We'll Sing In The Sunshine

Sunshine Muffins

The name of these muffins makes me want to sing all the sunshine songs! 

How many can you name or sing?

I am so aware that it's been a minute since I've posted. It seems like these posts get further and further apart. Let's just blame it on old age. And staying busy with all the things that "old people" do. But I want to catch up a bit and get this recipe in my "recipe box" here. That's in case I can't find the paper that it's written on. I know it will always be tucked away safely here.

Daddy-O and I were on grandparent duty about a week ago. Little Sister and Mommy were both away at the All-State Choral event. We spent a few days with Baby Girl—who is certainly no baby anymore. But she told me she liked the name. When they were here over the long Christmas break, she asked if we could make these muffins and we never did. She had made them here during Mimi Camp. 

The recipe came from good friend Joanne. She told me that her grandchildren love these. I can see why. And the recipe is easy enough for a 10-year-old to manage alone. Big thanks to Daddy-O who washed two sinks full of dirty bowls and pans when she was done. 😊

Seeing the handwriting of the one who shares a recipe makes it so personal. But handwritten recipes are nearly a thing of the past. I have mixed feelings about them. I love seeing recipes that my mother and even my grandmother wrote down. But my own handwriting is pretty awful and hard to read. And it's so much quicker to use a keyboard. Here is my legible version for you to copy and paste if you want to print it out.

SUNSHINE MUFFINS

1 box Lemon Supreme cake mix

1 (3-3/4 oz.) box instant lemon pudding mix

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup buttermilk

4 eggs

    Glaze: 2 tablespoon lemon juice

               6 tablespoons orange juice

               1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

               3-1/2 cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350º. Mix the muffin ingredients together, blending well. Spoon into greased mini-muffin tins. Bake about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. (Baby Girl filled hers really full, so they took longer to bake.)

While muffins are baking, mix the glaze. When muffins are done, remove from muffin tins. Dip the mini-muffins into glaze while warm and place them on a cooling rack. (I put wax paper under the rack to catch any drips.)

I'm not sure how many muffins Joanne gets from this recipe, but it's a lot. That makes it a good party recipe. Baby Girl made 2-1/2 dozen mini muffins and 6 regular size muffins. 

Things have changed on the farm since Hurricane Helene blew through months ago. It has changed our lives. Downed trees are everywhere.Too many to count. Barns are in the process of being repaired or rebuilt. Our lake house is nearly mended.

The trees fell on all the fences, so the remaining cows were all sold. And this is probably the last hay that will be baled by Daddy-O. We are no longer a working farm. The upside of that is that Daddy-O got to come stay with me and Baby Girl last week while the others were away. He has a little more freedom now.

We used to dread "hay season" because it's such hard work. Long hours in the field on a tractor. And often the weather would complicate things. It would be too dry or too wet to get a good cutting. Or it would rain on the cut hay before it was baled. But I'll miss seeing these bales in the field. 

See the downed trees at the edge of the woods? There is still so much visible damage around. Crushed houses in town. Bright blue tarps on roofs. Huge up rooted trees in yards. Piles of debris are still visible although crews have worked tirelessly hauling away tons and tons of it. And I still remind myself that we were on the edge of the bad damage. 

Trifle Wrap, pattern from Helen Stewart

Knitting! You haven't heard me mention knitting in ages. That's because I don't knit as much now, but I have not completely stopped. I enjoyed a long weekend at a knitting retreat last month. And I just finished this large wrap for a dear friend. It's huge and soft and squishy. I hope it will feel like a hug from me when she wears it.

Summer Round-Up (Part 3) plus Recipe Round-Up

No Knead Market Style Cheese & Herb Bread

By the time I am at part 3 of what's happened at the farm as summer winds down, the photos are few and far between. We have loved seeing these kiddos that we don't so often during the school year. But just as summer is winding down, so is Mimi. Might be running out of steam.

