Please be kind and forgiving, if weird things are happening with Domestik Goddess over the next few days. Well, I mean, more weird than usual… I’m moving the site to another server that’s faster and sleeker and generally a very happy place. You know, it’s like when you go into a mall and half the shops are boarded up, half the concourse is blocked by men with low-hanging tool belts and mysterious machines, and there are signs up all over the place:
We’re changing to serve you better!
Hang in there!
We shouldn’t have more than a hiccup or two (hopefully!) as DG gets settled into its new home…
(And let’s just hope that’s not a case of “famous last words”!)
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
Yes, weirdness happened. I tried to linky love you last night…but the linky was broken. :( Sadness.
Greetins Domestika, I met Frugal Duchess last week here in Miami and came across your blog. Thrifty, lively and funny! I love it that I added it to my money blog–We’ll Show you the Money.
Domestika, as a goddess, perhaps you can help me solve a cooking/presentation dilemma. In making homemade Christmas gifts, I decided to bake my famous Kahlua flan with raspberries and mint leaves (looks very Christmasy) but I’m struggling with a suitable container that makes an eyecatching presentation while preserving the flan in a refrigerator but that won’t cost me a bundle of cash. Any suggestions? Any tips are greatly appreciated!
Christine for BLOG SISTERS
Christine, nice to meet you (& blog sisters)!
First things first – what do I have to do to get on your gift list for that Kahlua Flan???? :D
Gift containers for flan, hmm…
My sister gave me a mince pie a few years back, in a lovely large pie plate: the food and pan together made the gift, covered with plastic wrap and with her mince pie recipe tied on with a big plaid bow. That was great! And because it was just covered with plastic wrap, I could see what she’d handed me and knew enough to pop it into the fridge as soon as I got home.
I’ve seen some really cheap flan pans on Amazon (like, $3-$4 cheap
) that might do, if you don’t want to fork out a bundle for a really nice one and aren’t too worried about it being a bit on the flimsy side…
Or are you taking your flans out of the pan to give? If so, hats off to you because I’ve never been able to do that without breaking it all up! But in that case, I think I’d look for an inexpensive round tin tray at the dollar store — they have all sorts of festive things like that, this time of year — and cut a piece of parchment paper to fit, then put the flan on that. Protect the edges with a circle of cardboard, then do the plastic wrap thing.
Or take a hint from the pizza delivery people? Photocopy-and-mailing shops have all sorts of sturdy square boxes you can often buy without having to use their services, or you might work out a deal with the local pizza shop for a few boxes from their stick. If they’re preprinted with the pizza guys’ logo, just cover the box top with a square of wrapping paper.
But as for eye-catching, sounds like your flans are eye-catching enough with the raspberries and the mint leaves, I’d go for one of the plastic-wrap options so that the giftee can see what a gorgeous thing they’re getting and you can get all the compliments right there on the spot!
That’s off the top of my head, anyway…
Maybe someone else will have better flan-packing ideas to share (hint hint)?
Dear Domestika,
Thank you so much for writing back and with a stocking full of ideas! You know I didn’t know there were special pans for flan. Will definitely invest in some. But your sister’s gift gave me an idea. For my boss, who has everything, I went to Marshall’s to look for a nice platter, but not just any platter, minimum 10″ circumference and sunken in so the juice of the flan doesn’t spill over easily. So in my search I found one that would accessorize the sunroom for entertaining guests–a Meditteranean blue and gold. It was $15.00. Then in the clearance section I found a platter at the bottom of a pile in alabaster and tiny beads around the edges with a Casablanca monkey–very classy and a perfect compliment to white and rich wood color in the living room and dining room. The platter is only $7.00. JACKPOT! Domestika I have to thank you for all your expertise guidance. I feel relieved that a major gift is underway!
Merry Christmas!
Christine
Christine, I’m tickled pink to be able to help! Have a Holly Jolly Holiday (and send me any Kahlua flan leftovers?) :)