Bernina Workshop day 3!

Day three of the Bernina workshops was with Sarah Vedeler.  She is a really good instructor and has beautiful patterns.

I love how the little purse came out...just not sure this is the process for me.

On this day we used the 800 series for both the quilting and the applique.  It is all done in a hoop and is automated.  So basically you set the machine up press a button and watch.

If you like embroidery and you like items you make to look perfect then this is for you.  I just feel like I need a bit more involvement.

That said...it really is pretty!

Also, on day three the Owner of Bernina, H.P. Ueltschi,  visited from Switzerland.  It was interesting to hear the story of how the company was started.

Gail your blog commenter is set to "no reply" so I hope you get this!  The carrot cake I showed a few posts ago came from this site....http://www.shugarysweets.com/.../carrot-cake-cheesecake-cake

Happy Thanksgiving!

Things are going a bit slowly preparing for the holiday.

I've been down with an MS episode and Brownie has an infected paw....we've both spent a lot of time on the couch!

Which by the way has my favorite comfy-quilt...wool and corduroy made in 1950.

This will keep your warm no matter how cold it gets outside!  That is important since it is rainy and cold outside....

Brownie is having her paw operated on today...hoping it will heal now...

I'm going through recipes for the holidays.  It is fun to remember where each of them came from...pumpkin pie from my hairdresser in Atlanta, Pecan pie from the Quincy Antique show, New Orleans dressing from my Maintenance NCOIC, and Stollen from my neighbors in Berlin.  Most of these are from the 1980's!  A good way to remember friends...

Pre holiday craziness!

So only a few days until Thanksgiving and my plans have all gone topsy-turvy, catawompus, or just generally turned upside down and sideways....

                                                                   Set of vintage blocks that I'm putting together...
What was going to be a quiet few days in Charleston and Edisto Beach has turned into a home-stay holiday complete with weekend guests and a full table for dinner!  Yikes...

                                                                          Sprigs and Stars in process....
So today I am making the lists (love lists!) and am preparing for a week of cooking and cleaning  (love cooking...cleaning, not so much)...which means projects like the sprigs and stars in the photo above need to get off the dining room table, into a box, and then hopefully somewhere that I can find them again the first week of December.  How I wish I had a larger studio! (but don't we all!!!)

The good news is I did find some of the mint chocolate chips for my favorite holiday cookies - Mint Snowtops!  They only distribute these around the holidays so I have to stock up when I find them!

Poor Mac...all this activity has already worn him out.....

almost back...

I walked into my sewing room earlier today in a daze.  I haven't touched needle, thread of fabric for two weeks.  I walked back out to the living room a bit confused and not sure where to start!  Yikes!

I did read several quilting magazines, a few books, and did a lot of sketching.  (my favorite pass-time in the hospital had to be my block of graph paper and colored pencils...kept me entertained/distracted for hours.)  I'm not sure I am ready to start work on any of those.  I really feel like I should "finish" something on my design wall or the cutting table but here is my dilemma...I can't find my notes (that is if I made any!)  So even my old projects are like starting new ones again!  And that takes energy I don't have right now...

Speaking of energy...my husband came home from the hospital yesterday.  Yeahhhhh!!!  He is doing better but will still need a lot of time to recover.  He had a bout of acute pancreatitis...very, very painful.  My challenge now is to figure out a diet for him.  When they released him they said he had to be on a diabetic-soft diet.  I figured I should be able to find one on the internet...nope.  I can find soft and I can find diabetic but the closest to soft-diabetic is a list of things a diabetic can eat after dental surgery.  That is fine if you are on it for a couple of days but my DH is starting to sniffle at the idea of more soup and jello.  So I have been trolling the recipe sites and making a adjustments to fit what I think will make low fat, low sugar, low fiber meals.   Just trying to toss a bit a taste into the mix!  My first attempt was a faux "baked potato" soup...not bad and it really made him feel like he was getting real food...

The photos are of a Baltimore style crib quilt circa 1840 (39 by 39 inches.)  The applique is nice but the quilting is amazing.  One of the clues that it was made as a crib quilt and not a cut down bed size is how the feathers quilted around the border of the quilt fit perfectly...even making the curves in the corners.

Stitching in the New Year....

If the first couple days of 2012 are any indication of how this year will go then I should get lots of quilting done!