But I need to share a few recipes before I lose the printed copy or totally forget where I saw it on the internet. The bread you see above is a variation of the no knead bread I've been making for a long time. A good variation. In addition adding the cheese and herb layers, the recipe directions are slightly different. And for once, I did it just as written. The recipe is at the end of the post.  And there are a couple of other super easy recipes mixed in between.

"Pretend" knitting—but the concentration is real.

(Fortunately the tattoo is not.)

Chatting man to man.

The kids (all ages) made juice popsicles all summer.

Then I made some grownup popsicles.

WHITE WINE SANGRIA POPS

1/4 cup thinly sliced strawberries (I used cherry plums)

1/4 cup raspberries

1/4 cup blackberries (cut in half if large)

1 cup moscato wine

1/4 cup orange juice

Divide fruit between popsicle molds. (My set made four.)

Mix wine and orange juice and pour over fruit, leaving room at top

for popsicles to expand. Add handles and freeze.

(1 WW point if your mold set makes 6 pops, 2 WW points if you made 4 pops.)

Time will tell if his love of music lasts.

She graduated to training wheels!

Zero WW point dip.

Mix 1/2 cup of fat-free cottage cheese and 1-1/2 tsp

Everything But the Bagel seasoning. 

A 13th birthday celebration for "Middle Sister."

I cannot in good conscience call her Little Sister any longer.

This is ridiculously good. 

NO KNEAD MARKET STYLE CHEESE & HERB BREAD

3 cups all-purpose flour (I stick to the Kind Arthur brand.)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon instant yeast 

1-1/2 cup warm water (95º to 105º)

1-1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1/4 cup - 1/3 cup fresh chives, thinly cut

1 teaspoon dried thyme, or to taste

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and yeast. (Use the scoop-and-level measure method.) Pour in warm water and mix thoroughly. Dough will be sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise for 3 to 18 hours. 

When you are ready to bake, preheat oven to 450º. Place a dutch oven in the hot oven to preheat the pot. Let the dutch oven preheat for about 30 minutes while you continue with the dough prep. Use extra flour to flour your work surface and your hands. Use a spatula to slide dough out onto floured surface. Flatten dough, then fold dough over on itself 4 times. Layer the cheese and herbs into each fold.

Form dough into a tight ball and place on the center of a parchment baking sheet. Use the parchment to move the dough back into the mixing bowl. Cover and let rest for 20 minutes.

Take your pot from the oven and carefully remove lid. Use the parchment corners to put dough into hot Dutch oven. Use a very sharp knife and slice the top of dough to release steam. Replace cover on Dutch oven and bake for 30 minutes. 

After 30 minutes, remove top of the Dutch oven and bake for another 15 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown.

Remove from oven and remove bread from pot. Let cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing. 

I still have a few more recipes to share, so check back later. We really didn't cook a lot this summer, but we did try several new recipes that we liked. 

 

Summer Round-Up (Part 2)

Strawberry shortcake
(see recipe below)

We enjoyed all the grandchildren here this summer. Both sets have been here more than once and there was some overlap. My photos are in no way chronological. I couldn't keep up. But I've hit the highlights. 

 

Front yard fun.

Jamming with the grands.

Cousin time.

More time with cousins.

(The oldest of the five graduated from college and has moved!

We miss her but glad she found her first job.)

July 4th dessert. Make this! It's so good. 

Little Sister (who is almost 13 now) made this treat.

Use scissors to cut up marshmallows for the skewers.

Lake girl.

Champion!

Summer lake days.

Boating and swimming.

Rainy day lake poetry.

Mending Daddy-O's shirt.

She's got skills.

Farm time.

Driving lessons.

Learning to weave.

Finish a potholder and get a Popsicle.

Outside as much as possible.

She baked this all by herself.

A new recipe learned at her summer cooking camp.

 And we were the lucky taste testers.

After attending a summer cooking camp, not-so-Little Sister recreated some of those recipes for us during their early summer visit to the farm. Luckily for us, it was still strawberry season here.

