A Fruitful Summer

 Do you ask yourself just about now how does the summer go by so quickly?  Working in the area of education in the past, it always seemed to have shortened the summer months with each year's new student orientation and the preparation for the school year starting earlier in August.  

However, there is still plenty of time to make the most of the days to spend on a beach, in a park for a picnic, take in events or fairs or travel to your favorite destination.  I am not ready to give up summer fun.  With plenty of warm sunny days, it seems it is still ideal for fruits and vegetables to grow.  Visits to various farms and farm markets make a day of pleasure.  

So to celebrate the continuation of a fruitful summer, it was necessary to create a tablescape which reflects some of the goodness late summer brings.  To start with, a bright, cheerful yellow and white buffalo checkered tablecloth is the base for the table and certainly conveys the warm and sunny days that are still ahead.  The Certified International Fruit retro plates remind me a bit of the past.  The vintage plates each have their own choice of fruit.  Oranges, pears, cherries and apples.  Sweet and delicious and enjoyed the whote season.  So using the fruit plates as an inspiration, the centerpiece had to be some bright, citrus fruit that is used to quench a thirst on a hot summer day. 

The colorful gingham bow napkin rings seem to go perfectly with the placesetting.  The colors seems to match those colors coming from the placemats and tablecloth,,,,,,,delicate lavender and a buttercup yellow.

However, I couldn't quite decide if the fruit napkin rings wouldn't go better.  It is a hard choice to make.

I thought both of the sets of napkin rings--the fruit and the gingham bows were adorable and both gave me a retro feel, but I decided on the gingham bows.  I will use the fruit napkin rings again some time in the future when I can obtain a 1950's fruit themed tablecloth.  

To celebrate the season, I needed to make a pitcher of ginger lemonade.  I find that adding a simple syrup made from grated ginger and honey complements the flavor of the lemon.

So calming and refreshing.  What I enjoy about this lemonade is that I could also add a bag of lavender tea to the ginger simple syrup when it is being made for an entirely different flavor.

And, of course, the bright and cheerful tablescape seems to require the bright and sunny scalloped sundae dishes for yet another lemon base treat....a Light and Refreshing Lemon Cream Cheese Sauce for Fruit.

Now, we must fill those playful dishes with a tart but sweet summer time fruit dessert.  Just cut up some fruit of your choice.  I chose a mixture of mangoes, strawberries, blueberries and green grapes and topped it with a very easy and silky lemon cream.  Just a few simple ingredients can create a quick but luscious treat.

Nothing says summer as much as a zesty lemon dessert.  Four simple ingredients of cream cheese (8 ounces), 1 small box of lemon jello, juice and zest of one fresh lemon and 8 ounces or more of Cool Whip.  Pour over your summer time fruit and top with whipped cream or a dollop of Cool Whip and sprinkles.   

So it is only fitting that with the bright and tangy fruit dessert to use citrus fruits along with dark grapes scattered down the table as a simple, no-fuss centerpiece.   Lemon seems to punch up both the dessert and the tablescape.  So it truly has been a fruitful summer.  Continue to enjoy it.  There is still plenty of it left.