Paper Angels

 

Years ago I attended a community Christmas dinner at Mommy's church and I remember walking into their gym and seeing the many tables beautifully decorated with angels. So many angels. When I looked closer, I saw that each angel was simply cut from a single sheet of heavy white paper, like card stock or cover stock.

I did not take one of the angels from the table when the meal was over. My mother taught me not to take without asking. But later thanks to heroic efforts by Mommy and one of the associate ministers at that church, they tracked down a paper angel for me. And they shared a website that showed how to fold these adorable angels. The directions were in some slavic language, but the pictures were useful.

Jessica and I made stacks of these angels for a cattlemen's dinner the following year. And yay for me, I saved the angels and added them to my accumulation of Christmas table decorations. (I decorated for the cattlemen's association for years.) So when a friend asked this week if I remembered how to make the angels, I told her we could use one of mine to trace some for her. I thought it would be good for Joanne to see the original link but I cannot find that original site. I thought it might be wise to make a new set of instructions right here. In English.

These are so easy to make. And they are extremely economical. It just takes time. The tracing was the hardest part. This morning I realized that as I was making a new, more permanent pattern, I could print the cutting lines and eliminate the tracing.

This is what the printed pattern looks like.

Fold it in half to cut.

If you trace by hand, you would fold the paper first and place your template on the fold.

YOU CUT THIS OUT FOLDED!

When I first saw the pattern I thought that cutting out the interior around the head was going to be impossible without tiny sharp scissors. But then realized that if you cut the line above the head (see blue arrow) first, you just keep cutting around the arms and head. Then it was pretty simple.

I cut this one with my not-so-sharp scissors I use for gift wrap.

It's possible that you might need to smooth out the printed/traced lines as you cut. And when I printed the pattern, the lines didn't quite reach the edge of the paper. You crafty people can extend it to the edge. Try to cut so that the pencil/printer line is cut off. My goal was to have a pure white angel. I didn't always achieve my goal.

Open the paper enough to make the angel stand, arms straight up.

Fold the arms and trumpet forward, giving a little pinch at the shoulders.

And then fold the arms down, pinching the "hands" at the trumpet.

You can download the PDF for the angel pattern here: Paper Angel Template   I hope. I've never attached a PDF to the blog. If you are the artsy type, you could freehand the pattern onto folded paper and make a template.

Friend Joanne is going to put an angel on a charger plate with greenery and votive candles. I honestly don't remember exactly how I used them on the tables years ago. I do remember that the air from the heat vents would blow them over. They are only paper. So I taped them to the table on the back side.

Countdown To Thanksgiving

Macaroni Pie  

One week until Thanksgiving! Made a trip to the grocery store this morning to pick up a few things I knew we needed. And like some of you, I found empty shelves. No cans of cranberry sauce. But I did buy fresh cranberries. I can make my own cranberry sauce. I like both kinds. Cranberry sauce in the shape of the can sometimes sits side by side with the fresh kind. Everybody is happy.

Yesterday my Zoom knitting group spent our hour talking about Thanksgiving instead of knitting. Our group has knitters from NYC, Tennessee, Maryland, Texas, Georgia, Washington state, and South Carolina. It was interesting to hear what is "always" on the table in different parts of the country.

Here in our house possibly the most important dish—besides the turkey—is macaroni and cheese. We called  it "macaroni pie" all of my life. At least until I was grown. And somehow that morphed into a more standard name. But macaroni pie is probably more accurate. This recipe has been handed down in our family for several generations.

You might make it with a cheese sauce. But here in our little corner of the state, it's the "pie" version that reigns supreme. Some of the knitters were surprised that mac and cheese was considered a Thanksgiving item. 

They didn't understand. ALL meals here include macaroni and cheese. It's a standard for Sunday dinners and church covered dish dinners. It's comfort food at funeral meals. It sits beside the picnic food on the 4th of July. And it's a side dish in BBQ restaurants. I've even seen macaroni cheese bites as a appetizer.

People wonder about our "no cheese sauce" mac and cheese. But it's the only one I know. I was surprised and delighted when we watched the Netflix documentary High On The Hog and heard about George Washington's chef making his specialty—macaroni pie—at Mount Vernon. The historian told how it was made. And it was really close to our recipe. Even here, there are variations of the basics. I've seen as many as nine oblong dishes of macaroni and cheese lined up on a table in the church fellowship hall. I doubt anyone makes it exactly the same. But the end result is nearly identical.

