Pinterest recipes: peanut butter munchies

I meant to make these last week to bring to the library, but after mixing the dough, I couldn't find time to finish. So I did it yesterday, and was glad everything was chilled, because it was much easier to work with.

I didn't take a picture, because the ones you see here with the recipe look much better than mine did. You see, I forgot the last step - to press them down with the sugared glass - you know. But everyone at work was quite enthusiastic. So, I would say "Try them! You'll like them."

"the phantoms of the day"

Into the darkness and the hush of night
  Slowly the landscape sinks, and fades away,
  And with it fade the phantoms of the day.
  The ghosts of men and things, that haunt the light.
The crowd, the clamor, the pursuit, the flight,
  The unprofitable splendor and display,
  The agitations, and the cares that prey
  Upon our hearts, all vanish out of sight.
The better life begins; the world no more
  Molests us; all its records we erase
  From the dull common-place book of our lives,
That like a palimpsest is written o'er
  With trivial incidents of time and place,
  And lo! the ideal, hidden beneath, revives.

                                              - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

  

singing to the Lord

Sing to the Lord, all the earth,

announce his salvation, day after day.

Tell his glory among the nations;

among all peoples, his wondrous deeds.

For great is the Lord and highly to be praised;

and awesome is he, beyond all gods.

For all the gods of the nations are things of nought,

but the Lord made the heavens.

Splendor and majesty go before him;

praise and joy are in his holy place.

Give to the Lord, you families of nations,

give to the Lord glory and praise;

Give to the Lord the glory due his name!

Bring gifts, and enter his presence;

worship the Lord in holy attire.

-     I Chronicles 16:23-29

the little couch potato

fresh and green

I came home to a bag full of freshly picked asparagus spears, from a customer of my brother's. I cooked the thinner ones for our supper, and the fat ones are standing in two glasses, waiting for their turn.

May flowers

breeze-dried

First time this year drying sheets on the line. Ahhhh.

Dairy Hollow House pumpernickel

I've been baking lots of bread lately, making any and all recipes which sound appealing to me, but using my own method - I'm learning a lot!  Today it was Raisin Pumpernickel Bread with a Secret, from Crescent Dragonwagon's Dairy Hollow House Soup & Bread. The secret being a half cup of chocolate chips, and sooo good!  I've got four round loaves.

A year ago I was getting into bread making but when the hot weather hit, it all fell apart  -  I shrink from using the oven in summer. So, I don't know what'll happen this year, but for now I'm really having fun.

little blue vase

I was happy to find this pretty pitcher after realizing that little vases would be just the thing for the four small shelves near the kitchen sink.

opening up

With temperatures all week in the seventies and eighties, the cherry is beginning to bloom.

Pinterest recipes: toffee surprise brownies

I made these today because I wanted to bring goodies to work for tomorrow. They're good, but I'm not saving the recipe  -  it's very similar to Anna's, except she has one extra egg in hers, and chocolate chips. This one is studded with toffee pieces and has a less simple method.

I'm sure they'll be welcome, and my co-workers won't be wondering about which recipe I used; but here it is, and here's Anna's.   In case you want to compare.

a jar of grape hyacinths

Grape hyacinth comes up every year by itself, next to the rose bushes.  There was so much of it yesterday in among the overlong grasses; when I realized my brother would just cut them down with the weed-wacker, I cut them down before him and brought them inside.

I looked for a pretty vase, but they truly look better in a mason jar.

something to think about

"There is an Indian proverb or axiom that says that everyone is a house with four rooms, a physical, a mental, an emotional and a spiritual. Most of us tend to live in one room most of the time, but unless we go into every room every day, even if only to keep it aired, we are not a complete person."

                                                                  -   Rumer Godden,  from Simple Abundance

"as if the sun were hers"

Napping everywhere

Stretched in the sun

As if the sun were hers

Awash in warmth

And furs.

                                                                                                            - Karla Kuskin

Pinterest recipes: creamy spiced cauliflower soup

In trying really hard to use up things in the cupboard, I searched for a recipe which called for coconut milk. Whatever I'd bought that can for, it hadn't happened. I found a nice soup recipe.

Oh, this was so delicious!  You can imagine the aroma of two onions, four cloves of garlic, cardamom, cumin, turmeric, coriander and a bay leaf sauteeing.  My brother told me I could make this soup anytime.

"the most human things we do"

"...any small acts of transformation are among the most human things we do. Whether it's nudging dried leaves around a patch of cement, or salting a tomato, we feel, when we exert tiny bits of our human preference in the universe, more alive."

                                        -   An Everlasting Meal,  Tamar Adler

a winter of our discontent

When is this winter of our discontent

to be made glorious summer?

Three things:

One - Yesterday was Shakespeare's birthday.

Two - I'm currently reading a book about how they found the bones of Richard III. (very interesting)

Three - Yesterday it actually snowed a little here!  (it's cold and not very spring-like)

Glorious spring wouldn't be bad, either. Or even a normal spring.

Pinterest recipes: Homemade chicken and broccoli casserole

I think it was Leila who provided a link to this recipe, which uses a homemade version of cream of celery soup. I followed it more or less, but used all broth rather than any milk.

It would be a good way to use leftovers, with a layer of broccoli (or other veg) on the bottom, and chicken layered over it. Then, two cups of the soup, mixed with mayonnaise, lemon juice and a bit of curry powder. Grated cheddar over all - and I'm sure I used extra because I had it - and bread crumbs because I didn't have panko.

Quite delicious!  And with the mayo - very filling. I didn't need to serve a starch with this; just some cut-up cukes and it was fine. And more for tomorrow.

little jar of honey

I'm not entirely clear on why honey crystallizes - something I read says the cold can make it happen. That makes sense, but I also wonder if moisture getting inside the jar can cause it; I try to keep it away from my steaming cups of tea.

