[BakerAunt]

We got another three inches of snow overnight from Monday into Tuesday. That snow is not the problem; it's the ice layer that developed underneath from the storm from Saturday into Sunday. We are getting a taste of real winter, which we have not had for a few years.

[BakerAunt]

On Tuesday, I baked a triple recipe of Soft Oatmeal Cookies. I usually use all white whole wheat flour, but this time I replaced a third of it with whole wheat pastry flour, and the texture seems softer, which we like. I also baked Wheat/Rye/Semolina Buns from Len's recipe.

[BakerAunt]

Those pies sound great, Mike.

I made salmon patties for dinner on Tuesday, which we had on the buns I baked today. We also finished the Broccoli-Cauliflower salad.

Earlier, for lunch, I improvised a mushroom soup, playing with a recipe that I tried once before and decided needed some work. I needed to use up 8 oz. of mushrooms. I sauteed them with onion in olive oil, then added 2 Tbs. of whole wheat flour, 1 cup of frozen chicken broth, then used up some evaporated milk left over from last week's pie. I added 2 Tbs. flax meal to thicken it, then a generous dash of sherry. It made one hearty serving. I will continue to play with this recipe.

[BakerAunt]

I'm about to bake Whole Wheat Sourdough Cheese Crackers from the dough I made last week. It is a good project for a cold evening. It was 17 F this morning.

[BakerAunt]

Jack is earning his keep--with a little help from technology!

We are supposed to have more snow, but light, overnight. Our county did a lousy job on our stretch of the road, and people did too much driving on it on Sunday and packed it down, but the state highway is in good shape.

[BakerAunt]

Oh, Joan, I am so sorry. Sending you a virtual hug.

For dinner on Monday, we had salads with mixed greens, on which we put some of the broccoli-cauliflower salad from last night, a few cherry tomatoes that ripened inside, and turkey on top. It was a great fast meal. Scott finished the applesauce, and I had more of my cranberry-dried cherry relish.

[BakerAunt]

We move the tree outdoors as soon as the freeze danger ends. Inside, it has good light from the window, although we are also using light on it this year, in part because elder bonus son left behind a HUGE computer screen when he visited that blocks the window. (I am seriously considering junking the thing, which no one told me he was leaving.)

The tree has had years with fewer limes and years with more. We will see what happens.

[BakerAunt]

On Sunday, I baked Lime-Pecan Biscotti, a recipe that I invented that uses oil rather than butter. I used the two limes from my lime tree, which is now safely parked in the Annex apartment until the weather warms in the spring and there is no danger of it freezing. It usually produces more limes. A squirrel stupidly stole one and probably regretted it after a bite. However, it was just not a year for a lot of limes.

[BakerAunt]

I made broccoli-cauliflower salad for part of Sunday's dinner. I used my broccoli salad recipe. I always delete the red onion, in deference to Scott's digestive system. I use half non-fat Greek yogurt and half low-fat mayonnaise in the dressing. I omitted the bacon, as we have none. I had a partial bag of "salad toppers," which is sunflower seeds, pecans, and dried cherry and cranberry (a Marshall's buy), which I used instead of adding just sunflower seeds and dried cranberry, although. I added some additional dried cranberries and more chopped pecans. It tastes great! We had it with more leftover turkey.

I also roasted sweet potato chunks. This time, I tossed them in avocado oil and roasted them for 30 minutes at 400 F, and they came out perfectly, so higher temperature for a shorter amount of time is desirable.

[BakerAunt]

We are re-running Thanksgiving turkey, dressing, applesauce, and cranberries. and microwaved frozen mixed vegetables.

[BakerAunt]

The snow began here around 9 a.m. Scott drove me to the farmers market so that I could buy salad greens and two dozen eggs. It continued to snow. Scott said we had had about 4 inches when he last shoveled, and he estimates that we have had at least another inch, and it is still snowing.

[BakerAunt]

Chocomouse, my Cuisinart hand mixer went kaput about two years ago. I went back to using my older, smaller Kitchen Aid hand mixer. It is not quite as powerful, but it does a good job and is lighter than the Cuisinart. If it goes, then I will pull out the one from Scott's house that he had when we got married, or I can use the old one from his parents' house. They are not as powerful, but they can get the job done. In those days, they made appliances to last! I don't think my stand mixer should have bitten the dust after not quite fifteen years.

On Saturday, I baked Rye Barley Crispbread, which I have been craving for a while. It mixes up easily by hand, and I always had to knead this heavy dough by hand for 15 minutes. It's topped with sunflower, pumpkin, and sesame seeds, and with the wholegrains, it is a nutritious snack.

I also baked seven Lemon Ricotta Blueberry muffins to use up a half cup of ricotta left from another recipe. It is good to have frozen blueberries from the summer!

[BakerAunt]

I checked their site, Mike, but Mr. Mixer seems to be exclusively Kitchen Aid.

[BakerAunt]

Note: The pumpkin pie came out well, although I had a little bit of wet cracking, and a slight sinkhole. Well, taste is what matters!

On Friday, I made a big batch of Maple Granola, as we are getting low.

We were out of bread after lunch, so I baked the whole grain bread recipe that I have been developing--the one that requires malted wheat flakes that King Arthur appears to have discontinued. I usually bake it as two 9 x 5 loaves, which are almost too much for the pans. I wanted to make three smaller loaves, so I increased the Harvest Grains by ¼ cup, the buttermilk by ½ cup, the flour by ¼ cup, and increased the yeast from 3 ½ tsp. to 3 ¾ tsp. I mixed up the dough, and just as I was starting the kneading process, my mixer stopped. At first, I thought that I had mistakenly hit the timer, but alas, the mixer will no longer turn on, although it will set the timer and count down. I'm glad that it at least mixed the dough before it stopped working. I had to turn out this big mass of dough onto my Silpat mat and knead, which I did for about 17 minutes before I could pull a windowpane. It made three 8 x 4 loaves, just a tad bit smaller than I would prefer. I will see how it is when we slice one for lunch tomorrow.

I do not think my 7-qt Cuisinart stand mixer can be repaired. It was discontinued by Cuisinart, and parts, if needed, are not available. I would not know where to look to find a repair place. I can get by with my two bread machines for now, but I will need to get another stand mixer, and it must be one that can handle heavy doughs and large batches.

[BakerAunt]

We re-ran Thanksgiving dinner, except that we had microwaved frozen mixed vegetables instead of peas. We both had our pumpkin pie in the afternoon, me with coffee, and Scott with tea.

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