CLASSIC STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE (makes 8)

2 (16-oz) containers of fresh strawberries, quartered

3/4 cup sugar, divided

1 cup whipping cream

2 tablespoons sugar

2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 cup cold butter, cut up

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 (8-oz) container sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine strawberries and 1/2 cup sugar. Cover berry mixture and let stand.

Beat whipping cream at medium speed with an electric mixer until foamy. Gradually add 2 tablespoon sugar, beating until soft peaks form.

Combine flour, remaining 1/4 cup sugar and baking powder in a large bowl. Cut butter into flour mixture with a pastry blender (or two forks) until crumbly.

Whisk together eggs, sour cream and vanilla until blended. Add to flour mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. 

Drop dough by 1/3 cup portions onto lightly greased baking sheet. (Coat cup with cooking spray after each drop.)

Bake at 450º for 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden.

Split shortcakes in half horizontally. Spoon about 1/2 cup berry mixture onto each shortcake bottom. Top each with a rounded tablespoon of chilled whipped cream and cover with tops.

Serve with remaining whipped cream.

There was some serious effort in this recipe. So happy that she (and both of her sisters) love to cook.

Summer Round-Up (Part 1)

Cupcakes with Easy Vanilla Frosting 
(decorated with mini chocolate chips by Little Lady)

What have you been doing for the last six weeks? It's been a busy summer here for Mimi and Daddy-O. We've had summer visitors since my last post. You can take a quick look at some of the things we did. And this is only with ONE set of grandchildren! I'll share the others in the next post.

I'm sure some good recipes will be missed but I'm trying to get caught up and  post some of the new ones we've tried this summer. Before I don't remember where I found them. This blog serves as my recipe box now.

Wading in the creek, a family tradition.

First boat ride.

Family trio.

The farm is a big playground.

Lake time.

Music lover.

Cousin time.

Good garden help.

She asked to bake. So we did.

 

I had a cake mix on hand 

which was enough for a 3-year-old to handle.

It was her idea to add mini chocolate chips to the batter.

But I had no can of frosting. Years ago when I had no frosting and was baking with the oldest granddaughter, we discovered the 1-Minute Chocolate Frosting which I've used for years now. (See Recipe Index.) But I wanted something even easier for this baking episode. This baker is 3.

A quick Google search found this recipe that is so much like the Chocolate Frosting (also in the Recipe Index) that came from a church friend years ago. I'm happy to add the vanilla version to my kitchen repertoire. It's delicious. And absolutely the easiest I've ever made.

EASY VANILLA FROSTING    (makes 1/2 cup)

1 cup powdered sugar (do not sift before measuring)

2 tablespoons softened butter

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

about 3 to 4 teaspoons of milk

Place powdered sugar, butter and vanilla in a bowl. Mix with electric mixer and combine for a few seconds.

Add milk slowly, a teaspoon at a time, until it's frosting consistency.

Beat on HIGH for about 15 seconds.

Be careful to add the milk a teaspoon at a time. If you add too much, you'll have runny frosting!

This barely made enough for one dozen cupcakes. (Confession—I threw out some of the batter. One dozen cupcakes was all we needed.) I think this could be doubled. 

 

Making Up For Lost Time

Farm fun.

We've had extra family in residence since a few days before Christmas. What a glorious time we've had! After so many months of not seeing grandchildren (because of Covid) and more months of only seeing them at a distance (because of Covid) we actually have been in the same house together for weeks. Making up for lost time. 

We have tried to cram in all activities and projects and activities we haven't been able to do in a long time. We sang Christmas carols around the campfire on Christmas Eve, complete with 3-part harmony. It's nice to be in a family of musicians. We celebrated Christmas and birthdays. We've read so many bedtime stories. The girls put on plays and puppet shows. They've had family hikes to the river.

Enchiladas Con Carne from The Defined Dish.

