Spring Already

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Well, January is well into way, closer to the end than the beginning, but it’s not even Winter here anymore. It should be, though it’s not. It’s been very rainy, though it was forecasted that would be the case, a more mild winter, but overall, it’s too much like that.

We’ve had two thunderstorms this year, major thunderstorms, many rain storms besides those too. Today it was really rainy, quite rainy, hard, hard, hard, lots of thunder & lightening. Booming, wonderful thunder.

Today I remembered seeing daffodils springing up somewhere we’d been a few days ago, and so that sparked me to go out when the rain let up a bit and look at where mine are. Surprise, surprise, mine are coming up too. I was thinking that maybe the ones we’d seen had been planted by a landscaper (you know, commercial area, throw away plants or perennials? Hard to say unless you stake them out forever.) So anyhow, there are mine, some here, a few inches high, some there just peaking out, some other there, a bit more than peaking … tomorrow there may be more.

That’s early. That’s OK, but it’s not exactly something that has me at ease, I’ve seen what a late frost can do (April 2007) and this is way earlier than then, how it was in early spring (the still official winter by just a month! spring this year to compare to the early spring that year being into February …) usually spring happens in March, maybe signs in late, late February, but that’s what’s normal, March gives way to much blossoming and April even more and green leaves galore.

So we had it all happen a few weeks early last year. Now this year, even earlier. Just cyclical weirdness.

The U. S. A. has that all the time, has always, since before records were kept. Don’t quote me, it’s just my understanding of it, from billions of areas of life, not just one source, not source-able past that.

Muffin Cake

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I was making muffins for breakfast yesterday morning and then something happened which made me hand the process off to my daughter. I was going to write the recipe down on an index card, but I got distracted by the other thing, and then my husband and I had to go to homedepot for the thing, so I wasn’t there when she put the recipe together. I’d gone over what I had done and what needed done (with her) but she goofed up and when I was there, I saw and flipped out (as I do when she’s got a great handle on what’s going on in the kitchen and goofs up anyhow.)

Finally I was able to tell her what to do to make it work (hopefully.) It did work, but it was almost a huge problem.

I had taken a recipe, and doubled it. I have showed my daughter how to double something, she has known for some years now, practiced it fine oft times. This time though, she took the ingredients and did everything right, except for the milk. She doubled the DOUBLED amount. Original amount was 1/2 cup. I don’t mess up that way (yes, other ways, not that way though!) and it’s part of what I need to do with all the children, go over measurements and fractions again, every so often.

So what did she end up doing? I had her put it into a 13×9 pan and bake it as a cake. It turned out well enough. We could do it on purpose, or not. Well, it’s something else she goofed up, I like to put cinnamon in the batter, and she added all that milk before the cinnamon, so she didn’t get the cinnamon into it, just sprinkled it on top, which isn’t the same effect when it’s baked as having it inside is. Even with it that way, it was good.

This isn’t a recipe. If I want to experiment I just might do so with this process and come up with a good recipe to post. Later of course.

Chocolate Syrup

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Makes 1 Qt. chocolate syrup (4-cups)

1 1/2 cups Cocoa
2 3/4 cups Rapadura (experiment with more or less, or substitute another sweetener)
1/8 tsp. Sea Salt
2 cups Spring Water (or filtered)
4 tsp. Vanilla (REAL vanilla, not imitation)

Combine everything except for the Spring Water and Vanilla into a medium saucepan. Gradually add the Spring Water to the dry mixture in the pan, stirring well, until smooth.

Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly, and once at the boiling stage allow the mixture to cook for at least 3 minutes (all the while stirring!) You can cook it longer if you prefer the syrup thicker. [I have used double the water once, and let it simmer for a long time to thicken, getting rid of the extra water, and it turned out really nice, without stirring it the whole time, though I'd not recommend doing this!]

Remove the sauce pan from the heat and stir in the Vanilla. Pour into a clean container that has a sealing lid. Like a wide-mouth Quart Jar (canning supplies) and allow to cool, uncovered. Once cool, cover well and refrigerate.

Use to make chocolate milk of whatever dark or light version is your preference. Also good as an ice cream topping. Yummy over homemade vanilla ice cream!

Thanksgiving & Next Day Birthday Over

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Thanksgiving Day went well. It was chilly but sunny in the morning, warmed up but not too much during the day, staying Sunny all day.

