Moravian Spice Cookie Wafers (United States) From Food Network Kitchens

This cookie comes to us from North Carolina by way of Central Europe; it's a classic, peppery spice cookie brought to the U.S. by Moravians in the 1700s. The key to this cookie is rolling it super-thin to get that characteristic snap; it's a lot easier to roll it that thin between waxed paper. If you don't have the patience, go thicker, for chewy gingerbread-style cookies. Either way, these cookies would be fantastic on your holiday table.

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon finely ground white pepper

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup molasses

1 large egg yolk

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Whisk the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, pepper and mustard together in a medium bowl.

Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until just combined and lightly fluffy. Beat in the molasses and egg yolk. Gradually add the dry ingredients and mix together on low speed until dough is just combined and still crumbly, about 3 minutes. Give dough a few turns with a spatula to bring together.

Lay out wax paper on a clean work surface and put about 1/3 of the batter on top. Lightly press down and top with another sheet of wax paper. Using your hands or a rolling pin, gently pat into a rectangle. Roll out with a rolling pin until dough is as thin as possible without breaking, no thicker than 1/16 inch thick. This is the key to these cookies: they really can't be too thin. Gently peel back the layer of waxed paper and then replace it loosely.

Transfer rolled batter to a flat baking sheet and freeze until firm and can easily be peeled away from the waxed paper, about 30 minutes. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Cut dough using a small (2- to 3-inch) fluted round cookie cutter and return to the freezer for 15 minutes to set. Transfer frozen cookies to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake until crisp and lightly, evenly colored (but not brown), about 10 minutes.

Busy baker's tips: Store baked cookies in an airtight container for up to 10 days. The dough can be frozen, between sheets of waxed paper and well-wrapped in plastic wrap, for up to 2 weeks. Baked cookies can be wrapped in plastic wrap then aluminum foil and frozen for up to 1 month.

Cook's note: Don't be intimidated by how many cookies this recipe makes. This dough freezes well, and you can roll out far in advance -- so when you need cookies, you can cut and bake as needed, which is a great holiday timesaver.

Copyright 2007 Television Food Network,

12 days of cookies for christmas.... ummmmm...

Florentines (Italy) From Food Network Kitchens

These Tuscan cookies are a Christmas classic. They're nutty, lacy and crisp, as well as deceptively simple to make. Drizzling them with chocolate turns them into the perfect holiday indulgence.

1 3/4 cups sliced, blanched almonds (about 5 ounces)

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Finely grated zest of 1 orange (about 2 tablespoons)

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

3/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons heavy cream

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

5 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Chocolate Topping, optional:

2 to 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.

Pulse the almonds in a food processor until finely chopped, but not pasty. Stir together the nuts, flour, zest and salt in a large bowl.

Put the sugar, cream, corn syrup and butter in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a rolling boil and sugar is completely dissolved. Continue to boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, then pour mixture into almond mixture and stir just to combine. Set aside until cool enough to handle, 30 minutes.

Scoop rounded teaspoons (for 3-inch cookies) or rounded tablespoons (for 6-inch cookies) of batter and roll into balls. Place on prepared baking sheet, leaving about 3 to 4 inches between each cookie since they spread.

Bake 1 pan at a time, until the cookies are thin and an even golden brown color throughout, rotating pans halfway through baking time, about 10 to 11 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve.

Optional chocolate topping:

Put the chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. Bring a saucepan filled with 1 inch or so of water to a very low simmer; set the bowl over, but not touching, the water. Stir the chocolate occasionally until melted and smooth. (Alternatively, put the chocolate in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Melt at 50 percent power in the microwave until soft, about 1 minute. Stir, and continue heat until completely melted, about 1 to 2 minutes more.)

For sandwiches: Drop about 1/2 teaspoon chocolate onto on the flat side of half of the cookies and press together with remaining halves. Return to rack and let chocolate set.

For chocolate decor: Drizzle melted chocolate over Florentines as desired. Set aside at room temperature until chocolate is set.

Busy baker's tips: Store baked cookies carefully, separated by parchment or waxed paper, in an air-tight container for up to 3 days. Florentines are best stored separated from moist cookies and cakes.

Copyright (c) 2007 Television Food Network,

On Drudge now…..May be a Presidential Race Bombshell

This is all I can find out there so far in regards to this, it may be related to this earlier article published by the same outlet on 10/10/08, which is linked below:

PRESIDENTIAL CHEATING SCANDAL! ALLEGED AFFAIR COULD WRECK JOHN EDWARDS‘ CAMPAIGN BID

Presidential candidate John Edwards is caught in a shocking mistress scandal that could wreck his campaign, The NATIONAL ENQUIRER has learned exclusively.

