Moss Pots!

Terra cotta, stone, and concrete containers and sculptures all lend themselves nicely to having moss grown on them, giving each one an antique look and depending on what kind of garden or yard you have, sometimes it's fun to make new clay, stone, or concrete container look old.

Of course, terra cotta and concrete pots will age into beautiful works of art after years of sitting in your garden, but why wait, when aging and antiquing techniques are fast, easy, and inexpensive to do.

Not only are these containers beautiful in your garden, they also make great gift for someone you know who is an avid gardener. What better holiday surprise than to deliver a beautiful garden plant in a aged container that you created yourself!

Here is the easy recipe for creating moss covered clay pots:

*Blend pieces of dried moss or purchased moss spores into

*2 cups yogurt or buttermilk.

*Paint onto your pot with a paintbrush.

* Put your pot into a plastic bag to create a humid environment for the moss to develop.

*Set the pot and bag in a cool, shady spot until the moss begins to form, which will be about 10 days.

* Make sure to plant the container so you will be watering it regularly, which will keep the moss alive and growing.

Christopher Todd on KTNV Las Vegas ABC!

If you didn't catch me live, this is the video of me on Las Vegas ABC on November 3rd 2009. We discussed table settings for the holidays. Hope you enjoy!!

Happy Holidays!!

This is probably the only free second that I am going to have for the next few days to make any entries to my blog. This is officially the busiest time of my year. . .decorating Christmas trees, planning and decorating parties and also decorating a Las Vegas resort. I can't wait to share all of the beautiful trees that Christopher Todd Design has and will be decorating this season. We have already done some beauties, and the work has just begun!! I'll catch everyone up with pictures in a few days!!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Eat lots of turkey, watch some TV and relax! Log on Thursday evening and check out some helpful Christmas tree decorating tips!

One of my most favorite things. . .remote control lighting!

I know this might be simple, but this is, as my friend Paul says, "a quality of life issue". As you get ready to decorate for the holidays, pick up this little accessory. They sell these at Wal-Mart and Target for $10 and it is one of the best purchases you will ever make! I have these remotes on almost everything!

These are not only for the holidays, I use them for anything that is might be the least bit difficult to turn on or off.

For some reason, these remotes are difficult to find in stores any other time than the holidays, so go get one today and you will thank me when you do!

Christopher Todd and Whole Foods Market was a WHOLE lot of fun!!

Thanks to everyone who attended my entertaining class at Whole Foods. I hope you enjoyed and learned a few tips for entertaining! If you will scroll through my blog, I have listed all of the recipes that I created. Everyone's favorite, the "cheese ball" was added a few days back, so you will have to keep looking through the blog to find it. . .just like a TV show teasing you, huh!!

Remember to join me again on December 3rd for my next class on Classic Christmas Entertaining. It will be fun! Make sure you bring a friend, too!

Christopher Todd’s Italian Taco Chopped Salad

1 lb. lean ground beef or chicken breast
1 head Iceberg Lettuce
1 head Leaf Lettuce
1.5 oz. Fresh Basil
4 Roma Tomatoes
6 Green Onions
1 can of dark red Kidney Beans (drained)
8 oz. Sharp Cheddar Cheese (grated)
1-12oz bag of Nacho Cheese flavored tortilla chips
8 oz. Zesty Italian Dressing


Brown and Drain the ground beef or chicken and set aside to cool. Crumble tortilla chips into a coarse texture and set aside. Chop Iceberg and leaf lettuce and basil into small pieces and mix together. Make 8 medium to thin slices of tomatoes and set aside. Chop all of the remaining tomatoes, along with the green onions and add to the greens mixture. Drain, wash and add kidney beans to greens mixture.

Right before serving: Add meat, ½ of the grated cheese, ½ of the tortilla chips and the Italian dressing to the greens. Mix thoroughly. Add the remaining tortilla chips to the top of the salad.

This salad is great as a meal or is a great side salad. If serving as a meal, this recipe yields 4 servings and as a side, yields 8 servings. Also, this is a great Vegetarian meal if the meat is either omitted or substituted with ground Boca meat.

Your guest will not know whether to say “Delicioso” or “Delizioso”!!

Strawberries and Goat Cheese with Balsamic Vinegar and Roasted Garlic

This recipe includes many of my most favorite foods and what I like to call a "Buffet on a Cracker".
Here are the ingredients:

Strawberries (sliced)
Goat Cheese (I prefer garlic flavored)
Glazed pecans
Roasted garlic
Balsamic Vinegar
Brown Sugar
Toast

Cap and clean your strawberries. Slice the strawberries horizontally.

Mix the glazed pecans and roasted garlic together.

Measure 3 teaspoons of brown sugar in a small bowl. Add Balsamic vinegar to the sugar until the texture is smooth.

Place the goat cheese, strawberries, pecans and garlic and vinegar on a tray with toast.

This can be a "messy" appetizer, since there are so many different ingredients. I recommend this as a beginning to a meal or to eat with a fork.