I've been working diligently on my Bonnie Hunter Mystery. Now rarely do I make a big change halfway through a quilt but this is an exception. I started using red and green with the black but on New Year's Day when I laid out the components on the floor - "blah." Now I love red and green so what the heck happened?

Could be a couple of things...I used a fair amount of grey in the black sections and a lot of beige in the neutrals. A lot of my greens were repros which have a grey or brown tone to them. Combine that with my current bought of optic neuritis and I saw mud.

So I dug into the fabric piles and made up some blues string block ensuring that I had some "spark" fabric in each block. The sparks are the turquoise, royal blues, and any fabric with clear white accents. I'm so much happier...(Also, at a sale at our local Hancock's I found this great fabric for the backing. After sale and coupon only $3.50 a yard! But wouldn't you know it...it's green....)

My friend Shannon (who does not have a blog) also is adding a bit of "umph" to her string blocks. She had the same "issue." The original block on the right used lots of repros and batiks and ended up reading flat. So she came over on Sunday and got some brights from the "never ending stash" and is remaking about half. Better to do it now than after sewing the blocks together!Shannon is trying to come up with a name for her quilt. I'm thinking New Orleans and Madi Gra...or maybe I'm just craving some gumbo and King cake?!

(Had a few requests for the Bitterweet Chocolate Pound Cake in my last post. The recipe can be found here http://www.landolakes.com/recipe/437/bittersweet-chocolate-pound-cake. This cake can be made a day or two in advance and travels well...a keeper!)

Last week of the year...

I'm closing out the year sorting UFO's and cleaning a closet. Sounds like fun no? I did finish my star blocks for the Bonnie's mystery in time for today's new step!

Actually I had a busy week visiting with friends last week and it sort of wore me out. I did make a new Bittersweet Chocolate Cake recipe from the Land O'Lakes web site. It is definitively a keeper! Stays moist for days and is a deep, deep chocolate accented with coffee...be still my heart!

The photos shows it on one of my favorite cake stands. It was made from the broken propeller of a Gloster Gladiator Aircraft at RAF Ismalia, Egypt in 1937.

This will be a short post. The MS has been acting up and today they put me on a course of steroids...some folks get a bit hyper on them while others get tired and achy...let's say I'll be watching lots of movies from the couch the next few days.

Guess it is a good thing my DH gave me the entire series of the original Upstairs Downstairs, The Tudors (the old boxed set not the current series, and several old Sherlock Holmes movies I hadn't seen before. So with those and the remains of the chocolate cake I should be good for at least 48 hours!

Have a Happy New Year!

Stollen recipe

A few of you asked for the Stollen recipe so here you go. Hope it works out as well for you as it has for me the past 25 years...can it really have been so long ago!


Stollen (German Christmas Bread)

makes 2 stollens

1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cup mixed candied peel (used in fruit cakes)
1 Tablespoon finely shredded lemon peel
1/4 cup brandy (maybe a touch more if the raisins or peel are dry)
1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1/2 cup lukewarm milk (scalded, then cooled)
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 eggs
4 to 4-1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup blanched almonds, chopped
2 Tablespoons butter, melted

glaze (optional)
1/2 cup confectionery sugar
3 Tablespoons milk
1 Tablespoon shredded lemon peel

12-24 hours before, mix dried fruit/peel, raisins, and 1 tablespoon of lemon peel with brandy.

On the day of breadmaking, drain the liquid from the peel; reserve the brandy. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Stir in the warm milk, butter, granulated sugar, salt, nutmeg, eggs, reserved brandy, and 2 cups of flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in brandied fruit mixture and almonds. Add enough flour until the dough is easy to handle.

Turn dough onto a lightly floured board. Knead until dough is smooth and elastic (about 5 minutes.) Place dough in a large bowl that is greased on all sides. Turn the dough so the greased/buttered side is up. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size (about 90 minutes.) Dough is ready when an indention remains when touched.

Turn dough out onto a floured board and punch down. Divide into half. Press one half into an oval 10 inches by 7 inches. Brush with melted butter then fold in half lengthwise. Place on a cookie sheet either greased or covered in parchment paper. Slightly turn in ends to make a crescent shape. Repeat with remaining dough. Cover and let rise until double (45 to 60 minutes.) Brush with melted butter. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Brush with melted butter. Allow to cool on the pan for 3-5 minutes. Remove for pan and cool on a rack.

