Cookie Display Ideas

Cookie Display Ideas

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

A large cookie or dessert display makes an impact for any holiday party.  The time we take to slow down and carefully create something better for ourselves and others is an action that demonstrates we care and honor the occasion.  First, order your cookies from Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven, then take a little time and effort to plan out how you will showcase the goodies for you and your guests.

You have the cookies.  You have the tables and platters.  You have made the time.  Now how do you create the display?  The BUFF System, utilized in schools such as the Culinary Institute of America, makes use of the principles used in art and design.  You may remember the art terms such as movement, balance, contrast, proportion, and pattern.  These same principles apply to how you cook and present baked goods.  The acronym BUFF is an essential memory tool for the home and professional chef.  B for balance.  U for unity.  F for focal point.  F for flow.

Balance: The use of color, food combinations, garnishes, shapes, textures, portion sizes, and flavors in a thoughtful, effective, and exceptional manner.  

Unity: The use of contrasts, negative and positive spacing, limited height, and consistent theme in a thoughtful, effective, and exceptional manner. 

Focal Point: The use of a larger size food with smaller shaped foods, may add height and/or a spot of color in a thoughtful, effective, and exceptional manner. 

Flow: The use of aesthetic and design principles to enhance the visual presentation, interest, and style of a dish; may utilize knife techniques, curved items, fanned items, and layering in a thoughtful, effective, and exceptional manner.

Given a party favor, such as Christmas cookies, and having guests put together their own boxes or bags makes for an excellent gift.  Assemble a buffet style of cookies with labels, tags, boxes, bags, string or twist ties, and pens.  Complement the table with Christmas decorations or other theme items.  Commemorate the occasion with photos of your cookie display to make handsome cards or images to share on social media.

Utilize a a mix of cookie types for a more casual appearance or create a more uniform and formal display using one type of cookie.  Cookies may be formed into a large tablescape display, placed on platters, jars, or tiered plates.  Keep in mind the BUFF acronym.  Balance the colors and shapes.  Make use of the positive and negative space on the table and platters.  Have a focal point that attracts the eye.  Ultimately, design your cookie display to have a visual flow and physical flow for guests to move around, see, and enjoy.

Cookie Display Ideas by Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven from amulb

See the presentation above for more ideas.

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Fitness and Living Jigsaw Series by Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven

Fitness and Living Jigsaw Series

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

Fitness is powerful.  This year long fitness series encompasses some of the best key characteristics to improve strength, wellness, and living.  The year long fitness series began with a desire to share some routines and activities that inspire movement, health, and wellness.  Over time, day-by-day, progress is made and fitness can be maintained through these and other physical activities.

Attitude matters.  Remind yourself again:  You deserve to live well and be well.  Making fitness and good nutrition a routine, a habit, and expression of how you respect yourself is essential to developing a desire to get moving and stay moving.  

Visit Amazon to purchase your exercise ball and other equipment.

It is imperative to understand the power of health and wellness.  One of the most critical factors in the process of physical, mental, and emotional wellness is you.  Your creativity, choices, workout equipment, awareness of your own abilities, evaluation of health goals, and execution of good habits is essential.  Execution and implementation can be a challenge, although without implementing the proper healthy habits all the reading of exercise articles will not make you physically stronger.  Rather than a specific plan, this article supplies guidelines, inspiration, and ideas to spark your interest.

Often I am asked about my routine for healthy living and how I maintain good fitness, especially when I am regularly baking, cooking, and always on the hunt for excellent restaurants.  No big secrets here.  I eat well, get a good amount of sleep, rest, and give my body and mind a good workout.  If anyone knows a thing or two about fitness and nutrition, it’s me.  And if I can do it, you can too.  A background of teaching health and physical education, as well as a lifelong interest in nutrition, has been essential to maintain an excellent level of fitness, energy, and strength for me.  

Models, actors, athletes.  The images we see in ads, movies, and media can influence our goals and perceptions.  Keep in mind the people in those professions spend a lot of time and have a lot of time to look their best.  Or computer graphics best.  Rather than focusing on images in media, focus on health and wellness for the mind, body, and soul.  We all approach fitness at various levels, perspectives, and habits based upon previous experiences and family environment.  Take a moment to reflect upon good values, the ideas you hold close, that will be the center of what gets you physically fit.  Structure your day, fight for the time to eat well and get physically fit.  Work toward betterment, not perfection.  Be prepared to respond in life.  That means being ready to plan out options and alternatives to preserve your health and wellness.  We all know life is a continual journey, full of difficulties and blessings.  Put on some good music, turn up the volume, and get liberated from those unhealthy habits. 

