Mouthwatering

A few years ago I published a little cookbook called Tea Time. Every now and then, I pull out my copy and turn to one of my favorite recipes. It's fast, easy and oh-so yummy!

Thought I'd share it with you so your house might smell as heavenly as this one does! Enjoy!

And, have a peaceful day.

Chocolate Loaf

½ cup softened butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1½ cups flour
3 T. cocoa
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. vanilla
½ cup sour cream
½ cup chopped nuts, optional
½ cup chocolate morsels

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour two loaf pans.

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs.

Combine dry ingredients.
Add to butter mixture.
Add vanilla, sour cream, nuts
and chocolate morsels.

Pour batter into pans.
Bake for 60 minutes.
~

Sunday Baking

Yesterday was on-and-off rainy, chilly and damp. Too wet to do much outdoors but a long-ish kind of day, if you know what I mean. I never had a problem with having too many hours to fill but the times have changed and some days seem made with extra hours. Sunday is especially crummy.

So....

Not one to sit around and have a pity party, I decided to find something to do. Since I couldn't go outside and play (not without galoshes and a raincoat!) I did the next best thing. That's right, I got out my mixing bowls and raided the pantry. Baking has a soothing rhythm to it, I think. And it's one of those activities that has a solid beginning, middle and end.

Oh, the end... Let's just say I skipped dinner last night. Why? Well, let me share the recipe with you. If you give it a go, you'll understand why I was too stuffed for real food on a Sunday evening!

Gingersnaps

3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
3/4 cup dark molasses
3 cups sifted flour
1/4 t. salt
2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. cloves
1 t. ginger
1 t. cinnamon

Cream butter and sugar. Add egg and molasses and beat well.

Sift together remaining ingredients, then combine with the butter mixture. Chill at least 30 minutes.

Form dough into small balls. Roll balls in granulated sugar and place on greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes.

Delish!

So, the weekend...

Lots of gardening. Updates and photos will be shared soon.

Yesterday, baking Friendship Bread. My dear friend Penny brought this little container of starter about eleven days ago. I've stirred, watched and added ingredients.

Finally, I had to use it.

Looks pretty small, doesn't it?

Looks can be deceiving!

That little blue-topped container separated into four batches. Three, for friends.

One for me, to continue the baking adventure...

I measured and added. Stirred...

An hour later, two loaves of yummy goodness.

Interested in baking your own loaf of Amish Friendship Bread? This link will give you all the details.

I tell you, I love a loaf of good bread!

Considering coffee and tea options now. More news on that front in the next few days.

Hope your Monday is a peaceful one!

Turtle Tuesday

I've got to say, I love daffodils. Yesterday I walked through the property and gathered a huge bouquet. They were the first things I saw when I came downstairs this morning. What a cheery way to begin the day!

No surprise...it's another rainy morning here in upstate New York. I almost expect to see gray skies and stormy clouds when I open the blinds now.

Mother Nature, send out the sun!

My plans for the day? Writing (I've been slacking, choosing instead to weed) and baking. It seems like the perfect sort of day for another crusty loaf of beer bread. Love the way the house smells when bread's in the oven, and it doesn't get any easier than the four-ingredient beer bread!

What about you? Got anything special on your to-do list?

Calm

Calm. That's all I can really say about yesterday. And calm? It's highly underrated. Truly, it was so refreshing to simply have a peaceful day.

After Mass I came home and was out of my church clothes in half a heartbeat. It was funny, how fast I ditched my cords and sweater, hopping into grubby jeans and an old sweatshirt. Then, gardening gloves!

The weather was gorgeous. A little bit breezy, but warm and sunny--perfect for working in the yard. Our garden beds are all overgrown and neglected (that's what happens when you walk away from life for a year) so I've got a big task ahead of me. Reclaiming the property will take time, but that's something I've got. Yesterday I spent six hours digging in the dirt.

Near the doorway to my husband's workshop, there's a flower bed. It hugs a stone wall, the ideal spot for a splash of color. Vito loved cosmos, so that's what we plant there. Last year nothing was planted in the bed, and it was choked with weeds. But six hours, a bit of muscle and lots of determination later, the bed is clear of weeds, raked smooth and ready for planting. Color me tired, but satisfied.

And calm. It is amazing how soothing working in the earth can be.

It's raining today but the next time there's even a spot of blue in the sky I'm heading back out to work in the next neglected area. I'm doing it for the farm and flowers, but mostly myself. This bit of tranquility is a very welcome change. I need it.

Oh! Saturday's baking was a success! Want to see?

Beer bread

Yum!

Hope you have a great day!

Saturday

It is a gorgeous Saturday morning here in the middle of nowhere. The sky is blue, robins and bluebirds are zipping around and the snow sparkles.

Oh, right...the snow. Well, if you overlook the layer of snow covering everything, it really is a pretty spring morning. Maybe the snow will melt.

Yeah, I've got a bridge to sell, if you're interested...

Me? I'm ignoring the sn-- ah, the white stuff. I've got a long To-do list and don't have time for Mother Nature's nonsense. On the list? Oh, the usual. Vacuuming, dusting, mopping, bringing in firewood. And, if my mood stays the same and my chin doesn't hit the ground (I'm going to try real hard to see that it doesn't!) I'm going to bake. Yes, that's right, I'm going to dust off the oven, wash some mixing bowls and, for the first time in over a year, I'm going to bake. It's time.

Vito and I loved creating in the kitchen, and that enjoyment included baking. I'll tell you, he baked the best apple pie in the world. Truly, he did. It was so amazing that when we invited folks for dinner they'd request his apple pie for dessert. Before I get teary-eyed, moving along...

I've got to get back on the kitchen horse eventually. I can't live on frozen dinners forever. And, I might find happiness doing what we enjoyed. So, baking. Today. Something simple to start. Maybe cookies or a quick bread. Just something. Like I said, it's time.

Tonight I've got a date with some bunnies. Not somebodies, some bunnies. I've got about thirty that need to be stuffed because, well, just because bunnies shouldn't be flat. I'll stuff them tonight, put eyes and whiskers on tomorrow and then they'll be ready for their Big Day. It's hard to believe, but Easter's right around the corner.

What about you? What are you going to do this gorgeous Saturday?