I'm not sure if you would have picked it up from my last post but I've been away in Vermont.
We stayed at this wonderful spot, owned by some wonderful people.  Doing crazy things like:
Sitting on a porch drinking beer and reading
Hiking
Eating campfire food and chips... pretty much nothing else
Driving through mountains
Finding chocolate and purchasing ice cream scoops for friends
... and yoga

It seems odd to me that yoga and campfire hotdogs went so well together but, what can I say, they did.
I will also be forthright in admitting that I now need a vacation from my kids.  Admittedly, they were pretty easy going since we did no cooking other than hotdogs, hamburgers and seriously burnt chicken. They were so busy eating 'real' peanut butter (aka. the junk kind that we never buy) and fruit loop/sugar puff/tiny box cereal (that we also never buy) that they really didn't care about much else.

Prohibition Pig in Waterbury VT is a place you must visit if you're into good beer and house smoked meat.

We did provide them with a couple of restaurant meals and of course the requisite Ben and Jerry's visit.
Since this is our last week of summer, here are some things that I wish for you during your last few days of freedom (?)

Shameless Selfie - B&J ice cream in hand

Things I'm super jazzed about right now:

I'm loving all of the 2012 recipe round-ups/top recipes of/etc that seem to be occurring all over the web. In fact, all of the top ten lists that seems only to be applied to movies and celebrities are simply abundant right now.   It's the best.  Not.

I'm super jazzed that it's already January.  This means we are whittling our way through winter at a reasonable speed.

I'm very jazzed that my friend T will be in town once a month for the next 3 months.

I'm hyper-jazzed that December is now behind us and we can focus on the future.  I'm hoping that it's a brighter, wiser future.

I'm not so jazzed about all the snow that fell over the holiday time (a 'White Christmas' is not necessary for me to have a memorable time) not because I don't like snow but because I have stuff to do and snow makes it 10x harder to do if not impossible (cycling, hello).  It's winter though so I'm not bitter.

I'm super jazzed that my friend and artist has agreed to participate in my next body art (aka tattoo) experience.

I'm hesitantly jazzed about signing up for my first half-marathon since my awful bout of plantar fasciitis last year.  The reason I'm only 'hesitantly jazzed' is that I'm still really nervous about pushing things with my foot.  I have until May to work up to being super jazzed.

I wish I were more jazzed about going to Rome in April.  If I weren't going for work I would be super jazzed.  As it stands (a lot of work is involved) I'm only moderately jazzed.


I'm definitely super jazzed about this salad I've been eating.  Ontario grown spinach, clementines - our seasonal import, and pecans.  Drizzled with a lemon juice/olive oil, parmesan cheese mixture.  Divine.


I've been jazzed about these nuts since I first tried them last week.  I made a big jar of them for my Dad for Christmas (he got some other stuff too - don't worry).  I had never tried them before and they are... well, AMAZING.  Not too sweet, not too spicy and it allows the nuts to still be the star.  When you are someone who makes a lot of your own ice cream you've got a lot of egg whites knocking around.  Great way to use up... 1.  Yeah - just one.  Unless you want to do an industrial size batch then I guess you would use two.  The recipe that I used as my inspiration called only for walnuts.  I used mixed nuts and it works very well.  I'm a mixed nuts kind of girl anyway.


Sweet Roasted Mixed Nuts adapted from 'Family Bites'
makes 4 cups

4 cups mixed nuts (pecans, cashews, brazil nuts, walnuts, peanuts - I'm not kidding, I literally threw in handfuls)
1 egg white
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cayenne
2  heaping tbsp sugar

Preheat oven to 300° F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment (ok) or silicon liner (better).
Combine all the ingredients in a big bowl and toss until everything is well coated.  Pour onto the baking  sheet and spread out evenly and hopefully in a single layer over the entire sheet.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until everything looks golden brown but not dark brown.
Cool completely and then break up and place in jars for gifting or in bowls for eating.

