Travels With A Blue Vase

Amelia Island Annual Book Festival featured almost 100 authors of fiction, non-fiction, Young Adult, Children's and Poetry this past weekend.  The author extravaganza had author presentations, workshops, musical performances and published author visits to schools. 

The crowd was enthusiastic and the authors were eager to share their work.    





So maybe it was the lavender cookies or the display with Provence colors that drew me to Mary Ann Miller's table. 

Mary Ann has written two books: Travels With A Blue Vase and More Travels With A Blue Vase. 

Mary Ann is an artist and an educator who began many years ago to search for the places where some of the great artists have lived and worked.
Each book is a travel journal that captures the places in Europe she has visited and showcases her colorful and whimsical watercolor sketches. The pictures take you along on journeys through vineyards, towns, cities, cafes and market places and capture the essence of each place. Regional recipes are included throughout each Travel book. 

I picked this page because the watercolor sketch done in Sorrento is a place I have visited and loved the area. On the opposite page, a recipe for limoncello, Italy's most popular drink is featured.
Notice the blue vase on the author display table and on the page . This vase was incorporated into the title of each book. Mary Ann takes a plastic blue vase with her on each trip so she can enjoy fresh flowers in her room. What a great idea and something I wish I had thought of when traveling. The outdoor flower markets in Europe are spectacular.  
If you want to order a book or learn more about Mary Ann, her writing and watercolrcolor sketches follow this link http://travelswithabluevase.com/
The Lavender Flower Cookies were absolutely delicious.  Light, crispy, melt in your mouth and beg to be served with a cup of tea. I have included Mary Ann's recipe. Lavender buds can be purchased at local co-ops and specialty stores like Penzeys  
http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/penzeysstores.html
Lavender Flower Cookies
Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 TB. lavender buds
• 1-1/2 cups flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt

Directions:

• Mix first 4 ingredients together until smooth.
• Add dry ingredients and stir until well blended 
• Drop by teaspoonful onto ungreased baking sheet
• Bake in a preheated oven 375  until lightly browned about 9 minutes 

Part Two next blog posting: Food and Memoirs  
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To ripen an avocado: add an apple or banana to a paper bag with the avocado and seal.