In an effort to use some carrots before they spoiled and to get rid of all of the remaining ingredients from holiday baking (think calorie laden sweet stuff) I tinkered with muffin making yesterday afternoon and I think I found a winner. Although named carrot …
In a spell of reuse thinking, I found a new life for this vest as a hat. Yup, that’s right. This was a vest in its last iteration. Somehow I managed to put the vest that I knit last year in the washer with the …
My maternal grandmother was a fantastic cook. Yes, I know everyone says that about their grandmother, but she really was a master at classic cooking and actually earned her living for a time cooking for well-to-do families in Connecticut’s quiet corner. In her later years …
Just before Christmas I went into a baking frenzy. Pies, tarts, confections and cake. These little mince tarts were so fun to prepare. Meatless mincemeat-that’s sort of an oxymoron, and sweet chestnut filling in puff pastry are now one of my holiday favorites. Easy to …
For the past several years I have made this recipe for chocolate almond bark. It is by far my favorite confection to make for Christmas gifts. This year I flubbed miserably on the first two batches and burnt the toffee. It was barely edible, …
Every year I pull out my Nana’s Christmas cookie cookbook, aptly named The Christmas Cookie Book. Written by Virginia Pasley and originally published in 1949, it is simple, straightforward cookbook with a lovely collage of frosted cookies inside the front and back covers. I have …
Over the past few days I have started to pullout some of my favorite holiday decorations. Subtle bits of winter interest. Simple stick wreath-I considered adding ribbon, but really enjoy the unadorned circles. Makes me want to make a cork wreath from the zillions of …
Noodling around the north shore of Massachusetts last weekend I spent a few minutes at Cogswell’s Grant in Essex. This is an all time favorite place for me. Quiet, serene, gorgeous and simple.