It's been quite a week:
1. We all seem to have survived the end of the world with little or no bruises.
2.  Christmas Eve brought Santa to most of my friends houses.
3.  Christmas Day saw me still in my bed at 8 in the morning.
4.  I've had a few good sleeps under my belt now.
5.  We've survived a little stomach bug that took me out for a little while.
6.  The Christmas Ham is FANNNNNTASTIC this year.  Cooked slowly in coke then placed in a roasting pan, smothered in maple, mustard glaze and roasted until done.  Perfection.
Now that the big stuff is all done and behind me I really feel like I can be on vacation.  I've got a birthday coming up in a few days (not mine - kid #1) but that's kinda fun.  For now it's all 'sleep in/work-out/figure out what to eat/go see a movie/stay in a watch a movie/see best friends... and all that kind of thing.  Thank goodness because this semester was quickly approaching the tipping point into crazy.


What did I do on my first full day off?  I baked.  Who wouldn't.  I made the lemon curd dream cookies in the previous post.  I also made these nutmeg logs.  I've been wanting to make them for quite a while and since they really seemed like a Christmas kind of thing I decided to wait.  Kinda wish I hadn't.  These bad boys needed a little tweaking to get the flavours to work well in balance.  Everything needed to be turned up.  These cookies get a little dwarfed by all the other beautiful, sweet, colourful things around it.  They need a little more 'Stand Out' in my humble opinion.  I was going to put them in the 'disasters' file but they weren't complete disasters.  Not at all.  They just got a little lost is all.  I've adjusted the spices now and the rum too.  I think that maple would work well in this recipe too.  Again though, to juice up the flavour a bit you might want to use a little maple extract and not just the real thing.  This made me a lot of cookies for sharing and I might actually make mine a little thicker next time as well.  I did not sprinkle mine with additional nutmeg but that might up the flavour factor a bit too.  So in the end I liked these cookies now that I've adjusted my expectations.  I think if you keep your expectations realistic you'll find some enjoyment from these guys.  They're great for sharing too 'cause they make quite a bit.


I've been reading quite a bit on my 'off' time.  I've been thinking about our world of illusion - especially at Christmas when I think the illusion is so much at the forefront of what we do.  The illusion of presents making us feel better about ourselves (that big sigh of relief that we can keep up with the Jones's - the feeling that as long as we can keep up with the gifts that we are doing the right thing), the illusion that we are happy (if we fake it long enough we'll forget to ask ourselves if this is all working)... you know lighthearted things like that.
In other news we've just gotten our first real snowfall in Toronto.  Now this was no snowmageddon which you might have thought if you'd listened to any tv news networks.  It's just a normal winter snowfall.  It means though that I'm saying bye bye to my bike for a while.  I'm the weird person hoping that the snow melts so that she can continue biking through the winter.  The snow is my cut-off point for the bike.
For now I'm staying pretty close to home (more like close to my bed) and doing my best to enjoy the quiet simplicity of winter down time.  I wish that for you - a true break from the mundane of our everyday, a reason to find true joy and peace, moments of quiet beauty and reflection...


Frosted Nutmeg Log Cookies adapted from Taste of Home Magazine

Lemon Curd is awesome but it can also be a little weird and definitely frustrating.  It's awesome because it tastes like heaven, sunshine, sugar and a fierce left hook all got mashed together, pureed and then poured into a jar.  Lemon Curd is a little weird because it's called 'curd' and it's this in between consistency.  If it's too thick then it's like creamy coloured lemon jello if it's too runny then it's lemon sauce.  The word 'curd' is a word that would not think to use in reference to anything creamy, smooth and liquid.  I just think of cheese.  Finally lemon curd is frustrating because it's like a 'make-work' project.  You can't just have lemon curd.  It's always made to go with something.  You can serve it on the side.  You can make ice cream out of it (so I'm told).  You can bake it into something.  But you just don't eat it plain right off the spoon.  It's simply not done.