When cool either sprinkle with confectionery sugar or use lemon glaze. (I use the lemon glaze.)

Christmas Recipes...

Do you have recipes that you only make during the Christmas holidays? I have binders of them! I love German Stollen but only make it after the first of December...mint chocolate snowdrop cookies are definitely a "holiday only" item...and then there are my Christmas biscotti that needs no explanation.

Some of my pictures are only hung for the holidays too...

Yesterday I posted a photo of my Fruit-y Pound Cake. I've made these the past few years as a lighter substitute for traditional fruit cake. The recipe is from Land O'Lakes but I checked their website and couldn't find it this year...so instead of emailing it to those of you who asked here we go.

Buttery Fruit Pound Cake

2-1/4 cups flour

1-1/2 cups sugar

1 cup butter

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, room temp.

4 eggs

1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1-1/2 cups candied fruit mix (the type used for fruit cakes)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

Beat together the butter, cream cheese, and sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla. Beat in the 1-1/4 cups flour at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until well mixed. Stir in remaining 1 cup of flour, candied fruit and nuts by hand.

Pour into 2 greased and floured 8x4 inch loaf pans. Bake for 50-60 minutes. Cool 10 minutes and remove from pans. Cool completely.

Substitutions: I've used chopped up dried apricots and cranberries for the candied fruit with pecans and 1 tsp of lemon peel.

A finish and a treat...

I promised a finish a few posts ago and here it is! I put the last few stitches on the binding last night. This quilt would never have happened without a lot of help from friends. First the pattern is from Bonnie Hunter's book, Adventures with Leaders and Enders. I was encouraged to finish the top because my friends Angie and Pat were also making this quilt and wanted to put them all together in the next Quilt show (pressure and deadlines help!) My friend Maggie Hunt quilted it for me and Paula attached the binding on her machine for me (my arms are a bit weak at the moment - heck, I am weak at the moment...)

To celebrate I treated myself to some Lemon Blueberry Bread. My sister put me on to a new recipe site (new to me at least) www.joyofbaking.com I've made a couple of their recipes and all have been really good. (I did substitute 1/4 cup of lemon yogurt for half of the milk in my bread though...)

I will pass on my Aunt Ellie's tip for keeping the blueberries high in the bread (works for muffins too.) Wash the blueberries then place them single layer on a dishtowel for 15-20 minutes. Place a papertowel in a bowl and put the berries into the bowl gently shake them so any moisture goes onto the towel. Remove the paper-towel. Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of flour over the berries. Even though the berries I used for this bread were huge they were evenly spread throughout.
Back to the quilting front...I found a stack of rwb blocks that were destined for a QOV. Laid them out and remembered why they weren't finished. It was done as a group and there is a fairly large variance in block size! Brownie helped me sort them. I think if I make a dozen more blocks we can get a top finished at our next bee...need to go rummage in the 2-1/2 inch strips and see if I have any red, neutrals or blues left!

Strawberry Season...

I am busy trying to get packed for a quick trip up to Boston. There is a memorial mass for my Dad. Also it gives me a chance to see Mom and family.

Log Cabin quilt top circa 1900, purchased in Penn.

Silly me...I put a photo of my banana bread on my last post and didn't post the recipe. This is a combination of a Strawberry Breakfast Bread and a Sour Cream Banana Loaf Bread that I make often.

Sour Cream Strawberry Banana Bread
1-1/2 cups All-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon Wheat Germ (optional)
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp lemon zest
2 eggs
3/4 cup strawberries, mashed (I use a potato masher)
1 small banana, mashed
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup sour cream
1/2 cup pecans
1/2 cup chopped strawberries.

In a large bowl stir dry ingredients (flour, wheat germ, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon)

In a medium blow mix together eggs, lemon zest, mashed strawberries, banana, oil, and sour cream.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the egg mixture. Fold together until just mixed. Add the chopped strawberries and the chopped pecans. Gently fold.

