Ghosts and cookies

I'm trying to write my book again. I've decided it's too hoity toity to call it a novel, because really, who am I fooling that I could write a novel. It's a ghost story and I want it to be historically accurate to the time period and place. So I've been trying to find some books about Iron Ore mining, having babies in the early 1900's, and late Victorian architecture. Mostly I am looking at pictures on the web of Queen Ann style Victorian houses and that is amazingly fun. And its a great way to say I'm researching before I actually write. I have tried out several starts to the story; writing it in first person - not sure I like that, writing it from the past and present - going back and forth in each chapter, and jumping right into quirky characters finding their way through life that just happens to be in a haunted house. And honestly that just feels hokey. "They" say write what you know, but I want to explore this story I've had in my head for 3 years now. It's totally made up - not anything I know. Well I know the area I'm setting the story and I know about suddenly owning your first house. But my house isn't haunted and I'm not living in a Queen Ann Victorian. And then I torture myself wondering what the heck I would do with the book anyway once I've actually written something I like. Send it to...where? I'm sure thousands of people send in mediocre transcripts of 'novels' every day to publishers. But I am getting way ahead of myself. I haven't even finished more than two chapters. Just venting, free writing usually helps me get past a block and why not publish it in my blog?!

Sigh, maybe we'll go make more cookies.

Here's what we made day before yesterday. I sent three dozen of them to work with Mark so I wouldn't eat them all. Recipe is in Cook's Country magazine. Might be able to find it on Cook's Illustrated website; Peanut Blossom Cookies.

Cabin Fever Fun

So the last month has been full of ice, snow, rain, more snow, and cold. Very cold. So cold that we haven't been able to play outside more than once in the last month and we are slowly going crazy in our sun deprived state. So what else is there to do but bake? I ask this question daily to my 4 year old and she hasn't yet come up with a good alternative, so bake we do. And most often it involves chocolate, because my idea of combating SADD is to eat more chocolate, the darker the better.



This recipe I copied out of Pillsbury cookbook years ago. I think it was one of the first winners of their national bake off. And I've seen versions of this recipe in other places, but I have no idea where that cookbook went, so I can't give specific copy right information...sorry.

Chocolate Pixies

1/4 cup butter
4 oz unsweetened chocolate (4 squares), chopped
2 C All purpose flour
2 C sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
4 eggs
1 C powdered sugar

In a large sauce pan, melt butter and chocolate over low heat, stirring constantly until smooth. Remove from heat, cool slightly. Add flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and eggs. Mix well. Cover dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour for easier handling. Heat oven to 300 degrees F. Lightly grease cookie sheets.



Shape dough into 1" balls and roll in powdered sugar, coating heavily. Place 2" apart on cookie sheets. Bake 13-18 mins. Remove promptly from cookie sheet to wire racks to cool. Store in air tight container and enjoy!

Tuna Pinwheels

Tuna Filling
2 5 oz cans White Albacore Tuna
1 celery stalk, diced
1 Tbs pimentos, drained
1/2 tsp Lemon Pepper
1/4 cup Tzatziki sauce
dash of lemon juice

Pinwheel
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup veg shortening
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
Up to 1 cup of milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix tuna, celery, pimentos, lemon pepper, tzatziki sauce and lemon juice in small bowl, set aside. In a large bowl mix flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles lumpy crumbs. Add just enough milk to make dough, it should not be too sticky. Roll out on floured surface to a 12 X 7 inch rectangle (roughly). Spread tuna mixture to 1/2 inch of edges. Start with one long side and roll up. Then slice in large pieces, roughly 1 1/2 inch. Place on greased cookie sheet and bake for 15-18 mins or until golden brown.

I sometimes serve this with cream of mushroom or celery soup as a "gravy" by only mixing in half a can of water.



Stay tuned for my Garlicy Green Beans.

Hungry and curious

So FoodTv has this show called The Best Thing I Ever Ate and while that show has 'famous' chef's telling you what they enjoyed, I got to thinking. What's the best thing I ever ate. A few things come to mind.

A mashed potato bake my grandmother made for one Christmas, it was tangy and smooth - warm and comforting. It had cream cheese in it and she sprinkled it with paprika. I've never gotten her recipe and I'm thinking if I asked her now, she may not remember it. (It was at least 25 years ago)

The second thing I remember is a Tomato and Basil soup I had at Warwick Castle in 1997. Delish! It was warm, perfectly spiced and I've wanted to recreate it myself, but never had the guts because if it didn't taste the same, I would be disappointed.

