Did you think you'd ever say. . . ?, No. 4

"No. We don't kiss toilets."

_The Hancock News_ Column-- December 16, 2015

They say that it’s better to give than to receive, and I believe it. Way back when I was four years old, I remember clearly the pain caused by receiving one Christmas gift. 

Now I’m sure my babysitter, Mrs. K., thought she had found the perfect present for me. After all, my best friend Denise and I spent hours of our playtime at Mrs. K.’s house adorning ourselves with pictures of jewelry we’d oh-so-carefully cut out of fat Sears and J. C. Penney’s catalogs. I’ll bet she figured we would each just love to have a toy jewelry set.

However, I will forever think of that gift as an amateur torture kit. The necklace and ring were only slightly uncomfortable, just a bit of plastic pokes here and there. But those clip-on earrings were another story. They pinched onto my ears so tightly that I wanted to cry.

To make matters worse, my mother insisted I model the whole set for a picture. I did my best not to cry and to put on a smile while waiting for the camera’s flash to warm up, but anybody could notice a difference between the me in the jewelry picture and the me showing off a cheerleader costume, my Snoopy scissors, and my Pepsi toboggan. 

I begged my mother not ever to make me wear those earrings again, but also never to tell Mrs. K. that I didn’t like them. I didn’t want to hurt her feelings.

Evidently, my son is a bit more blunt than I was. Last weekend my in-laws were visiting. When his grandfather returned from the grocery store and presented my son with the impromptu gift of a packet of seasoning he’d used to make jerky, my son quickly said, “No, thank you. I like Daddy’s better.”

I was horrified.

While giving is important, we should also learn to receive graciously. I told my son that no matter what gift you receive, you should always say, “Thank you.” Even if it doesn’t fit, it’s ugly, or you just don’t like it, a gift is the giver’s way of saying, “I care about you,” and “Thank you” is our way of replying in kind.

No matter how many of the packages you find under the tree end up being returned or re-gifted, remember this holiday season that the thought behind the present is the true gift.

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One gift I will never, ever, ever re-gift or return is my friend’s candied nuts. They are so good that I can’t thank her enough. These sweet nuts packaged in a jar with a ribbon tied around make the perfect gift for just about anybody, so make enough for yourself and to share with somebody you care about.

I haven’t tried it yet, but I do plan on experimenting with a few more spices. I think a pinch of cayenne might spice things up a bit for those who like some heat with their sweet.

Delicious Nuts

1 egg white

1 tsp. vanilla

4 cups pecan or walnut halves

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

Whisk the egg white in a bowl with vanilla until fluffy. Add the nuts and egg mixture to a zip lock bag and mix until coated. 

In a small bowl, mix the sugar, cinnamon and salt. Add to the nuts in the bag and shake until all nuts are coated. Spread on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 250ºF for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Let the nuts cool before packaging them up.

Peppermint Princess or Candy Cane Queen?

Last week we celebrated our last family birthday of the year, and that means another cake.

The birthday girl had been asking to eat candy canes recently, and that was my inspiration for this cake. That, and her grandmother who really likes peppermint patties was able to be here for the party.

Hello, yummy princess!

Easy yarn sash with bow

When I took the pan out of the box to make the cake part of this, I was totally concerned because the doll insert's arms had broken off entirely. I don't know if one of the kids saw the box in the basement and wanted to play with the doll or if things just broke on their own, but it's safe to assume that poor cake doll will never move those arms again thanks to super glue.

Anyway, all the candies were peppermint, and I added some peppermint oil to the frosting to make it super-yummy, too. The cake inside was a chocolate pound cake. The whole chocolate-mint combo was just about perfect to my taste. 

In fact, this whole cake was a big success. The birthday girl loved it, and it was so easy to just smear on a layer of frosting with a knife and push in the candies to decorate. I even had the right color yarn handy, too.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like. . . ?

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas?

