Italian Spice Cookie: EPIC FAIL!!!!

Not even close to good. I mean these were so not even close to good as to be beyond bad... I felt so sorry for the wasted ingredients!!!!!

UGH.

We'd roamed the World Wide Web in search of something as good as Tina's mother's recipe. Mind you, it has been YEARS since I ate one, and I was going on memory, and you know what memories can do to a person. So maybe Tina Russo Radcliffe's mother's cookies weren't great at all.

Maybe they were ordinary and I was just starving to death. (By the way, Tina's mother is stinkin' adorable, sweet and so kindly that I just wanted to bundle her up and bring her home with me. Tina refused to let me put her in the car. I'd have brought her back. Eventually!!!!)

Anyway, the kids had Veteran's Day off and we were doing cool things but we needed to give my buddy Christina some baking time. So we did. And so it began:

But first we had to take kitten pics to put the fall kittens on Craigs List:

There are THREE more so our measure of cute knows no bounds.  Stinkin' cute, right?

Okay, back to cookies.

No.

I refuse to go back to cookies. I'm waging war against the cookies! I can't even give them to the dogs because... sigh... they're chocolate.

Okay, enough cookie whining, because look what I had to be grateful for!!!!

THIS!!!

A Box o' Baby!!!!


And then there's THIS!!!!

"I think I'll help Grammy rake some leaves... or possibly fall in the pond. One or the other."

And then there's this bit of amazement taking place in our side yard:

This Santa and NINE FULL SIZED REINDEER are now taking over the side yard. Why, you say? On November 13th?

Well because it was nice out.

'Sall I got. Nice = Get 'er done!

The first year I set up the set, I used little metal stakes and thin wire. BIG MISTAKE. Now they're in the ground with heavy duty wire and rope and the biggest stakes I could find at Home Depot...

But today's winds said these babies aren't flying or tipping this year!!!

That's 'Lijah, our friend Angie and Finn, sittin' in the sleigh. Great-grandma Blodgett and Great Uncle Chuck made this set probably fifteen to twenty years ago. It used to be set up in their big front yard, and then when their health prevented putting the set out, Santa and his buds languished in Uncle Chuck's big barn....

And when the time came to clear out the barn and sell the small farm they called home, I was amazed that no one wanted Santa & Co.

I did!!!!  :)

And so Santa came here in several pick-up truck loads, and when he's not in the yard, he and his friends rest and recupe in our shed... The WHOLE shed. It takes the whole shed to keep them safe all year.

SO FUNNY!!!! But it's Cadillac housing for a beloved project.

So while the cookies were a bust.... sadly.... We went and got cider-glazed fried cakes from R&K Zarpentines, a jug of fresh cider and smiles at Santa and his friends.

This weekend I'll hook up the lights we use as "reins" and a couple of spotlights in the yard... and it's a Merry Christmas display for so many!

Mouth-Watering Mac and Cheese with Sandra Bell Calhoune

Good morning, all! We're so happy to welcome Belle Calhoune back to the cafe! Julie's out for the day, gallivantin' 'round the Eastern shore somewheres, but in her stead we have this amazing and wonderful hybrid author here in the cafe! We've got made-to-order coffee, fresh homemade jams for your scones (I'm jesting about scones, if I'm going to waste carbs it will be on mac and cheese like Belle brought by or CAKE....)  Okay, no scones, little petit fours cakes, instead!!! Hang out, chat it up, or just peek in, grab your coffee and go.... There are no term limits in the cafe!

Ruthy

Hello everyone.  Belle Calhoune here.  It’s such a pleasure to be visiting the Yankee Belle Cafe.

I'm talking macaroni and cheese today.  Finally, after years of making pitiful macaroni and cheese, I've found the recipe of a lifetime. 

I call it the golden ticket recipe, because I have struggled for many years to make a fantastic macaroni and cheese.  My sister Karen has always been able to whip up a mouthwatering macaroni, which my kids raved over.  Sadly, every single time I tried to make it, the macaroni came out overcooked or bland or blah.  It just wasn't gooey or creamy or cheesy.  It was a big ole dud.  Bring out the tiny violins everyone. 

Enter one of the miracles of my life.  The slow cooker.

Now cue the halo music.  Ta Dah!   About four years ago I purchased a slow cooker and began experimenting with recipes.  Ribs.  Pulled pork.  Chicken.  Chili.  And yes....mac n' cheese.  Where had this slow cooker been all my life?  If I wasn't already married, I would have proposed.  As a writer with deadlines, the simplicity of the slow cooker is extremely appealing.  As a wife and mother who enjoys putting delectable dishes on the dining room table at night, I've found dozens and dozens of recipes that satisfy all the members of my family.  This macaroni and cheese recipe is my all-time favorite.  I've served it at Thanksgiving, Christmas and upon request from my children.  It's that good!  And it's very simple to make.  And like Charlie in Willie Wonka, I found my golden ticket. 