This is why it makes perfect sense that I made lemon curd all by it's little lonesome on a school night.  It's completely logical that I would make lemon curd before I made anything else for the Christmas holidays.  Bad enough it was already the 20th of December but now I'm making lemon curd which only means that on another day I've got to make something else to go with it.  And a huge FYI for you: make sure that you check a lemon curd recipe before you go purchasing lemons by the case.  I now have 6 lemons (and big ones too) that will need to be used up over the next few days.
The up side is that lemon curd is easy to make.  Super easy.  So easy it's dumb.  So easy I could run on the spot and still make lemon curd.  The other upside (because there must be two upsides) is that I did make it just before the last day of school.  That means that time was on my side in terms of getting some lemon curd side dishes going.  This recipe for thumbprint cookies used up almost half of the recipe but that still leaves me with 1 jar and a little in another still to go.  So if you don't want lemon curd clanging around in your fridge then you could try halving the recipe.  I, for one don't mind the lemon stuff clanging around.  I might even make up another batch and give some away for gifts.  I also have a lemon curd pound cake idea eating a hole in my brain.
You might have noted that I've not said much of anything in this post.  Where, you might ask, are all of your witty anecdotes.  Where are all of your socially poignant comments.  What has happened to the sarcastic commentary.  When will we see another post of substance from you.  I know, I'm thinking the same thing.  I'm a little challenged in the getting enough sleep department.  And that coupled with wondering whether I should change my home address to work has made me a little dry in the coming up with awesome post ideas department.  Am I upset by the happenings of the last 2 weeks... Yup.  More than I care to admit.  I'm also frustrated.  So frustrated that although these incidents keep happening over and over that nothing and I mean absolutely nothing gets done.  Nothing gets changed. All anyone seems to do is argue their point.  The same points they've had since forever. Sometimes you gotta review a situation and realize that even though you thought that your original choice was good you've brought things home and lived with it for a while and you realize that your choice actually sucks.  Then you change your mind and hopefully you can do something about altering your original choice.  Doesn't mean you're a bad person just means that you're an honest one.  Change isn't always bad and in my experience it's usually just what the Doctor ordered.


I'm at home today with my family.  I'm so happy to be in the country that I live in.  I'm so happy that I'm not afraid of what lies outside my door and that I don't feel like I need to take defence into my own hands.  I'm so thankful.  I'm getting ready to sleep again because I'm officially on break and I might have a cookie or two while I'm on my way...


Lemon Curd Thumbprint Cookies adapted from Martha Stewart 'Cookies'
makes about 2 dozen

Lemon Curd:
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
2 eggs at room temperature
3 egg yolks at room temperature
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp lemon zest
generous pinch of salt
2 tbsp corn starch

Combine the sugar, butter, eggs, egg yolk and salt together.  Beat for about 1 minute until creamy and smooth.  Add in the lemon juice (if it curdles don't worry it will smooth out when it's heated) and continue beating for another minute or so.
Pour into a heavy bottomed saucepan and heat over med/low heat.  Once the mixture heats up turn it down to low.  Mixture should thicken well but add a little corn starch if you would like it thicker.  Mixture is ready when it can evenly coat the back of a wooden spoon and hold a line when you run your finger across it.
Remove from heat and cool completely.

Cookies
1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
icing sugar

Combine the flour and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
Beat together the butter and sugar until light, creamy and fluffy.  Add in the egg and vanilla and continue to beat until well incorporated.  Add the flour/salt mixture and mix just until combined.  Refrigerate dough for 2 hours.
After 2 hours remove the dough from the fridge.  Preheat the oven to 325°F.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment or a silicon liner.
Form the dough into balls about 1 1/2 - 2 inches in diameter.  Place them on the cookie sheet and press a little well into the centre of each.  You can use a finger or an implement (Martha suggests the handle end of a wooden spoon).
Bake for about 10 minutes.  Remove from the oven and press the cookies down in the middle once more and then bake again for another 5 - 6 minutes or until the cookies are only just turning golden on the bottom.
Remove from the oven and cool completely (press into the well a little if you need to).
Sprinkle the completely cooled cookies with a little sifted icing sugar and then spoon about a tbsp of lemon curd into the well of each cookie.