"I'll have a blue-berry Christmas without you!"

"Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting light!"

"Lo, how a rose e'er blooming. . . "

"The holly and the ivy. . . ?"

Sure, Christmas is only 12 days away, but you wouldn't know it by looking in my front flower beds. We've got blossoms even more than these. The windows are open, and I'm letting the kids play outside in short sleeves. It's that warm out. 

Certainly we're not even close to a white Christmas. 

Presents, recommended

Okay. I don't have a large blog following. I don't have any affiliate links (mostly because I don't have a large blog following). But if I did, I would totally link up to those American-made silicone-coated baking pans. You know, the ones with all the funny ridges.

I'd received a gift card to King Arthur flour once and bought a jelly roll pan with all its waves. Then I received a 9 by 13 inch one as a gift, and let me tell you, nothing sticks to that thing. No ruined cakes! Amazing. The only truly non-stick I've found. And it would seem they are not so chemically yucky as those other alleged non-sticks. (Tell me if you find out otherwise.) So, of course, I've been begging for more.

Especially the muffin tins. I like to make muffins, but I hate the waste of those buying those paper liners. BUT I hate scrubbing all those individual muffin cups if you don't use the liners. I tried silicone liners, but then I just had to wash those, too.

Well. No more.

For my birthday I received a new muffin tin, and for you viewing pleasure, I will present why I love it.

Muffins, ready to be removed

In the back, one of my old muffin tins, my best old one. In the front, my beautiful new muffin tin.

Now watch as my lovely assistant tips the new muffin tin.

Watch out below!

Would you look at that?  All I did was lightly grease the tins, and they just tumbled out. Easy peasy. No torn up muffins.

Check out that empty muffin pan!

Do you see any nasty crumbs on that empty pan? I didn't. It just took a quick dip in suds with a little swipe of the dish cloth to make it all clean. Ain't it a beauty?

And in comparison, here I am tipping the old muffin tin, greased exactly the same as the other.

These muffins are holding on for dear life!

It took some prying to get these out. It wasn't horrible, but one muffin did suffer extensive injuries. And then there was more elbow grease necessary to get the pan cleaned out.

So there you have it. Buy these new wavy pans. They are worth any extra money. Trust me. I'm not getting paid for this. But if you make these pans and you want to pay me, I'll gladly accept :)

And if you don't know the type I'm talking about, here they are on Amazon.

*This post has been shared at Strangers & Pilgrims on Earth for The Art of Home-Making Monday.

_The Hancock News_ Column--November 25, 2015

My first teaching job was at Edgewood Middle School in Edgewood, Maryland. I was given a few pens, a pack of chalk, and not much else. I had no textbooks, and the desks in my classroom were too small for any of my 8th grade students who’d already hit their adolescent growth spurt. It wasn’t the worst school in the world, but let’s just say there wasn’t much to be thankful for.

That didn’t stop one of the more veteran teachers from being thankful anyway. Each year he gave photocopies of his gratitude list, several pages stapled together, to each staff member. It was the kind of list that was a gift in itself, thoughtful and sometimes funny.

I was encouraged and uplifted by his efforts. Occasionally all we need is a few reminders that life isn’t so bleak as the television news tries to make us believe.  On that note, I offer up my own gratitude list, circa 2015.

I’m thankful for a 3-year-old curly girl who loves “ska-betty” but would rather eat pancakes at every meal. For her big brother who loves being able to make pancakes all by himself.

I’m thankful for the son who can tie his own shoes now. For the shoes on his feet. For the girl who works at Stride-Rite because, for Pete’s sake, I still can’t figure out by myself how to pick shoes for my kids that fit. 

I’m thankful that despite some health hurdles this year, my parents are still alive and kicking. Mom’s still spoiling the grandkids, and Daddy still gives everybody a hard time, just for the fun of it. Also for my mother-in-law who is anything but the stereotypical mother-in-law.  Ditto for my father-in-law who’s been taking good care of her through two shoulder surgeries this year.

