A Tale of Two Shortbreads

I had big plans for December, and though I've accomplished a fair bit, I never did blog all my Christmas Baking recipes like I'd planned, so I mentioned to Nigel the other day that I was going to blog every day until Christmas with one cookie recipe. He scoffed when I said this, and it seems he may have been right - there's only four days left before Christmas day and I have more than four recipes to share, hence, the title of the post.

Let's get down to some baking:



Everyone I know has some recipe or another for Shortbread, but I'm here to share with you how it's really done. Shortbread is the purest of all the baking at Christmas, there are very few ingredients (specific ingredients, please) and a simple, though exhausting technique.

Real Scottish Shortbread

1 cup butter, softened (that's butter, please, no margarine or other faux fats)
1/3 cup berry sugar (not granulated sugar, and not icing sugar, those are wrong)
1 2/3 cup unbleached flour
1/3 cup rice flour (you can use 2 cups unbleached flour, but you'll get your hands slapped)

Cream the butter very well (this sounds simple doesn't it? It's not, I put my butter in the stand mixer and beat, beat, beat until it's very pale and soft. If you don't have an electric mixer you can expect to develop big, brawny Scottish forearms.) Gradually add the sugar (again this sounds very straightforward, but the word to remember in that line is gradually, just a spoonful at a time). Gradually add the flours (see sugar reference). Turn out of bowl and knead dough until it begins to crack (this shouldn't take long if you've done everything else I told you). Wrap in wax paper and chill for 30 minutes. Roll out dough on lightly floured surface about 1/4 inch thick using as little flour as possible (too much flour will make them tough). Cut into fancy shapes - try to be economical in your shape cutting, you want to roll and cut as few times as possible. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 325 degrees F for 15 minutes (if you've rolled them a little thin you'll want to make sure to check them so they don't burn).

Well done! Here's another recipe that's for "shortbread" too:

Lemon Shortbread

3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup icing sugar (I know, that's why I call it "shortbread")
1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1/4 tsp salt (I don't bother with this if the only butter I have in the house is salted)
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 Tbsp grated lemon zest
2 Tbsp sugar

Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until light. Sift the flour and salt together in another bowl, and add to the butter mixture. Then add the vanilla and lemon zest, and blend thoroughly. Gather the dough into a ball and wrap in wax paper, chill for 4-6 hours (well...sometimes I cheat a little on the time). Remove from the refrigerator and let softened slightly. Line an 8-inch cake pan with foil or parchment. Press the dough into cake pan. Sprinkle with the 2 Tbsp sugar, and refrigerate, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Bake until the shortbread is just starting to colour. about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, let cool, then cut into 2 x 1 inch bars.

Not real Shortbread, but very nice none-the-less.

Winter Begins

Winter has arrived of late and I've been busy, busy, busy.

I'd been thinking through November that I should blog all my favourite Christmas baking as I baked - showing the finished project and sharing the recipes, but then I went ahead and started baking and completely forgot about sharing. Already baked and squirreled away in the freezer are my Cherry Pound Cakes, Hazelnut Crescents, Lemon Shortbread and Coconut Macaroons. I think, perhaps, I'll treat a sampling to a visit to a plate and do a wee photo shoot. I suspect Nigel and Ian will help make sure that none of them have to return to the freezer...

Today though, was Jan Hagels day...



this cookie recipe was one Mum use to make years ago, and one I've made every Christmas for a long, long time. I suspect the recipe came from a magazine, possibly a Canadian Living, but I'm honestly not sure, all I do know is that it's not listed in their recipe index.

But don't despair, because I've got the recipe right here:



Jan Hagels

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar (I use granulated)
1 egg, separated
1 tsp. almond extract
2 cups flour (I use unbleached white)
1/2 cup blanched sliced almonds (I suspect I use more than that)
1 tbsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon

With mixer, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add egg yolk and almond extract. Blend thoroughly. Stir in flour (I don't stir, but beat it in with the mixer). Turn cookie dough into an ungreased 15x10x1 inch jelly roll pan. Spread evenly to edges with spatula (for many year the pan I had was too big, so I only spread it to three edges and about 3/4 the length of the pan - use your judgement people!). Beat the egg white until foamy. Spread evenly over cookie dough (I don't use all of it, I brush it on with a pastry brush until there's a nice even coating on top), spread nuts evenly over top (I use a fair bit, probably more like 3/4 cup, rather than the 1/2 cup stated in the original). Combine sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle over nuts (I always have a shaker full of cinnamon and sugar in the cupboard, for making cinnamon toast, I don't measure this out I just shake, shake, shake all over the top of the almonds). Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes until lightly browned (hmmm...actually, I check them at about 22 minutes, and if they look and smell done then I take them out - don't let them burn). Let cool in pan on wire rack for about 10 minutes. Cut into 8 lengthwise cuts and 12 diagonal cuts (I use a pizza cutter). Cool in pan, remove with spatula. Mmmmm...