Even though it feels like spring here in Toronto it really is just a few days away from Christmas and only a couple of days from the winter solstice aka the end of the world as we know it.  Cool.  I'm biking to and from work consistently and I'm contemplating planting the garlic cloves that I forgot about earlier in the fall.  It's that warm.
Still, it's the holiday season.  I know that because I feel like I haven't come up for air in a very long time.  I've lost what feels like days and days inside of concert halls.  Concert halls are weird places.  You lose track of everything in concert halls.  There are usually very few if any windows.  Most have none.  It's like time stands still in those places.  It's like a time vacuum.  It's weird.  I know it's the holidays because The Mall near my work is oozing with people carrying bag after bag.  I know it's nearing Christmas because there are little presents sitting on my desk each day at work from one of the boys that I teach.  I know it's the holidays because I'm going to pick up my christmas ham in a couple of days.
Up to a couple of days ago I hadn't baked anything Christmas like at all.  Nothing.  No white chocolate (a near abomination at any time of year anyway).  No cranberries.  No red or green sprinkles. (which are surprisingly hard to find BTW) However, I had a couple of spare hours in between sleeping and concerts so I decided to get creative.


This recipe didn't quite turn out the way I had imagined.  It's a little more brown than I might have liked but that's due to the whole wheat flour.  It's a little less sweet than I might have liked but that's due to the fact that I halved the sugar content - you could change that if you feel so inclined.  It's got no lemon juice in it due to the fact that I had no lemons only some zest that I had frozen a little while ago.  It has no topping, no glaze, no streusel.  I did mention earlier that I only had a couple of spare hours and the topping was the first thing to go.  So given the fact that the whole thing turned out so differently than expected I'm happy with it.  It's a brown, not too sweet way to add some cranberry to your christmas diet.  If you don't have cranberry and would prefer to use jam instead then go for it.  If jam is not your thing than throw in some frozen blueberries or even dried cranberries.  That would be fine.  Toasted nuts of some kind or even candied nuts.  Yup.  That would be fine too.  I would stay away from the white chocolate on this one.  That would not be fine at all.


Cranberry Swirl Bread generously adapted from 'In Praise of Leftovers'
makes 1 large loaf

Swirl:
2 cups cranberries, quartered
1/4 cup + 2 heaping tbsp sugar
3 tbsp water
dash of salt
1/2 inch piece of cinnamon
1 star anise
1 clove
1 tsp lemon zest

Combine all ingredients and simmer down for about 15 minutes or until the mixture is quite thick but still spreadable/pourable.  Set aside to cool slightly.

Loaf:

1 cup whole wheat flour or red fife
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup melted butter
2 eggs (use 3 eggs if you are skipping the egg white option)
2 tbsp lemon zest
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla
3 egg whites (optional)

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Grease and flour a large loaf pan (don't use a smallish/med one like I did and then have a bunch spill over into your oven) and set aside.
Combine the whole wheat and all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Mix together and set aside.
Combine the melted butter, eggs, lemon zest, honey, sugar, buttermilk and vanilla.  Whisk together until thoroughly combined and set aside.
Whip the egg whites (I used a hand mixer) until fairly stiff and can hold a peak.  Set aside.
Add the butter and egg mixture to the flour mixture and whisk together until they're fully incorporated.  Add in the egg whites and continue to whisk gently until they're fully incorporated into the batter.
Pour a third of the batter into the prepared tin.
Add about 6 tbsp of the cranberry jam on top.  Gently spread it evenly.  Pour another third of the batter on top and then another 6 tbsp of the jam spread evenly over that.  Finally pour the last bit of batter over the jam.  Take a chop stick or knife and stick it into the batter top to bottom and run it end to end once.
Bake for about 50 - 60 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.
Cool in the pan for about 10 minutes and then finish cooling on a rack.

