Saturday, January 26, 2013

Five Senses Saturday

FSS

Beautiful gorgeous rain has been coming down all night and woke up to more.  Loving it! 

On to my Five Senses Saturday.  




::Hear::

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- Pitter patter of the rain
- My favorite shows on TV
- Sirens speeding up the street
- My kids telling me something about their game
- My husband explaining something from his New Testament class


::See::


- nothing but blurriness after getting my eyes dilated
- The Great British Bake Off on my laptop
- birds circling the bird feeder
- paperwork needing to be filed
- packages arriving in the mail


::touch::

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- Lola's fur as I trace my finger down her zig zag bag....makes me laugh
- dashboard of my car as I wipe it down
- laundry that is being folded
- Squirt (my son's turtle) as we wash the tank
- soft crochet blanket wrapped around my legs


::taste::

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- little chocolate bottle filled with vodka
- coffee with my homemade vanilla syrup
- buttermilk bread
- A Husband's Delight Spaghetti
- Walnut Crescent Cookies


::smell::

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- rain, rain and more rain
- lavender dish soap
- coconut and sea air candle burning
- garlic and onion frying
- white chocolate




Friday, January 25, 2013

Great British Bake Off!

I thought today I would do something a little different, and come and chat about one of my favorite, and I know I say that a lot because come to think of it I seem to have a lot of favorite things don't I???  But, one of my favorite shows ever, is The Great British Bake Off.



I will just attribute my initial pull to this show to the fact that I love cooking, so very much, but very quickly I became enamored with the whole concept, the show itself, the baking, the delicious recipes and two people who I truly admire in the food world....Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry.  Love them!

Of course the presenters are hilarious and I love watching them, Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc make watching this show such a joy.

I'm not sure if many of you are familiar with it because as so many others on my watching list, it's from the UK.

Twelve homebakers take part in a 'bake off', which will test every aspect of their baking skills as they battle it out to be crowned the Great British Bake Off's Best Amateur Baker.

It's fun watching these homemakers facing challenges in the baking department and really having to push their boundaries.  There are mishaps, there are funny moments, there are amazing flavor combinations and outstanding cakes and biscuits, pies and pastry and bread.

Definitely a show after my own heart, and goodness, let's talk about the tent they cook in.  Against a backdrop of Cath Kidston look alike bunting, gorgeous pastel colored tables and refrigerators, all these cute gadgets and ingredients.


I honestly think I could bake all day long in a kitchen like that...I don't care if it's a tent.  LOL

Maybe I should just make a baking tent in my back yard.  Can you imagine???

It's the kind of show that I could watch all day long, one after the other and not get sick of it, matter of fact, I get quite annoyed when I am coming to the end of a season.

Great thing about it is that it's made me want to bake even more, and it's taught me that just because something seems intimidating, I need to get right in there and try it out. 



Here's the thing, I'm a cook, I love cooking but I've never been much of a baker, cakes always scared me and I felt like I could never get them right, so it's been a slow going process for me to get comfortable enough to just bake a cake and be happy with the result.

This show gives me the motivation I need to keep going and keep experimenting.

And it's made me hungry....oh goodness, the things they make really make me drool.

  • Custard Slices which I haven't had in YEARS, but is now on my to do list for next week.
  • Brandy Snaps
  • Bakewell Tart
  • Chocolate Eclairs 
  • Classic Cornish Pasties 

Yes, lots of baking coming up in my future.

 
And if The Great British Bake Off wasn't brilliant enough, along comes the Great Comic Relief Bake Off with some famous faces baking for charity.  So good, and so much fun to watch too.

Alright, now that I've told you all about these, I'm going back to watch more.....and if you want to, you can catch them on BBC. 

Do any of my UK friends watch these two shows?




Thursday, January 24, 2013

A day of rain.....

and the beautiful scent of wet earth, and cooler temperatures and tea, and cookies and all sorts of goodies.

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I love days like these, when you wake up to cloudy skies and sprinkles that quickly turn to big fat drops of rain.

Aside from the fact that I really love the rain, I think I love the scent it brings even more, and for that reason alone when it starts pouring, my kitchen window is opened so that we can enjoy nature's aroma.

