Pioneer Woman at Heart

  Angel Christmas Cookies.  Recipe is online , but I found this recipe in a book I read years ago - Aunt Dimity's Christmas, by Nancy Atherton.  We use the recipe for our traditional cut-out cookies at Christmas, but Christmas has passed, so I made them "winter" themed this year - snowflake cookies. I'm glad I went searching for the book on my blog, because the link does not work anymore, and the recipe has been changed over the years.   In the book, the recipe is called "Angel Cookies" because she makes them all angels.  I make all sorts of cut out shapes with the dough.  Very easy to make and you can make it the day before to chill the dough. The recipe states that if the dough is sticky to chill it, but every year we've made these cookies, we chill the dough.  I take half the dough out, cut the cookies, and take out more chilled dough as we bake them.  You can also chill this dough overnight. Did you know that if your dough is cold when yo...

We will still have heat if the power goes out this weekend.  So glad I invested in the eco-fan.  Temps will be plummeting. We are praying the power stays on.   We also stocked up on lamp oil.  Both are low.  Just in case.  We also have a few places we can rent generators from if needed. The wind is going strong this morning.  No snow yet, but today is the day we get it. While everyone is raiding the grocery store for bread,  milk and eggs, we are planning which day and when we'll cut more wood, checking our battery supply, filling more water jugs, double checking chicken feed, pet food and what not.  And baking bread. Sandra over at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom mentioned sharing our morning routine.  It varies with me from season to season. Right now I rise about 5:30am, let the dog out, stoke the fire and start the coffee.   I make sure Daughter is up, get Hubby's coffee poured into his thermos, pack his lu...

My 17 year-old helped a lot with this year's cookie tradition.  She also wanted to add a "lemon" cookie to our baking this year.  We searched the internet and found Lemon Ricotta Cookies with Lemon Glaze (Giada, Food Network) . These were delicious.  We will keep this recipe for future holiday baking (and more).  We will however, make them half the size next time.  And of course we used organic lemon juice too. During summer, I plan to bake these using our homemade ricotta cheese (made from our goat's milk), and organic (or homemade butter). Tidbits . . .  It's a whopping 2°F wind chill today.  We got a bit of snow last night too.  Thank goodness my son re-stocked the wood pile. I went and got myself a head cold, and am sorry I didn't get my elderberry elixir made yet.  I best get on that.  Nobody likes it when Mom is sick around here.  I tend to get grouchy. I was actually up early this morning, searching pattern sit...

( mugs that were a gift from my 19 year-old) I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.  I knew I was in trouble, when I heard the coffee cup hit my nightstand at 6:00am, and the curtains where carelessly tossed open (despite it was pitch dark outside, ha ha!).

I adapted the recipe for Egg less Peanut Butter C ookies , by using natural peanut butter, and lard (v s. shortening) .  Once we have goat's milk again, I will bake these again, using organic butter and goat 's mi lk ( vs . the buttermilk ). These were pre tty good, and I got about 6 1 /2 dozen cookies, by using my smaller pampered chef cookie sc oop.   I think these woul d make a wonder ful addition to our Christmas cookies next season too.  And I am betting they would freeze well.  

... t hree things I love in a good book.  However, since I haven't been feeling well, I have spent the weekend readin g this book.  My weekend in cluded hot tea, ibuprofen, k leenex, vapo-rub, and lots and lots of s ea water nas al spray . Joanne Fluke 's books mus t s end out a subliminal message - B ake!  Bake!  Bake!

(The upper two on the right were made with a half cherry and the others a whole cherry) Another future goal of ours, i s to raise pigs for m eat, and of course have lard .   I spend a lot of time rese arching ways to utilize something before we r aise it for food.    (Photo source: Amazon) I have foun d this wonder ful book at the library (again, a great place to read books for free).   However, I may have to add this book to my personal homesteading library .   I did not have enough dough to cover 24 whole maraschino cherries.  I started to cut them in half, however, in the end, pref er red the whole cherry in the cookie.  Next time, I need to use less dough per cookie. These would be great for Valentine 's Day or Chris tm as . I am sur e the debate over shortening and lard will contin ue for years, and doctors will have their opi nion.  But when it comes down to it, it's abou t what's real and what's not real....

As you know, I am a very low-tech, or no-tech person.  I do not read books on electroni c de vices, nor read them on-line on my computer.  I like to hold the rea l thing in my hands, and enjoy it without batteries.  T hat's jus t me. (note:  In no way, I am writing this to be hurtful to those who do use electronic reading devices.) 

I f inally got some time (and cash) to bake a few cookies.  This time, I utilized some oranges that a family member g ifted us.  I made  White Chip Orange Cookies .   These were delicious!