I'm mostly pretty sure that it's probably kinda wrong for me to admit this but *gulp* I find myself wishing more often than I'm even comfortable with that we could all hibernate for a couple of months a year.  I'm not talking the oh-it's-summer-let's-take-time-off kind of hibernate.  That's more like just playing hooky or something.  I'm talking about the oh-it's-bloody-freezing-and-dark-let's-just-stay-in-bed-until-it's-light-for-more-hours-in-the-day-than-it's-dark kind of hibernate.  I wish for it.
D told me the other day that when it gets to this time of year for him the hardest thing he has to do in a day happens in the first few minutes of waking up.... getting his ass out of bed.  My first response was to tell him that on the bright side, once you were up you could find consolation in knowing that when it comes to sheer will and effort you'd already reached the summit.  It's all downhill from there so to speak.  I've mentioned here before just how hard D has worked to cope with Season Affective Disorder and that now he is more functional during the winter months than he's ever been before.  I don't deal with anything close to that kind of seriousness or severity but I still feel it.
Getting up in the dark, biking downtown (in the rain this past week - jeez), working like a mad-woman, biking home and collapsing at some point in the evening.  It's around this time every year that it starts to catch up to me.  I don't feel myself.  I feel disconnected from everyone and even from my own thoughts if that's even possible.  Throw in an upcoming memorial service for my father-in-law, learning that my Mom just had a melanoma removed and losing one of my closest, bestest and longest friendships to a city 3 1/2 hrs down the highway and I'm at my tipping point.

FYI: When cutting marshmallow's buttering the knife or scissors is absolutely necessary.

All of that to tell you that this has not been the best week for me and my sugar reduction diet.  It's not like it's over or anything.  Far from it.  My hearts still in it and I'll be back on the bandwagon - I will.  I just really needed sugar.  I know that's bad.  I know that the mere fact that I'm craving sugar at 10:45 a.m. almost everyday is an indication of how terrible the stuff is.  I can practically feel it rotting my teeth and my gut as I eat it - savouring each and every morsel mind you.  It's just that this week I needed sugar.  One too many phone calls, texts, emails, work emergencies and soaked clothing wardrobe malfunctions (which I will not detail here) drove me back to my beloved enemy.  We looked at each other with uneasy longing.  I could already feel the texture in my mouth.  I knew what it would be like to have that sweet thing on my tongue and the little bitty rush that would come after.  I knew I needed it and my enemy knew it too.


I made cookies - I'm bringing some to work because if I'm going down then we all might as well go.  My kids will eat most of it here at home but I won't lie to you, I'll be helping them.  The moral of this story for me is two fold:
1.  Never give up.  I'm going to get back on the wagon.  I might not stay there but I'll always get back up.
2.  Maybe pulling into the dark, cold days of winter isn't exactly the best time to start big time scale backs on little indulgences.


S'Mores Cookies adapted from The Globe and Mail
makes about 3 dozen cookies

2 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup brown sugar (not packed)
1/3 cup sugar
2 lg eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup graham cracker (about 11 halves or so), broken into 'dime' and 'quarter' sized pieces (I used a ziploc bag and broke them up but honestly it doesn't even need to be that complicated)
100g bar of milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
100g bar of dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
about 6 - 7 lg marshmallows (or the equivalent in mini's), cut into thirds

Preheat oven to 375° F.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment or a silicon liner and set aside.
Combine the flour, salt and baking soda together in a bowl and set aside.
Combine the butter and both sugars.  Cream together (using a mixer or by hand) until the mixture is creamy and well mixed.  Add in the eggs and vanilla and whisk until the mixture is kind of fluffy and creamy.
Add in the flour mixture and stir in slowly at first - once incorporated, the dough will feel quite stiff at first but it loosens up after a few minutes.  Mix until the flour has disappeared and you can't see any chunks of anything.
Add in the chocolate and stir to mix.  Add in the graham crackers and stir just until mixed (the pieces will keep breaking up if you mix too much).
Drop by large tbsp (about 1 1/2 tbsp altogether) onto the cookie sheet and press a marshmallow piece into the top.
Bake for about 8 - 10 minutes (mine came in at about 9 minutes) - the marshmallow should look a little toasted.
Remove the cookies to a cooling rack and store in an airtight container.

Ok.  Enough is Enough.
I've had this sitting in the wings.  Waiting.
I made the mix.  I burnt it a little - totally my fault.  I missed the tobasco.  My fault.  I took really crappy pictures.  My fault.


