Meanwhile, in Santa's workshop...

...in a manner of speaking. That's the first day's baking. Two kinds of Christmas cookies (noels and peanut butter Kiss cookies), plus plain peanut butter cookies for DH.

The wrap/shawl/lap afghan is a large Cozy (pattern for free on Knitty) which is to be my MiL's Christmas present. I bound off, washed and dried it today.

Yesterday I made lavender shortbread and fruit and nut bars. We'll be well-stocked for our open house on Christmas Day!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm thankful for many things this year: my husband, other family, friends, good health...our house.

And as always, knitting (yarn!) and food.

But I AM knitting...really

It's just that it's all gift knitting. And some (though not all) of the recipients read the blog, and so I'm stuck keeping track and/or griping about it on Knitty, to the cats, or to DH.

In other news, I did make DH's birthday cake today. Chocolate with chocolate marzipan filling and almond buttercream frosting. The leftovers I turned into cupcakes (filled) for the Rhode Island Antiques Mall Black Friday Sale.

And now, for the Circus

Here we are...another Chifferobe event. Lady Medusa and The Ringmaster!

Getting Closer...and a birthday wish

...to the holidays and all. But first: Happy Birthday, Meg! (My baby sister...who turned none-of-your-business this year. Wish I could see you today.)

We went for a drive yesterday and ended up at the North Shore (Manchester-by-the-Sea, Beverly Farms, etc., in MA). A lovely day and a gorgeous area.

The first thing we hit was a church craft fair/Christmas sale. We passed on the crafts, but found some wonderful things at the White Elephant sale...including tins for holding cookies, a nice glass jar for candies, a needlepoint pillow and more. Cost? A whopping $2.00!

The book sale yielded some goodies, too; DH found a birding guide, we got a few vintage boys adventure books, and I found another narrow basket--I use them to hold produce on the cellarway. I've paid as much as $10.00 for one. This one set me back twenty-five cents. And...DH spotted a vintage Swansdown Cake Flour promotional booklet from 1939. It's in sad condition, but still readable. The endorser is Kate Smith (the Kate Smith who sang Irving Berlin's "God Bless America"). Great recipes! I'm going to use the Almond Butter Cream frosting for DH's birthday cake in a week or so.

We pressed on, to a LYS, as I needed yarn for a gift project. We stopped at the shop we've been to previously and walked in on a signing and trunk show for Ann Weaver.

Yes, we bought the book! DH has already requested the cabled scarf/wrap, etc. pattern (can't remember the name of it now); about 200 yards of worsted cables, with button and buttonholes to take it from one incarnation to another.

She was fun to talk to, and we stayed a while. She was also very gracious about a scarf and hat I designed and made last year (I wore them yesterday), but never wrote up. It's not on the blog, though I might have mentioned it in passing.

She's even offered to be a test knitter. So if you're reading this, Ann, I really do intend to find the pattern notes and send them on; failing that, I'll read the end results and send that. I'm not sure exactly when, but I will do it!

I am doing some knitting--and finished some more--but can't mention any of it until after the holidays.

On a final knitterly note, my KnitPicks package just came. I used the gift certificate my sister sent me more than a year ago and used it toward a couple of blocking board squares and some sock yarn. It was on the doorstep when we came home last night!

Veterans Day / Armistice Day

Today is Veterans Day (US) or Armistice Day. "Happy" seems an odd word to tack on to either one, but it's an important day to remember.

So to all the veterans I know--and don't know--thank you. This includes my father, my great uncle, my husband and father-in-law, my good friend Nathan, my ex-husband and his father...and many, many more.

There are many books about war, in all centuries, non-fiction and fiction. If you are interested in a slightly biased account that is an excellent first-hand depiction, I recommend The Ladies From Hell, by R. Douglas Pinkerton.

He was a Scot who penned a fairly short, terse memoir that includes enough of the horrors of trench warfare to give an idea of what these men--mostly very young men--went through.

At present, there are several modern mystery authors who write of the post WWI period, including Jacqueline Winspear, who writes the Maisie Dobbs series.

An excellent post WWI (Great War) mystery of the Golden Age of mystery is Dorothy L. Sayers's The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club. Her own husband, Mac, was a veteran who suffered from mustard gas damage and shell shock.

So, again: thank you everyone, for serving your country.

