Food For Thought Today

Oak Creek Canyon 

October 2013

Normally I post a recipe for Tempt My Tummy Tuesday but today I am sharing some food for thought instead.  This will definitely give me lots to think about as I go about my day today.

Oak Creek Canyon 

October 2013

Edith Schaeffer writes:

"Love will grow as reasons for love are discovered, thought about, dwelt upon in the mind, expressed verbally, and remembered.  As time goes on, the memory will become rich with increasing vividness and warmth in storing up facts and reasons behind the increase of love."

Oak Creek Canyon 

October 2013

Love will grow as: 

1. reasons for love are discovered 
2. thought about 
3. dwelt upon in the mind 
4. expressed verbally 
5. remembered

Something to think about for sure and more importantly to challenge me today.

Afternoon Light

The weekend is upon us and we are looking forward to spending time with family.  Our boys will come for the weekend and then on Sunday the TLC's and their parents will join us for bbq.  Saturday hope to Skype with daughter and her precious family in Kentucky.  

October is birthday month for two sons, two son-in-loves and 1 daughter!

Hope you enjoy your weekend and make it special too.

Old Fashion Popcorn

We have for years used microwave popcorn and it was easy and pretty tasty.  Lately not so much though and when I saw this blogpost I had to try it.

MaryJane blogs at The Beehive Cottage and just the pictures alone will inspire you to try her popcorn. I definitely give it my thumbs up.  Fluffy, tasty and so much more healthy without all the additives of microwave popcorn.  Much cheaper too.  Making a big batch would give me a reason to bring out the yellow bowl more often too.

Give MaryJane's old fashion popcorn a try and see what you think.

Wordless Wednesday

Tempt My Tummy Tuesday - Hummingbird Cake

I have recently found a great blog for new recipes at The Southern Lady Cooks  and last week I made her Hummingbird Cake.  

The cake is moist and very good and easy to make in my yellow bowl!  All the ingredients I had on hand and as I said you basically make it in one bowl and don't even need the mixer.

We had the 4 TLC's for a few days so the cake was enjoyed.  Our new neighbors enjoyed a couple of pieces too.

Here is the recipe from her blog:

This hummingbird cake is so good. It never lasts long at my house. I read somewhere it is called hummingbird cake because it is so sweet the hummingbirds will eat it!

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups oil (I used Canola)

1 (8 ounce can) crushed pineapple, undrained

2 cups bananas, mashed or about 3 large bananas

1 1/2 cups pecans, chopped

 

Combine flour, sugar, soda, salt, cinnamon.  Mix together with whisk.  Add eggs, vanilla extract, oil, pineapple, bananas and pecans and mix with a spoon until all ingredients are wet.  Spray 3 (9 inch) round cake pans or a 9 x 13 inch pan.  Add batter and bake in preheated 350 degree oven 30 to 35 minutes until cake is done in center.  Frost with cream cheese frosting.  Enjoy!

Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened

1 stick butter or margarine or 1/2 cup or 8 tablespoons

2 cups confectionery sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

Whip all frosting ingredients together with mixer until smooth and of spreading consistency.

Click to follow The Southern Lady Cooks on Facebook.

The 4 TLC's that fill these shoes sure enjoyed the cake made in the yellow bowl.

Fruit of Friendship

Alyssum, it hangs over the side of the pot of mums that is promising flowers probably by Thanksgiving. This little branch of alyssum has been faithfully producing its' little white flowers for months.  It came up voluntarily from seed blown into the mum pot from another plant in the yard somewhere.

As I walked through the yard this morning and noticed the flowers I was reminded of the friend who gave me the original plants.  Barbara's front yard was a carpet of the tiny white flowers and she uprooted several plants and brought them to me when we lived in Mesa years ago.  Barbara's yard reminded me of my grandmother who also had alyssum in her yard.

When we moved to Maricopa I uprooted several plants and brought them with me and they have faithfully come up from the wind blown seed every year.

Just like this seed has produced its' little white flowers my friendship with Barbara has produced fruit too.  Although we don't talk often and she now lives hundreds of miles away we still have a faithful friendship producing fruit for both of us.  My friendships through the years have been few and yet the important thing to me is the durability and faithfulness of them.

So this Monday afternoon I am grateful for the little white flowers that surprise me by faithfully coming up year after year and for friends that can be found faithful and true.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, 

goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. 

Against such things there is no law.

Galatians 5:22-23

Friday Funny

A merry heart doeth good like a medicine . . .

Proverbs 17:22

Remembering Grandma

 

If you are on Face Book and who isn't,  you may have seen this picture with the caption, "Do You Know What This Is? "

When I saw the picture I smiled and I remembered.