Mouth-watering Mac n' cheese

One box of elbow macaroni (cooked and drained)

1/2 cup of sour cream

1 cup of milk

1 can of Campbell's condensed cheese soup

1 ½ cups of (orange) cheddar cheese, 1 1/2 cups of white sharp cheddar cheese, grated

2 eggs

1 teaspoon of ground mustard

1 teaspoon of adobo or seasoned salt

½ tsp pepper

3 tablespoons of butter

Boil pasta for six minutes, then drain.

The crock pot should be set to high.  Add pasta to crock pot along with grated cheeses, cheddar soup, sour cream, butter, milk and eggs.  Mix all together then add all the seasonings.  If desired, add additional cheese or sour cream.

You can periodically check back to make sure it is not browning too much at the sides.  You can stir every now and again.

2 hours to 2.5 hours on high is pretty near perfection although slow cooker times vary.  You can always check on it and look at the sides.  If they are browning too much you can always turn the temp down to low.  The cheese is very flexible also.  You can use different types of cheese or add more or less depending on your taste.  I once caught my youngest adding more cheddar cheese to the crock pot when she thought I wasn’t looking.  I let it slide since she’s pretty adorable.

I have to admit that I left out the butter this last time.  And guess what? I was the only one who knew.   You couldn't taste it at all.  And I still am on the fence about the little brown crunchies on the sides of the macaroni....some people love them while others don't.  The longer you cook it, the more brown crunchies you’ll get.

I honestly think this is the macaroni and cheese recipe I will stick to like glue.  It is perfection.  And it can be tweaked.  Bacon bits can be added to the mac n cheese.  Add some lobster for a nice seafood lobster mac n’ cheese.  Bread crumbs can be sprinkled over the top at the end.  Or if you want to add some veggies, broccoli can be placed on top as well.  A friend of mine added sliced hotdogs for her five year old son.

The lovely Julie Hilton Steele posted about what she’s thankful for during this Thanksgiving season.  I’m very thankful for my family.  My husband, Randy, never complains about all the time I spend writing.  My lovely daughter, Amber, is a freshman in college and enjoying the transition immensely.  My 12 year old Sierra is blossoming into a lovely young lady and feeling empowered about her dyslexia. I’m thankful to be living the life I always imagined.  God is good.

Quick and Easy Low-Carb Lunch

Okay, I'll admit it. I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed these days. I can't attribute it to any one thing, just several things, that when you bundle them all together, start messing with my psyche.

Makes me wish I was back at the ranch,

 playing peek-a-boo with the deer,

or simply relaxing beside the campfire.

But that was last week. 

I went down to help my SIL prepare for her son's wedding reception. He got married in Vermont last month and since Vermont is a bit of a drive from Texas, most of their friends weren't able to make it to the actual nuptials. 

So, we celebrated them in Texas style. 

Or maybe that should be Star Wars style.

Hans and Lea never looked so good.

These were made by a good friend.

Talk about cute!

But we also had real food that didn't come from a galaxy far, far away.

Things like ham, sweet potatoes, pumpkin bread and fruit salad.

And lest we forget dessert.

Apple quiche (must get the recipe), pecan tassies and lemon bars.

Makes me want to stuff myself silly.

Actually, I think I did.

So now it's back to the good stuff. I mean good for me stuff.

Low-carb, no carb and yummy in its own right.

I have a new quickie go-to lunch I want to share with you. And while it may seem a little strange, trust me when I say it tastes just like a taco salad, but without the guilt.

Four ingredients.

Lettuce, low-fat cottage cheese (3/4 cup), black beans (1/3 cup) and salsa (1/3 cup).

Ta-dah!!

Mix it all together and dig in.

So simple. So tasty. So good for you.

Of course, it's getting difficult to think about salads when the temps are plummeting. 

Ruthy, are getting gobs and gobs of snow? Jan?

Here it looks like we'll beat our average first freeze by a week. And it does appear that we're going to stay chilly for a while. Which means stews and soups will be appearing a lot at my house.

So long as I intersperse it with some chicken fried venison, my boys should survive.

What's up with them not liking soup, anyway? 

Maybe if I made it something exotic like gator noodle soup, they'd be more interested.

Hmm... tastes like chicken, right?

Baked Apples - Catching the Last Days of Autumn

Jan here, saying farewell to autumn. We have mixed feelings about the coming weather....

First Snow of the season - September 11, 2014

We've had snow already, so that's an old story.

And when the snow melted, we had a beautiful autumn - warm and sunny, with crisp evenings and beautiful mornings.