Visit Amazon to purchase your exercise ball and other equipment.

Working out is not enough for our bodies.  Diet, what you eat, what you buy at the store and bring home to your kitchen, is highly significant to strong abs and obliques.  Purchase and prepare foods that satiate your appetite.  Eat seasonally and enjoy the monthly flavors.  Your fitness routine also needs variety.  Mix up your activities.  Sleep is also key.  The body, mind, and soul need rest and revitalizing.  Sometimes preparing yourself is the key.  Remind yourself in verbal or written form to workout the next day or after work.  Repeat that reminder each night before you go to bed.  This mantra may be the key to applying the health and wellness information you know to do. 

Eat.  Enjoy.  Satiate.  Satisfy.  Get nutrients.  Deal with emotions.  Make something beautiful to make your belly happy.  Breathe.  Those daily habits make a difference.  In my book, candy, cakes, cookies, and desserts are not the devil.  Too many sweets and too often is not good.  Not to worry though.  Take a breath.  If you get off the path of healthy living, I’m confident you can do better next time.  As David S. Ludwig, MD, PhD stated, “Overeating doesn't make us fat.  The process of becoming fat makes us overeat.  In other words, hunger and overeating are the consequences of an underlying problem.  Follow a simple lifestyle prescription focused on enjoyable physical activities, sleep, and stress relief to improve metabolism and support permanent behavior change.”

Join with your family and friends today.  Find a locale to work out that gets you inspired.  Then return here and share your progress, tips, and what you learned.  Please remember all information is of a general nature and is furnished only for education.  See a doctor or medical professional for your own personal fitness advice.

See the Fitness and Living Jigsaw activities for each month:

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

The Ultimate Playlist for Your Workouts

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Credits

Amazon

Pexels

Blackberry Raspberry Pie by Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven

Blackberry Raspberry Pie

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

Baking is a touchstone of culture.  In ancient and medieval times, ovens were rare.  The time and expense of constructing a wood burning oven meant baking was an act more common in the homes of the wealthy and nobility.  Dr. Sara Pennell from the University of Roehampton explained, “This was subsistence-focused baking, with an emphasis on bread and pies.  If you were wealthy, your baked goods would be rich in exotic colour.  If you were poor, you were grateful if you could afford meat for your pie.”  As economic and social freedom was expanded over time, the living conditions improved for many people across the globe.  Pie making, cakes, and pastries became extremely popular by the 1700s.  

Better quality flour and the availability of more diverse ingredients revolutionized the art of cookery.  The availability and increased quality of flour was essential in the transformation of cooking across the world.  Knowing how to judge the standard of flour is an essential kitchen skill.  According to Ken Qual of The Journal of Science of Food and Agriculture, the attributes to consider when choosing flour are appearance—crust color, crumb size, flavor—taste, wheaty smell, aroma, and texture—mouthfeel, crumb stability, softness, grittiness, and lightness.  

When we consider baking at the ingredient level, the quality of those chief players is as important as in any living system, family, organization, or environment.  The source and standard of baking products affects the entire outcome of the pie, cake, tart, or bread.  As with cooking and everything else in life, quality matters.  An analogy worth remembering.

None of the science nor history matters as much as the baker.  We all come to the kitchen with various levels of cookery skills, experience, and knowledge.  We come to the table with a multitude of perspectives, passions, and interests.  Whatever our skills and for whomever we are baking, making family and friends happy with your cooking or the gift of baked goods, pies, cookies, and more creates good times and memories.

Blackberry Raspberry Pie by Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven from amulb

The recipe for this raspberry blackberry pie includes the best quality ingredients and a time-tested flaky crust.  If you are making your own pies or purchasing pies for loved ones, the ingredients matter.  The dough must be properly mixed, rolled, and evenly formed into a round.  The dough must then be carefully transferred into the pie dish.  Next, the dough must be docked and blind baked.  The filling must be gently mixed.  Then, transferred to the blind baked crust.  The topping is then crumbled on the crown of the pie during that baking process.  After baking, let the pie cool before enjoying.  The flavor of the pie develops more over night and can be enjoyed the next day.

