Happy Thanksgiving from Le Top!

Le Top gives thanks to our readers and loyal customers this Thanksgiving. May the good things of life be yours in abundance, not only at Thanksgiving, but throughout the coming year. Cherish your friends and family today, and have a very HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Read Full Post »

Turkey Day Crafts for Kids

It’s that time of year again where we stuff ourselves with delicious food, watch football and enjoy watching the New York City Macy’s Day Parade (whether it be here in New York or on your TV at home). It is always fun prepping for this family day – I especially love it because it is non-religious and everyone can enjoy it together.

This post has been moved to our website at http://blog.letop-usa.com/?p=22519

CHECK OUT LE TOP CHILDREN’S CLOTHING…
www.letop-usa.com

 

 

Read Full Post »

Pine Cone Turkeys – the perfect autumn kids craft!

Fall is no-doubtedly in the air and the hot weather here in New York City has passed. I noticed the leaves only started to change in New York City the past two weeks, but it still seems as if it were only September. With Halloween about to pass and moving into November and Thanksgiving, I was trying to think of a classic kids craft that you could make now that would last as a home decoration through November – a pine cone turkey! Easy and super cute. Here you go….

Pine Cone Turkeys

These little turkeys are fun to assemble and provide colorful decorations for your home, neighborly gifts or even the Thanksgiving table.

Supplies:

• Pine cones
• Pipe cleaners
• Feathers
• Googly eyes, white school glue or hot glue gun, other embellishments (optional)

How to:

Step 1: Use glue to attach feathers to back of pine cone.
Step 2: Curl top of pipe cleaner to form head.
Step 3: Attach googly eyes to either side of head.
Step 4: Attach head to front of pine cone.

VISIT OUR LE TOP HOME…
www.letop-usa.com

Read Full Post »

‘Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving’

One of the perks of living the cement jungle life of New York City are the festivities of the fall and winter. One of them being the famous Macy’s Day Parade for Thanksgiving! The night before, Macy’s inflates the balloon floats right next to my boyfriend’s family’s apartment in the city and his family holds a big celebratory party for kids to come watch, enjoy and eat lots of candy and goodies!  I am very fortunate because the apartment overlooks the balloons from a very high floor of a tall building and it might be the best view in New York!  Being originally from California, this event is even more special as I have only had the opportunity to see balloon floats from the television as a child, and now in person as an adult. Families from all over the New York boroughs travel far to come and see the annual ‘blowing up of the balloons’ and it is a tradition for many families passed down from generation to generation. This past Thanksgiving I can say that I am most thankful for the friends and family I have that could share this special night – it will always be one to remember (and I highly recommend it if you are from the New York or New Jersey area). Here are some pictures from high above the floats on November 24th. Gobble, gobble!

Here are pictures the night before versus the next day at the parade!  

Here are the crazy crowds that swarm the balloons at night
(and by crazy, I mean lovely NYC families)! 

And then see them during the day…

Buzz Light Year being blown up the night before….

Here he is the next day!

Macy’s ‘Believe’ Star balloon floats that open up the parade

Read Full Post »

Turkey and Tails

I understand that the above title is very vague, if not weird.  However, I thought it would be appropriate to describe our “little” announcement.  We found out what our upcoming arrival’s gender would be last Wednesday, (the day before Thanksgiving) and since it was only a day away from Turkey day, we thought we would be a little naughty and make our families await the announcement until Thanksgiving day. So like good little secret agents, we were able to keep our lips sealed for one whole day.  Believe me, that didn’t come without the barrage of leading questions. I especially had to choose my words wisely, keeping “it” and “the baby” as the noun of my sentences and not slipping with….well, you are about to find out with “what.” That is the “Turkey” part of the above title, now on to the “Tails” part.

Before you go jumping to conclusions, you need to ask your self the following question “What Kind of “Tails” is she talking about?”  It could be that I am talking about “puppy dog tails” or is it possibly “pig tails.”  Two very different types of tails.  So which is it?  Puppy Dog Tails or Pig Tails…I hope you are ready for this one! 

It’s going to be….

We’re having a boy!

Read Full Post »

Thanksgiving Thoughts

Read Full Post »

Thanksgiving Cutie!

We just couldn’t resist sharing  this adorable photo of baby Anika in her festive pumpkin attire. She is truly something to be thankful for! Many thanks to her proud grandpa for sending us off to our Thankgiving celebrations with a smile.

Read Full Post »

Giggles Children’s Clothing: PREMIER RETAILER Q&A

We sat down with inspiration and children’s boutique guru, Anne Richter, owner Giggles Children’s Clothing store in Woodstock, Vermont to get the inside scoop on her store and her funny parenthood tales.  From stories about cutting clothing ads out of the newspaper as a child to her best parenting tip to holiday must haves and her charity work with children – Anne’s store is the go-to for any parent. Read more to discover one of Le Top’s very favorite children’s boutiques.