But the weather news looks formidable. The current forecast (Sunday afternoon) for the next few days calls for rain, then snow, wind and c-c-c-cold! In fact, the entire north-western tier of the US is expecting this polar blast.

So what do you do when you know it's all ending - that these mellow days are coming to an end?

Catch as much as you can!!!

We went to our favorite place yesterday afternoon, hoping to see some wildlife and soak up the last of the sun.

Whitetail Does - an unusual sighting for us. We normally
only see Mule Deer.

And now you know why they're called Whitetails!

We weren't disappointed!

Custer State Park is the jewel of the Black Hills. Beautiful drives, stellar hiking trails, and lots of wildlife.

We saw close to 300 bison on our two-hour visit to the park. They were busy eating as much of the nutritious grass as possible. I think they know a weather change is coming.

And this little guy is going to have a lot to learn when the storm moves in. His mama and the other cows in the herd will teach him to face the wind, not fear it.

They'll take good care of him.

Our route took us past Baby Mann's grave.

A stark reminder of the fragility of life for those early settlers, and a reminder that this beautiful park we were driving through was once a flourishing ranch.


And then, once we returned to the main road, we saw this sign. They're scattered all through the park. Some people don't believe them though. Every year a few tourists end up in the hospital after they tried to pet a wild Bison. They're faster than you, they're stronger than you, and they really aren't afraid of anything.

Believe the sign.

But then, the Bison don't read, do they?

We came upon this Bison cow right around sunset. Yes, she just stood there and let us drive around her.

But the sun did set, and the beautiful autumn day was over.

Is anyone ready to let go of autumn yet, though? Let's catch a last taste....

Baked Apples

This dish is so simple, there's no recipe :) However, if you're looking for another version, you can try The Fresh Pioneer's recipe from last year. Fall Eats! Warm and Filling Baked Apples, Superman Style!

First, preheat your oven to 350°.

Gather your apples.

Cut them in half and core them, then set them in a baking dish.

Put a pat of butter in each half - about a teaspoon.

Add a tablespoon of brown sugar to each, and then sprinkle with cinnamon, ground ginger, and ground nutmeg.

Bake at 350° for 45 to 60 minutes.

Enjoy! Bee Tee Dubs - these are particularly delicious with a scoop of vanilla ice cream :)

Buttoning Up For Winter!

It's that time!

Okay, before anyone gets too crazy, I do love winter. I've always loved winter. The very idea of winter is soul-soothing and peaceful and downy-flake goodness wrapped into one fresh-from-the-oven buttered biscuit nestled next to chicken and gravy.

That's what I love about winter!  And by late February, I'll be whining because I'll be jonesing for spring, for sunlight, for longer days and shorter nights, for "sweater weather" and a chance to kick the boots and mittens to the curb for a few months.

But right now?

I love winter.

The garage is getting cleaned out (don't ask, let me just remind you the big storage shed turned into a big CHICKEN COOP and now houses 38 laying hens. Therefore everything in the shed was deemed homeless for the summer.

The reindeer are being brought out of hiding in the shed and they're going to have their place of honor with Santa in the side yard that housed pumpkins until three days ago. "To everything there is a season..."

Yes, the reindeer and Santa get their very own shed. Why, you ask?

Because Great Grandma Blodgett and Great-Uncle Chuck hand-crafted Santa's team, the sleigh and Santa, thereby garnering them "special Reindeer and friends" treatment! 

My mother's helper Christina is coming over for a few hours every weekend to help me clean/dust/organize because we can't do it effectively when all the cute kidlings are here. Have I mentioned that I love Christina????

Hardest working kid I know.

Things get stowed away for winter. Tucked aside. Everything looks neater and cleaner over the winter, very Currier and Ives! (Have you ever noticed how their farmyard pics cover lots of old, rusting implements with a layer of fresh, clean snow to make the effect more homey and evocative? Wave your hand if you understand the truth behind that!!!!) The scarecrows on the front porch are going back into the closet, the cornstalks are being recycled into the farm and the straw bales re-stacked to use for egg bedding for the hens.

Pots of soup replace grilled burgers.

Bowls of steamed veggies help me to lose the Abbott's ice cream middle I've gained!!! Oops!

December calendar is filling with time off, time with family, time with friends, but mostly, time with God, to remember the reason we celebrate a season and not just a day.

"Oh come let us adore him..."

A child, born to the poor. Of the poor. And for the poor.

I love winter. I love the light of Christmas and Thanksgiving and New Year's shining through the darkness of long December nights.

I love the prep of getting things done ahead of time so I can relax and bake cookies and make messes and read stories.

And then I have three beautiful, peaceful months of extra writing time... Peaceful snow-filled nights or windswept days, candles, woodstove fires.

I love winter.