Winter Has Arrived

Winter has hit our neck of the woods with cold temps and a few flakes flying in the air. It had to happen. We knew it would. It does every year. It is sometimes an early Winter and sometimes there is a late start to the season but it always arrives.

In The Kitchen

This time of year is when my mind always turns to baking. Maybe it is to keep warm (especially when I try to last as long as I can before turning the furnace on). Maybe it is just that baked goods taste best with a hot cup of tea or coffee and cooler temps! Whatever the reason, I baked.

One of the things I made was some homemade corn bread from a recipe that was on a bag of mill ground corn meal that I bought while in Massachusetts. My friend, Darcy, and I went to the Brewster General Store while in Cape Cod. It is a classic general store with the original wooden floor, music from a player piano and homemade fudge, etc. If you would like to learn more about this endangered species, the general store,  click on the link below.

The Thanksgiving display outside of the Brewster General Store in Brewster, Massachusetts.

https://www.brewsterstore.com/

The corn bread turned out beautifully. It was moist and sweet. I think you would really like it. We ate it while it was still warm which is best. It does microwave well so you can warm it up at a later time.

Golden Corn Bread

1 cup cornmeal

1 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

4 level teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup soft shortening

1 egg

1 cup of milk

Cream shortening, egg and sugar until light. Blend sifted cornmeal, flour, salt and baking powder in bowl. Stir in milk. Add shortening mixture and blend just until smooth. Bake in a greased 8″ square pan in 400 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Makes 9 servings.

*Notes – I baked mine for 18 to 19 minutes and it was perfect. The corn meal had to be sifted because it is mill ground and there are dried larger pieces of corn in there that you wouldn’t want in your bread.

I mentioned above that we went on a road trip to Massachusetts. When Darcy and I go on a road trip we have certain requirements. One of them is our favorite road trip food, salami roll-ups. I am drooling now as I type. Darcy introduced me to these simple, little wonders a few years ago. I can’t be in on a road trip with her without these little bundles of yumminess!

Salami Roll-Ups

All you have to gather is cream cheese (you can use the fully loaded fat kind, the low-fat or fat-free), rather thinly sliced hard salami and sweet baby gherkins (drained). Spread some cream cheese on a slice of salami, put a little baby gherkin in the center, roll it all up and stick a toothpick in it to hold it together. You might not need the toothpicks if they hold together without them.

*Practical note – while driving and eating these, make sure to remove the toothpick before lifting roll-up to your mouth. I almost lost an eye or two.

Viola, road-trip finger food!

     

New Product

I, like many other women, have some constant struggles. Sometimes I think that I have an overabundance of them. One that has been at the forefront the last few years has been how to have the best looking eyebrows. I am so very sorry for taking my eyebrows for granted in the past. If I could speak to those full, beautiful eyebrows right now I would tell them that and also tell them how beautiful and how much less work they were than they are now.

I have used an eyebrow pencil, eyebrow powder, an eyebrow stamp (which I talked about in a previous post) and now finally I have discovered something new. It is from Maybelline and structured like a mascara tube and wand. It is doing a great job for me. I just use the wand over the eyebrow and it darkens and increases the volume of the hair that is already there. Unfortunately, I have one eyebrow that has little to no hair at one point in the arch and I do have to fill in with a pencil. This item is definitely on my recommended list!

Currently, my house is all decorated for Fall and I am making my Thanksgiving list for the grocery store. However, Christmas is not that far off in my thoughts. I am hatching some new additions to my decor for Christmas this year and I have been collecting the things I will need to put them together. In my posts between now and Christmas I want to show you what I am doing. It would be great to see and hear about your holiday crafts, decor, baking and shopping.

I’m doing a survey and want to hear your thoughts on Christmas card sending. I still do it but some people I know have stopped sending them. What do you do? Let me know in the comments.

Have a wonderful week!