Sources have come forward to charge that the “other woman” previously worked on Edwards’ campaign and followed the 54-year-old candidate on trips across the U.S.

A source close to the woman, whose name is being withheld by The NATIONAL ENQUIRER, says that she confessed to having an affair in phone calls and emails, saying that her work with Edwards soon exploded into romance. The shocking allegation — if proven true — could devastate the Democratic hopeful’s campaign, especially because John’s devoted wife Elizabeth is locked in a desperate battle with breast cancer.

“The affair started about 18 months ago,” a friend says the woman confessed to her. “When they met at a bar, sparks flew immediately.

“She never expected it would turn sexual since John is married and is running for President. But it soon did — and she fell for him.”

In one bombshell e-mail message provided to The NATIONAL ENQUIRER, the woman confesses to a friend she’s “in love with John,” but it’s “difficult because he is married and has kids.”

In another e-mail, she writes: “Last night and this a.m., he actually has amazed me. He is a great man. My heart is loud and my head is silenced.”

Disclosed her friend: “She initially confided in a few of her closest pals that she was sleeping with ‘a married man named John.’

“It became clear the married man was John Edwards. They got together whenever they could, mostly at hotels where Edwards and his campaign staff stayed.”

The woman later spelled it out in a phone call to her pal and talked openly about having an affair with Edwards.

The friend says the woman told her that she “had a crush on John. One thing led to another, and they soon ended up in bed together. But she knew there was no way he was going to leave Elizabeth, a wife battling cancer.”

The ex-Senator’s wife was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004. This past March, the couple announced her cancer had returned, but said his campaign would continue.

His spokesman said that allegations Edwards had an affair are “false, absolute nonsense.”

The woman’s friend told The NATIONAL ENQUIRER: “As the affair went on, she said that both she and John began to feel real guilty and they decided to end it.”

The ENQUIRER made exhaustive but unsuccessful attempts to reach the woman for comment regarding this article but she would not return phone calls or emails or come to the door of the house where she is staying.

Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, or simply "Santa"

1881 illustration by Thomas Nast who, with Clement Clarke Moore helped to create the modern image of Santa Claus.

Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, or simply "Santa" is a fictional folklore figure who, in Western cultures, is presented as bringing gifts on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day or on his feast day, December 6. The legend may have its basis in hagiographical tales concerning the historical figure of Saint Nicholas.
The popular North American form Santa Claus is derived from the Dutch Sinterklaas, which in turn is a contracted form of Sint Nicolaas (Saint Nicholas). However, the Dutch Sinterklaas is depicted as being very different from Santa Claus in many ways. Santa Claus has a suit that comes in many colors depending on the country. The most common depiction (red with white cuffs, collar, and black leather belt) became the more popular image in the United States in the 19th century due to the significant influence of Thomas Nast In the mid-20th Century a series of Coca-Cola advertisements featuring a Santa Claus drawn rotund and jovial by artist Haddon Sundblom popularized Nast's depiction.
There are controversial aspects of the Santa Claus fiction. Some Christians feel he takes the focus of Christmas away from Jesus Christ; others feel it is unhealthy for parents to orchestrate elaborate lies to their children to enforce their belief in Santa Claus. Others oppose Santa Claus as a symbol of the commercialization and conspicuous consumption of the Christmas holiday, and as an intrusion upon their own national traditions.

Elfs Andrew and Madison Blankinship

Want to see Andrew and Madison Blankinship "elf'd" for Christmas

Click here!

wow.....

My Rusty Chevrolet....

DASHING THROUGH THE SNOW
IN MY RUSTY CHEVROLET
DOWN THE ROAD I GO
SLIDING ALL THE WAY
I NEED NEW PISTON RINGS
I NEED SOME NEW SNOW TIRES
MY CAR IS HELD TOGETHER
BY A PIECE OF CHICKEN WIRE

CHORUS:
RUST AND SMOKE THE HEATER'S BROKE
THE DOOR JUST BLEW AWAY
I LIGHT A MATCH TO SEE THE DASH
AND THEN I START TO PRAY
THE FRAME IS BENT THE MUFFLER WENT
THE RADIO IT'S OK
OH WHAT FUN IT IS TO DRIVE
THIS RUSTY CHEVROLET

I WENT TO THE IGA
TO GET SOME CHRISTMAS CHEER
I JUST PASSED UP MY LEFT FRONT TIRE
AND ITS GETTING HARD TO STEER
SKIDDING DOWN THE HIGHWAY
RIGHT PAST THE NEGAUNEE COPS
I HAD TO DRAG MY SWAMPERS
TO GET THE CAR TO STOP

(REPEAT CHORUS)

BOUNCING THROUGH THE SNOWDRIFTS
IN A BIG BLUE CLOUD OF SMOKE
PEOPLE LAUGH AS I DRIVE BY
I WONDER WHAT'S THE JOKE
I GOT TO GET TO SHOPKO
TO PICK UP THE LAYAWAY
CAUSE SANTA CLAUS IS COMING SOON
IN HIS BIG OLD RUSTY SLEIGH.