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You may want to sit down with a cup of tea or coffee, because this post is going to be filled with photos.  I couldn't help it, the whole atmosphere of the day just propelled me into a photo taking trance.

No, it's not that bad, really....but yes, there are quite a few :)

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There's something about candles and lamps, on a rainy day that just makes me happy. Maybe it's the reflections it paints on the windows....

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Or the way that everything seems to look prettier with it's pretty glow

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It also puts me in the mood for tea, not so much coffee, but copious amounts of hot tea that burn your lip when you try to take the first sip.

Reminds me of my greatgrandmother, that's how she loved her tea, scalding hot, and she would set it in front of her, wrap her fingers around the mug and take tiny little sips throughout the night.

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So many topics were covered over a hot cup of tea. I would listen to her stories about her childhood and how hard it was, what she did, where she went and how she felt. She would tell me what a homemaker and wife should do, how she should act.

There were tons of ideas, advice, recipes, tips.

I often look at this book and think that for so many years, and during the most crucial moments of my life as she watched over us during the day, that she was my "Whispers of Encouragement". There in the flesh, always ready to offer comfort and always knowing just what to say.

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I do miss her tremendously.

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As the rain continued to come down, I spent some time admiring it from inside my house, just watching the drops splash on the glass panes

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and trickle down the leaves of the plants

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I pulled out my crochet and made myself a spot right next to the door, propped on comfy pillows and wrapped in my crochet blanket, I sat there for about 30 minutes, just mindlessly letting my fingers work their magic while I listened to the rain outside

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Another pot of tea was brewed and enjoyed

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along with some cookies

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and while laundry was drying, and cookies were baking, I also made a batch of Homemade Vanilla Flavored Coffee Syrup

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Oh it was a good day, a good rainy, dark day. One made for staying inside and puttering around the house surrounded by lamps and candles and blankets.

Now, the kids are playing a game on their Nintendos, my husband is at class, and I am going to finish my book on the kindle so I can start my new one, which I'm so excited about.

Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini. I've looked forward to this one for such a long time.

Before I leave though, here's what we had for dinner. A Husband's Delight, from one of the Amish cookbooks. The name makes me laugh, but it was delicious and got the thumbs up from the family.

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Have a blessed night and as always, thank you for stopping by and visiting with me.



Cooking Thursday - Hamburger Roll-Ups


Good morning everyone :)    So glad I can see properly today LOL

There's nothing more frustrating than having your eyes dilated, but it's done with and now I'm able to see things without it being a blurry mess.

Onto our recipe for today....



Hamburger Roll-Ups
Hamburger Roll-Ups


1 lb ground beef
finely diced onion (I eyeballed it, it was about 2 tablespoons worth)
1 T. oil
1/2 tsp. salt
pinch of pepper
2 T. flour
1/2 cup milk
1 tube refrigerated pizza dough


Brown the ground beef and onion in the oil;  drain off some of the grease.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add the flour, stirring, and then gradually add the milk, continuing to stir until meat mixture thickens.  Remove from heat and allow to cool so it doesn't burn when you handle the roll-ups.

Roll out the pizza dough in a wide rectangle.  Spread the meat filling over the dough.  Roll up into a log the way you do when making cinnamon rolls.  Cut the log into 1 1/2 inch slices. 

Place the roll-ups cut side up on an ungreased pan and bake at 375 F for 20-30 minutes or until done.

I sprinkled some mozzarella cheese one mine, and a few sliced green onions.

Hamburger Roll-Ups


From: The Homestyle Amish Kitchen Cookbook


Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Dilated Eyes

 This morning's sunrise

Have to be right up there at the top of my list for the most annoying things to deal with.

It's just one of those things that really drive me bonkers. 

I'm typing this up at night, wearing sunglasses because the glare from the computer is killing me.  It's like staring into the sun.

It's been a busy day for me, had a lot to do before the eye appointments and then spent 3 hours at the doctor, between me and my children, Nicholas and I requiring eye dilation etc.

So glad to be home.  Now I'm going to go and relax and rest my eyes for a bit, and preferably avoid anything bright, or lit, thankfully it's nighttime.   Ugh!