Valentine's Day

I am always looking for tasty recipes for snacks that do not include a lot of sugar or other unhealthy ingredients. Recently I found a couple delightful recipes on Pintrest that are not only healthy but delicious! Today I made up a double batch of Crispy Chocolate Almond Butter Bites. I altered the recipe a bit by changing out the almond butter for peanut butter. This recipe is definitely one I will be making again. : )

Crispy Chocolate Almond Butter Bites

♦ 1/4 cup coconut oil

♦ 1/2 cup cocoa powder

♦ 1/2 cup smooth almond butter or peanut butter

♦ 1/4 cup raw honey or maple syrup

♦ 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

♦ 1 cup crispy rice

Directions:

Melt the coconut oil in a microwave or stovetop. Add all the ingredients (EXCEPT THE CRISPY RICE) in a blender or food processor. (I prefer my food processor) Blend. Dump in the crispy rice and stir

Place the mixture in silicone trays or mini muffin tins with muffin tin wrappers. Put in the refrigerator or freezer to set. (Minimum 10 minutes.) If using a silicone tray and you want a smoother finish, really press them firmly into the tray. You may have to play around with a few!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Embroidery

Recently I completed embroidering this beautiful pattern from Clementine Patterns. It had been a while since I had worked on an embroidery project for myself. This was so enjoyable! I anticipated the arrival of each Sunday afternoon, as this was my designated embroidering time.

The "raspberries" were created by stitching french knots in different thread strands, two strands towards the center and one strand around the outer edges. This really gave them a wonderful dimension.

The instructions were easy to follow, and the presentation lovely! I would highly recommend Clementine Patterns to anyone who enjoys embroidery.

This pattern is part of a series representing the four seasons. I originally ordered "summer" which is "His Merceis are New". I was delighted when the shop owners offered me second complimentary pattern since the wait was longer than originally estimated.

Here is a photo of the second pattern I began recently, "Praise God" (spring). I look forward to seeing both framed. They will be a lovely addition to my home, especially since they will be a beautiful reminder of God's great mercies and blessings!

A New Name

Last week I changed the name of my Etsy shop to "Lilacs in Spring". I felt it would be a good idea to continue the theme with my blog, so I have decided to change my blog name to "Lilacs and Springtime". I am not sure if this will have any ramifications on those who follow my blog, but I thought I would give you all a heads up that if it appears I have disappeared it is just that my blog name has changed.

January Days

It is hard to believe so much time has passed since my last post! Christmas and the New Year just flew by.

The Christmas season was blessed and busy. My mother and I spent many late evenings sewing pioneer and colonial dresses for little girls, as well as, nightgowns and aprons for ladies. The LORD abundantly blessed our sewing efforts through our website The Scarlet Thread. It is always so pleasant to imagine all the little girls opening up special packages Christmas morning that we had a part in sewing.

 With the beginning of a new year my mind is filled with new sewing inspirations. As I busily work on orders for our family business I have also been taking out some time to sew new items for my Etsy shop. Another fun project I hope to begin very soon is my wedding gown. : ) I have been gathering ideas from many websites, and I think I have a fairly good idea of the style.

January is a great month. There is a sort of calm after the storm of holiday rushing. It is a great time to relax, catch up and collect your thoughts. Lately I have enjoyed the peaceful routine of sewing with a cup of tea not too far away….

Today I admire the beautiful roses on my dresser- such a sweet reminder of my dear Adam’s love.

Yesterday afternoon I baked a double batch of oatmeal cookies, enough to share with family. Here is my favorite recipe! I used dates in place of the raisins.

"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
    I will counsel you with my loving eye on you." Psalm 32:8

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

The famous Longfellow brothers were born and raised in Portland, Maine, in the 1800’s. Henry Wadsworth was born in 1807, and younger brother Samuel arrived in 1819. Henry became a Harvard professor of literature and one of America’s greatest writers, and Samuel became a Unitarian minister and hymnist.

While Henry was publishing his books, however, dark clouds were gathering over his life and over all of America. In 1861, his wife tragically died when her dress caught fire in their home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. That same year, the Civil War broke out. Two years later, Henry’s son Charley, age seventeen, ran away from home and hopped aboard a train to join President Lincoln’s army.

Charley proved a brave and popular soldier. He saw action at the Battle of Chancellorsville in 1863, but in early June he contracted typhoid fever and malaria and was sent home to recover. He missed the Battle of Gettysburg, but by August Charley was well enough to return to the field. On November 27, during the Battle of New Hope Church in Virginia, he was shot through the left shoulder. The bullet nicked his spine and came close to paralyzing him. He was carried into the church and later taken to Washington to recuperate.

