Kimberly at the Jolly Jabber, check it out if you haven't already gotten a chance to see it. She interviewed me several months ago & asked me some funny personal questions. She just posted our chat now to coincide with the release of the fabric, nice timing Kimberly! Unfortunately I didn't know when it was coming, so couldn't tell you all ahead of time. I just found it yesterday myself. Enjoy.

Talk soon,
Joanna

Sugar Drops & Pear Tarts

So its Saturday today, otherwise known as soccer central around our house. I can only imagine what it will be like when Ella gets older and decides that she too needs to play the family sport.... Heaven help me then! All I can say is that I hope Eric can figure out how to be in three different places at once...

PROJECT UPDATE
On a more work related front, I finished up the bird quilt, which I've almost for sure decided I'm going to call Birdsong. Then I took a few shots of 2 other new patterns so that I could give you some peeks, but as I said before, I'm not so good with the whole peeks things, so I'm showing you the whole things instead.

You've already seen a portion of the ninepatch quilt [which as of now is unnamed, except for the fact that it will have the word Patchwork in it...] The Star one is called Sugar Drops becuase the stars just remind me of all of those wonderful frosting embellishments that we are seeing on all those gourmet cupcakes these days!
I have to tell you that I have fallen in love with the way my quilter has done this quilt- I don't know if you can see it in the picture, but she has these wonderful double circle wreaths in the alternate squares... they're making me happy.

THE DESSERT EXTRAVAGANZA
So for those of you who haven't yet figured out this whole dessert button on the left side thing, I've been told that now is my appointed time. I guess we all have our 5 minutes of fame LOL.
I've also been told that the dessert queen bee herself has given me quite an intro... I don't have a clue what it is as I write this, so please know to take whatever she is saying about me over there with a grain of salt :-)! I have a feeling that her effervescence might spilleth over...

So lets just hop on over there & check out what she's saying and what all those other talented gals here and here are cooking up in their kitchens and studios...

SO..... DRUMROLL PLEASE.... for those of you who know me personally in any way, you know that the baker in our family is my husband. I've gone as far as to have him bake cookies for my kids class activities and pass them off as my own! True confessions I tell ya!
Well, this recipe is so easy & so delicious, looks so very special and fancy & is so moist & tender... that even I make it every fall when the pears are fresh and ripe. So now is the time ladies & in some cases gentlemen, the pears are just wonderful these days!

ALMOND PEAR TART

Non-stick cooking spray
1 C. unblanched whole toasted almonds
2/3 C. sugar
1/2 C. milk
5 Tbsp. melted butter
1/4 C. flour
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
2-3 small ripe pears [I put in as many as I can fit on the tart]
1 1/2 Tbsp. sugar for sprinkling on the top
Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Lightly coat a 10" pie or quiche dish with cooking spray and set the dish aside.
Using a food processor or blender if you don't have a processor, pour in the almonds and the sugar. Process until the nuts are completely ground and combined with the sugar.
Add the milk, butter, flour, eggs, vanilla, almond extract, cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice, salt and nutmeg. Process the mixture until well combined & pour into the prepared dish.

Core and quarter the pears, leaving the skin on. Take each quarter and lay it skin up on a cutting board. Slice the section thinly, cutting from the wide part toward, but not all the way through to, the stem tip of the pear. Don't seperate the slices, but fan them out slightly.
Arrange the fanned pear sections on the tart mixture. Many of them will sink down into the mix and a few will remain peeking out from the top.
Sprinkle with the 1 1/2 Tbsp. sugar.
Bake for 45 minutes or until the surface has puffed up and is golden brown. If you find that your edges are browing faster than your center, cover them with foil for the last 10 minutes or so to prevent overbrowned edges [I personally usually take it out around 40 minutes becuase I prefer a more moist inside and not too much browning around the outside, but that's just personal preference...].
Remove from oven, loosen the edges and serve warm if possible with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. It is delicious cooled as well. Makes 10 servings.
[p.s. I know that last picture looks like its a bit dry and more like a cake.... it really isn't. The picture taker really didn't do it justice. Its really quite soft & moist & delicate.... I'm think I'm going in the kitchen for another slice... midnight snack...]

Enjoy and talk soon,
joanna

Yuuumm, Good Enough to Eat

Its That Time
Its that crazy time of year we're preparing for.... I won't even say it... but the bad word starts with M and ends with T and its another name for shop... if that doesn't help you, then don't worry, its probably better for you if you don't anything about the busy frenzy that most fabric and pattern designers are in these days.
For us here in the Fig Tree Studio, work is clipping along at a steady pace. I met with a group of my favorite creative gals last night and one of them asked me if I was in a panic yet... I said, "Panic, yeah, I've done that already, I've moved through now, I'm on to calmly checking things off my to do list.... TODAY anyway. Talk to me again tomorrow and it might be a different story".

Fun Stuff
I wanted to share a wonderful apron that my friend Kathleen made based on a vintage apron pattern, using some of the fabrics from my Cornucopia line. I just love it and wearing it in the kitchen makes me feel like an old-fashioned 50's housewife... in the good, nostalgic way, not the oppressed way LOL. Kathleen makes custom aprons using your own hand picked fabric and I think each of you need to have one... email her at stanleygraphichs@sbcglobal.net

A Dozen Delicious Desserts
It has started, the much talked about bloggable feast of desserts is on its way with the first entry today! Click here or at the darling button to the right here, to start your delicious travels and check back with Holly every day for the next 12 days to get a new recipe and see some sneak peaks of what different designers and quilters are doing. Should be loads of fun!

On the pattern front, here is a little pic of one of our new patterns that will be available in the fall. More pics and news to come when its my turn to share a recipe for Holly's little dessert adventure this Sunday so stay tuned and don't forget to check back to see the goodies.
Sneak peak of new Dandelion Girl swatches are coming soon.... I hear that they are in the mail. Ofcourse we all know what happened last time I heard that..... CUSTOMS! So keep your fingers crossed for me and I'll show them to you as soon as I get them

Talk soon.

Only if it "fits"

Okay we all know that this is market prep time and that when it comes to technical computer stuff... well, the less said the better.
More importantly, I'm sure you have figured out by now that for me, everything has to "fit" in with the feel of Fig Tree to work for me. So when, Holly told me I had to put this cute little button up.... I had a little problem, becuase the original color scheme just didn't go with my site LOL!. You can see the original button here, or here.

I felt the need to make a few slight alterations to my button.... I hope I didnn't offend anyone.
Oh and for putting it on my side bar, well, that will have to wait until I have a few more minutes to rub together....

On an unrelated topic, my friend Jackie has come back to us, see her wonderful kitchen shots.
And, I'm taking a poll on my French music. Some of you have told me that you love it and a few of you... not so much. So if you have an opinion one way or the other, lets hear it!

talk soon.