This post has been moved to our website. To view the full post go to: http://blog.letop-usa.com/?p=14122

 

Read Full Post »

Holiday Recipe: Mini Peppermint-Meringue Cups with Ganache

It’s the holiday season and whether you are working in an office or going over to a friend’s house – this recipe I read about in Martha Stewart is sure to be a hit!  The recipe is for “mini peppermint-meringue cups with ganache”! It makes plenty and looks pretty darn cute.

MINI PEPPERMINT-MERINGUE CUPS WITH GANACHE

Total time: 2 hours (until ready to eat)
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 32 pieces

Tip: To give these cups their festive design, paint lines of red gel paste food coloring up the inside of an empty pastry bag before adding the meringue.

 

INGREDIENTS FOR MERINGUE CUPS:

 

o        Vegetable oil cooking spray

o        3 large egg whites, room temperature

o        ¾ cup sugar

o        ¼ teaspoon pure peppermint extract

o        red gel-paste food coloring (sugarcraft.com)

 

INGREDIENTS FOR GANACHE:

 

o        6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

o        1 cup heavy cream

  

Note: add a garnish with 1 large candy cane, finely chopped

 

 

DIRECTIONS: 

 

1.    Preheat oven to 175°. Trace 16 circles onto each of 2 pieces of parchment using a 1 ¾-inch round cookie cutter, spacing about 2 inches apart. Coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray and top each with a sheet of parchment, traced side down.

2.    Make the meringue cups: heat egg whites and sugar in a heat proof bowl of a mixer set over a pan of simmering water, stirring, until sugar dissolves and mixture is warm to the touch, about 3 minutes. Transfer bowl to mixer. Whisk on medium high-speed until stiff peaks form. Beat in peppermint extract.

3.    Using a small food-safe paint brush, paint 3 stripes of red food coloring up the inside of a pastry bag fitted with a ¼-inch plain round tip. Transfer egg-white mixture to pastry bag (or a large Ziploc baggie with small hole cut at corner); pipe coils to fill each traced circle. Pipe up sides of each to create ¾-inch to 1-inch high cups.

4.    Bake until meringue cups are crisp but not browned and lift off parchment easily, about 1 hour 30 minutes. Transfer meringue cups to a wire rack, and let cool completely.

5.    Meanwhile, make the ganache: Transfer chocolate to a heat-proof bowl. Bring cream to a gentle simmer in a small sauce-pan over medium heat. Pour over chocolate, and let stand for 2 minutes. Stir until smooth. Cover loosely with plastic wrap, and cut a small slit in the top. refrigerate until firm, 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes.

6.    Stir ganache, and transfer to a pastry bag fitted with a ¼-inch open-stir tip. Pipe ganache into the center of each meringue cup. Garnish with candy cane.

Read Full Post »

Meatless Thanksgiving Dish Recipe!

I personally grew up in a meat-eating house, however, my sister had good friends who were vegetarians whom we celebrated Thanksgiving with.  We all know kids can be picky during the holidays, so why not throw in a meatless type option that is sure to make your kids say,“mm, mmm, good!” Here is a delicious take on lasagna, courtesy of my hero Martha Stewart.

Butternut Squash and Sage Lasagna
Serves: 8

Layers of sage-flecked squash and rich, creamy ricotta serve as both filling and sauce.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 pound whole-milk ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1/2 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, coarsely grated (2 cups)
• Freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup loosely packed fresh sage leaves, coarsely chopped
• 1 1/4 cups homemade or store-bought low-sodium chicken stock
• Store-bought dried noodles, cooked
• 4 ounces finely grated Parmesan cheese (1 1/4 cups)

DIRECTIONS:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Toss squash, oil, and 1 teaspoon salt on a baking sheet. Season with pepper. Bake until light gold and tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool.
• Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees. Combine ricotta, cream, yolks, mozzarella, and a pinch of nutmeg in a medium bowl. Season with salt.
• Melt butter in a small sauté pan over medium-high heat. As soon as it starts to sizzle, add sage, and cook until light gold and slightly crisp at edges, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Place squash in a medium bowl, and mash 1/2 of it with the back of a wooden spoon, leaving the other 1/2 in whole pieces. Gently stir in sage-butter mixture and stock. Season with salt and pepper.
• Spread 3/4 cup of ricotta mixture in a 9-cup baking dish. Top with a layer of noodles. Spread 1/2 of the butternut squash mixture over noodles. Top with a layer of noodles. Spread 1 cup of ricotta mixture over noodles. Repeat layering once more (noodles, squash, noodles, ricotta). Sprinkle Parmesan over ricotta mixture.
• Place baking dish on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake until cheese is golden and bubbling, 30 to 35 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

Read Full Post »