As cookbook author and chef Marion Cunningham declared, "In many ways, home cooking is even more creative than what chefs do, because we improvise.  We also have the fun of cooking together with our children or with friends.  And there is a satisfaction of giving pleasure and comfort to others with something we have cooked ourselves.”  Baking and cooking pies or other goods for family and friends is also fun and an excellent way to demonstrate gratitude.  

Many readers rely on Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven as a source for how-to and where-to regarding cookery, culture, and community.  Thank you to all those that have been loyal supporters and fans.  The business originated when I started selling homemade chocolates around age 10.  Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven liberates taste in cookery, culture, and community, provides gourmet goods made with organic ingredients, inspired by the culinary worlds of California, Central, and South America, and engages in a community of customers and readers with lifestyle content, reviews, and expertise.

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Credit: History Extra http://www.historyextra.com/feature/brief-history-baking, Quail - 1991 - Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture - Wiley Online Library http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jsfa.2740540112/abstract

Bake Pies, Make People Happy

Bake Pies, Make People Happy.

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

"In many ways, home cooking is even more creative than what chefs do, because we improvise. We also have the fun of cooking together with our children or with friends. And there is a satisfaction of giving pleasure and comfort to others with something we have cooked ourselves."

-Marion Cunningham

Marion Cunningham was responsible for revising The Fannie Farmer Cookbook and she wrote her own cookbooks, such as Learning to Cook.  Despite an extremely challenging childhood, Cunningham graduated school, got married, became a housewife and mother, and later in life became an accomplished cook, earning a position with famed cookbook author James Beard.  

Holidays, such as Thanksgiving, or any day for that matter is time for gratitude.  Making family and friends happy with your cooking or the gift of baked goods, pies, cookies, and more creates good times and memories.  Surrounding ourselves with people that like to laugh, are genuine, and enjoy food too is always a good thing.  Certainly, apple pie is a genuine gift of cookery.

Visit Amazon for your kitchen and dining needs.

Bake Pies, Make People Happy by Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven from amulb

Visit Amazon for your kitchen and dining needs.

This is the apple pie I made this week.  The recipe includes the best quality ingredients and a time-tested flaky crust.  If you are making your own pies or purchasing pies for loved ones, the ingredients matter.  The process of making pie is also important to ensure the pies are made well and taste delectable.  The dough must be formed and rolled evenly into two rounds and perfectly transferred into the pie dish.  The filling must be thoughtfully mixed.  The top dough must successfully crown the pie to ensure the filling is contained.  At the end, the pie must be baked and watched with care.

As Marion Cunningham declared, the art and science of cookery is a creative endeavor.  Baking and cooking pies or other goods for family and friends is also fun and an excellent way to demonstrate gratitude.  Thank you to all those that have been loyal supporters and fans.  My business originated when I started selling homemade chocolates around age 10.  Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven liberates taste in cookery, culture, and community, provides gourmet goods made with organic ingredients, inspired by the culinary worlds of California, Central, and South America, and engages in a community of customers and readers with lifestyle content, reviews, and expertise.

Bake Pies, Make People Happy!

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Credit: http://dinersjournal.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/11/remembering-marion-cunningham/?_r=0 

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven: Key Essentials

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven: Key Essentials

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

Jesse Bluma at Point Viven liberates taste in cookery, culture, and community, provides gourmet goods made with organic ingredients, inspired by the culinary worlds of California, Central, and South America, and engages in a community of customers and readers with lifestyle content, reviews, and expertise.

How do you liberate food and taste in your everyday?  Location…follow…Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven offers gourmet morsels made with high standards.  Quality, respect for local, fresh, and organic ingredients is the recipe for success.  Artisanal goods are lightly sweetened, using natural ingredients and thoughtfully created.

Key Essentials:

Quality

Sustainable

Gourmet

Inspiration

Baking

Living Well

Culinary Arts

Trusted Recipes

Respect for Origins

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Credit: Piktochart 

How to Create a Mystery Review Game by Jesse Bluma

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

Engage the attention of students, children, employees, and other learners with this puzzling review game.

Choose a topic and/or concept, such as The Reformation, Culinary Skills, or Physical Education Techniques.   

How to Create a Mystery Review Game by Jesse Bluma from amulb

Choose a mystery word related to the overall topic of your mystery review game, such as reformer for The Reformation, julienne for culinary skills, or kicking for a physical education review.  