We had dinner later than I had wanted to. My hubby got me playing Warhawk in the morning and I quit when I realized it was 12:08pm and got going on getting things done.

Even with the turkey done ahead, and the stuffing … I had to make cheese sauce, white sauce, gravy (meant to do it ahead, but didn’t get to it) and cauliflower, green bean casserole, cook sweet potatoes, peel and cut into pieces and make a brown sugar syrup to candy them with. Also had potatoes to cook and mash. Then get out the turkey and stuffing and re-heat.

It was a big feast. We had cloverleaf rolls, my almost 13-year-old daughter got that done with my supervision. Getting all that done and ready to be served at the same time isn’t HARD just complex and tedious to a degree of, it takes kitchen talent to pull it off.

So I was pooped after all that. I made whipped cream to go with the pumpkin pie later that evening.

The next morning I had to get up and get things going for the birthday that day. I make banners for each child, put on the fireplace … they expect it now, and it has to be good ;) I had one nearly ready, but I hadn’t connected all the pieces to hang yet. So I finally decided what to do, and struggled with it as the eyelets I was using just weren’t playing nice with me. Augh! I got it done, it wasn’t fully the best it could have been, but that’s more my own criticism of my own project more than anything.

I made a yellow layer cake with very chocolate buttercream frosting, with chocolate curls (from a container of drinking chocolate curls I have) all over the top and at the base of the cake all around. On the sides I put Pearls in an offset pattern. It was nice, not perfect, I wasn’t going for perfection, but it sure did look nice. I took time to put the pearls on, it was tedious feeling, but really didn’t take much time considering everything. It’d be worth it to put more oomph into it another time.

My daughter loved her presents and the cake was really good and the homemade ice cream (which I made the day before Thanksgiving Day.) It was a good day. We had turkey quesadillas for supper, and played Monopoly after that, with cake after that.

It was all fun, but I’m glad it’s all over for this year. It’s less than a month to Christmas Day, and I have MORE to do! At least it’s awhile until some of it, and some of it longer, but lots of it more necessary for sooner than later, just not all of it. Phew!

Thanksgiving Day 2011 Menu

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Today we are having:

Turkey: Roasted on Tuesday, November 22, 2011 – Free Range Organic Fresh turkey from Whole Foods Market. Sliced, chunks, etc. Vacuum sealed that night, refrigerated. Will put the turkey into French White casserole dishes along with some gravy, and re-heat in the oven.

Gravy: I saved the juices from the turkey I roasted on Tuesday. Today I am making gravy, right now a light version to use for the turkey re-heating. In a little bit I’ll make a “darker” version, more turkey juices and also make the roux browner. This will then stay warm/hot until dinner.

Mashed Potatoes: Peel, quarter and boil later. Drain, fork mash a bit, then put into KA Mixer bowl with paddle and beat with butter and sour cream and salt. Change to Wire Whip and turn to highest speed for 3 minutes. Put into a casserole dish and dot with butter and sprinkle with paprika, put into warm oven until dinner (one of the last things to make.)

Stuffing: Already made, inside the Roasted turkey on Tuesday. This is in a French White casserole and will be re-heated when the turkey is in the oven today for dinner.

Cauliflower: an organic whole head of cauliflower, will steam in an inch of water just a bit before dinner. To go over it will be a cheddar cheese sauce, which I’ll make soon, and warm it up for pouring over the cauliflower before served.

Green Beans: GB Casserole made soon, from scratch (except for the onion thingies) put into lower oven to slow bake/keep warm.

Sweet Potatoes: Parboil/steaming them first (right now) and will peel and candy, maybe in the oven, or on the stove, not sure.

Rolls of some sort, homemade, need to get some stuff into the bread machine to make the dough (easiest way to make something when lots to do)

I guess that’s all. I mean, to cook.

Thanksgiving Day Dinner 2011

Menu

Roasted Free Range Organic Turkey in Turkey Gravy

Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes

Roasted Free Range Organic Turkey Gravy

White Spelt Onion, Sage, Raisin in the Bird Stuffing

Glorified Cauliflower

Homemade Green Bean Casserole

Homemade from Fresh Candied Sweet Potatoes

Organic Cold Cranberry Jelly Slices

Homemade Spelt Yeast Butter Rolls