Dec 2009
Christmas at the Homestead
31/12/09 16:51 Filed in: Personal
Well, we don't really have a "homestead" per se, at least not yet. But we did have Christmas. It was a little un-traditional, which is normal for us. We went to service on Christmas Eve. It was very nice. We opened stockings and had a very quiet evening. We were done with all the baking, so we all sat down to learn to wood carve! I bought us all blocks and knives, and we sat and worked on wood. It was so much fun! I am making a heart, but I haven't had time to mess with it again because I began painting my living room and dining room.
Christmas Day, for the first time ever, I think, I actually got up and had a cup of coffee, and got to get dressed and fix my hair before we opened presents. I was beginning to wonder if everyone would think I live in my pajamas since each Christmas is filled with pictures of me shrinking away because I am in my jammies. LOL
So, Madison got a German Shepherd Webkinz, her favorite of the toys. She also got rollerblades, Littlest Petshop and other toys.
Roman got rollerblades... they are twins, you know! He also got a video game, and his favorite: a Star Wars blaster gun. The dog says, "Hand over the treats and nobody gets hurt!"
Noah got a dragon video game, which he is very excited about. In fact, Meg is driving him crazy to play it all the time! He also got iTunes cards and a woodburning kit.
Don got a new truck... LOL! He bought himself some toys for it. Noah also bought him a remote controlled helicopter. And I got a printer and a digital recipe filer.
Afterwards, Don and I went for a long bike ride, then we took a ride in his new truck. We went to the truck-stop and got a hot dog... I'm not kidding! Seriously! We watched movies and played with our new toys. We walked our dogs and talked about the upcoming move. We ate ham and green beans for dinner. It was a really relaxed day. PERFECT!
Christmas Day, for the first time ever, I think, I actually got up and had a cup of coffee, and got to get dressed and fix my hair before we opened presents. I was beginning to wonder if everyone would think I live in my pajamas since each Christmas is filled with pictures of me shrinking away because I am in my jammies. LOL
So, Madison got a German Shepherd Webkinz, her favorite of the toys. She also got rollerblades, Littlest Petshop and other toys.
Roman got rollerblades... they are twins, you know! He also got a video game, and his favorite: a Star Wars blaster gun. The dog says, "Hand over the treats and nobody gets hurt!"
Noah got a dragon video game, which he is very excited about. In fact, Meg is driving him crazy to play it all the time! He also got iTunes cards and a woodburning kit.
Don got a new truck... LOL! He bought himself some toys for it. Noah also bought him a remote controlled helicopter. And I got a printer and a digital recipe filer.
Afterwards, Don and I went for a long bike ride, then we took a ride in his new truck. We went to the truck-stop and got a hot dog... I'm not kidding! Seriously! We watched movies and played with our new toys. We walked our dogs and talked about the upcoming move. We ate ham and green beans for dinner. It was a really relaxed day. PERFECT!
My white bread recipe
31/12/09 16:03 Filed in: Cooking and Recipes
Here is my recipe for white bread. We love it! Bread is easy to make, but tricky, and can be a pain to get just the right taste. For more of my recipes, click on the link at the bottom of the post.
Wonderful White Bread
You'd better make 2 loaves, because this will be gone in an instant. Very nice sandwich bread. Low yeast flavor. The ingredients for 1 large or 2 medium loaves is included.
Ingredients
Add all ingredients to Kitchen Aid bowl. I make my water a little hotter than 110, because it will cool in the bowl as I add ingredients. Use the dough hook and mix, watching for it to form a ball. Adjust flour or water as needed to form a ball. Knead 10 minutes. Put the dough into an oiled bowl and let rise until doubled in size, approximately 90 minutes. In the winter, I turn on the oven for a few minutes while the dough is kneading, then turn it off. I put my bowl in the oven for 1 hour and check.
Punch down and shape the loaf (or loaves), place in a greased loaf pan and let rise again until the desired size is reached, approximately another hour.
Bake at 350 for 40 to 45 minutes, until loaf is hollow sounding. If my loaves brown up too much, I place a piece of foil over the top around 20 minutes into baking.
Turn out to cool. Brush with melted butter if you want a soft top.
Direct recipe link: http://keyingredient.com/recipes/186770/
If you have a favorite recipe, feel free to share it in the comments! Thanks!
Wonderful White Bread
You'd better make 2 loaves, because this will be gone in an instant. Very nice sandwich bread. Low yeast flavor. The ingredients for 1 large or 2 medium loaves is included.
Ingredients
- 3 cups bread flour (use only bread flour, not all purpose)
- 1 teaspoon instant yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- ⅓ c dry milk
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup warm water (110 degrees), may need more depending on humidity and type of flour.
- FOR 2 LOAVES:
- 4 ½ cups bread flour (use only bread flour, not all purpose)
- 1 ½ teaspoon instant yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- ½ c dry milk
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 ½ cups warm water (110 degrees)
Add all ingredients to Kitchen Aid bowl. I make my water a little hotter than 110, because it will cool in the bowl as I add ingredients. Use the dough hook and mix, watching for it to form a ball. Adjust flour or water as needed to form a ball. Knead 10 minutes. Put the dough into an oiled bowl and let rise until doubled in size, approximately 90 minutes. In the winter, I turn on the oven for a few minutes while the dough is kneading, then turn it off. I put my bowl in the oven for 1 hour and check.
Punch down and shape the loaf (or loaves), place in a greased loaf pan and let rise again until the desired size is reached, approximately another hour.
Bake at 350 for 40 to 45 minutes, until loaf is hollow sounding. If my loaves brown up too much, I place a piece of foil over the top around 20 minutes into baking.
Turn out to cool. Brush with melted butter if you want a soft top.
Direct recipe link: http://keyingredient.com/recipes/186770/
If you have a favorite recipe, feel free to share it in the comments! Thanks!