 Receiving the news on December 1, 1863, Henry immediately left for Washington. He found his son well enough to travel, and they headed back to Cambridge, arriving home on December 8. For weeks Henry sat by his son’s bedside, slowly nursing his boy back to health.

On Christmas day, December 25, 1863, Henry gave vent to his feelings in this plaintive carol that can only be understood against the backdrop of war. Two stanzas now omitted from most hymnals speak of the cannons thundering in the South and of hatred tearing apart “the hearth-stones of a continent.” The poet feels like dropping his head in despair, but then he hears the Christmas bells. Their triumphant pealing reminds him that “God is not dead, nor doth He sleep.”

 The Sunday school children of the Unitarian Church of the Disciples in Boston first sang the carol during that year’s Christmas celebration. How wonderful that such a song could emerge from the bloody clouds of the War Between the States.

From "Come Let Us Adore Him" by Robert J. Morgan

Coleslaw, Caramel Popcorn and a Christmas Movie

Yesterday evening my mom, Adam and I enjoyed a dinner of turkey coleslaw sandwiches, caramel popcorn and a really fun Christmas movie!

A sandwich favorite in our home all began with the movie “Remember the Night” staring Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck. In the movie the two main characters enjoy eating coleslaw sandwiches on their trip back home for Christmas. Being a fan of coleslaw already, the idea of adding coleslaw to a sandwich certainly appealed to me.

We always seem to make our coleslaw sandwiches with turkey. I will toast the sandwiches in the frying pan with the turkey, coleslaw and cheese. Then we add a little barbeque sauce.

Here is my favorite coleslaw recipe:

Coleslaw-

1 med. Head cabbage
1 lg. carrot
1 med. Onion
1 green pepper
2/3 cup vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. celery seed

Shred cabbage, carrot and onion in food processor. Chop green pepper. Combine vinegar, sugar, oil, salt and celery seed. Pour over vegetables. Chill.

So since we were watching "Remember the Night" I just had to make coleslaw sandwiches. : )

Mom and I have wanted to try our hand at making some delicious old-fashioned caramel popcorn. The recipe I used came from the “Better Homes and Gardens” cookbook.

Here is the recipe:

Caramel Popcorn-

 10 cups popped popcorn
1 cup pecans 
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
3/4 cup butter
1/3 cup light-colored corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Remove all unpopped kernels from popped popcorn. Put popcorn and, if desired, nuts into a 17x12x2-inch roasting pan. Keep popcorn warm in the oven while making the caramel mixture.
2. Butter a large piece of foil; set aside. For caramel, in a medium saucepan, combine brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture boils. Continue boiling at a moderate, steady rate, without stirring, for 5 minutes more.
3. Remove saucepan from heat. Stir in baking soda and vanilla. Pour caramel over popcorn; stir gently to coat. Bake for 15 minutes. Stir mixture; bake for 5 minutes more. Spread caramel corn on prepared foil; cool. Place caramel corn in gift container; cover with plastic wrap.

Also, I have added a couple more vintage cookbooks to my Etsy shop. You can see them here.
 

Thanksgiving

Here are some photos from my Thanksgiving Day. It was a beautifully sunny day and unseasonably warm for November here in upstate New York.

Mom, my sister Rachel and I spent most of Wednesday busy in the kitchen. We listened to Christmas music and had a great time just being together. Since Rachel married in 2011, it always a treat to have her at home cooking with us. : )

The photo above is of our table setting and the three pies Rachel and I baked. I am always on a quest to find the best pecan pie recipe. This year I tried a recipe I found on the Country Cook website- one of my favorite places to find recipes.

Mom busy in the kitchen! Each year mom cooks up the best meat dressing. The recipe is one that has been handed down several generations by my mother's relatives from Germany. Yum!

                                                       The house looking cozy and busy. : )

Here is a recipe for the rolls I baked: yeast rolls. I thought it was a tasty recipe.

       Me and my dear Adam. I was peeling potatoes when my sister Hannah wanted to snap our photo.

Micah, my most adorble nephew, celebrating his first Thanksgiving. He tried butternut squash for the first time, and loved it. Doesn't he look sooo cute sitting up at the table?

                                         My sister Rachel and her husband Spencer- Micah's mom and dad.

                                                              Mom and my sister Hannah.
                                  We all had a wonderful day filled with the LORD’s abundant blessings!

Last night we watched "By the Light of the Silvery Moon"; it is a Thanksgiving tradition. I thought I would share this song as it is so much fun, and made me think of all the excitment at our house.



Also , from November 24th through November 30th all items in my Etsy shop will be 10% off. Just use coupon code 10percent when checking out. : ) I am adding some new items over the next day or two.