Then I thought, 'I've got a lot that I haven't used yet.  I'm going to make this again and do it right... and take better pictures, 'cause... damn.'  Then I didn't.  I didn't make it again.  I didn't take better pictures.
I just looked at the stuff sitting in the bags every time I opened my cupboard.  I would think, 'not today'.  Then we went back to school and mysteriously the corn chips disappeared after day 3.  That was weird.  Then by school day 4 the cashews had disappeared.
Later that same day the cheerios made it into the after school snack roster.
It was then that I decided that the whole project was a bust.  I realized the obvious.  I was not going to make this again anytime soon.
I still haven't acquired any tobasco.  The cheerios have by now dwindled to half of their original volume.  The cashews and corn chips have been demolished and only the pretzel's and shreddies are in amounts even close to necessary.


Since I feel guilty for totally procrastinating on the remake I'm not going to continue procrastinating the post itself.  I apologize for absolutely sucky pics but I can recommend the recipe itself.  It's worth it.  if you consider the amount of butter combined with the cereal and chips you gotta know that it's pretty much impossible to go wrong... unless you burn the edges just a little like I did.  If I were to make it again then I would turn the oven down to about 275 degrees and then work up if that's not quite enough.  Please don't leave out the tobasco because it really does need the punch.  This makes a great giveaway and it also makes a great movie night snack.  Or tv night.  Or friends visiting.  Or snack with a drink after the kids are in bed.


Roasted Chex Mix adapted from 'Food in Jars'
makes a lot but I would double it if you want to do some giving away and keeping.

4 cups cheerios
4 cups shreddies
8 cups chex
2 cups pretzel sticks (not the round ones)
2 cups corn chips
2 cups peanuts
2 cups cashews

1 cup butter
5 heaping tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp cayenne (or 5 - 8 dashes tobasco - I didn't have any)
10 good dashes (about 2 heaping tsp or so) garlic powder
coarse salt to sprinkle

Combine the cereals, pretzels, chips and nuts in a huge bowl.  Mix well.
In a saucepan melt the butter.  Once melted remove from heat and add in the Worcestershire, cayenne and garlic salt.
Pour the butter mixture over the bowl of stuff... stir constantly.  If you can get a helper then one can pour while the other one mixes and it's much easier.
Heat the oven to 325 (although I ended up turning mine down just below 300 - I think my oven just gets too hot) degrees F.
Divide the mixture between two deep roasting pans.
Bake for just over an hour stirring every 10 minutes.
Cool completely by pouring the mixture out onto parchment paper and spreading it out.  (otherwise it sticks).  Cool and place in jars or containers to give away... or in a nice big bowl in your house and munch away.

This is it.  It's truly winter.
We have had our first real snowfall of the year.  The one that stays for at least 24 hours.  The one that starts slowly over 3 or 4 hours and then gets heavier for another 3 hours and then just becomes flurries for another 4 hours.  The kind where you don't have to guess whether it's rain or snow.  The one where you are definitely cold when you go outside, the wind is unmistakable and your hands are frozen in a couple of minutes.  Yup.  It's winter.
It came 3 days after Christmas here in Toronto.  That's ok though because I'm kind of still celebrating.  I'm still cooking away and baking for friends.  Right now D and I are in the kitchen cooking our annual ham.  This year it's happening in Coke which is kinda funny because we are against drinking it (look I'm no saint - I'll have it once in a while).  So while the ham is getting a coke bath I'm making crackers.


Sometimes I have this weird experience where I'm reading my own blog, I'm reading what I wrote not much earlier, and it feels like I'm reading someone else's stuff.  That's weird right?  I sound different when I read me.  Maybe it's like hearing your voice back after a recording (super-weird) or seeing photos of yourself that look nothing like you do when you look in the mirror.  When I read me it feels to me like I'm reading about this person who is really funny and smart, who is probably feeling pretty confident about herself, who believes strongly in things (true), has it pretty together (hmmmmmm) and is highly energetic.  The only problem is that it's just not me.  I was never one of the super-smart kids in school.  In fact, I don't think that I fell into the 'reasonably smart' category.  I guess I was funny but that was only to my friends who I cared enough to be funny for.  My confidence levels vary daily and sometimes multiple times daily (is that normal?).  I do believe in things strongly but not so strongly that I'll get angry with you about it which probably would make me a terrible activist.  'Has it pretty together'... let's not even go there.  And highly energetic?  Well, since the holidays have started afternoon naps have become highly valued and since the snow has fallen and it's gotten like mega-cold (Ok - not that cold) I've been too lazy to run... but I am getting out there tomorrow.  That laziness has caused me to procrastinate making these crackers by at least 3 days.  But not any more... they're done and they were easy.  The results very tasty.


