Thursday, March 14, 2024

Coconut Lemon Squares

 There has been very little time for baking at my house the past couple of months.  However, I came across this recipe from my mother's box of recipes recently and when it was my turn to bring the goodies for after church coffee hour a couple of weeks ago, I decided to give them a try.

My grandmother loved to bake and this was one of her cookies. You can see that this recipe was well used and well loved.   Seeing it in my mom's recipe box brought back some wonderful memories.  My mom loves to bake too and since she has been staying here with us she was able to walk me through my first time making them for myself.  

Coconut Lemon Squares

First Layer:

1 1/2 cups flour            1 cup brown sugar         1/2 cup soft butter

Mix together and pat down firmly in a 9x13 pan. Bake at 275 degrees for 10 min. Remove from oven and top with filling.

Filling: 

2 eggs      1 cup brown sugar     1 1/2 cup coconut     1 cup chopped walnuts

2 tbsp flour     1/2 tsp baking powder     1/4 tsp salt     1 tsp vanilla

Beat the eggs in a large bowl.  Then add all the rest of the ingredients and mix well.  Spread evenly over the baked bottom mixture and return to the oven.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool slightly,  While still warm spread lemon glaze over the top.

Lemon Glaze:

1 cup confectioner's sugar     1tbsp melted butter     juice from one lemon  (3 tbsp)

Cool completely before cutting into squares.


They were as delicious as I remembered! When I brought them to church not a crumb was left.  By the way, I baked up the Amish Sugar Cookies above as well.  That's another scrumptious recipe,  If you have never baked them you can probably find the recipe for those on line.  If you like coconut and lemon, give these squares a try. I don't think you will be disappointed. 



Adieu!

 



 

 

 

 



Saturday, February 17, 2024

Birthday Celebrations

 My youngest son and I both share the same birthday. We celebrated together last week with the family.  My sweet and newest daughter-in-law knows how much I love the color yellow.  Daffodils are one of my favorite flowers.  She put together this lovely and colorful bouquet for me.


My husband brought me roses in celebration of both my birthday and Valentines Day.


And we both enjoyed our own special cheesecake for dessert.


I am truly grateful and blessed!


  You make known to me the path of life;

 in your presence there is fullness of joy

at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

 Psalm 16:11


Adieu!


 

 

Wednesday, February 7, 2024

The Old Fashioned Way

 Years ago before there were food processors and kitchen Aids, fancy blenders and juicers, our grandmothers, and perhaps our mothers mixed and juiced and blended their ingredients by hand. I was recently going through a kitchen cabinet at my mother's house when I came across this little vintage kitchen tool.  It had belonged to my grandmother before she gave it to my mom.

I don't remember ever seeing my grandmother using it, but I do remember watching my mom as she would screw it to her pull out bread board, something that every kitchen seem to have back in the day.  She would grind up leftover roast beef, ham or chicken into a bowl.  Then chunks of onion and pickles would be put through the grinder as well, all to be mixed together to make a meat spread to put into sandwiches.  Nothing was ever wasted when I was growing up.  Mom would save all the crusts and ends of the bread loaf and when she had a large amount collected she would put it into the oven to toast.  My job was to take all the toasted pieces of bread and push them through the grinder to turn them into bread crumbs that could be used in other dishes. I remember really enjoying the process of cranking that handle round and round and watching the food or crumbs spill out into the waiting bowl.

 

 My mother is now giving it to me.  My kitchen doesn't have a pull out bread board, but hopefully it will work on this heavy chopping board I keep on my counter. Maybe I will use it to grind up nuts.  Wait a minute, I think I have a mini food processor for that. Shall I do it the modern or the old fashioned way? hmm..

 

Here is another little vintage kitchen tool I found in my mother's cupboard, a metal fruit press.



 Growing up in Southern California in the time before most of the orange groves were plowed over to make room for huge housing developments, citrus fruit was inexpensive and easy to find.  I remember pressing many an orange or a lemon to make lemonade or juice to drink or use in some tasty dessert,  When we lived in the desert we had friends who owned a pomegranate orchard on their farm.  They would gift us with large grocery bags filled to the brim with fruit at harvest time.  My mother would cut them in half and use this nifty little squeezer to make juice for pomegranate jelly.  Yum!  

I truly appreciate all my modern kitchen aids, but somehow using them doesn't quite conjure up that same sense of satisfaction that watching my mother and grandmother put together delicious meals and treats the old fashioned way, using a knife, a cutting board and a couple of simple cast iron tools. Feeling a bit nostalgic but in a good way.  