There's always a few odd, too-skinny shaped pieces that are left over for snacking. This makes Nigel very happy.



I got a tree for the landing and decorated it with a collection of vintage ornaments.



My favourite...



and the tree topper, so lovely...



Every year since Ian was tiny we've put up the Playmobil Advent calendar. It's been amusing me every year that no matter how old he gets, he'll make a bee-line for the calendar and open the little box first thing in the morning, before anything else, but today...for the first time...



...box number 1 still sits and waits.

They break your hearts for the first time at fourteen.

Would You Knit a Gingerbread House?

Isn't this a fabulous piece of embroidered vintage linen? A friend who speaks German says it means: "Do it like the sundial, only count the bright hours", which, I assume to mean, "look on the bright side".

Lovely...

It's a dresser cloth, approximately 3 feet by 2 feet, it must have taken the maker such a lot of time and effort, it always breaks my heart to see something like this end up in a thrift shop - I had to give it a home.

I've been on a real tear with regard to new acquisitions lately, and not just linens...

I'm afraid I've amassed quite the collection of old books lately, even Nigel (who never criticises) remarked on how many there seemed to be...

...perhaps I should blog them all one day...

I really need to steer clear of the shops, it's not like I don't have enough projects to keep me busy:

The Lady Grey continues to haunt my days (just a ghost, of course, it's not materialising into anything concrete).

Lining is cut out...



I started a new shawl called Kiri by Polly Outhwaite. It's suppose to be a fairly easy knit. I'm working it in Elann Super Kydd in black. I made the mistake of starting it in a dimly lit room one evening, and it promptly had to be started over.

Here's a snap of the scraped first attempt:



so sad...

Also, on and off the needles lately has been Alan Dart's Gnomes at Home.
I started this project thinking it might make a cute Christmas display, but after finishing the first gnome,



I decided the gingerbread house was a tad tacky. I did finish the gnomette, but have yet to take her picture. I'll show her next time, she's rather sweet, with crooked ears.

Also, just look at what's been on and off the lemon tree!



Yes, it's a bumper crop!

Happy Hallowe'en

Nigel and Ian and I went out for our annual walk through the graveyard yesterday. There are two we like to frequent, this is St. Andrew's on the Red, it's one of the older cemeteries in the area (the other we like is the Lower Fort Gary Cemetery). We've been going for years, but I still find new markers every time we go.



There'd been a bit of snow the night before, which had started to melt and drip off the trees. It made a strange pattern on this headstone and we wondered if underneath it had a name like McKay...



it didn't.



Ian does strange things when we get to this site. This year he crouched under a tree and stayed there for a long, long time while Nigel and I took in the history of the place.



Later, I snapped him skulking around the edge of the church, but he was reluctant to venture in amongst the headstones.



There's a photo from him here in this old post from 2007, sitting in a tree.

Don't know what to make of that boy sometimes...

I finished up the Emily Dickinson shawl (started back in this post). I'd finished the knitting a few weeks back, and have finally blocked it. The silk yarn is so fine you can roll the entire shawl into a ball and fit it into the palm of your hand.



It's got a fabulous spooky quality to it...

Also finished is the Noro Striped Scarf started recently.



Shortly after I started it, I realised the colours were very carnival/tropical...very... Jane. So this one is for you, Jane - you can collect it next week-end when you come to town!

Here' a bit of Belle and Sebastian:



Happy Hallowe'en.

Post Birthday Post

It's that time of year again. Time to get your Hallowe'en decorations up. I put all mine up the first week-end of October. No sense in not enjoying my favourite season of the year.



Draped across the mantle is a Martha Stewart bat garland I bought a few years ago at Michael's.



The first year I cut a few bats off one end and taped them to the hall mirror, in fact, I do believe I blogged about it back here.

Well! Just look at what Martha Stewart is selling this year! Clearly, she's following my blog.



I've finished basting the hair canvas to the fronts of my Lady Grey coat.



I've also finished pad stitching the lapels. It's coming along nicely, though I'm still way behind where I'm suppose to be time-wise. I'm not too concerned though, coat season is a very long season here in Winnipeg, I could take months to finish and I'd still have plenty of opportunity for wear.