Pour into a greased and floured 9x5 loaf pan. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 50 minutes. Check after 25 minutes to see if the bread is browning too quickly, if so cover it lightly with foil. Allow the bread to cool in the pan, on a wire rack, for 15-20 minutes. Remove from the pan and finish cooling on the rack. Do not slice until the bread is cool. Bread is best the day after it is baked.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

St Patrick's Day is a great time to remember my Irish roots. All four of my grandparent's emigrated from Ireland in the late 1800's. They came from Galway, Kerry, Cork and Carlow...a bit spread out to say the least!Last night we had our corned beef and cabbage (I know this is more American Irish than Irish but my DH loves it.) Today I am making some brown Irish bread to have with smoked salmon tonight. I know alcohol doesn't mix well with my meds but I may just have a few sips of Guinness with it...it is good for you right?

Irish Chain with applique border circa 1860, Maryland

On the quilting front...I have been working hard on the Quilt for the Quilt 4 Leukemia cause. I just have to add the borders and the top will be done! Good chance I will have it quilted and finished by next week. This may be my first finish of the year...hope to have photos tomorrow.

I'm also including my favorite scone recipe...though if you can find the King Arthur scone mix grab it - they taste homemade with 1/4 of the work!

Tea Scones

1/2 cup butter
4 cups flour
2 tsps. baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup milk
(optional: 1 cup of raisins)

Rub the butter into the flour. Add baking powder, salt and sugar then mix well. In a separate bowl beat the egg then add the milk and stir to combine.
Mix a the liquid into the dry ingredients to make a manageable dough - neither too firm nor too slack. Turn out onto a floured board and roll out to about 1-inch thick. Cut into rounds with a pastry cutter. Arrange on a lightly floured backing sheet and bake at 420 degrees for about 15 minutes. (Optional: brush with melted butter when you remove the scones from the oven.)
Yields: 15-18 scones

Adding to the block pile...

I feel like all I have worked on lately are random blocks...it is a bit disconcerting!I did finish my CW block for this week...They are starting to add up! (a few are blocks I've added since I want to make a bed size quilt...)
I also made a half dozen blocks for Clare at Quilt for Leukemia. Last year I promised if I didn't meet my finish goals that I would make a quilt for the "cause." Though is does sound a bit backwards - I can't finish the UFO's I already have so my "punishment" is to start another quilt?!
I am making good progress on it...several blocks are cut out and ready to go...with just a bit of luck (it is St. Patty's week after all...) I should be able to finish it this week....
Speaking of St. Pat's Day. This is a favorite recipe for using up day old Irish Bread....

Irish Cream Bread Pudding

3/4 pound Irish soda bread with raisins
3-1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup Irish cream liqueur (like Bailey's)
1 Tablespoon butter
1-1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla
1/2 cup raisins

Sauce:
1 cup confectioner's sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 egg beaten
1/4 cup Irish cream liquor

In a large bowl combine milk and Irish cream liqueur. Cut soda bread into 1 inch pieces and add to the milk mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour - stir occasionally.

Preheat oven to 350 degree. Use the butter to grease a 9x13 pan. In a mixing bowl whisk together the sugar, eggs and vanilla. Pour into the milk mixture and stir. Fold in raisins. Spoon into the baking dish. Bake until bread is set (about 50-60 minutes.) Cool.

To make the sauce combine sugar and butter in the top pan of a double-boiler. Stir constantly until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is hot. Remove from heat and immediately whisk in the egg. Continue until mixture is cool. Stir in the Irish cream.

To serve heat the broiler and line a jelly roll pan with aluminum foil. Cut pudding into serving size pieces and place on foil. Spoon the sauce over the pieces. Broil until pudding is bubbly on top. Serve warm or at room temp.

St. Patrick's Day (week!)

Not too much sewing going on the past week hopefully I am going to change that by working on this week's Civil war block today. I may also try to put together some Halloween blocks. And if I am feeling really energetic I will sew the binding on one quilt that is languishing in the "almost done" pile!

(My grandfather's family from County Kerry. At this time, according the the Boston Globe, they were the largest Voting family in Boston. Women didn't yet have the vote...)

I also need to make some Irish bread for my Dh to bring to work tomorrow. My family has two Irish bread recipes. I posted the recipe of the one I use most often here on my blog last year at St. Patrick's Day. It is a large round bread with lots of caraway seeds and raisins. The second one, posted below, is sweeter. It also has raisin but no caraway seeds. This recipe came from Ellen Delaney, neighbors of my Mom's family in Dorchester. I am giving it to you the way it was given to me..."butter the size of an egg."