Here is our recipe. I often put it together the night before and get a head start on my prep. Layer the macaroni and cheese, cover, then refrigerate until the next day. When it's time to bake it, mix the milk and eggs and pour over. 

MACARONI PIE

16-oz. box elbow macaroni (we like the small elbows)

16-oz. sharp Cheddar cheese (NY sharp when I can find it)

4 cups milk (any kind from fat-free to whole)

4 eggs

1 teaspoon salt

a sprinkle of black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook macaroni according to directions on the box. Drain. While macaroni cooks, grate the cheese. Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with PAM. Put half the macaroni in the baking dish, layer half the cheese over it, add the rest of macaroni and then the remaining cheese.

Mix the milk, eggs, salt and pepper. Pour over the macaroni and cheese. Use just enough to cover the macaroni.  (Sometimes I don’t use quite all of the milk/egg mixture. And I have been known to add a little bit more milk if the 4-cups didn't cover it.)

Bake, uncovered, for 35-45 minutes, until lightly browned on top.  Let rest for about 15 minutes before serving so that it "sets."

Y'ALL!!!! I'm sitting here writing this, with a Hallmark Christmas movie playing to keep me company. The grandma and mother just decided "it's time to share the family mac and cheese recipe" with the daughter They put it together while singing Christmas music. It looked like they make it t like I do. The movie was A Holiday In Harlem.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And should your store also be sold out of cranberry sauce, have no fear. If you can find fresh cranberries, make this. It's easy. It's delicious. Thanks to Mommy who made this it first. Hang on the this recipe just in case.

CRANBERRY SAUCE

1 lb. fresh cranberries, washed
2 cups sugar
1/3 cup water
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 orange, zested and juiced

Combine berries, sugar and water in a medium saucepan and stir together. Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat. Reduce to a simmer and stir in cinnamon stick and ground spices. Simmer for another 5 to 7 minutes. Some of the berries will burst. Some will remain whole. Add orange juice and zest and stir. Cool before serving.

Another Year In The Rearview Mirror

It was my birthday weekend. Another trip around the sun. And felt like I went around quicker than the year before. Not telling my age—although it's not a secret. But my email inbox is now full of mail shouting things like "Tinnitus!" "Silver Singles." (Yes. I am silver. No. I am not single.) "Need hearing aids?" "Silver Sneakers." Those come along with more emails for burial insurance and recommendations for home care aides, and invitations to tour various retirement communities. Somebody out there evidently thinks I need this information.

But I don't feel quite as old as the calendar indicates. All of my joints still work pretty well. And I don't need hearing aids or a cane. I plan to keep up with this sweet thing who isn't quite two. And she has a brother due in January. I want to sit in the floor and play with them, run around in the yard and maybe even teach them to ride a bike in a few years. We will revisit this "old age" topic down the road. Waaaay down the road, if I have my way!

Little Lady is wearing her brand new hat. Sadly, the Hiberatum pattern is no longer available. But the Lambs Pride Worsted from Brown Sheep Wool Company is. You can find it at the regular online yarn websites and even on Amazon. And you might find it at your local yarn shop. It really is a great yarn for warm hats. I've used it many times. I used a size 7 needle for the hat.

 

October Turns Into November

We have been waiting on a new refrigerator and freezer for a few weeks now. We are caught in the supply chain mess that complicates shopping now. Every Monday I think "this is the week." But we are still waiting. So my grocery shopping has been limited because I want to keep them as empty as possible to make installing the new ones easier. That means no recipes to share. Sorry.

But there has been knitting. New purple socks for Baby Girl.

How could I NOT make her a pair after finding this note she left me 

stuck above an old pair of socks. 

I put a caption there because pencil on dark paper is hard to read. 

Somewhere along the way I started a hat for the new baby (a BOY!)

due in January. A winter baby needs hats.

And finished it while I was at their house helping with the move.

Good thing I had tucked another skein of yarn in my bag.

Before I left, I found time to make one more hat to keep this baby warm.

And you know I couldn't make Baby Girl a pair without making another pair for her sister.

But when she tried them on I realized I had not seen her in a long time. 

Oh, how she's grown. This pair barely went on.

 Maybe she can wear them a couple of times, then save them for her sister.

So I've started another pair for her. And now I'm worried they will be too big!

I'm envious of grandparents who live close to their grandchildren.

And at the same time counting my blessings that a drive to visit only takes a half a day.

They are no longer a half a continent away like they were for years.

And they are not a half a globe away like some of my friends' grandchildren.