SpruceHill

Family time

A picture from my walk in the woods last weekend 

There is much activity around Spruce Hill. The girls are having a ball with all their cousins. There are a total of seven young teen aged girls and one 7 year old running around, having fun with make overs, filming movies and jumping on the trampoline in the freezing cold. They only surface for food.

It's been a long chat fest for the rest of us, sitting in the kitchen sipping coffee and tea and chatting up a storm. Today is our last full day together, and then everyone has to head home. Tomorrow morning will be full of tears.

Thankful

Whew I have had a busy few days full of cooking and cleaning! Everyone has arrived and the house is bursting with Family. We are planning a nice big family dinner for this evening. I have prepared a lot of dishes ahead so I can enjoy the day. It's very quiet sitting here in the kitchen with my cup of coffee. Everyone is still snuggled into their beds. But soon the house will be bustling with activity. I love this time of day.

 
Thanksgiving really has changed for me since my breast cancer diagnosis. I have so much to be thankful for. Thankful to be healthy and alive. Thankful for my girls and my wonderful husband. For the love we have for each other and our children. Our home and little farm. For our siblings and families. We are so blessed.

This thanksgiving I am especially grateful that I am here. To see my girls enjoying their family. For the hugs and kisses I get everyday. For all of the breaths I take and for every moment that takes my breath away.

 
Happy thanksgiving to everyone. May you be blessed on this wonderful day and for many days to come.

Orange zested cranberry sauce

 
Thanksgiving is creeping up on us. I have been trying to prepare anything I can ahead of time. Yesterday I made my cranberry sauce. It is a very simple thing to make and beats the canned stuff any day.

Here is what you need.

1 bag of fresh cranberries

1 cup of Sugar

1 cup of Water

1/2 to 1 Teaspoon of orange zest (you can add as much or as little as you like, it is completely up to your tastes)

1 to 2 Tablespoons of fresh squeezed orange juice.

In a medium sized sauce pan add water and sugar. Bring to a boil and then add cranberries and orange zest and juice. Simmer for about 15 minutes over medium to low heat.

 
Pour into a bowl and allow to cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until needed or if you make it ahead like I did go ahead and put it into a storage container and put it in the freezer. Remove it from the freezer and put it in the fridge about 24 hours before you need to use it.

 

Christmas/Holiday Gift Idea.....Pioneer Woman's Cookbook

Well If you are a fan of Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond, I would recommend to go right out and buy her new cookbook! It is full of her wonderful mouth watering recipes and is chalked full of her beautiful photography too!

I have made many of her recipes and let me tell you they are all stellar. You can always count of them being delicious and full of flavor. Her recipes are partly responsible for my growing waistline, but life is short so why not eat well while you are here?

I am buying several of her books as Christmas gifts, any home cook would love to have this cookbook in their library! If you are lucky enough to be near a city where Ree is doing a book signing, I encourage you to go out and meet her and get some books signed. I hear it is well worth it! I have my eyes set on this one!

West Chester, PA
Sunday, December 13, 2009
2:30 pm
CHESTER COUNTY BOOK & MUSIC COMPANY
975 Paoli Pike
West Chester, PA

My Brother lives in West Chester! Road trip!

Christmas/Holiday gift idea: Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce

Well If you haven't noticed already, Halloween is over and the Christmas commercials have already started. We have also been bombarded by Christmas catalogs already. I thought I would do a little series of simple gift ideas this year.

This is my homemade hot fudge sauce recipe that I posted about before. It is a recipe from my Aunt Janie that is my absolute favorite thing to eat on my ice cream. It has ruined all other hot fudge for me. But that's ok, It is very easy to make and keeps well in the fridge.

 
This summer I made my first attempt and canning jelly and I thought to myself why not can the hot fudge? So I tried it last week and it worked out so well. I added a little fabric to the top of the jar and tied it off with some brown twine. You can also print out the recipe on a small card and attach it to your gift. It is so easy and is very inexpensive. It would be a great gift for a teacher or even those hard to buy for people on your list, and I am sure everyone has a chocolate lover on their list. I am always looking for great inexpensive gifts for the holidays.

What are some of your favorite handmade gifts you have received?