Realizing that it's best to get it out of there at the first signs, after heating the container in hot water, the honey got scooped into a conveniently charming little mason jar which says "Garden" on it. Delightful!

pretty faces

sunny days

and so welcome.

the $20 meat loaf

A few years ago, my brother had a customer who suffered from Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. The poor man ended up dying from it, but from this association my brother learned that some think it's caused by eating bad beef - related to the mad cow situation - and he was starting to lean toward wanting us to buy only grass-fed or organic beef - as good quality as we could find. Meanwhile, on my end of it, I was coming across videos online of the terrible treatment of these unfortunate animals and this one from Germany, of some happy cows gamboling about in grass (which they'd never seen before), when some kind-hearted neighbors had arranged for them to escape the slaughterhouse. So, I was also not wanting to eat regular beef anymore, albeit for different reasons. And that's how we came to be spending lots more money on beef, (not to mention having far less variety!).

With a two-pound meatloaf in mind for Sunday dinner, I made my way to the organic meat area at the supermarket the other day. I should have seen it coming  -  in fact, I had, but chose to ignore it. The pound of grass-fed ground beef which used to be $6.49 a pound, was now $9.99.  I say I knew it was coming to this, because for the last two weeks the sign had said, "$5.99!  Four dollars off!" Oh, brother.  And, here it was. A two pound meatloaf was going to cost me twenty dollars. I couldn't believe it. I really wanted to cry. At least, I felt that I should be crying!

Well, I bucked up and bought it. And when our purchases went through the checkout I watched the screen. Guess what? It was on sale! So, our twenty dollar meatloaf was only a twelve dollar one.  I took no pictures of it, but they always look the same - here's a previous one. So, we got a reprieve - this time. But it's going to happen one of these weeks.

"I will love them freely"

"I will heal their defection, I will love them freely; for my wrath is turned away from them. I will be like the dew for Israel: he shall blossom like the lily; He shall strike root like the Lebanon cedar, and put forth his shoots. His splendor shall be like the olive tree and his fragrance like the Lebanon cedar. Again they shall dwell in his shade and raise grain; They shall blossom like the vine, and his fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon."

                                                  -  Hosea 14: 5-8

(Caravaggio)

brightness of another kind

Today the sun shone brightly. Yesterday, four of us from the library went for an outing.

It was cold, rainy and damp. But what should await us at the museum - bright flowers glowing in pretty planters  in spite of the gloom of the day. 

They were such a welcome sight! Then an angel with a torch appeared right before we went home. 

Brightness of a different kind. Still wonderful!

peasant bread with poppy seeds

just right with kielbasa and cabbage.

"clothed in the light of glory"

(unknown artist)

Stripped on Holy Thursday to wash the Apostles' feet, stripped on Good Friday to hang upon the cross, Jesus risen and triumphant is clothed in the light of glory, before which no enemy can stand, not even the roaring waters of chaos and death.

                                                                         - Magnificat, April 2015

ironing the Easter tablecloth

So little Cindy (her name is Tootsie now) can dip it in the water bowl tomorrow.  Yes, she's back for a week!

"mysterious cross"

The regal dark mysterious cross
In song is lifted high,
The wood on which the Son of Man
Was stretched against the sky.

Upon this wood his body bore
The nails, the taunts, the spear,
Till water flowed with blood to wash
The whole world free of fear.

At last the song that David sang
Is heard and understood:
Before the nations God as king
Reigns from his throne of wood.

O blessed Tree, upon whose arms
The world's own ransom hung;
His body pays our debt, and life
From Satan's grasp is wrung.

O sacred Cross, our steadfst hope,
In this our Passiontide,
Through you the Son obtained for all
Forgiveness as he died.

                              -  from Magnificat, April 2015

"into the black immensity"

"Try to imagine a man of action, some sort of explorer, about to set forth on a journey. His powers of persuasion have aroused a few enthusiasts who have decided to follow him. The start of the journey is a triumph. A rain of flowers, wild applause, the delight of the crowds. In towns and villages flags are out, there are displays of lights, the bold travelers are feted. The very countryside revels over their passing through it.

Yet the joy soon dims. The wayfarers enter new lands which know nothing, understand nothing, and care less. Sometimes also our travelers arouse misgivings. Their passionate desire for the Yea or Nay of the Gospels, excluding all other forms of discourse, assuredly does not recommend them. Little by little the food and the wines are replaced by potato peelings, and the contents of chamber pots succeed the flowers.

The enthusiasm of his companions is already wholly extinguished. Several of them have withdrawn on various pretexts and have not returned. The faithful few, in their turn, seek means to flee without too greatly disgracing themselves. They had not foreseen that there would be suffering.

Still, those who are left resign themselves from shame or from pride. As long as there continue to be human dwellings and men good or bad, a little effort still makes the journey bearable.

But now it happens that both the one and the other become sparse. We are entering into the desert, into solitude. Here are Cold, Darkness, Hunger, Thirst, vast Weariness, dreadful Sadness, the Agony, the Bloody Sweat.

The rash traveler looks for his companions. He understands, then, that it is God's good pleasure that he be alone amid torments, and he goes on into the black immensity, bearing his heart before him like a torch!"

                                                      - Leon Bloy,  from Magnificat, April 2015

constant prayer

"...every prayer, even prayer in the most radical solitude, is never isolation of oneself and is never sterile: rather, it is the life blood of an ever more committed and consistent Christian life."

                                                           -  Pope Benedict XVI,  A School of Prayer

never again

I mean, I'll never make macaroni and cheese with milk again! I made it Christmas Eve using a chicken broth "white sauce" and it was delicious, if somewhat rich. This week I used vegetable broth instead - just right. 

You should try it.