Cookie's Southern Style

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

"Every good and perfect gift is from above" James 1:17

Congratulations Ken and Christina on their upcoming bundle of joy. Cookie Hudson Events had the honor of decorating for Baby "Zoe Rae"!
Christina and Ken were blessed with a coed shower to celebrate the coming of their first baby. Baby Zoe is already getting spoiled by Aunt Stephanie! She will not need any new clothes until her 1st Birthday.
I Pray for good health for the new parents to be and baby Zoe.

Monday, February 27, 2012

Adorable Tablescapes

There are alot of different elements used in designing beautiful tablescapes for special events which makes each event unique. I love to think out of the box when I am decorating for weddings and special events. The most important thing to think about is the pictures, this will be a visual memory that you will have for the rest of your life. Vibrant and colorful tabletops create lasting memories! Take a look at some beautiful tablescapes.

Monday, January 16, 2012

Congratulations to Corey & Chrissy Houston!

Corey and Chrissy began this year as husband and wife! Their New Years Eve nuptials began at noon at Antioch Christian Fellowship in Corinth, Texas followed by a brunch in the fellowship hall and ended with a formal reception in Denton at the Hilton.
The happy couple honeymooned 12 days in the Fuji Islands and left their hard working coordinator/decorator at home:(!!

Monday, December 19, 2011

This blog is dedicated to all who love to share their beautiful photos and their holidays joyfulness

I Love the Spirit of Christmas! I Love the kinder hearts of people who are more generous and more forgiving during this time of year. I Love the dazzle of the lights and the twinkle in the children’s eyes. I Love the parties and sharing time with friends. I really Love the Decorations!

As a Christmas decorations collector I get easily overwhelmed when looking at the different designs produced every year. There are so many choices including traditional, whimsical, themed and antique. I advised my clients to focus on a particular type of ornament or design and go from there.

There are so many themes and ideas that will bring a lot of holiday cheer to your Christmas decorations! I would love to share some ideas from my home and a few Cookie Hudson Design clients.

One of my favorite Christmas tree's this year is the one I decorated at my church. Last year Mrs. Pat informed me that we would decorate a tree with our Pastors favorite colors. She called me throughout the years while purchasing the decorations for the tree. When I arrived at our church to decorate I was so impressed with her selections. I had a little trouble adding lighting due to the attack of a friendly raccoon! Despite the animal attack, the outcome is beautiful!

This above gold, brown and copper sensation belong to one of Ms. Mimms. I nickname this tree the mad woman. She is an older pre-lit tree that has to be assembled by individual branches! When I completed the assembly task I changed her name to Diva!

The previous decorations are corporate event decorations! Simple but festive!

My formal living area! All about the bling!

Santa came in to visit from the front porch during a rain storm!

Our Family Room tree. Flocked and accented with gold, white and collectable ornaments dated back to 1997! Yes, I have been collecting ornaments for quite a while!:)!

This tree is located in our home office.

My book club buddy's celebrating Christmas. Picture taken in front of our family room fireplace!

My favorite client's are the Gilmore's! The girls are always so excited when I arrive to decorate the tree.

This year they had all the ornaments wired and ready to hang. Thanks to the Gilmore's for 3 years of business. Love you guys!

This is one of my favorite ornaments, it is a hand painted angel purchased in 2006 from Dillard's.

Setting up decorations for a Christmas party with social club friends!

Headed out to ACF volunteer dinner!

This year I added cheetah print decorations to my collection. This is a gift from my assistant Rebecca!

I began collecting Christmas carolers 7 years ago from Cracker Barrell. The first year the collection

included mini caroler Christmas ornaments. Unfortunatelly, this year they did not carry them.

This is Pop's tree. He use it as a night light!

My assistant Rebecca decorated this tree for my mother in law this year. I usually have the ginger bread decorations in the kitchen. She wanted to surprise me and help decorate since I had been so busy with other homes. Thanks for your help Rebecca, God has blessed us with a wonderful person.

This is a collection of dancing Santa's under our breakfast room tree.

This beautiful festive room belong to my Godmother, Nanny Carolyn!

Nanny Carolyn placed vintage shoes under this Chrismas tree. I had to keep a pair to wear! The are too cute! I will share them on next blog!

Nanny Carolyn's family room. These are feathers left from wedding decorations. What a way to recycle!

Nanny's foyer!

Last two pictures of my bling tree and topper!

I hope you love the Christmas decorations as much as I do. Smooches!

Southern Spice Recipe by Cookie Hudson Catering

Ingredients:3/4 cup margarine, 3/4 cup all purpose flour, 2 celery stalks, peeled and chopped, 3 large onions, chopped, 1 green bell pepper, chopped, 1 red bell pepper, chopped,1 yellow bell pepper, chopped, 2 bay leaves, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 teaspoons, dried oregano, crumbled, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 5 (8 oz.) bottles clam juice, 2 (28 oz.) cans Cajun style diced tomatoes, 2 pounds Smoked Andouille sausage, halved lengthwise, sliced 1/4 inch thick, 2 pounds okra, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices, 2 pounds large Shrimp, uncooked, peeled and deveined, 3 tomatoes, seeded, diced, 1 pound rice, cooked

Directions:

Heat oil in a large iron skillet over high heat until almost smoking. Add flour, stirring constantly until you get a dark red-brown rue, about 8 minutes. Add celery, onions and bell peppers. Cook 5 minutes, stirring and scraping bottom of pan often. Mix in bay leaves, salt, oregano and cayenne. Add clam juice, canned tomatoes and sausage. Boil 15 minutes. Add okra, reduce heat and simmer until okra is tender, about 15 minutes. Cover and chill to let the flavors merge. Bring to simmer before continuing. Add shrimp to gumbo and simmer until just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Ladle over rice and top with tomatoes.

"Chicken Creole" Recipe

Cooked leftover chicken can be tossed into this gumbo and simmered with tomatoes, mushrooms, chile peppers, a little of this and a little of that. Delicious chicken gumbo consistency with tomato base served over a bed of rice

Ingredients:

1/4 cup oil for frying

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

2 cups cooked, chopped chicken breast

meat

1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes with

green chile peppers, with liquid

1 (4.5 ounce) can sliced mushrooms,

drained

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 dashes hot sauce

Directions:

1.

Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes or until mixture is the color of a copper penny. Reduce heat to low and stir in bell pepper and onion. Cook 10 to 15 minutes, or until tender, stirring occasionally.

2.

Add chicken, tomatoes with green chile peppers, mushrooms, parsley, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, soy sauce, sugar, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Stir together, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Recipe

Ingredients:

2 egg whites, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley

1 1/4 teaspoons Old Bay or Creole/Cajun seasoning

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1/2 cup soft bread crumbs

1 pound fresh lump crabmeat, drained

Preparation:

Combine egg whites, mayonnaise, parsley, Creole seasoning, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, and dry mustard. Gently stir in the bread crumbs and crabmeat. Shape mixture into 8 patties, about 2 1/2 inches in diameter. Place patties on a baking sheet lined with waxed paper or non-stick foil; cover and chill for 30 to 60 minutes.

Spray a large nonstick skillet with vegetable cooking spray or use a little olive oil to coat the bottom. Place over medium-high heat. When the skillet is hot, add crab cakes; cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until browned.

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