Notes from Abigail
There are special cakes that bring back memories or help celebrate special holidays. For example, fruitcake is a classic Christmas cake.
My favorite cake of all time is a white layer cake with coconut frosting. But a close second in my favorite lineup is the red velvet cake. I love both of those!
My Aunt Evelyn is a wonderful cook. She is very “old school” about cooking. She does everything from scratch, almost never uses a microwave oven, and has most of her recipes stored in her head.
The last time we ate dinner at her house, she served the most delicious corn fritters. I asked her for the recipe and she said that she doesn’t have one. She just mixes stuff up in the bowl “until it looks right” and then drops big spoonfuls into her cast iron frying pan with hot bacon grease. Now, that’s good country cooking! But I sure do wish she had a recipe for the corn fritters – they are delish!
About the only wildlife I see in the yards of my neighborhood are lots of songbirds and a lot of squirrels. I know there must be rabbits, but I rarely see any. I suspect the rabbits just know my dogs would give them chase and they stay clear of my yard. Or perhaps they wait until we have all retired for the night and they come out in the moonlight. It would nice to see one every now and then – I think rabbits are cool little creatures.
A friend of mine in San Francisco is involved with this green company. Her name is Camilla Eriksson. She is a talented illustrator and graphic designer.
When you send the eCards for special occasions like birthdays, sponsors make donations to different nonprofit organizations. Its worth checking out and helping people if you like what you see.
Do you have a favorite mac and cheese? My mom makes the best, and I’ve never tasted any as good as her, (Love you, MOM!)
But if I had to buy mac and cheese at the store, I would get the Stouffers brand frozen mac and cheese. It is delicious and it cooks up quickly. Very affordable and always ready in just a few minutes if you keep some in your freezer.
One of the few bad things about living up north – besides the very cold winter weather – is the black flies. We have flies and mosquitoes in the warmer months and those can be extremely annoying. Most of the time when I know I will be out in the woods or around water I try to squirt a little Deep Woods Off on my arms and neck. But I wish there was an easier way to keep the biting flies and other bugs away from me!
When summer rolls around it is time for the best dessert ever! This dessert though simple and kind of primitive because usually one cooks it outside, is delicious. S’mores of course, is what I am talking about. S’mores is the perfect treat after a grilled dinner on charcoal. If anyone is like me and my family, the grilling season is our favorite and we always use charcoal. Charcoal provides a nice smoky flavor to the food. I prefer it on meat rather than vegetables but it all tastes good either way.
Another way that s’mores make the perfect dessert is when I am camping with friends. There is nothing like sitting around a roaring campfire holding marshmallow sticks in one hand and a cold drink in the other while stargazing. I am pretty sure this is my favorite atmosphere for enjoying a nice gooey s’more! For anyone feeling adventurous I highly recommend using chocolate grahams and peanut butter cups in place of the honey grahams and milk chocolate!
Independence Day is my favorite summer holiday. I generally am not a great fan of the summer because it has a tendency to be too hot. Funny part is I do not like the winter either because of the snow. I guess there is no making me happy with the weather. However, the Fourth of July no matter the weather would still be my favorite day of the month!
People enjoy barbeques, festive desserts, outdoor activities, swimming, parades and fireworks. Fireworks are the highlight in my book. I love the multiple colors, whistles and final bang from the fireworks. There are certain areas that present the best fireworks. Usually in my state many of the fireworks are shot- off from riverbanks or old mill lots. Therefore many people tend to gather near there.
Tonight was no exception. The parking was atrocious. I have never seen so many people flock to the riverside. People parked their cars even in the streets, blocking traffic. I had to drive around for half of the show before finding parking. Despite all of this I did find a really sweet spot half- way through the show and parked. The presentation was worth the driving.
One of the best parts of the summertime is being able to enjoy a nice refreshing cup of ice cream before bed. Nothing is more satisfying than to be able to take one spoonful after the next of my favorite ice cream and not feel guilty. They have some excellent low fat andlow calorie ice creams on the market.
A favorite flavor of mine is mint chocolate chip. I just love the combination of mint and chocolate together. This ice cream reminds me so much of the candy, Andes mints. When the night is hot the refreshing coolness of the mint mixed with chocolate allows my body to be fooled into being cooler then it really is. Either way, all I know is that it works!
If I had to choose a second favorite flavor of ice cream then I would have to say peanut- butter and chocolate. These two flavors in any combination equal pure bliss. Tonight is kind of sticky and warm. Since I have the air conditioning on than I think eating a bowl of ice cream is in order. Now, to decide which flavor…
Lately the weather has been so nasty. The Northeast has received a few thunderstorms that are as violent as usually seen later in the summertime. Instead, these thunderstorms that bring hail and winds have arrived earlier. People have begun to put in their vegetable and flower gardens and to have such severe weather puts a little bit of fear and worry in the farmer’s heads. Folklore states that poor man’s fertilizer is lightning. This is fine except that all too often most recently the thunder has been accompanied by wind, heavy rain and hail.
Another part of the country that has received massive amounts of rain is the mid-west. Major flooding had begun in the Dakotas, stranding hundreds of people. The pictures the media displays on t.v. is so tragic. The snow is nearly melted in most areas, thank goodness! The damage would be much worse if there were still mountains of snow present. I surely hope the waters begin to receed soon. No one deserves such hardships.