I know this is winter, but I came upon these pics from summer '07 and I wanted to share. Maybe they will warm a few folks during this cold season.
Show us your favorite winter clothing item.
I love my long, black puffy coat with the fake fur around the oversized hood. It's impervious to any weather I ever encounter here in the winter. Machine washable, too!
Since I'm forever and always showing the top of my bar, I thought I'd show the rest. I'm kinda pround of my little bar. As previously mentioned, my house is small so everything I do is somewhat scaled down, but I always wanted a whiskey bar. I found this one on sale for $249.00. It has touches of crocodile patterned leather on the top and sides. The picture over the bar cost more than the bar, lol, but I had to have it. It's called "Sultans of Speed." Kentucky thoroughbreds to grace the Kentucky bourbon. I got the chairs (4 of them) for $25 each at a thrift store.
The front of the bar swivels open to hold the wine bottle and glasses. I need to dust.
Abetter look at the Sultans of Speed…before the hammer and nails came out.
What's your favorite thing to drink when it's cold outside?
I bet you couldn't guess…
Show us a winter photograph.
Awwwww, just one? No can do, but I will start with this one:
…and a few more. If one has the heart to withstand Upstate New York and Ontario in the winter, the visual rewards are great.
…and me enjoying it all. It's very peaceful in the white forest.
What's on your holiday wishlist?
For myself? To hear the words "I love you." That would be enough.
For others? I hope they hear the words "I love you" too.
Show us your favorite winter activity.
I can see where this is going to be easy…
Okay, here we go. I made 3 different types of Enhanced Pillsbury cookies: Choco-Cherry, Nutty-As-A-Fruitcake, and MacHeaths. Here are the ingredients:
Choco-Cherry: Pillsbury Chocolate Chip dough, Maraschino cherries, pecan pieces.
Nutty-As-A-Fruitcake: Pillsbury Chocolate Chip dough, Disney Magic Incredible Mixed Fruit (looks like a raisin box), and pecan pieces.
MacHeath: Pillsbury Sugar Cookie dough, Heath Toffee pieces, Macadamia nut pieces.
Here's the first two fresh out of the oven. DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME. I found that the fruitcake ones need longer to cook, so I recommend baking these one type at a time.
Having learned my lesson about cookie segregation, here are the MacHeaths fresh from the oven:
…and here's the whole happy cookie family:
All were pretty darn good, but 2 could use some adjustments.
With the Choco-Cherry I was going for the cherry cordial direction – it could have used larger chocolate chunks to make it work better, and you could probably skip the nuts in this one. The cherries do not want to blend in with the dough. You kinda have to make them stay there. Still good, however.
The Fruitcake ones were very good in a wholesome, comfort-food sort of way. A glass of milk with these would wash away any sorrows or pissed-offness you may be feeling. They are not overly rich, but very substantial, and the dried fruit ingredients and nuts blended in well with the dough. To improve on these, I would say add some freshly-grated orange peel, but that would be too much like work, and defeating the whole purpose of these cookies. Still, if you could get just a little more citrus taste to them, they would be even better.
The MacHeaths….are to die for. They almost take on the flavor of a Mexican Wedding Cake…without inhaling all the white powder, and they won't ruin your front teeth or cause you to rob your Grandma.
Here is an exerpt from my computer nerd son's assessment of the Pillsbury Experiment:
"Well, the cookies are delicious, but there's a couple of things I think might improve them. I think they need more dough and less shit. The dough is what serves as the glue, and without it it's like just a clump of rocks and shit, with nothing holding them together."
He ate them while they were still hot and had not totally congealed and hardened, but I can't judge him for being in a rush…seeing how these recipes come from somebody who realized at work today that she had on clean underwear, but they were inside out. (I couldn't understand why they felt funny). They were rightside out when I laid them out this morning…I think…I dunno how that happened. Anyway, I wore them that way all day, because, well, I didn't want to completely undress and redress in the bathroom at work.
I hope y'all enjoy the cookies. *grins*
I don't have a very big house at all, and I have very big furniture, so rearranging stuff to make room for a Christmas tree is a hassle. So, I have set aside a corner of my dining room for a tabletop tree, a tiny few sentimental "toys", and swapped out the picture on the wall with a Santa one. All of this took about ten minutes because I decorate like I bake cookies, lol (I bought a little pre-decorated tree when I moved in here and added some extra picks and things to it.) This little corner and my fireplace mantel are the only places I decorate, but it's enough to make me happy. 🙂
I forgot to mention I have a bird in the tree (not a live one) because my mother told me it was good luck to have a bird in the tree. Have to have at least one.
Sue Sparrow
Cheeps 