E. Delaney's Irish Bread
3 cups flour
4 Tablespoons baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
milk, as needed
butter the size of an egg (about 1/4 cup)
3/4 cup raisins
2 eggs, well beaten

glaze/frosting:
3 Tablespoons of powdered sugar
1-2 teaspoons water

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Break in butter with fingers. Add eggs. Add enough milk to make a stiff dough. Add raisins. Mix/knead well. Form ball and place in a well greased 8-inch skillet or heavy cake pan. Cut an x into the dough about 1/4 inch deep.

Bake at 360 degrees for 45 minutes. Remove from oven, take the break out of the pan and place on a cooling rack. Cover with a damp towel and let cool. Frost with the sugar and water glaze/frosting.

Near and far quilts and a recipe...

Yesterday I spent a lot of time loading and editing photos from Quilt Festival in Houston. I also spent a lot of time unloading my suitcase and carry-on bags...the joy of travel!

One blogger emailed and asked me to name my favorite quilt from the festival. Ouch...I really liked so many quilts but for very different reasons. Not sure I can choose just one.
This giant Wedding Ring by Keiko Goke is amazing if for no other reason than it was one that Tonya and I both loved! (we agreed on a quilt! stop the presses!) This quilt is equally impressive at a distance and up close. Something I find disappointing with many quilts. You see a quilt across the hall, you catch your breath, you battle your way through the crowd only to find that when you are arms length away you aren't so excited anymore.

On the other hand there is this quilt from Japan (insert "my-bad" here...I tried taking photos of the nameplates instead of keeping notes only to find the quilt photo and the nameplates photos didn't load in order on my camera...)
This quilt has so much happening and has really impressive workmanship. I admit to not being a bit sunbonnet sue fan (ok, sometimes she makes my skin crawl) but this quilt took yet another pattern I had sworn off of and made me like it. That is saying something.
I have to include this quilt as well....inside the face of the young boy are a multitude of other faces....for reference this a a large quilt! Now I have a new goal for my own quilting - to make it equally as interesting up close and at a distance.

So why now a recipe? I had promised to post this before I left for Houston but I got overwhelmed by packing, planning and all that "stuff." I received a reminder email last night by a blogger overwhelmed with zucchini!Zucchini Quiche

1 9-inch piecrust
salt and pepper to taste (about 1/4 teaspoon of each)
2 cups of zucchini chopped to about 1/2 inch cubes
1 Tablespoon of olive oil
1 cup of shredded cheese (I use whatever is leftover in the fridge...usually a mixture of cheddar, Monterrey Jack, Italian or Mexican mix)
2 Tablespoons of flour
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup sliced mushroom
2 large eggs
1 cup of half and half (I usually split this 1/2 half and half and 1/2 milk)
1 teaspoon of mixed herbs (Italian or Fine Herbs)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Trim Zucchini and cube. Place in a colander and sprinkle with salt. Allow to drain/dry for 15-20 minutes. Add olive oil to a hot pan and cook zucchini until just tender. Remove zucchini with a slotted spoot from pan. Add the onion and mushroom to the pan and cook until the onion is tender. Again using a slotted spoon remove the onion and mushroom and add to the zucchini. (you do not want this mixture to be watery.) Sprinkle with the mixed herbs and flour then toss.

Spread half o cheese over bottom of the piecrust. Spoon the zucchini mixture onto the cheese. Top with remaining cheese.

In a medium bowl beat eggs until frothy. Beat half-and-half into the eggs and then pour into the pie shell. Bake until the center appears set when the pie plat is gently bumped. About 35 minutes. Allow to cool at least 5 minutes before cutting.

Quiches are sort of like soups to me...I use whatever I have available! So feel free to add some chopped peppers, a small bit of tomato, or some different cheeses to this.

Only a week away....

It is raining...again...and DH is home sick...again...so today is a hunker down day and get some things organized and/or finished for Christmas. Where did the time go?
This table-runner is for my Mom. It is the same pattern as the Mary Einglebreight one I posted a few days ago but can you believe when I went to make it the second time I hit a mental wall...could not get it to go together! It took several cups of coffee and even more scraps of paper before I worked it out. So topping my New Year's resolution list will be "make more notes immediately after playing with blocks...."

