I’ve been trying to post this favorite Christmas cookie recipe for about a week and a half. One thing after another has distracted me. This is the way things go on a ranch or farm. Ranch work always takes precedent. So, if you have a huge rain storm headed your way, as we recently had, you ...

I believe it is never too late to start getting ready for Christmas. Why not make a double batch of these delicious cookies and have them at-the-ready in your freezer? When impromptu guests arrive or an unexpected gift is in order, you (and your friends) will be thankful for your very smart ...

Dedicated to my good friend Roberta who once told me that sourdough is the healthiest kind of bread.Some researchers and health practitioners say that fermented food products are very good for you. We’ve all heard of the benefits of pro-biotics. Let’s just state for the record that I’m ...

Fall is in full swing, and a late-autumn snow storm reminds me of what a fleeting season autumn really is … it only lasts a short time here in the crisp, Ontario country air. Before you know it, the brilliant trees are bare and the leaves make a glowing carpet of red, gold and orange on the ...

A family friend owns a blueberry patch with a couple hundred large bushes. The patch has early, mid and late ripening berries, so the picking is good from August right through early September. It’s a bit of a long drive for us to go there so we try to make every visit worthwhile. We went a ...

If you have imported oranges or other citrus fruit sitting in your refrigerator or on your kitchen counter right now, please read on: this post is for you! You do not have to get Vitamin C from fruits coming out of Latin America. Though they seem to be currently out-of-favor and perhaps ...

Our rhubarb patch has plants from three sources: my mom and two of our neighbors. After just a couple of years the plants have taken hold and we harvest enough for several pies, muffins, rhubarb wine and jam. Rhubarb is delicious and loaded with vitamin C and vitamin K. It pretty much grows ...

With Summer right around the corner what better desert to serve than a cool creamy pie? My favorite is Coconut Cream. I love anything made with coconut, and I love custards and pastry cream type deserts. So this combination is a winner any day for me. It is easy, takes a little time but, to ...

Social media is a great way to stay connected with friends, but that’s not the only thing you can do. You can also show off what you’re eating and see what others are eating, too. Take a look at why people share photos on social media and how it inspires us to bake.Instagram Lets Us Show ...

Baking rolls and pizza dough, like bread, is not difficult, but it takes time. To help make it easier I use the shortcut of the bread maker. Rolls have to be shaped, so it’s not put it in and forget it, but close…This is the recipe I use for homemade hamburger/hotdog buns. I think once you ...

Mom remembers drinking chokecherry juice and gooseberry juice at breakfast when she was growing up. Reason being that oranges didn’t grow in upstate New York, so orange juice was not on the menu at her house. Even though it meant some awfully tart (and not very tasty!) juice to start the ...

Every once in a while I get a hankering for something dough-y. A magazine seen on the display rack at Tractor Supply once inspired me to start making the easiest and tastiest homemade bread I’ve ever made so far. It was from a Grit publication called Grit Country Skills Series - Guide to ...

The Meredith Inn burned down more than 60 years ago but its recipes live on. This particular recipe originally appeared in Adventures in Good Cooking, published in 1939. Grandma had a very similar recipe (she called it a receipt) for “Date and Nut Bread.” The only real difference is the ...

This winter I’m committed to learning how to sew. I have my mother-in-law’s sewing machine. Most of my sewing projects are trial and error, but I’m always looking for excuses to open up the machine and take a stab at putting something together. A recent GRIT Magazine article highlighting ...

Pie. Apple, cherry, pumpkin and pecan. All kinds of pies! I grew up loving pies. My grandma was always making some type of sweet treat and in the fall especially, she would make pies. I remember the sights, sounds and the smells. But I never stayed in the kitchen long enough to learn the ...