Monday, December 21, 2009

Feeling Chatty....

I started my holiday baking last night. I made some combo chip cookies with semi-sweet, milk chocolate, white chips and coconut. They turned out good, but I've never met a chocolate chip cookie that I did not like. Sometimes I put a little bit of oats in them. I like a crisp cookie and both the browned coconut and oats really give a cookie great texture.

I made up sugar cookies with the cookie cutters that I got from Mom and Grandma. I love using their tools. My rolling pin used to be Great Grandma Halfhill's. I like feeling like they are somehow baking right alongside me. Most of my pans belonged to Grandma Halfhill, my strainer, my colander, all the things I use every day. I'd like to add to my pan collection, but I will always use these tools. I trust them.

I have a friend who uses his mother's baking table when he cooks. It's perfect - good height, good size, and you can see the marks she put into the table over the years as she prepared food for her family. What a treasure. He lost his mom way too early, but every meal he prepares, her hand is in it.

That table means a lot to him. I appreciate people who get things like that. New things are nice, but a little family history, there's nothing like it. I want to hand things down to my girls when they have their own families. I want Bailey to be able to grate cheese for tacos with Grandma's grater and Sarah to scoop ice cream with her wooden handle scoop. It might sound silly, but that's just me.

Baking, it really helped to regain my holiday spirit. I've still got a lot left to do - lacy almond cookies and some fudge. Maybe some chocolate krinkles for Mom. Tonight I'm going to make a quiche for dinner. I haven't made one of those in a long time. When I was a hairdresser, I'd take my tips upstairs where I'd pick up quiche and spinach salad for lunch. Yum. That reminds me......I think I need a bag of spinach. I'm going to finish my decorating and my wrapping. Okay, I'm going to start the wrapping - I have nothing under the tree so far. It's going to take me awhile. Good thing I've candy canes and cookies for energy.
Kitty scratched Sarah's face today. Sometimes she's mean and nasty. I try to get Sarah to understand that she can't have her face too close to her. I'm afraid that she's going to get her in the eye. I love my cat, but when she makes my girl cry, I feel like doing a Grandpa Harold, I feel like sending her sailing out the door (he chose the deck, flying kitty - don't worry, she always landed on her feet). I don't. I am gentle with her, but she's going to stay stuck in my bedroom for awhile today.

I'm done with my work-work for the day. Way early. Feels great. I may even get time to read today. Guess what? This was my 300th post. Wow.










3 comments:

Homemom3 said...

Don't you love the season, especially when all the baking happens. I love the memories it makes. I hope you post the recipes, I've never tried them with coconut.

We are doing sugar cookies and chocolate chip cookies for santa. Baking brownies, muffins and other cookies this week. By the way I'd love old pans my nanny use to cook off of, sounds weird but it would feel like she were there with me. I can understand that.

Homemom3 said...

Don't you love the season, especially when all the baking happens. I love the memories it makes. I hope you post the recipes, I've never tried them with coconut.

We are doing sugar cookies and chocolate chip cookies for santa. Baking brownies, muffins and other cookies this week. By the way I'd love old pans my nanny use to cook off of, sounds weird but it would feel like she were there with me. I can understand that. Congrats on the post.

Askew To You said...

I love the baking part and the setting up the tree part, but really I'm better at Christmas in theory rather than in practice.

I will do the cookie recipes over at A Cook's Bounty. I'll email you when they go up.

I hope you have fun doing your baking. I'm glad that you understand about the baking stuff. :) You are sentimental like me. Thanks, Eliza!