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May this year bring better times!


I haven't been around much this last year, as I got very into the political thing. But along with that, I developed acid reflux and was miserable for quite a bit of it. Having finally decided to back away from the stress and constant anxiety by avoiding politics, I find myself physically better (my stomach, anyway) and mentally calmer. I'm hoping to spend more time here again, sharing pics and trying to coax my boys to come talk to me!

Many hugs to all, and a kinder, sweeter year ahead!

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Reposting my Veteran's Day story.


Soldier's Wife


Hope you're all well.

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So, remember those mashed potatoes I mentioned making for Thanksgiving? I'ma give you all the recipe, because they came out SO UNBELIEVABLY GOOD that I had a hard time believing I had made them. And it's not even a difficult recipe, at all. It just involves a paradigm shift in how you cook the potatoes. It's simple, really:

GET RID OF THE WATER.

Tyler Florence (who seems to be the TV Cook du Jour these days) came up with a recipe that has you cook the potatoes directly in a mixture of milk and cream, instead of cooking them in water and then mixing in the dairy later. This does a couple of things. First, it captures all the flavor (and nutrition) that gets stripped away in the boiling process, and second, it intensifies the creaminess of the potatoes. The only thing that changes in the act of cooking is that the temperature has to be low (only gently simmering), and you have to keep an eye on it to prevent scalding.

The result is a revelation, seriously. I'd made mashed taters before, of course, but they were nothing like this. Creamy and rich and amazing. I served them with a garnish of cherry tomatoes and fried sage. (YES. This is too yummy for words. Heat some butter until it browns, then fry the leaves until crispy. They make a great garnish and are just yummy on their own as little chips.)

This recipe mixes in mustard, but you can make them any flavor you like, or just go with the taters and dairy. The recipe has some elasticity, too - I didn't have any salted butter thawed, so I put in cream cheese instead, and of course it was fine. (I'm sure sour cream or creme fraiche would work just as well.) Potatoes seem to be endlessly forgiving. :)

So I'm putting the recipe here for you guys to enjoy. It's changed the way I'll make taters from now on, you betcha!

Amd remember - these are MASHED potatoes. No food processor! No, no, NO! BAD DOG!

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( Tyler Florence's Mustard Mashed Potatoes... )

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Oh, one more thing: You will have a LOT of that milk and cream mixture left over. Put it in the fridge and use it to make a wonderful warming soup. I sauteed some onion, poured in the milk mixture, added some broth and spices, then a chopped up Russet potato (they fall apart nicely), several cloves of garlic, and a garni of rosemary, sage, and bay. Cooked that (GENTLY) until the potato was softened, then threw in most of a pound of spinach and a grated carrot, and a couple of handfuls of rice. (I used basmati because it's very tender and cooks fast.) Once the rice was soft, I removed the herbs, whirred the whole thing with my stick blender, and ended up with a rich winter soup. I've been enjoying it over the last few days. OMG YUM.

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Saw all the Valentine's icons and realized I should make one. :)

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Cutest. Gift. EVER.


Hatching Dinosaur Candle


Burn the candle and the baby velociraptor is slowly hatched.

How do people even think of things like this?

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Made this new cookie recipe today. They were super easy and taste wonderful.

And may I say being able to reach out my back door and pluck a lemon from the tree? In December? Is EXCELLENT.


Lemon Crinkle Cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1½ cup AP flour
½ cup powdered sugar, reserved for rolling the cookies

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 3 baking sheets with silpat or parchment paper and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla, egg, lemon juice and lemon zest. Beat until well combined. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir just until they are combined. Place the powdered sugar in a small bowl and set aside.

Scoop about a tablespoon of the cookie dough and roll into a ball. Roll in the powdered sugar, then gently toss the cookie back and forth between your hands to shake off the excess sugar. Place on the cookie sheet. Repeat with the rest of the dough. Bake for about 10 minutes, or just until the bottoms of the cookies begin to brown and the cookies are no longer shiny. Remove from the oven and let rest for a minute or two before transferring to a wire rack. Store in an airtight container when completely cooled.

NOTE: The baking time will depend on your oven, among other things. I found these cookies reached their best moment after nearly 20 minutes of baking (for full tablespoons), but start checking at about 9 minutes, and pull them out when you see the edges start to get just a little golden brown. With the time it'll take to get them from the oven to your counter, and then the time they'll rest, they'll be perfect when you move them to the rack. (And don't skip the resting stage, or you'll find half the cookie sticking to the paper when you try to pull it off.)

NOTE THE SECOND: Do not neglect to shake off the excess powdered sugar after rolling each cookie. If you leave thick patches of powdered sugar on the cookies, the dough underneath may not bake completely, and you may get little patches of sticky dough on the surface. Not a tragedy, but it does interfere with the texture you're going for here.

Last but not least: Be sure to let the cookies cool off completely before eating. They don't get that lovely crispness until they've set all the way.

Makes between 2 and 3 dozen, depending on the size of the cookie. Be sure to adjust your baking time if you decide to make smaller cookies.


Very easy, sweet and lemony, with a lovely crispness. Definitely a keeper, this one. :)

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Here's a plot bunny for you:





Good ol' Santa, always taking time to be kind to the kidlets. And do you know who that is adorably asleep on his lap, dreaming of sugarplums? Can you guess?


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( Wait for it... )


Are you squeeing yet? Has your heart melted out of your chest yet? I'm in a puddle here, myself.

So who wants to run with this bunny?


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It's a bit late maybe, but it's still Veterans Day here, and I just remembered that I wanted to post this. A link to a story I wrote some years ago for the day.


Soldier's Wife
by Serai


Some nights she goes out and looks at the stars, staring up into the depths until she’s dizzy, losing herself in the brilliant spill of light, wrapped in it as if in place of his arms. Some nights she can’t look at them at all, and they are her enemies, have torn his arms away from her.

She doesn’t dare admit what she knows is true, hidden deep down where she can’t look at it...


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Happy Valentine's Day!

( Click for desktop-size image )