Adieu!

 


 

 

Friday, January 26, 2024

Christmas at Epiphany

As we all know from personal experience, sometimes life can take us in unexpected directions and this past December was no exception.  When last I posted, the Christmas season was just beginning.  When last I posted, I expected to be shortly sharing lovely photos of all the wonderful holiday festivities I was planning to take part in.  When last I posted, I was also lamenting that this would be the first Christmas I had ever celebrated without my daughter.  However, as it turned out, it was a good thing that she wasn't here as Influenza A swept through the family right in the middle of the month.  My oldest son's family caught it first.  I came down with it ten days before Christmas.  It took four weeks, two visits to the urgent care and a third trip to my family clinic before I finally came back to the land of the living.  My husband caught it from me a few days later and my mother, in spite of our best efforts to isolate ourselves from her, came down with it a week later.  Within 24 hours of her first symptom she had double pneumonia and we had to call an aid car for her.  She was hospitalized twice and we were unable to help her at all because we were too ill ourselves.  She spent Christmas in the hospital and we spent it in bed.  Eventually we had her transferred to a rehab nursing facility where she has been for the past few weeks. It was a rather harrowing time but we made it through and finally were able to celebrate with our children and grandchildren on the 12th day of Christmas, Epiphany.

My mother was still in the hospital, but knowing that she was both safe and receiving excellent care made it easier for us to come together and share the holiday, especially for the sake of the grandchildren.  Fortunately, I had decorated the house earlier in the month so all bright and festive.



 


Molly Kitty was quite curious about the tree, but she went into hiding for the rest of the day once the grandchildren arrived!


 We began our day with a lovely holiday breakfast of egg casserole, roasted potatoes, bacon, biscuits and gravy, and fresh fruit. Yum! I changed out all the candles on my Advent pillars to white as Advent was over and Christ has come.

The day was spent exchanging gifts, playing games, and sharing a holiday dinner together.  It was much quieter than in past years. but truthfully most of us were still in recovery so it was just what we needed.  Our grandson loved his new toy tractor!




 

Last week we were able to come together once again to celebrate Christmas with my mother at the nursing facility.  We also celebrated our granddaughter's birthday at the same time.




 

Now as this first month of the year is beginning to come to a close, I have been preparing for my mother to come home to stay with us for a little while as she continues to gain her strength and Lord willing is able to return to her own home.  God's mercies are great and he is with us whatever the future will bring. A belated Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! May the Lord bless and keep each of you in this new year ahead.

Adieu!

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

Wednesday, December 13, 2023

Tree lightings and a Christmas Tea

 I have been feeling a bit blue these past few weeks as I have been really missing my daughter.  This will be the first time in her entire life that she has not been a part of our Christmas celebrations. However, the reason for the season has not changed, and I have some lovely friends who have been helping me get into the spirit of the holidays.

My husband and I went down to the cove park in town to attend the local Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony last weekend. It was fun to see our little town all decked out in its Christmas finery.  The community band was playing, children were busy writing letters to Santa, and free cups of hot chocolate were being passed around while we waited for the tree to light up.






It felt almost magical looking out over the lake at night.   



 

Our local town museum was open.  So we stepped inside to see the old turn of the 20th century mill house all decorated for the season.

 



We were so busy looking around inside the house that we missed the actual tree light ceremony, lol!! When we stepped back outside there it was, our city tree marking the beginning of our town's Christmas celebrations. 

Walking back to our car we spied this home all decked out like Babes in Toyland. I was a huge Annette Funicello fan as a child.


 



Three days after that lively celebration, I was invited to an amazing Victorian Tea given by one of my bible study friends. My friend is of Norwegian descent and her entire home was a refection of her love of her cultural heritage and more importantly her love of God. 






 

 

She put the Afternoon Tea served at the Royal Empress Hotel in Victoria, British Columbia to shame with her gorgeous table settings and delicious menu of tasty treats, all of which she made herself.  There aren't enough words to describe all her wonderful flavor combinations.


 












It was such a lovely presentation.  It felt like we were transported to another place and time.  I couldn't have imagined a more delightfully charming and delectable way to begin the Christmas season. I returned home with a heart full of appreciation to have been given the opportunity to celebrate, not just good food, but also the company of wonderful friends.
 
As this Advent/Christmas Season continues to unfold may each of you be blessed with your own opportunities to share special times with those who are near and dear to you.
 
Adieu!