(REPEAT CHORUS)

Some simple ideas a friend of mine sent me... to work on the weight dealy....

1. WALK! Park your car a few blocks apart from the place you are going to and take to brisk walk to your office, grocery store, or a shopping mall. Intend to walk at least 30 minutes every day. At work, use some time during your lunch break to take a refreshing walk in a nearby park. If the weather is cold, you still can walk in your favorite mall.

2. In the office, get out of your comfortable chair and go visit your colleagues from a different department instead of messaging or phoning them. If you need to go to a washroom, choose the one located on the top floor and WALK there.

3. Try to always take the stairs instead of an elevator.

4. While watching TV, do not use remote control. Instead, every time you need to switch channels, get up and do that manually.

5. At dinner, choose steak instead of pasta. The more you chew, the more calories you burn!

6. Several times during the day, drink natural coffee or green tea without sugar to boost metabolism.

7. Eating frequent small meals, especially if they are not loaded with sugar or white flour, is more stimulating for your metabolism than stuffing yourself with big meals two or three times a day.

8. Choosing spicy dishes is another way to burn more calories during the day.

9. Adopt a habit of moving your feet, stretching your legs, or squeezing a rubber ball while sitting. Can you believe that such simple movements can burn up to 500 calories a day?

10. In the winter, turn down the heat in your room, especially at night, and sleep under a lighter blanket. In the summer, turn on an air conditioning. A colder environment makes your body produce more heat and, therefore, facilitates the utilization of calories.

Red Tail Hawk hunting in the creek where I walk...

please excuse the video...

it is what happens when you need glasses to see cause you are half blind.... haha..
Hawk is in the middle.. it is fast and short.. unusual for me right, haha... have a great day!

See the ice on the limbs and not on the grass??? Briar Rabbit's home....

heard the expression.. knott on a log?

This tree looks like it has a few knots on it.. wonder if Ann put them on it like she does my head every so often?? hehe....

the weeds in the fence row...

I noticed the weeds in the fence row on the west side of my path across the creek were still standing tall above the fence and post.. the post are out of the ground about 4.5 feet and these weeds at at least twice as tall as the post.. after the ice storm...

the Road to Nowhere!

closer look revels....

some stems have water and ice on them and some do not. I wonder what the difference is? Do you think one believed it would storm and the other that it would not? Or do you think one was thinking of dressing up for a special occasion and the others said... who cares? I wonder??? why????

Colors of Fall 2007

Looks like someone stood ...

Nearby and ran water just on these weeds and none of the other around it..

Mother Nature sure finds a way to make the ...

the yuckiest weather look nice.... haha...

The trail....

Can you guess where this large chunk of ice came from.

I can assure you that there are three paths across our land under these large highlines. I guess one needs to remember if they say ice on the highlines.. they mean ICE on the HIGHLINES.. and the bigger the line the larger the ice that falls off them. I have NEVER seen this before in my life ... so I was very surprised by the size of the pieces. I promise one thing. If you are driving under one of these going 70.. it will come through your windshield!!! wow...

Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus, and there are stupid people too... here is proof...

Madison Ann Blankinship - Five

Madison Ann Blankinship - Four

Madison Ann Blankinship - Three

Missy.... Get well soon....

We wanted you to know our thoughts are with you...

Get well soon, please????

borrowed from Heather.... her photo from last night...

Heather is getting really good with camera...

here is one of Heather's photos that just about sums up last night and Madison Ann's dance recital... you decide.. is this the look of "can't wait" or "sheer terror"?... you decide... haha...

Madison Ann Blankinship - Two

Maddy is youngest in her class

Here Maddy is dancing.....

Maddy is second from the left...

Madison Ann's Teacher is Miss Becky and she is leaving to move back to her home in Ohio...

so her new teacher, who's name I missed, is on the right side and will be taking over in her shoes, but from what I have heard from Grandma and H, Ms. Becky will leave some big shoes to fill...

Madison had a big group there supporting her...

