Artisan Bread

Ahhh....the house smells so heavenly today. Steve wants a ham and bean soup tonight, so the crockpot has been on all day. The aroma of fresh garlic and rosemary has permeated my house.

He also wants bread. Not cornbread as most people would want with a bean soup, but a nice crusty bread. OK back to the 1000's of bread recipes I have.

Today's choice: Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes!

That's right! Yummy, warm artisan bread can be yours in just 5 minutes a day! Mix up this recipe and you can have 4 loaves of fresh bread over the next 2 weeks by investing 5 minutes of time.

Pumpkin Roll Cake

Mmmmm........what is that smell?

It's pumpkin. It's cinnamon and clove. It is the unmistakable scent of the holidays.

Pumpkin pie is a staple for Thanksgiving. Everyone makes it. We make it in mass quantities! You just grab the can of pumpkin and use the recipe on the back.

But sometimes you want something different. Something a little more sweet. Maybe a little more elegant. Something you can take to the potluck at work and wow everyone with your amazing skills.

What? You don't have amazing pastry skills? It's OK. I got ya covered.

Pumpkin Roll Cake!!!

And The Craziness Begins!

OK, not so much...This is the beginning of quite a busy week. There are pies to bake and a turkey to roast. Celery to clean and stuff, and a house to clean. Ughh, it is the never-ending cycle of things to do. The kids have school today and tomorrow, so that gives me a little bit of time to get something done....Now just to pull myself up off this chair and get to work.

C'mon.....get up......

Yeah it's not happenin'. I have yet to take in enough coffee to motivate me to do anything. As soon as it kicks in, I am goin' to clean this pigpen up a bit, then for your enjoyment, I am making a Pumpkin Roll cake today.

Should have made it yesterday.....it would've paired nicely with my coffee this morning.....

Peach-Orange Cranberry Sauce

What is Thanksgiving without cranberry sauce? Just another boring turkey dinner!! Who can resist the tart, yet sweet goodness that accompanies turkey dinners everywhere?

Did you know that cranberries are good for you too? Yep, full of Vitamin C and anti-oxidants. You know..."the ninja fruit'! If you go HERE you can find out more about cranberries.

A few years ago, my mother-in-law decided to try her hand at making cranberry sauce instead of reaching for the stuff in the can.

Well, the result turned out to be

Cards for the Holidays

It's that time of the year..............time to start ordering Christmas cards.

Not quite sure yet as to what I want this year. A few years ago, we did a simple flat photo card with a picture of #1 and #2. Well, now we have #3 and #4 too!

I was thinking about something along these lines.

I really like this one too!

A family photo is out of the question! If we can get in the car or sit at the table, all at once without someone fighting or screaming, it is a miracle! Single pics of the boys will suffice.


There are so many choices out there.

Do you get photo cards? What was that? You have more than one photo that you want on your cards?

Not a problem! Check out Shutterfly's Christmas and Holiday cards

There are tons of options!

Now, do you want a flat card or a folded card?

Check out the Holiday Story Cards. They are designed to tell all about your family's year. Great idea for friends and family that are far away and don't visit often.

Don't forget that Shutterfly has cards for the rest of the year too! What about that new bundle of joy you are expecting? Go here for Baby Cards.

Don't for get mom! Check out the full line of cards for mom!

Oh, hey! I almost forgot!

Bloggers get 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly. Learn more: http://bit.ly/sfly2010

Head on over to Shutterfly and order your cards for the holiday season!

Holidays and Baking

I love the holiday season! OK, I don't love the crowded stores and stress of finding the perfect present. I love the baking....pies, cakes, candies, fudge.....and cookies.

Lots and lots of cookies!

Every year, I bake anywhere from 5 to 8 varieties of cookies, plus at least 5 kinds of pie and who knows how many types of candies and fudge.

This year will be no different.

An apology.......and Chili!!!

Gee...it has been quite a while since I have written anything. To those who read my blog often, I am sorry for the lack of updates. With Halloween and scouts and all the other things we have going on, I haven't even had a second to myself. But, here I am, and I brought my chili recipe!