Mommy and J-Daddy have done most of the cooking the entire time, so we have feasted. (I pulled out the bigger jeans this morning.) I should have made photos of the wonderful meals to share with you. But I focused on making memories instead of photos. (Hint: Many of their recipes. including this one, come from The Defined Dish cookbook.) 

Racing down the hay bales.

The not-so-little-anymore girls had great fun playing on the hay bales in the pasture behind the house. Climbing up, running across the tops, jumping from bale to bale. The best kind of farm fun. They also helped Daddy-O feed the cows which includes tractor driving.

Notice the baby blanket cape?

I crocheted it for her mom.

Those same girls have baked. Little Sister made applesauce muffins last week. And this week Baby Girl baked blueberry muffins all by herself. Except for putting them in and out of the hot oven. She did the measuring and mixing. Grandmothers will let little people do more things than the mamas do. So what if part of the ingredients land on the floor? 

They have both worked on yarny things. Little Sister knows how to knit, but I've been surprised that Baby Girl is the one who seems to love needlework best. (And you know that may totally flip next week and Big Sister will be the yarn lover.) She's a whiz with a knitting spool. I got a knitted bracelet for Christmas. And about two weeks ago, I taught her to crochet. Yes. She's left handed. She was quick to learn. At age 7, she bounces between projects and activities, but she would come back to this again and again.

I had so much fun showing her how to get started that I thought maybe I should try a crochet project again. It has been decades since I crocheted anything. Back in the day, I crocheted afghans for everyone. That was before I knew much about knitting. And definitely before I though about keeping a record of all the ones I made. Photographing every thing we did was not a thing. But there were many many afghans. 

Baby afghan I made for Mommy 40 years ago.

I have never known much about crocheting. Just enough to made a ripple afghan, also known as a chevron blanket. which was popular in the 1970s. (You can find a more formal pattern with tutorial for a blanket similar to mine at this website. Look at her gorgeous colors.)  I made striped ones in college colors. I made ones in gradient stripes. I made them in smaller sizes in variegated baby colors. Some were made of beautiful wool yarn. But many were made of the lowly workhorse yarn Red Heart. It's all acrylic. And it lasts forever. I still have one wool afghan here...the first one I ever made. And I've mended holes in it so many times. But these acrylic ones? They look almost new.

Little Lady taking a pretend nap this morning.

Little Lady loves to snuggle up under this old ripple afghan I made for her mommy over 20 years ago. It's been tossed in the washer and dryer over and over. I imagine this afghan will be around long after I'm gone. We have a few baby afghans that were made for Mommy by neighbors who were contemporaries of my mother-in-law who would be almost 120 if she were still alive. Those old blankets are still beautiful and still in use.

Lots and lots of new yarn.

So with all of these memories and thoughts of crochet floating through my head this week, I ordered a boat load of Red Heart yarn to make another afghan. Baby Girl looked at all the yarn and declared, "It will take you YEARS to make a blanket." She might be right. But that's okay. 

Ripple Afghan made for Jessica about 20 years ago.

Here is the pattern that I've used over and over. I still have the sheet of notebook paper where I wrote down the directions so very long ago. It's not the best written one, but I managed with it for years. Because I didn't know the directions could have been better. 

RIPPLE AFGHAN

Hook: size H

Yarn: 12 skeins Red Heart (12 x 260 yds)

Still working from this pattern, written on a sheet of notebook paper over 40 years ago:

Chain 225 sts. Turn.  Skip 2 ch st.  *Sc in next 6 ch st, always working in the back of each stitch .  Make 3 sc in next ch st.  Sc in next 6 chain st. Skip 2 ch st.*  Repeat for length of chain.  Chain 1 at end of row. Turn. Skip 2 ch st. Repeat pattern for remaining rows.  

This is how the side edge looks if you use my very old pattern.

It's not a straight edge.

And guess what? There is a major winter storm predicted to move in tonight! So these folks are staying a little longer. The fun continues.