Christmas Baking

It's time.  The beginnings of my Christmas goodie bags.   We have flour, sugar, brown sugar, eggs, nuts, butter, salt, chocolate chips, baking soda, and amaretti.

 

It almost looks like Chocolate Chippers, except for the amaretti.  Well, I have to confess.  The amaretti are for the cook to nibble on.  Here they are, all put together and baked.

So far, I've finished the Lemon Bread, Pound Cakes, and Gingersnaps.  I wonder what else I might be making this year? 

Farmer's Market

I love going to the Farmer's Market.  I try to go at least once a week, sometimes twice a week.  I even go to Farmer's Markets when I am on vacation.   Charlottesville, Virginia happens to have a really nice market on Saturdays.  I was just there a couple of weeks ago and it was really hard to restrain myself.  Their tomatoes looked fabulous. 

We are lucky here because the Trenton Farmer's Market is open year round.  There aren't many vegetables in the winter, but there are other tasties to be had.  There are also at least three other seasonal markets that I know about.  This is a sampling of what I got on Friday. 

 

This time of year is very difficult for me.  There are soooo many good things and only so much I can possibly eat.  I will have to eat the corn first, because it is best when it's fresh.   The cantaloupe smells so good,  I know it is ripe.  Okra is one of David's favorites, and so are the lima beans boiled with a little bacon.  The tomatoes will make a lovely salad, just chop and drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with chopped basil, salt, and pepper.  Should I chop the cucumbers and mix with garlic and yogurt, or just eat them peeled and sliced?  Or I could slice them with an onion and soak them in vinegar and water for a quick pickle.  And look at those Hungarian Peppers.  Not only are they the cutest things around, they are so good stuffed with Italian Sausage.  Peaches sliced and soaked in white wine make a very tasty dessert.  I also have my standard selection of cheeses for lunches.

Do you think I got enough for the week?  I didn't get any green beans, eggplant, raspberries, blackberries, slicing tomatoes, potatoes, squash, or watermelon.  It's ok.  If I run out of food, I know where there's a Farmer's Market on Saturday, one on Sunday,  and one on Thursday, and Trenton is open most of the week.

I Did It

I had to, I couldn't help myself.  I wasn't sleeping well.  I have 40 more pounds of blueberries.  Here they are, waiting to be washed, dried, and frozen.  

In case you are wondering just what I put in my breakfast smoothie that causes me to need so many berries, here is what I do:

In a blender add

1 banana, peeled

1 1/2 cups frozen blueberries

1 bubble of Pom  pomegranate juice  (about 8 ounces, I think)

some orange juice  (I know that's a little vague, probably somewhere in the 8 ounce range)

ice cubes

Put the lid on the blender and blend until smooth.  If you want it thicker, add more ice, thinner, add more orange juice.  Don't like blueberries, use raspberries or mango or whatever you like.    I also add about 1/8 teaspoons of spirulina powder, but only with the blueberries.  It is quite green and doesn't look so appetizing mixed with the mango.  This makes 2 smoothies.  Unless I am sharing with someone, I drink one and freeze one.  I take it out of the freezer as soon as I get up and by the time I'm ready for breakfast, it has thawed out enough to eat.  Happy Blending!!!

Worried

I'm a little worried.  80 pounds of blueberries seems like a lot.  It is a lot, but let's do some math.  I get 4 breakfast smoothies from each bag.  That's only 320 smoothies.  It doesn't quite cover a year.  And David drinks them on weekends.  He's decided that they taste better than his Atkins Shakes  (shocking, I know).  So if you subtract his 104 smoothies, that leaves 216 smoothies.  I need breakfast 365 days, unless it's a leap year, which will leave me without breakfast for 149 days.  I know, I know,  I could have something else for breakfast like oatmeal with blueberries (wait, I'd be out of berries).  I could make another flavor of smoothie.  I might  be somewhere else for breakfast.  I could put David back on Atkins although that seems cruel.  And what if I wanted to make cobbler or muffins or something?  What if David worked from home and wanted more than his allotted 2 per week?  That 149 number is making me nervous.  I could still get more berries.  It's not too late.  I'd need at least 37.25 bags (149 days /4).   Ummmm that's another 40 pounds of blueberries.  Can that be right???   Perhaps I've made an error in my calculations.  Fortunately, I live with an accountant.  He can sort it out.

80 Pounds of Blueberries

I am done.  I have washed, dried, baggied, and frozen 80 pounds of blueberries.  That's a lot.  That's 80 bags of berries.   Not sure how that worked out, I certainly didn't plan it.  There are 3 cups of berries in each bag which is 240 cups of berries.  I wonder if that's enough to get me through the year.