Here it is July already, and it's been a hot one. I can't blame the heat for my lack of blogging, but I can credit it for a spurt of inspiration I had in the kitchen. While searching for a nice cool drink to serve, I came up with the following, which was adapted from an Orange Julius recipe.
Pina Colada (my version)
6 oz frozen pineapple juice concentrate
1 cup water
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp coconut extract
1 tsp rum exract
1 tray of ice cubes
Combine all the above ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
Orange Julius
6 oz frozen orange juice concentrate
1 cup water
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tray of ice cubes
Combine all the above ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
Thursday, July 5, 2007
Friday, February 23, 2007
Fruit Dip
This is so simple, but I get lots of requests for the recipe.
8 oz pkg. cream cheese
7 oz container marshmallow cream
juice from one lemon or one lime
Beat all ingredients together until smooth. Serve with any kind of fruit.
Note: I just tasted someone else's version of this recipe. She used orange juice and some grated orange rind. It was tasty. I still think lime is my favorite, though.
8 oz pkg. cream cheese
7 oz container marshmallow cream
juice from one lemon or one lime
Beat all ingredients together until smooth. Serve with any kind of fruit.
Note: I just tasted someone else's version of this recipe. She used orange juice and some grated orange rind. It was tasty. I still think lime is my favorite, though.
Thursday, February 1, 2007
A Good Mystery
I like a good mystery, especially a historical one. My favorites are the Brother Cadfael series by Ellis Peters and the Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters. Cadfael is a monk in the middle ages, Amelia an Egyptologist in the late nineteen and early twentieth centuries.
I've recently discovered a new mystery series that I'm excited about. This one, too, is historical, and is called "The Lady Grace Mysteries". It's written as the daybooke ( a kind of journal, I guess) of Lady Grace, a young maid of honor to Queen Elizabeth 1. Lady Grace uses the vocabulary of the time period and has a spunky, funny personality, which I find a plus in any book, even a mystery. Though geared toward middle-grade readers, teens and adults would enjoy it too--at least, I did. As far as the mystery goes, it didn't take me long to figure out what was going to happen, but the solution of the puzzle was only half the fun.
The series follows the alphabet. So far I've read Assasin and Betrayal. The author isn't credited on the cover of the book, but it's Patricia Finney.
I've recently discovered a new mystery series that I'm excited about. This one, too, is historical, and is called "The Lady Grace Mysteries". It's written as the daybooke ( a kind of journal, I guess) of Lady Grace, a young maid of honor to Queen Elizabeth 1. Lady Grace uses the vocabulary of the time period and has a spunky, funny personality, which I find a plus in any book, even a mystery. Though geared toward middle-grade readers, teens and adults would enjoy it too--at least, I did. As far as the mystery goes, it didn't take me long to figure out what was going to happen, but the solution of the puzzle was only half the fun.
The series follows the alphabet. So far I've read Assasin and Betrayal. The author isn't credited on the cover of the book, but it's Patricia Finney.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
A Doughnut Fry
We had a doughnut fry yesterday. But before I write about that, I have to mention this. I seem to have an unusually strong connection with the past. I'm sure that many of the things that I like to make or do seem old-fashioned. And that is exactly why I do them.
For instance, I like to knit. And one of the reasons I knit is because it reminds me of my grandma. When I sit and make that soft tic-tic sound with my needles, it's as if grandma is right there beside me, her hands busy as they always were. If ever a turkey dressing is required, I can only make her recipe. It doesn't matter that I've seen hundreds of different recipes, and some of them actually sound good. If I'm going to make it, it has to be hers. The same thing goes for pie. Perish the thought of making anything other than my mother's pie crust recipe.
And so, back to doughnuts.
Making doughnuts requires a wintry day. It's best if you've been out sledding or tubing and come in to warm up and find hot, crispy doughnuts waiting. At least, that's the way it was for me and my cousins when I was growing up. In fact, the only time we had homemade doughnuts was after a full day in the snow. We'd come home to hot chili, cocoa, and Aunt Ann's steaming, crispy doughnuts, fresh from the fryer.
That's the ideal, anyway. And I've attempted to recreate that mood a couple of times in the past. But it didn't happen yesterday. It was wintry, but we didn't play in the snow. I made up a batch of dough, then we sat down and settled into an involved game of Settlers of Catan: Cities and Knights. We fried the doughnuts later, after Jeff had proved himself, once again, the master of games in our family. The girls helped cut them, I did the frying, and Tamsyn dunked them in glaze. Megyn ended up with a splash of hot oil on her finger, but it wasn't bad enough to spoil the fun. We enjoyed them with hot cocoa and sticky fingers.
Would it have been easier to run to the grocery store and buy some? Sure, but who said passing along tradition was easy?
For instance, I like to knit. And one of the reasons I knit is because it reminds me of my grandma. When I sit and make that soft tic-tic sound with my needles, it's as if grandma is right there beside me, her hands busy as they always were. If ever a turkey dressing is required, I can only make her recipe. It doesn't matter that I've seen hundreds of different recipes, and some of them actually sound good. If I'm going to make it, it has to be hers. The same thing goes for pie. Perish the thought of making anything other than my mother's pie crust recipe.
And so, back to doughnuts.
Making doughnuts requires a wintry day. It's best if you've been out sledding or tubing and come in to warm up and find hot, crispy doughnuts waiting. At least, that's the way it was for me and my cousins when I was growing up. In fact, the only time we had homemade doughnuts was after a full day in the snow. We'd come home to hot chili, cocoa, and Aunt Ann's steaming, crispy doughnuts, fresh from the fryer.
That's the ideal, anyway. And I've attempted to recreate that mood a couple of times in the past. But it didn't happen yesterday. It was wintry, but we didn't play in the snow. I made up a batch of dough, then we sat down and settled into an involved game of Settlers of Catan: Cities and Knights. We fried the doughnuts later, after Jeff had proved himself, once again, the master of games in our family. The girls helped cut them, I did the frying, and Tamsyn dunked them in glaze. Megyn ended up with a splash of hot oil on her finger, but it wasn't bad enough to spoil the fun. We enjoyed them with hot cocoa and sticky fingers.
Would it have been easier to run to the grocery store and buy some? Sure, but who said passing along tradition was easy?
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