We are finally getting hints of fall in South Florida. Temperatures have fallen to highs in the mid-80s (F) and humidity is down as well. I washed all my porch furniture slipcovers and had my first glass of wine outdoors in months. My husband smoked some Mahi Mahi and I made some Smoked Fish Dip in celebration of porch day.
The ‘vase’ is a brandy snifter, though no one around here sniffs any brandy. The Honey Pepper Vodka is used to make Smoked Fish Pasta with Creamy Vodka Sauce. Nemiroff sounds like a villain in a James Bond movie, I wouldn’t drink any. The variety of vodka flavors available boggles my mind, this one adds some sweet spice to the sauce on the pasta.
Another vase view.
Sometimes it surprises me the number of stems I can get into a vase. This is one of those vases. The flowers are: starting at the base: red star-shaped flowers, Old Fashioned Pentas (Penta lanceolata); the white flowers are from White Geiger tree (Cordia bossieri); orange and red daisies are Gallardia (G. pulchella); grapes are from Muscadine vines (Vitis rotundafolia); pink and red spikes are Tropical Red Salvia (Salvia coccinea); blue flowers are Porterweed (Stachytarpeta jamaicensis); grey foliage is Barometer Bush (Leucophyllum); off white spikes are Juba Bush (Iresine diffusa).
Here’s a close up:
As always, Thanks to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for hosting this weekly garden meme. To see other vases follow this link Cathy’s blog.
Cheers to Fall!
The Shrub Queen 
What a great vase! (The snifter and the blooms!) I’m reading this before breakfast – it’s made me very hungry!
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Thanks, hope you found something good to eat.
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Mouthwateringly interesting companions in both food and flowers.
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Thank you, I am dreaming about the pasta now.
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Fabulous colours.
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Thank you, Christina.
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I didn’t know vodka came in flavors. It always seems strange that this is the time of year we are using our porches and up north they are heading inside. We are still in the 90’s and it was too hot to eat outside this weekend.
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Yes, literally Bubble Gum Vodka. Yuck. We are either having a nice spell of weather or early fall, it is like the end of October currently. It is usually too hot to be on the porch now.
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Vodka in pasta? I will take your word for it in terms of it its tastiness! Seeing the stems through the glass highlights just how many different things you have managed to include today, with a great result as always. The snifter makes a great rounded vase, doesn’t it?
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Penne alla vodka is a classic Italian dish. Usually a creamy tomato sauce. Mine is not so classic. I do love a good snifter of flowers!
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Beautiful! Love the autumnal look both in red/orange color and fruit representing the harvest.
Glad you are able to start getting outside again (even though as AG points out, we are heading inside). Your pasta sounds and looks fantastic!
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Thanks, Eliza…saw a hummer in my garden, probably from your house. Enjoy your last porch days.
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Thanks! 🙂
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Somehow your posts always manage to make me hungry! I’m glad to hear your weather is mellowing. I wish my Pentas looked as full and happy as yours.
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Such rich autumn colours.
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So now I know what to do with the old leftovers of a bottle of vodka used for making elderflower liqueur a few years ago! 😉 Really love the vase this week – such a great combination of colours and quite autumny. The glass/sniffer is amazing too! Congratulations on your first ‘porch day’. It’s the other way round here and we ate outdoors probably for the last time last weekend!
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I enjoyed reading about your ‘porch ‘party’ and your vase really has captured the ‘spirit’ of the season. Flowers and food…..great topics this week.
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Fall? in Florida?
Cool muscadines! or are they scuppernongs? Are scuppernongs just a type of muscadine?
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Fall is very subtle..but can be found here. those are male Muscadines and horribly bitter. Scuppernongs are really big green grapes-like 1-1/2″ round.
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I don’t know either, but intend to. I think that some of the recipes for grapes here were developed by Okies who knew muscadines and scuppernongs.
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