Front Yard, Mars, PA December, 2016
December snow
is the brightest snow.
It makes the sky bluer
and tree trunks browner.
December snow cleanses the earth
and also the soul.
It evokes memories
and fills us with anticipation.
December snow…
I love your Christmas spirit.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
Do you love buttery shortbread as much as I do?
Add a dab of apricot jam and a drizzle of icing, and O M G!
I wanted to bake one more batch of Christmas cookies and wanted them to be something with apricot for hubby as it is one of his faves.
I usually make Apricot Kolaches, which we love, but I just ran out of time and energy to make them this year. When I found this recipe for Apricot Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies at Little Spice Jar, I thought I would give them a try. No rolling, no folding, no pinching, less time, less work, and all the ingredients that that make yumminess for a Christmas cookie is a winner in my book.
If you are still baking and still looking for that last amazing, delicious, beautiful cookie, here is a great recipe for you to try!
Ingredients:
Directions:
Cream butter and sugar in electric mixer 1-2 minutes. Add egg yolks and mix completely. Add vanilla. With mixer on low speed, add flour slowly and mix until dough forms.
Place dough in airtight container or Ziploc bag and chill for at least 4 hours.
Heat oven to 350.
Roll dough into tablespoon-sized balls. Place on backing stone or cookie sheet, and bake 3 minutes. Remove from oven and carefully indent center with your thumb. Add 1/4 – 1/2 tsp apricot filling. Return to oven for approximately 12 minutes.
Allow to cool for 30 minutes.
Prepare glaze by stirring powdered sugar, half & half and vanilla until smooth. Pour into small baggie. Snip small corner of baggie. Squeeze gently to pipe in stripes on cookies.
Enjoy!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
*recipe originally found at Little Spice Jar
Snowy Pine Tree Way, Mars, PA – December, 2016
Just be…
whatever it is
you were meant to be.
Just be.
During this time of year, so many of us push ourselves beyond what any human is capable of doing.
Others suffer with stinging depression because their life is not like the “Hallmark” Christmas card or movie.
Remember to just be…
It’s okay…
It is actually more than okay!
It is what you are meant to be.
Let it go – let it be – and just be.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
My sweet daughter-in-law never ceases to amaze me! With a brand-new baby, she still managed to pull off the loveliest of Christmas Cookie Exchange parties this past weekend. I am so proud of her. I love that she values creating traditions and memories for her family…. and admire that she does it on a few hours’ sleep each night!
This year, three new babies attended the party. Although our granddaughter is the first grandie on our side, she is the fourth on her other side – three of which were born this year! What a joyful occasion.
Of course no cookie exchange party is complete without a hot cocoa bar (oldest nephew’s fave – especially when stirred vigorously with peppermint candy cane sticks). And my daughter-in-law’s s’mores cookies made it even more special.
And don’t veggies taste better when shaped into a Christmas tree on the platter?
And cheese and sausage on a bed of aromatic rosemary shaped into a wreath?
Deviled eggs are more festive, too, when dyed red and green.
There is nothing like Christmas through the eyes of children and passing down traditions.
Lovin’ from the oven! The best kind.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
My Revised Christmas To Do List – I posted it last December and also the year before.
It is a great reminder every year around this time for all of us.
With only 10 days left until Christmas Eve (which to me is just as special a day as Christmas Day), let’s not get caught up in what is not important.
I know I could.
I still have gifts to buy, let alone have anything wrapped. I’ve barely baked, haven’t written or sent out cards yet…. The list of things I have not done yet could go on.
But the older I get, the less it matters.
I am going to cocentrate on the revised list…
I want to focus on being present, giving hugs, sending love, taking time for and with the people I love and myself.
Will you try too?
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
One of the things I make every holiday season for parties and gift-giving is homemade caramel corn.
This is not your ordinary caramel corn, however; and the secret is that its made with Hulless Puff-n-Corn instead of regular popcorn.
Its super simple, makes a huge batch, and I have never taken it somewhere or given it away without being asked for the recipe.
I got this recipe years ago from my dear friend, Pam, who is, by the way, one of the best Jewish “Christmas cookie” bakers I know!
Here’s the recipe, and be warned….. it is crazy addictive!
Ingredients:
Directions:
Spray large roaster pan with Pam cooking spray, and empty both bags of Puff-n-Corn into it. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
In a large saucepan melt butter and peanut butter over medium-high heat. Once melted, add brown sugar and corn syrup. Bring to a boil. Stir constantly, and boil for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add vanilla and baking soda and stir well. Pour mixture over popcorn, and stir well to coat.