Assign each correct answer a letter within your related word.  If a player chooses all the correct answers they will be able to spell out reformer, julienne, kicking, or whatever mystery word you choose.

Please share your versions of this game and other great activities.

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How to Create Image Match Games for Better Learning

How to Create Image Match Games for Better Learning

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

I want you to make cookies, a mole', or tomato, corn, and avocado salad with only written directions.  No pictures.  No diagrams.  No video.  How well could you successfully create the dish?

It is key to provide a variety of materials, images, and experiences to increase your learning, no matter if it is learning to cook, learning history, employee training, or anything else.  A diversity of readings, photos, videos, games, and spiraled repetition supports learning and discovery.  Keep this in mind when attempting to learn something and when planning to assist others.       

Education, learning, and discovery is vital to our personal growth and more.  As Thomas Jefferson stated, "Educate and inform the whole mass of the people... They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty."

We remember and understand better when we see images of concepts, people, places, and ideas.  Tables, plots, maps, art, and videos increase our understanding and create new connections within our thinking.  This gives us the ability to group information, link to prior knowledge and skills, and better recall the information later.  

A match game is an excellent tool to increase understanding and provide better instruction.  A match game can be made for any topic, idea, or skill, including cooking, writing genres, safety, holidays, religious lessons, etc.  This is a fun way for teachers, parents, employers, and others to review items with their students, children, or employees.    

How To

Create an image match game by first providing a few picture clues of the topic and/or related to the topic.  Then provide four to five possible answers with the possibility of multiple correct answers.  Double check the answer(s) are correct.  Next, provide the correct answers for each.  Discussion is also key to reanalyze the images and understand the correct answer(s).  See "Match Game:  Medieval China, Japan, and Europe".

Medieval China, Japan, and Europe: Image Match Game for Better Learning by Jesse Bluma from amulb

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Image credit: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/

Essential Academic Vocabulary by Jesse Bluma

Essential Vocabulary

Pointe Viven - Jesse Bluma. All rights reserved.

At certain points in school, while on the job, or simply following a recipe we all come across terms, directions, and content we struggle to understand.  If you are looking to improve your own skills, those of students, or employees, consider utilizing these essential vocabulary lists.  The lists include words that are key to unlocking information and the ability to follow directions.  

What is essential academic vocabulary?  These terms are frequently used words in and across subjects.  Understanding these terms provides a better understanding of subject matter, improves reading skills, improves the ability to follow directions, and provides connections across all subjects.  It is one of many educational tools.  The words are categorized by grade level and are only some examples. You may wish to add to, revise, or eliminate from the lists.  It is best to keep in mind the student and their individual needs with vocabulary choices.

Essential Academic Vocabulary by Jesse Bluma, Garcia Sports Foundation from amulb

(Click on the full screen button or F11 to enlarge.)

There are several strategies for increasing the number of essential terms you, your students, or employees know.  Visuals and realia, real objects, often are the best way to paint a clear picture of their meanings.  Get creative and share your ideas.

Gourmet treats by Jesse Bluma at PointeViven

using organic ingredients and inspiration

from California, Central, and South America.

Order online or contact me for catering.

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Image credit:  http://www.freedigitalphotos.net

Words of Inspiration

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven. All rights reserved.

We all know life is difficult.   A key reminder is to realize it is your life and path.  Family members, friends, coworkers, customers, students, et cetera will be on their own paths.  Liberating yourself from bad habits and replacing them with good habits is doable. 

Professor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi [Me-High Chick-Sent-Me-High] presents us with an intriguing topic, “What constitutes a good life?  Few questions are of more fundamental importance to a positive psychology.   Flow research has yielded one answer, providing an understanding of experiences during which individuals are fully involved in the present moment.  Viewed through the experiential lens of flow, a good life is one that is characterized by complete absorption in what one does.”

 

“We are the creative force of our life, and through our own decisions rather than our conditions, if we carefully learn to do certain things, we can accomplish those goals,” Stephen Covey.

Researcher and author Shawn Achor found there are ways we can train our brains in short amounts of time through gratitude.  Achor promulgates a habit of gratitude challenges to force the brain to work more positively, “We're finding it's not necessarily the reality that shapes us, but the lens through which your brain views the world that shapes your reality.”

Jesse Bluma at Pointe Viven embodies this concept and it is a great adventure to meet so many other artisans and artists, creators, collectors, thinkers and doers that share the same spirit.

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