Madison Ann had her Grandpa and Grandma Blankinship, her Great Aunt Marilyn, her Uncle Jake and Aunt Trisha, and her Great Grandma Moffat, and other friends and Grandma and Grandpa Moffat, and her Mom.

She rocked... and of course... as happens when you really want to get some good photos... My were not any good. I do have some video of her that is good, will have to see if I am smart enough to edit them.. haha...

this is photo of her group waiting with baited breath!!

Last night was Madison Ann's first Tippy Toes Dance Recital...

She was really excited about dressing up and dancing.....

Madison Ann Blankinship - One

GEORGE CARLIN

GEORGE CARLIN (His wife recently died...)


Isn't it amazing that George Carlin - comedian of the 70's and 80's - could write something so very eloquent...and so very appropriate.

A Message by George Carlin:

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider Freeways , but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years. We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better things.

We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less. We've learned to rush, but not to wait. We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom. A time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete...

Remember; spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.

Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.

Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.

Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.

Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.

Give time to love, give time to speak! And give time to share the precio us thoughts in your mind.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

Metro Denver Hospice Physician:

Psalm 55:22
"Friends are God's way of taking care of us."
This was written by a Metro Denver Hospice Physician:

I was driving home from a meeting this evening about 5, stuck in traffic on Colorado Blvd., and the car started to choke and splutter and die - I barely managed to coast, cursing, into a gas station, glad only that I would not be blocking traffic and would have a somewhat warm spot to wait for the tow truck. It wouldn't even turn over. Before I could make the call, I saw a woman walking out of the "quickie mart" building, and it looked like she slipped on some ice and fell into a Gas pump, so I got out to see if she was okay.

When I got there, it looked more like she had been overcome by sobs than that she had fallen; she was a young woman who looked really haggard with dark circles under her eyes. She dropped something as I helped her up, and I picked it up to give it to her. It was a nickel.

At that moment, everything came into focus for me: the crying woman, the ancient Suburban crammed full of stuff with 3 kids in the back (1 in a car seat), and the gas pump reading $4.95.

I asked her if she was okay and if she needed help, and she just kept saying " don't want my kids to see me crying," so we stood on the other side of the pump from her car. She said she was driving to California and that things were very hard for her right now. So I asked, "And you were praying?" That made her back away from me a little, but I assured her I was not a crazy person and said, "He heard you, and He sent me."

I took out my card and swiped it through the card reader on the pump so she could fill up her car completely, and while it was fueling, walked to the next door McDonald's and bought 2 big bags of food, some gift certificates for more, and a big cup of coffee. She gave the food to the kids in the
car, who attacked it like wolves, and we stood by the pump eating fries and talking a little.

She told me her name, and that she lived in Kansas City Her boyfriend left 2 months ago and she had not been able to make ends meet. She knew she wouldn't have money to pay rent Jan 1, and finally in desperation had finally called her parents, with whom she had not spoken in about 5 years. They lived in California and said she could come live with them and try to get on her feet there.

So she packed up everything she owned in the car. She told the kids they were going to California for Christmas, but not that they were going to live there.

I gave her my gloves, a little hug and said a quick prayer with her for safety on the road. As I was walking over to my car, she said, "So, are you like an angel or something?"

This definitely made me cry. I said, "Sweetie, at this time of year angels are really busy, so sometimes God uses regular people."

It was so incredible to be a part of someone else's miracle. And of course, you guessed it, when I got in my car it started right away and got me home with no problem. I'll put it in the shop tomorrow to check, but I suspect the mechanic won't find anything wrong.

Sometimes the angels fly close enough to you that you can hear the flutter of their wings...

Psalms 55:22 "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved."

Oh my.... Another yesterday moment...

If you like old cars, hot rods, and thinking or learning about the past...


then you need to visit this site.... Gosh do I remember when... haha...

Cars We Drove - like there was no tomorrow, or anything close to a gas shortage.

When we moved to Stillwater on Sept. 01, 1960, a couple days afterward, I rode with my Dad to Stillwater to find a Texaco Station and we found Harley Thomas Ford on the corner of 6th and Main in Stillwater, and Dad filled up and I will never forget how he griped all the way home because "they" were stealing from people charging 24 cents a gallon for gasoline when it was only 19 cents at the little texaco station south of police station in El Reno!!!

Oh yes.. these cars you will see went fast, were very well made, had NO plastic parts till the 'vets' starting adding them..... and could withstand lots of abuse... buy my goodness did they respond to tender love and care!! So yes, we drove them hard, and fast and like there was NO tomorrow.... enjoy your trip back!!

the music is great a two times the price!!