Cocktail Time

This is an Ideal Cocktail, courtesy of the Savoy Cocktail Book.

Recipe:


Ideal Cocktail

2 parts gin
1 part Italian [sweet] vermouth
3 dashes Maraschino liqueur
1 tbl. grapefruit juice

Shake over clean ice; strain.

The original recipe calls for "a small nut" for garnish. (I passed.)


Happy Weekend!

On your mark...

Go! Here we are heading into the holidays. I got a jump start with all that preserving / canning.

Since I went so crazy last year, with the tree being decorated almost entirely with handmade ornaments (I'm not sure I ever want to see royal icing again) this year will probably be relatively low-key in that respect.

Thanksgiving first, of course. As we ate at home last year, we're going out this time. DH doesn't want to make it into a trip, so we'll be dining locally at one of the "fine" restaurants in the area--we're spoiled for choice, so it's bound to be good, no matter the place.

I think I want to make a dessert, though. Once we climb out of our food coma, there will be something good on hand...a couple of years ago I made a cranberry polenta tart, courtesy of a recipe from the New York Times. That's a front-runner; so is apple pie. We found more RI Greenings!

So what are the Christmas plans?

*See if the tree will be safe with the traditional ornaments, now that the cats are three.

*Finish the (minimal) gift shopping and send things off. I probably won't include cookies this year, it will be preserves instead.

*Do the bind-off on MiL's gift, which is otherwise finished. The second gift is done, too (can't show it, I think the recipient reads the blog), and I need to dig out the pattern for the third gift to be made.

*New this year: mince pies, now that I have the homemade mincemeat. Also, I want to make a plum pudding. On Halloween night I made candied orange and lemon peel, which are necessary for a traditional pudding.

*Dinner at home, as usual, though maybe we'll do the big one on Christmas Eve and then have brunch, followed by tea on Christmas Day.

Everyone take a deep breath, make your lists, and we'll all be fine. (Bookmark this and feel free to come back and laugh at me in about five weeks if you like.)

Vote

It's not a right everyone enjoys, even today. Revel in it; let your voice be heard.

Only seven

Only seven trick-or-treaters this year. But a five year old did tell his mother to tell me that we had good jack o'lanterns, which I was glad to hear. It was fun to carve them.

The smiling fella is copied from an October 1926 Good Housekeeping (one of the ads), and the other a product of my retro brain. I think he looks the part, too.

I hope you had a happy Halloween. Ours was good...and I've got lots of roasted pumpkins seeds. A nice dividend from the pumpkins!

All Hallow's Eve Eve

The mask and its holder.

I hope you've got lovely spooky plans for this weekend.

Tick...tick...tick...

...Halloween is approaching.

This year we are not giving a party of our own, but will be going to a Chifferobe event.

That is, DH will be attending and I'm one of the actors; the main event theme is a murder mystery.

I've made myself this to go with the mid-30s gown I'll be wearing:

This is how it looked a few days ago while still drying. It's a paper mache mask, made with newsprint and old-fashioned flour paste. It's since been painted and attached to a stick.

Tonight's the night, so with any luck I'll be posting photos of our capers soon.

Recipe: Cranberry Marmalade

I've received a request for the cranberry marmalade recipe. The title of this blog post is linked to the original post about the making of it; those photos will give you a good idea of what it should look like, start to finish.

Cranberry marmalade is just a little more refined than cranberry relish, and contains the same sort of ingredients.

The making is straightforward, but you will have to be on hand for most of the cooking; as with most preserves, the high sugar content makes it liable to catch, and when the cranberries first begin to cook, they will foam quite high and need to be stirred down frequently. Make sure the pot/kettle you use has high sides. A 4-1/2 quart dutch oven is just large enough.

Cranberry Marmalade

2-1/2 lbs. washed and picked-over cranberries (frozen may be used)
2-1/2 lbs. white sugar
1-1/4 c. grapefruit juice
1 lemon; 1 orange; 1/4 grapefruit

Strip the zest, discarding the pith (the bitter white portion of the peel); cut into very thin slivers and set aside. Juice the citrus fruits next; set aside.

Stir water & sugar together until dissolved, over low heat. Add cranberries, juice, and zest.

