Friday, February 6, 2015

Bewitched by Breads 'n' Beads - Recipe for a Frigid Day

Omit the letter "r" from "breads" and see the result. Couldn't resist combining the two, especially since each contributed to the blustery cold day we experienced, today. Yep. Negative 2 degrees F., this cold morning. Not to worry, though, 'cause we made it all the way to a positive (?) 16 degrees. C'est la vie, here in upstate New York, where Mother Nature seems to have forgotten about global warming.
I digress…

We've a new resident bread machine, here at the Old Homestead. I'm enchanted by the fact that its little pan does all the work using scratch ingredients. No mixers, dough blades, bowls or mess. Truly incredible. Yesterday, I made an apple bread, a first attempt that was fast devoured before I could access NIK. Today, I played it smarter and captured pumpkin-raisin as proof of the pudding bread. We froze half of this one-pound loaf; thankfully, discipline is back in place. You know the drill for using the machine. Here's the recipe. I did not add nuts, cut back a bit on the sugar and should have added more raisins. We'll play and alter the next time.

While the house was smelling all delicious and cinnamon-y, I began a new craft. First time 'round, it was a tad tough to wrap that silver wire over and under glass beach beads. But, I did it and actually finished a somewhat wearable, albeit not perfect, first bracelet. I was inspired by Heather of Beach Beads & Glass Studio, a fabulous Surfside Beach place to visit. She had a similar-but-far-more-perfect bracelet for sale alongside the gazillions of supplies for this craft. She was gracious enough to explain the technique, as she warned me that wire is the "…red-headed child of beading…" With a wink, she referred to the stubbornness tendency often found in redheads. Okay, okay… don't take offense if you're of that variety. That aside, my projects are now lined up. We shall see.