The third, and decidedly the best thing of late is a sandwich I had here, in Des Moines. It's a grilled sandwich with great crusty bread, goat cheese, beets and prosciutto...oh my heaven. The salty prosciutto and the tangy creamy goat cheese, with the tart beets. SO good. And yet, I haven't been back there to have it again. I fear my memory of it might out do its actual taste. I don't want to ruin the sensory memory, but my drooling may force me to try again.

What about the best thing YOU ever ate?

Club Quiche and why I'll never be a good food blogger

So with Thanksgiving over and done with I still have leftover turkey. And last night's dinner was going to incorporate it one way or another. (I'm tired of moving the leftover container of turkey around) And I wanted Quiche. I love pie crust and have a pretty easy recipe for it. So leftover turkey, quiche...what could I do with that? I really only like turkey when it is roasted - so Thanksgiving dinner and then the only other way I enjoy it is in a club sandwich. What's not to like, turkey, ham, bacon...wait! There's my quiche.

Club Quiche
1 9 " unbaked pie crust
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup evaporated milk
4 T. flour
1/4 tsp ground mustard
1/2 cup shredded turkey
1/4 cup diced ham, bologna - whatever you got
1/2 lb shredded colby cheese, approx 2 cups
4 strips cooked bacon

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Place pie crust in 9" pie pan and set aside. In medium bowl mix eggs, milk, flour, and mustard. Blend to combine. Stir in turkey, ham & cheese; pour into pie crust. Place bacon on top of filling. Bake for 1 hour, putting a piece of foil over the top if getting too brown.


And for the reason I'll never be a good food blogger...I ALWAYS forget to take pictures of the process. Part of it is because my only good camera is a film camera and I'd have to wait a while before loading the pictures and the other part is that I'm too excited to eat it. And when I discover I want to publish it on my blog...it's been devoured and I'm too excited to post the recipe before I make it again to take the pictures. So there, that's why I'll never be Pioneer Woman. That lady has patience and a little OCD. Otherwise how else could she make her blog look so perfect?!

thepioneerwoman.com

Irony in a cup

So I have this lovely coffee maker;


And I love it. It lets me grind fresh coffee (and if you have never ground your own beans - you are not having fresh coffee...ever. Seriously.) And I can make it half decaf if I want - which I do because fully loaded coffee makes me shake now (who knew?!)

But this morning, I was so excited to try the new creamer I got;
That I forgot to put the brew basket in the maker. So there was nothing there to catch the grounds as they are air forced out of the grinder towards the basket...its not even like the filter basket was there and I forgot a filter (which I've done before too) the whole middle part of the operation was missing.

So instead of a nice steaming cup of decaf Parisian almond cream coffee - I had a counter full of grounds and hot water. Luckily I stopped the brew function as I saw the counter, so not all of the 8 cups of water that were in the maker leaked out on my counter, but when I turned the coffee maker on its back to get the grounds out of the crevices, I forgot about the hole at the top (in the back) that lets water out in case of over filling... so then I did have a counter full of water. (how many more times can I say counter?...it might be counter productive, but at least once more right?)

I would have taken a picture of the mess to show you here, but my counters are a faux granite type with dark flecks that look like coffee grounds anyway and you wouldn't have seen the difference.

Needless to say I should have had my coffee before making my coffee this morning.

Two Things You Never Want To Hear From the Bathroom

My daughter potty trained herself. I had bought the potty chair early so that she could get used to its presence and use it as a stool for brushing her teeth. She loved the stool, it brought her up 10 more inches off the ground and she could see into the sink and the wonder that is the bathroom counter. so when I suggested she sit and pee on it, she thought I was crazy. So being the kind of mother that believes in guiding her child to what she is ready for, I didn't push it.

Then one day she was on a merry go round at a park with her uncle when she fell off and scraped her right butt cheek pretty nicely. Well not nicely, it was a big scrape and I felt my butt clench and my nausea kicked in when I saw her in pain. But that night when I was putting a fresh gauze bandage on her entire right side of her bum, I suggested that it might be a good idea to go #2 in the potty as she wouldn't want to get any poop on her band aid.

I had no idea what my suggestion started until the next day when she should have been taking her nap and I heard her moving her potty chair/stool across the bathroom floor and I called up the stairs to find out what she was doing...the conversation went as such;

Me "Kirah what are you doing up there?"
KCM "I'm going potty."
Me, amazed but not wanting to jinx it "Do you need my help?"
KCM "No, I need my privacy."

I was exstatic. But then it dawned on me that she is going to be like this for the rest of her life. She will learn about something new when she wants to, she will do something new when she wants to. I love my little independent child. Even when she is booting me out of the bathroom.

But two things you never want to hear from your potty trained child when you ask what she's up to and does she need your help, "No, I'm going poopy and I'm fishing."

I was in that bathroom in less then .7 seconds.