This recipe would easily lend itself to all kinds of variations as well.  I would happily add something peppery or parmesan or herb.  I'm definitely making these again with some variations.  I have a BFF who loves oatmeal and needs some homemade Christmas gifts in her life.    I tried a little one with some cheese on top and it was great.  KT is going to love these.


Seeded Oat Crackers adapted from GoodFood UK Magazine
makes about 12 - 15 medium/large crackers

50 g (between 1/4 and 1/3 cup) butter, melted
100g (1 cup) oatmeal
100g (1 cup) all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp poppy seeds
2 tbsp sesame seeds
1/4 tsp salt
dash of nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment or silicone.
Bring a little water to a boil.
Combine the oatmeal, flour, baking soda, seeds, salt and nutmeg together in a bowl.
Add to the flour mixture the melted butter and enough boiling water (about 5 - 6 tbsp) to form a stiff dough.
Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to about 1/4 inch thickness (.5 cm).
Cut out the shapes that you want and place on baking sheet.  Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden.
Remove and cool on wire racks.

Lemon Curd is Christmas in a jar.  It's pure yum.  It's the absolute perfection of sweet and sour.  I love lemon curd so much that I would marry it if I could.


Actually, that might mean I would get sick of it and then that would suck.  You know how it is right?  You meet this person - or maybe you've known this person for a long time - and suddenly you want to be around them like all the time.  You wish that you could talk and hang and eat and get high and sleep and work with this person right there with you all the time.  You can't help yourself from getting off the subway one or two stops early just to see if they're home so that you can knock on their door and come up with some lame excuse about being nearby and needing a walk home.  You find out what time they're getting out of class or leaving work and conveniently find yourself walking by there and... OMG, what are you doing here... I had no idea... well... wanna go grab a drink or a movie or have a sleep-over for a few years or something.  You're not stalking at all because a few weeks, too many late phone calls, a couple too many drinks and some 'I'm-just-a-little-too-tipsy-to-be-coherent' emails later you're pretty much done.  You just over-dosed on that beautiful beautiful person that you couldn't get enough of and it will take another 16 years to decide that you were probably a jerk.  You'll see your mistake and have serious regret.  You'll try to find them on FB or something cause you'd really like to apologize for being such a dweeb.  You google them and come up short.  You start asking around to see if any old friends have info about the person.  You even write some letters to explain but you never send them.  You finally realize that the past is done and you have to truly own the fact that your obsessiveness and crazy expectations destroyed something that you really loved...


Yeah... I don't want that to happen with Lemon curd because it's pretty much the awesomest thing going right now.  At this moment, I'm eating a little bit out of the jar because it's so awesome.


I made 7 jars and I guess that I'd better give away most of them because otherwise we all know what road I'm going down.
This recipe is mad easy and if you want to make it then just make sure you have some really awesome friends to share it with.  Don't let the above story happen with you and lemon curd.  Tragic.



Lemon Curd adapted from GoodFood Magazine
makes about 7 250 ml jars

8 oz unsalted butter
zest and juice from 8 lemons
12 oz sugar
12 eggs, well beaten
2 - 3 tbsp corn starch

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan melt the butter over medium/low heat.
Add in the zest and juice from the lemons.  Heat to warm.
Add in the sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves.
Add a couple of ladles full of the warm lemon mixture into the beaten eggs, stirring constantly.
Gradually add the egg mixture back into the lemon/sugar mixture, whisking constantly.  Stir together for about 10 minutes or so or until the mixture thickens.
Add in the corn starch and mix well.
Pour the mixture into small jars to cool.
Place the lids on the jars and cool completely.
Refrigerate until using or giving away.
Will last for about 3 weeks in the fridge.