I’m grateful for the pumpkins and winter squash that grew in our garden because their colors and shapes are so pretty. And there’s my son’s first deer hunting success; thanks to him maybe more pumpkins will survive next year.

I’m thankful for my rambunctious toddler who doesn’t have Lyme Disease after all. I’m even thankful for those crazy guineas that run around eating ticks and hiding their eggs.

I’m more thankful for the young man who is kind enough to trek to our house morning and night to take care of those birds when we are away.

I’m thankful beyond words for the friends who came running at all hours to watch our children when our baby was born. And for a chubby, smiling baby girl who is nearly smothered by kisses every waking hour. And for the new van that carries all nine of us about, even if the toddler gets carsick all over it nowadays.

I’m thankful my daughter is excited to be learning to read. And that my sons could hardly believe there might be people out there who didn’t enjoy reading.

I’m super grateful for an editor who is nice about my ramblings and for generous readers who have shared recipes, fun educational materials for my children, and tips for combatting poison ivy.

I’m thankful for my best friend, my dear husband who feeds me Lorna Doone cookies when I’m in the hospital and spoils me whenever he can. He encourages me in all my endeavors and makes me feel beautiful even when the mirror tells a different story. 

But most of all I’m thankful to our Father, who provides all that I need to support this aging body and the life I am rather happy to be living.

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Cranberries are one Thanksgiving Day staple I am thankful for. We usually stock up this time of year on big bags of cranberries and throw them in the freezer for future use in smoothies and muffins and such. I am aware, however, that many people won’t let cranberry sauce pass their lips. Maybe this version, smoothed out by sweet Jello, might change their minds.

Mom’s Cranberry Salad

2  packages (3 oz.) red jello

2 1/2 cups boiling water

1 can jellied cranberry sauce

1 can whole berry cranberry sauce

finely chopped apples and walnuts or pecans (optional)

Dissolve jello in boiling water. Break up sauce with a fork and add to jello. Chill until very thick. Fold in apples and nuts. Chill.

The Aged

It seems this year we've seen a lot of change. I didn't have a difficult time (emotionally) giving up the old broken washing machine. I didn't sniffle at all when we moved the carseats to the new van. But there was a bit of inner struggle when we packaged up this old thing.

Thanks for the memories. And cookies.

This was a gift to me from my grandmother, my Oma. Oma, who taught me how to use it and how to make bread and who knows what else. This trusty old mixer still works, but our family has outgrown it. I've packed it in its box to await a time when it may be needed again-- by myself or one of the next generation. 

It was replaced by a newer, larger model. It even has the whisk attachment (I broke my last one early on in our marriage).

Hello, new friend with the different shaped dough hook!

This sleek machine came as an early birthday present for me. For quite a while we'd been planning on getting it with our accumulated credit card points, but sneaky husband ordered it on the sly. I was surprised when the delivery man carried the box up our walkway.

I deliberated for a few days about what should be the first thing made with it, mostly because I didn't have a spare minute to bake anything. But then on Sunday I finally settled on what I've been wanting for four years to try to make; I had the pumpkin, I had the cream cheese--

Pumpkin Roll!

It turned out quite well despite all my fears.

Next up, a cake. I'd been saving this recipe for quite some time, too. I finally decided my "Lordy, Lordy" birthday would be just the right occasion. This, my friends, was worth the wait-- a pecan pie cake.

Yes, each layer is pecan-encrusted and brushed with a maple-molasses syrup. 

Somebody call the fire department, quick!

All 40 ablaze.

So the new mixer is doing a great job, and it'll be further tested tomorrow with dough for rolls and pecan bars for Thanksgiving Day. The old mixer is safely packed away. I'm just thankful nobody's decided to trade me in for a newer model.



*This post has been shared with The Art of Home-Making Mondays at Strangers & Pilgrims on Earth.