Happy Valentine's Day

It's never too late for Valentines, right?!

Butchers the new sex symbol?

This was in the Sunday paper today. The world is finding out what I've always known. =)

http://articles.lancasteronline.com/local/4/248627

Grandma Smucker's Cherry Cake

A recipe that I use around Valentine's Day comes from Jay's mothers' recipe collection. It's simple to make and produces a moist red cake that's topped with whipped cream and cherry pie filling.  The original recipe was made in a 13 x 9 pan but I've tried individual serving, heart-shaped cakes, piped the cream around sides and over the top and covered with the cherry filling.  We used this recipe as a bakery item in our retail store years ago by pouring the mix in large heart-shaped foil pans, layering the same and covered with the clear plastic lids and they were ready to carry home.  I'm sure they would be easy to make as cupcakes and I considered that for my shop breakfast this week but decided that it was too time consuming.

These are the ingredients needed:

1 box yellow cake mix

3 oz. Cherry Jello

1/2 cup oil

1 cup water

1/2 teaspoon red food coloring

4 eggs

1 envelope Dream Whip

15 oz. can pie filling

Mix first 6 ingredients together and beat for 2 minutes. I tripled the recipe to feed the gang Friday morning so my bowl was quite full.  I also forgot to add the food coloring until after I started mixing so it had a swirled look to it until it was thoroughly mixed.

After the cake was baked and cooled I covered the top with whipped topping. 

 I had a little time to play with decorating so I piped the edges and sprinkled with Valentine sprinkles.

Then I filled the space on top with cherry pie filling and added a 'poor excuse of a heart' on top.  (I knew the guys weren't going to judge me on artistic ability - whew!)

Tripling the recipe made this 18 x 13 cake pan plus a 8x8 cake (gave this one to the neighbors).  Trying to fit the large cake into the camera frame had me taking the picture too far away to see detail so this picture makes the cake look like ants are doing the march around the walls of Jericho.

Also til breakfast was deliverered and served it never crossed my mind to snap a photo of a piece of cake to provide a view of the red cake with the layers..... you'll have to try it and see for yourself.

**Baking instructions for 13 x 9 cake:  Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.

Snow makes me schizophrenic

Pictures from 7:00 this morning and it sounds like it's only beginning.  It's a pretty snow and I'm enjoying it knowing I'm homebound with no reason to be anywhere.

Jay, on the other hand, is not a fan of snow.  The business schedule runs on a tightly, synched routine and snow always throws a giant wrench into plans.  And the changes the snow creates are not quickly or easily fixed, rescheduled or addressed. 

So for me it's a pretty snow.  For Jay .... not so much.  I find myself looking out, smiling and my shoulders rise and then I think of Jay....sigh...and my shoulders drop. 

And there's more snow to come this morning  -- yeah!  ............   oh shoot!

New taste

Last week I saw something new at the grocery store - dried kiwifruit.  Maybe it's been available to you before but this was something new for me.  For some reason there were two very different shades of green available.  The one shelf had containers of dried kiwifruit that was greener then the green mint jelly leaf candy you find - it looked too green for me.  The other shelf had containers of fruit that were gray-green looking but I choose this one and looked for the smallest container. 

Now I can enjoy most dried fruit - banana's being my favorite.  The other fruits are grand but are such a high sugar content.  The dried mango's from Costco are addictive.  I thoroughly enjoy fresh kiwifruit and thought I'd give this a whirl.

It was not a winner!  I took one bite, did not swallow it and didn't go back for more.  My first thought was 'it tastes like hay'.  Maybe the greener, fake looking kind was tastier but I doubting that one.  But this experience won't keep my from trying anything knew and interesting.

Quiet Sunday

Snowflakes are one of nature's most fragile things,
 but just look what they do when they stick together.

~ Verna M. Kelly

One kind word can warm three winter months.

~ A Japanese proverb

Snowed in

I was planning to work in my home office all day today - just can't seem to get ahead.  But the snow changed all that.  It was such a quiet, peaceful morning.  Jay & I reading our books knowing we couldn't go anywhere because the contracted folks to clear the cul-de-sac didn't show til after lunch and the snow plow didn't clear out the drive back through until later.  So although I could have done as  I had planned,  everything about the day screamed - relax.  And so I did - read, visited blogs, did some cleaning and stirred around a tad in the kitchen.  Jay had a buddy with a Jeep pick him up and they spent the afternoon plowing out the butcher shop.  What a fun, snowy Saturday.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Studly

Mr. Studly has a birthday today.  And once again Betz has 'done her thing' so I'm directly you to her blog.  The video at the end is something she created herself using all her own photo's.

http://www.meandhimandthetumbleweeds.blogpsot.com/

 Good job, Betz. And Mr. Studly - you are so very loved and I pray your day is grand and special.

Happy Birthday!