I've got a :::Friday Find::: today. Two, in fact.

Nigel and Ian and I went out for lunch to Eat! Bistro today - one of my favourite local lunch spots (the must have is the Eat! Platter, available for one person or two, so fantastic....) The bistro is located at the back of Aqua Books - my favourite local vintage book store. Found today was "Mirror, Mirror on the Wall" by Gayelord Hauser, 1961 edition. Known for his nutrition books and products, this is Hauser's "Invitation to Beauty", wherein he states, "beauty is duty".



I may have to read a little more to figure out just what that's suppose to mean.

On seeing the back of the dust jacket Nigel asked if this beauty book was written by John Diefenbaker.



Really, Nigel!

The illustrations are charming. Love the exercises!



Check out this one - the "Rag Doll Slump"...



now that's my kind of exercise!

And this:



what on earth?!

My other little treasure was found last week-end at a neighbour's garage sale.



A stunning piece of Franciscan Ware pottery.



It even had it's little lid.

Flawless!



and just $2 - an excellent birthday week find!

Happy Birthday to Me

Today is my birthday.

Remember back to this post in April when I bought my wee lemon tree?

Well, it produced three lemons which have grown and grown, and in celebration of my day it's decided to finally ripen those formerly tiny lemons.



And look, at least one new teeny, tiny one is starting for me.



Can't wait to see what other gifts await me later today!

What's That Name?

I've been working double-quick time lately, getting caught up on the oh-so-many lingering projects around the house. Along with the lovely red Citron Shawlette in the photo, I finished painting the bedroom ceilings and ripped out all the half-dead petunias in the front garden beds. We had a spell of cold weather in September that hastened in Autumn, killing off the annuals, and turning the leaves. It's turned warm again, so the trees are looking very bleak and spooky, but it's warm enough to go out jacket less and in short sleeves. Strange.

I've got a :::Friday Find::: for you today -



a vintage ceramic goldfish lamp in chartreuse. I bought this back in the spring, but it was without a shade and it took a fair while for me to find one that was acceptable. It should really be made of fibreglass to be authentic to the 1950's era - Elly has suggested a rice paper shade would be better than the one I chose, however, the proportions are not far from what it's original would have looked like, and the colour is good enough. I'll keep my eyes peeled for one that's even better. I've been skulking around Vintage in the Village in Osborne Village, hoping they'll bring in one that's just right. I'll post if I find a new one.

Work continues slowly but surely on the Lady Grey sew-a-long project.



I'm way behind where I should be, but I'm trying not to get too hung up on that - it really should be more about the journey and not the destination, as they say.

I would post photos of the process, but the fabric I purchased is black (beautiful black cashmere/wool blend) which doesn't photograph well at all, and the lining fabric is a hot magenta silk - also beautiful, also doesn't like being photographed. So, you're all just out of luck until the project is finished and I can do a photo-shoot outside.

New on the needles is a stripey scarf in Noro Kureyon Sock.



I love this pattern, dead simple, the perfect mindless knit and very effective with the colour changing stripes. It makes me very happy.

In adventures away from the craft room (*I very nearly wrote craft tomb*) I've had an ongoing issue through my adult life with my name. I'm not sure when it all started, but for a fairly long time I've had problems getting my name spelled correctly on official documents. My birth certificate and my social insurance card are both fine, but everything else has had an issue of one sort or another.

My name is Harriett Anne, and I go by my middle name (not so complicated, right?). Years ago, when I got my first driver's license, the woman that took down all my information told me that if I didn't go by my first name then it should be listed as H. Anne on the license - OK, fine, whatever - I was just happy to have finally passed my driver's exam.

Then when I applied for a passport I was told that I had to have the name on the passport match the name on my driver's license, despite having to show them my birth certificate as well - something to do with matching up to the photo-ID. I was tempted at the time to argue with them, but I was happy enough to be getting a passport, so I didn't.

Then there was the time when some ninny at the bank decided to change my name on my account to Anne Harriett because it was easier for them to find me in the computer (a wiser teller spotted it and fixed it).

The worst was when I was traveling home from Scotland on my H Anne passport, and I noticed that my airline ticket had me listed as Hanne, and I was about to try to get through security with that discrepancy. It turned out to not be that big a deal, but these are not the best of times to not have your ducks in a row.

So I've made more of an effort to correct things as they come up (like when I re-newed my passport), and to insist that both my full first and second names are listed on most things (though my cheques currently call me Harriett Amme), but this week I got my voter's slip in the mail:



*sigh*