It has been quite a winter around here, and I would be lying if I said it has been an easy one to get through. Not because of the weather - we live where we expect the winters to be fierce and getting a bad one is no reason for sniveling. I will tell you that as I am writing this on March 13th, there are still several feet of snow everywhere around us, and not a single bare patch anywhere in the yard. Even the chickens refuse to range, preferring to sit in the doorway and peer out on the ... Read More about Soft Cornmeal Muffins
Recipes
Cranberry Eggnog Bread
We are having some really difficult days in our family right now. I don't talk a lot about day to day events here on the blog, but I have been so absent here lately, and events have kind of overwhelmed us, so I thought I would share a little bit. Late last year, Larry's youngest sister, Janet began to experience some changes in how she was feeling. A lack of energy and just not feeling like herself. In the last couple weeks it has been discovered that she has a very aggressive form of cancer, ... Read More about Cranberry Eggnog Bread
Asiago Herb Spread
How was your Christmas this year? I hope it was as happy as our own, with lots of family around, fun times, and wonderful food. All of the kids and grandkids made it home to our house this year, which packs our house pretty tight, but we managed. A few more folding chairs, an air mattress or two [or 3!], and an extra trip or two to the grocery store for vital supplies like eggnog and salsa. There is nothing like a 6 month old baby to make a Christmas feel merry, and the older grands really love ... Read More about Asiago Herb Spread
Sour Cherry Almond Bars
As I have mentioned a time or two [or 50!], my husband is rather fond of cookies. When our house is in a state of no cookies, it makes him a sad, sad man. So you can probably imagine that he is a huge fan of this time of year. He doesn't think of it as "Christmastime", like the rest of us do. To Larry, this is "cookietime". And now that he is retired, he can devote himself even more fully to the testing of whatever new cookies I am trying out for the blog this year. This makes him a ... Read More about Sour Cherry Almond Bars
Hazelnut Shortbread Cookies
It really is beginning to look like Christmas! We're in the middle of a 3-day winter storm that promises to bring us multiple inches of snow which is currently being blown about in a very festive fashion. Which is good, because we are under a bit of pressure here. Due to the nature of our older son-in-law's job, it is rare that he can get off enough days at Christmas for them to come here for the holiday, but this year is an exception. They live in northern NY, so you can pretty much figure on a ... Read More about Hazelnut Shortbread Cookies
Chocolate Espresso Spritz Cookies
Chocolate Espresso Spritz Cookies with Kahlúa Cream Filling I love spritz type cookies. They have been a lifesaver for me more times than I could ever count. I'll bet everyone with kids has had this conversation, usually held at 9:45PM: "Mom, I am supposed to bringing cookies in for my class" "Okay, when?" "Tomorrow!" This is when spritz cookies come to your rescue - you can churn out a good sized batch of buttery, cute cookies in no time at all. No chilling of the dough, or fooling around with ... Read More about Chocolate Espresso Spritz Cookies
Molasses Apple Cobbler
A perfect last minute Thanksgiving Dessert Things are pretty exciting around here right now. We had barely finished our fall cleanup chores, when deer season started. Then we ordered a half of a pastured pig. And a split quarter of an organic grass fed steer. And on the second day of deer season, Larry got a deer. So - we had to buy another freezer, which meant we had to completely reorganize our spare room, which also doubles as a spare bedroom. This is all part of our determination to stop ... Read More about Molasses Apple Cobbler
My Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes
I like Thanksgiving. A lot. It's partly because some of my absolute all time favorite foods are always on the menu. Like mashed potatoes. When I was a kid, there were two things I swore that as a grownup, I would eat every day if I wanted to. Dill pickles & mashed potatoes. I guess I felt deprived growing up. There were a bunch of us, and apparently, I never felt there were enough mashed potatoes in my life. For the record, we don't eat them every day, or even every week, but they are ... Read More about My Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes
The Best Turkey Gravy
A nice dark roux is the secret! As I've mentioned in a few other posts recently, we've updated some of our Thanksgiving recipes in the last few years. We have all become better cooks over the years, plus our tastes have changed somewhat and of course there is always that food blogger gene that can never let well enough alone. There's always a better recipe around the corner, right? In the case of this turkey gravy that was 100% true. For years, I used a slurry to thicken any gravy I was making. ... Read More about The Best Turkey Gravy
Peanut Butter Cup Brownies
Every year, I do the same thing. We haven't seen a trick or treater in these parts since the girls were small - we live out in the middle of nowhere, we have a rather long driveway, none of the neighbors have little kids anymore, and we don't turn on the porch light. I leave the porch light off mostly because of Riley, who is not fond of strangers. I can only imagine his reaction to seeing a person dressed up in a costume, with some kind of scary mask on. It would not be good. Still - I like to ... Read More about Peanut Butter Cup Brownies
Southwest Cornbread Dressing
Have you planned your Thanksgiving dinner yet? At one time, the answer to that around here would have been "yes" - even if you asked me in July. That was because we had the same thing every year. It was hardly what you would call a bad thing either, because what we had was very good. Things are different now though. We are all getting more adventurous in our old age, not to mention the fact that I have recipes to test. It's awfully rough on the family to have to suffer through these trials, but ... Read More about Southwest Cornbread Dressing
Macadamia Lime Blondies
I am still pretty caught up in fall - in getting everything put up, and in enjoying stuff like winter squash and apples. But fall also means that citrus starts showing up in the stores more, and for better prices, which got me thinking about making these Macadamia Lime Blondies again - and this time, shooting a few photos and getting the post out here on the blog. I think you will be glad. Not only do these blondies have lots of bright lime flavor, but there are also crunchy, buttery macadamias ... Read More about Macadamia Lime Blondies