My maternal grandmother would come spend a couple of days with us and the first thing she did was pull out all the ironing my mother had stashed in her closet.  Up went the ironing board and out came a bottle with a sprinkling spout like the one above.  All the clothes would be sprinkled and then ironed to perfection.  Fifty plus years later I can close my eyes and see my precious little grandma doing all that ironing and being a blessing to my mom.

Mom seemed to really appreciate her mother doing the ironing but she never continued the tradition by doing my ironing  :-(

Wordless Wednesday- Iconic Fall

Too Many To Count

Cookbooks! Cookbooks! Cookbook!  Yes, I have an affinity for cookbooks.  I have quite a selection too!  Been collecting them for about 40 plus years I guess.  I have inherited loved ones cookbooks, I have purchased vintage charmers at my favorite thrift shops.  In the beginning years of my collection I belonged to a cookbook book club where you purchased several to start at a very low price and then once a month you purchased an additional one till your commitment was complete.  That was fun.

Finding a place to store all these is always a challenge - a very fun challenge though.

My favorite cookbooks tend to be those compiled by clubs or church women who include all their tried and true recipes.  These are the best - who would want to put a yucky recipe in a book with their name attached?  I have quite a few recipes actually published in cookbooks like this too. 

Funny thing about all my cookbooks?  I really don't use them a lot when I am looking for a recipe.  More often than not I go to my computer and google the desired culinary creation.  The cookbooks are more for reading like a novel almost - they encourage my homekeeping and cheer me on.

How about you?  Have a favorite cookbook you can't live without?  Would love to hear about it in the comment box.

Voicing Gratitude

"Silent gratitude isn't much use to anyone." -- G.B. Stern

Think about that for a minute.  Silent gratitude isn't much use to anyone.  I love to read Ann Voskamp's blog A Holy Experience where she emphasizes gratitude and making our lists of what we are grateful for today.  Go visit Ann if you need encouragement to keep a list of blessings to be thankful for.

Today, this quote touches me and challenges me to speak my gratitude everyday thereby touching the hearts of those around me and hopefully encouraging their gratitude too.  It will definitely make a difference to my heart and to my day if I voice my gratitude and not keep it inside

I think my chickens, Henrietta and Henrietta (I can't tell them apart) are grateful for these beautiful cool days here in Arizona.  I know Precious Husband and I are sure enjoying eating our breakfast on the patio these mornings.

Yesterday while we were away from home for the day we had quite a dust storm.  All the windows were open and you can imagine the layer of dust on my dark oak furniture we came home to but on the bright side look at these beautiful blue skies we have today as a result of the wind blowing the gunk from the air.  Yes, there is always something to be thankful for.

In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

 

Laughter is Good For You!

Fall Warmth

With the arrival of fall comes a new warmth.  Not warmth that high temperatures of living in the Valley of the Sun bring but an inviting hospitable warmth.

Warmth of lighting candles as the sun sets in the evening.  It is very normal for me to have a candle burning on the kitchen island from the start of my day.  It sets a mood if you will.  But when the sun sets lighting more candles gives such wonderful warmth to a room and to a heart.

I think I have shared before that my favorite time of the day is supper time.  We eat supper about 6 PM and now the days are shorter and I can go around the house and bring down the shades by supper time.  Shut us in and the world out for the day.  

Truth be told here I make soup even when it is *110 degrees outside but now with the coming of fall and cooler evenings I get interested in new soup and bread recipes and start thumbing through my cookbooks.

Give Precious Husband a bowl of ham and beans and he is a very happy guy.  Add some Jalepeno Cheese Bread from the bread machine and yummy, supper is wonderful.  Something I have tried to share with my daughters is that making a meal does not have to be difficult.  Beans and Ham has to be one of the easiest dishes I make.  Add the convenience of putting a few ingredients into a bread machine and pushing the button - walla - couldn't be easier or more tasty.

For sure I welcome Fall with all the warmth it represents.  Lit candles, homemade soup, fresh hot bread, mmm mmm mmm, comfort, warm fall comfort.

Fall Has Arrived!

 I guess it is a toss up between fall and spring when asked which season I like the best.  Because the heat is so harsh in Arizona I think fall tends to win the title of favorite season because it brings cooler days and they are so appreciated.  When you appreciate something it will always cause it to be more special.

Yes, we finally have the air off and the windows open!  Fresh air!  Days when the round face displaying temperatures finally stays under a hundred at 3 PM and wakes you to 68 degrees of sunshine in the mornings.

Having coffee on the patio is once again such a wonderful part of our day!  This past weekend we enjoyed fresh strawberry scones along with that coffee  :-)

I so enjoy pulling out the boxes of fall decorations to officially end summer and welcome fall to our home.

It has been so long since I put up a fresh post I wondered if I would still know how - but hey, it really did all come back to me quite easily.  

Hope you are enjoying the change of season in your home as much as I am.