Bake in oven for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Allow to cool.
Enjoy!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
The Weary World Rejoices
There are always bright, beautiful spots
if only you open your eyes
and believe in the magic.
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
PS – See! Told ya! yep – another Christmas song running through my head!
Seymour Snowie – Watercolor Holiday Snowman with Cardinal – 4 1/4 x 5 1/2
Baby It’s Cold Outside…
I swear everything reminds me of some song.
No matter the discussion, I typically can break out into song about it…
or at least have a song running through my head at the same time.
(If you are anywhere nearby, you will likely hope it only runs through my head as carrying a tune is not one of my stronger talents!)
This time of year,
everything brings to mind a Christmas Carol.
It started snowing yesterday!
And turned C O L D!
I really can’t stay…. but Baby, it’s cold outside….
I’ve got to go away…. but Baby, it’s cold outside….
December snow is the best snow. It is when most of us actually get excited to see snow – as opposed to March snow – when we are usually soooo over it!
So I was inspired to paint this chilly little guy – Seymour Snowie.
He is a holiday snowman, and he is chatting with his little friend Cameron the Cardinal. I think they are so GLAD it’s cold outside! At least Seymour is.
Wishing you cold, snowy fun outside, and warm comfort inside!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
(PS – I thought this might make a cute Holiday Greeting Card or Holiday Thank You Note, so I made these little cuties into cards for our McKinneyX2Designs ETSY shop. You can check them out here!)
For those of you that have been following my blog for a while, you may recall this recipe.
It is worth repeating – at least for me.
Let me share what I wrote in my post two years ago when I first shared this recipe that is one of my ALL-TIME favorites.
One of my favorite things to bake (and eat) for the holidays is my Grandma’s Old-Fashioned Apricot Nut Bread.
For me, it is like spending a little time with Grandma – even though she’s been gone for 20 years now. The smells that fill the house… using her recipe card – complete with stains from baking episodes past… using her old tin measuring cup, snipping apricots, chopping nuts… To me, the holidays aren’t truly here until I make Grandma’s Apricot Nut Bread and spend a little time with her through this ritual.
When I was young, I spent Christmas vacations (and every other moment I could) with Grandma. We spent a lot of our time together in the kitchen. While we were cooking or baking, Grandma would tell me stories about her childhood. It was sadly a pretty short one, because she had to become Mama to her baby brothers at only 9 years old when her mom died at a devastatingly early age. We would talk about her early married life with outhouses, coal furnaces, and washboards. And some of my favorite stories, especially when I was young, were the ones she would tell about me when I was a baby and how she danced in the hospital hallway with the doctor after I was born and how she fed me her homemade chicken soup on my first day home.
We laughed while we worked, and I never felt so loved.
One of the things Grandma made every year was Apricot Nut Bread. Growing up, it really wasn’t my favorite. I much preferred the lady locks or nut horns or nut roll – even the chocolate chip cookies. This bread is not overly sweet. It is not overly moist. But as an adult, it has become my absolute favorite. A slice with a swirl of creamy salted butter or a schmear of rich cream cheese and a cup of coffee might just be my favorite way to start the day.
This weekend, I once again made my annual batch of Grandma’s Old-Fashioned Apricot Nut Bread. I can only hope for cherished times like this to share with my granddaughter some day.
Here’s the recipe if you’d like to try. May it bring you as much joy as it does me.
Ingredients: Mix together 1 cup chopped apricots and 1 cup boiling water. Let stand until the rest of the ingredients are ready. In larger mixer bowl, beat two eggs and gradually add 1 cup of sugar. In a third large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder salt and baking soda. Add the first two mixtures to the dry ingredients – alternating as you incorporate. Fold in chopped nuts. Bake one large loaf at 375 degrees F for approximately 40 minutes, then 350 degrees F for 20 additional minutes, or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. For smaller loaves, bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes. P.S. I typically quadruple the recipe, and I get 8 mini loaves and 1 large loaf. We eat the large loaf (right away!) and I give away the mini loaves.Grandma’s Old-Fashioned Apricot Nut Bread
Cheers & Holiday Baking Hugs,
Jodi
Pink Orange Gold Watercolor Christmas Trees 5×7
O Christmas Tree! O Christmas Tree!
Thy leaves can be so changing;
O Christmas Tree! O Christmas Tree!
They need not be unchanging;
Not only green like everyone;
But you can be whatever you want.
O Christmas Tree! O Christmas Tree!
Pink and Orange and Gold look good on thee!
Embrace the magic!
Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi
the creative life in between 