I've been working on loading my vacation photos, but I have a lot, and my phone is slooowww right now, so today, just for fun, I thought I'd just share some sourdough loaf photos that I already had in my blog's media file. I have a lot of fun with sourdough and trying new shapes and designs has been a bit of a new hobby for me the past year. I feel as though I am using my art degree and feeding my family at the same time, ha! The above loaf can either be seen as Christmas trees or leaves--you decide! Below is a regular sourdough loaf with cherries, honey goat cheese, and dark chocolate folded in. This is a delicious breakfast loaf! I've also enjoyed making seasonal ... Read more
Wrapping Up Apple Month 🍏🍎
Hello and HAPPY FALL! I'm so happy we can officially say it's fall now! Today's post will be my last of the September apple recipes. I have 2 new recipes to share and then I'll give a quick run-down of all the apple recipes on my blog so you can have them in one post. Ok, here goes! Salted Caramel Apple Cheesecake Pie Anyone opposed to starting with dessert? Good because I've got a delicious one to share today. It's Salted Caramel Apple Cheesecake Pie and I try to make it sometime during the fall or for Thanksgiving. It is just heavenly! This recipe is by Brown Eyed Baker, and you can find the link here. Next is a savory Apple and Cheddar Stuffed Chicken that I love to make in ... Read more
Snapshot Saturday: Colors of Summer
Happy weekend! In scrolling back through my photos from the week, I was struck by the brightness and color of the season. I'm starting with my favorite little snapshot of the week. During an early morning check of the garden the butterflies were all aflutter, but I managed to catch a quick snapshot of this pretty one with her yellow wings, resting briefly on the dome of a peachy zinnia. I went out one evening to clip some blooms and loved how pretty they were just piled in my basket in every shade of pink. The tomatoes just amaze me with their colors changing through a range of green, yellow, orange, and red. It's just fascinating to observe the progression each day. I ... Read more
September Tea and Scones: Welcoming Autumn!
Good morning, friends! Today I'm kicking off something I've had swirling around in my head for a couple of years and I'm so excited to finally do it! Each month I'm going to feature a new scone recipe paired with a seasonal tea suited for that particular month. It'll be our own little "tea and scone of the month club" and I hope you'll join me in trying these recipes and tea blends! I know this month is almost over, but I'm going ahead and squeaking in a September teatime post because my daughter and I had a lovely tea with friends last weekend, and I tried a new recipe that was delicious and a perfect welcome to fall. If you're not able to try this September pairing before this sweet ... Read more
Three Things I’m Doing Now to Prepare for Fall Cooking and Baking
We’re still soaking up summer days here while looking towards autumn and all the delicious recipes we’ll enjoy during that chilly season! So even though our temperatures are soaring over 100 degrees some days, I’m going ahead and doing three things now to prepare my kitchen for fall cooking and baking. #1 Drying Fresh Herbs It’s so nice to cook with fresh herbs during the summer and I like to keep those same herby flavors in my fall soups, casseroles, and breads. So, I’ve been clipping and drying herbs in batches to enjoy all fall and winter. I clip my herbs in early morning before the hot sun draws out the oils from their leaves. This heightens their flavor whether you use them ... Read more
Valentine’s Day Pasta Dinner
Yesterday's post was all about my favorite love language: FOOD! As a follow up, I'm sharing some recipes from a Valentine's lunch we enjoyed last year with my mother-in-law and my daughter's boyfriend (now her fiancé! Talk about love!). This is a menu I've made for different occasions but found it to be perfect for Valentine's Day. I've not made these recipes in a year, and last night when I pulled the cookbook off the shelf to work on this post, I noticed something really special. The title of the cookbook is The Gathering of Friends, which I had remembered. But what I'd never noticed, was the very small subtitle which reads "Let's make food your love language"! This thrilled me since ... Read more
Communion Bread Recipe
The pandemic has definitely changed many of our normal activities, and I can say with all certainty that what our family has missed most has been meeting in person with our church family each Sunday. We are at least blessed to gather remotely for Sunday morning worship, and a special part of those online gatherings is the inclusion of the Lord's Supper. When isolation first started back in March, I made a batch of communion bread, freezing much of it and never imagining the pandemic would last long enough for us to use up the whole batch, but I've already made two batches since we've been home. I know many of you already have your own recipe for communion bread, and for that reason I had put ... Read more
Easter Eats 2020
Hello again! I'm back today with the Easter menu I prepared this year. So, from breakfast to dessert, here goes! I'd been saving this recipe for Strawberry Bread since last spring and decided to make it for breakfast. Definitely making this again! It was so good and moist, and more like a poundcake than a bread. I put out a bowl of chocolate eggs to go with it. After breakfast we had a meaningful time of worship and then finished up lunch preparations.***** Easter Menu Brown Sugar Glazed Ham (recipe below) Cheesiest Mac and Cheese Bacon and Pea Summer Salad (With one change: I cooked and crumbled the bacon because I didn’t have packaged bacon ... Read more