I am still working piecemeal on my Carolina Christmas. Sometimes I can get rather persnickety when cutting out fabric...like when cutting plaids. Do you cut it crosswise and get little of the "plaid" or on the bias and really see the pattern? (that my friend can be a two cuppa tea problem....)

I've also had to clear the cutting table...or rather kitchen island...to make room for my cookie baking marathon this weekend. Tonight I will make the dough for the chocolate mint cookies (I think I posted that recipe 4 years ago!) and the holiday biscotti which I posted two years ago. About half of the cookies are regulars and half new ones. Some, like the biscotti and mint, I bake on Saturday since they are better a several days after being baked, and others like the chocolate chip, sugar, and Linzer I make on Sunday. To me a good cookie recipe is one that: first, still tastes good for several days after baking; second, makes at least 3 dozen cookies (if not why bother); and finally, travels well (my Linzers are on the line there but the others have made it through the U.S. mail just fine...)

Linzer Bars
Makes 3 dozen cookies

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp vanilla
2-1/4 cups flour
1 cup chopped toasted almonds
1/2 cup raspberry preserves or apricot jam (I do one log of each...)
almond glaze

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Beat butter in a large bowl until creamy. Add sugar, baking powder and salt. Beat in egg, vanilla and extracts. Beat in flour (may stir last bits of flour by hand as the dough is stiff)

2. Divide dough into three equal pieces. Roll each into a 10 inch log then roll the log in the toasted almonds. Place the logs 3 inches apart on an un-greased cookie sheet. Flatten each log to 1 inch thick then make a 1/2 deep indentation down the center. (I use a long mixing spoon handle)

3. Bake for about 30 minutes or until edges are firm and lightly browned. Cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes then transferr to a wire rack to cool.

4. Spoon preserves down the center of each log and then drizzle with Almond glaze. (You can drizzle with chocolate instead...) Cut each log diagonally into 1-inch slice.

Almond glaze: Stir together 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon of milk, and 1/4 tsp almond extract in a small bowl. (add more milk a drop at a time if not the right consistency - it changes quickly!)

Project bits....

Last month I woke up with this great idea - why don't I make one Christmas gift or ornament each day in December until Christmas. Well, then I drank my first cup of coffee, slapped myself on the cheek and said loudly "get real woman!" A moment of temporary creative insanity once again cured by caffeine! However, I did dig out lots of old projects and tried to make a point of finished up some before the holidays. Now that I can do....
So first is this wild "Santa does Rodeo" fabric that I just had to have when it went on sale for a couple of dollars a yard...of course that was several years ago. (And for those folks South of the Equator I don't think Father Christmas would sit a bucking bronco...it has to be Santa for that !) Anyway, this year I took it out and made three reversible aprons. (My father-in-law loves to cook and loves westerns so I'm hoping with his warped sense of humor he will like the apron!)


I also made another Christmas table-runner. Some of these fabrics aren't all that old but were leftovers from an earlier Christmas project so I prevented them from going into the bits and bobs stash in the back of the closet. The top for this table-runner came together in about 2-hours...sometimes a quick finish feels good. I have to quilt and bind it tonight since it is going to a silent auction for the local humane society this week.

Why so productive? It is cold and wet and did I mention COLD outside? Even Macbeth balks at the front door when it is time for his walk. To keep the cold outside I've also been working in the kitchen. I try to find some new recipes each Christmas but do test runs on them early the month. This year I was trying to come up with a Christmas cake that we used to get at an old bakery in Boston when I was growing up. It was sort of a cross between a pound cake and a fruit cake. So with a few tweaks to the "Fruited Pound Cake" recipe on the Land O'Lakes site I am very, very close.

Avenue Bakery "Fruited Pound Cake"
(Adapted from the Land O'Lakes website)
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 cup butter, softened
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
4 eggs
grated rind of one lemon
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup mixed candied fruit, chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 golden raisins
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine butter, cream cheese and sugars in a bowl and beat at medium speed until mixed. Add 1-1/4 cups of flour, eggs, baking powder, vanilla, and lemon peel. Beat until no lumps are visible. Stir in by hand the remaining 1 cup of flour, candied fruit, cranberries, raisins and pecans.

Pour into 2 greased 8 by 4 inch pans. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes; remove from pan and allow to cool completely before wrapping. (This is best the day after it is baked...)