Simmer until it jells. (This should take about an hour.) The simplest jell test is this: dip a wooden spoon into the mixture and allow the liquids to drop off the long side. When two drops come together into one before falling, the mixture is jelled. Cranberries contain plenty of natural pectin; it's not necessary to add any more.

Pour the mixture into sterilized jars, and cover. When cool, cover with a thin layer of melted paraffin. When that has cooled, add one more. When all wax is solid, replace covers and store in a cool place.

If you prefer to process in a water bath, process for 25 minutes.

Makes approximately ten 8 oz. jars.

The Last Four Apples

I had to do something with them.
Dutch Apple Cake, circa 1939, from The New Hood Cook Book: 1195 Modern Recipes, Covering All Types of Food Preparation in American Homes.

Quite a few 30s cookbooks have recipes for this treat. There is some variety in prepartion, but it's generally a combination of sliced apples and rich biscuit dough. This particular recipe puts the apples on the bottom, in a mixture of brown sugar, butter, cinnamon and a bit of cream.

It's very good; I've made it once before, and it improves on standing. And I recommend it be served as indicated in the cookbook, with some heavy cream. Pry out your serving, flip it over, and dribble the cream through the apples and the brown sugar sauce. It makes a marvelous breakfast!

And yes, I made one more preserve: apple-ginger marmalade. The initial recipe was from 1930, but it was too sweet for me, and didn't contain much ginger, so I fiddled with it quite a bit. We'll see how it is after a few weeks.

Next time, I hope, there will be some knitting content. I'm working on those plain gray socks for DH. Very cozy, ribbed all the way. I've finished the first one, and cast on for the second last night.

And I'll have an antique knitting item to show, too. My husband found me a dpn case in a local shop yesterday. It's gold-stamped leather, and to my untutored eye, it looks like an Edwardian piece, probably picked up overseas on vacation. Very pretty, and still useful. One steel needle is still in the case, I think it's a 000.

Cranberry Marmalade...harvest canning continued

It's not unlike cranberry relish, but it's cooked longer and has a more delicate flavor. I'm pretty well pleased with this recipe, but next year I will probably double the citrus.

We'll be giving some of these as gifts, some with the usual breakfast stuffs, and I can't wait to try it with roast duck!

Apple Pie

...and applesauce cheddar turnovers.

Mock (Green Tomato) Mincemeat

Two posts today! I've had a few requests for the recipe, and it seemed easier just to put it here and provide links (yes, this means that I'm lazy).

This will make two scant pints. Lots of booze...if you want to make it less costly, use all cider, and give the stuff a drink now and again in the traditional manner, instead of canning it.

You could also easily up the apple/tomato portions to one pound each. I had only 12 oz. of green tomatoes, so that's what I used.



Mock (Green Tomato) Mincemeat

1 navel orange (pulp free of membranes, chopped; zest chopped)
zest of one lemon; half its juice
~12 oz. finely chopped (peeled, cored )apple
~12 oz. finely chopped (cored) green tomato
1/2 c. each of these dried fruits: currants, cherries, cranberries
1/4 c. each of these dried fruits: golden sultanas, apricots
2/3 c. sugar; 1 tbl. molasses
3/4 c. brandy [I used cognac)
1/4 c. Cointreau
1/4 c. sweet cider
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. clove
5 grinds black pepper
1/8 tsp. salt



Chop all fruits and zest in roughly uniform size...about equal to a large raisin for dried fruits, 2x as big for fresh. Mix everything together.

Simmer over very low heat, stirring frequently so it doesn't catch, for two hours. It will be very thick, dark, and sticky. Taste for seasoning; adjust if necessary. Remove cinnamon stick.

If canning, process for 25 to 30 minutes in a water bath.

More apples

Applesauce and bourbon apples.



















Yesterday I made mock (green tomato) mincemeat.









Does anyone know where I can get traditional mini pie tins? I think we're having mince pies this Christmas!

Apple Roll-Call

Thus far...

apple marmalade, cinnamon apple jelly, cider applesauce, bourbon apple slices, and Dutch apple cake.

Tomorrow: green tomato/apple mock mincemeat.

The Jelly Cupboard

Here's part of what we brought home on Sunday.

And here is DH, doing his part.


Apple marmalade under way...


As of this evening there's a second batch, and a batch of cinnamon apple jelly. Next I'm planning on applesauce. Any more ideas? I think there will still be apples!