Poetry Saturday . . . Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening

Source: poppytalk.blogspot.com via Marie on Pinterest

Whose woods these are I think I know,
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

Source: weheartit.com via Marie on Pinterest

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

Source: fineartamerica.com via Marie on Pinterest

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake,
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

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The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep.
And miles to go before I sleep.
And miles to go before I sleep.
~Robert Frost

Source: featherette.blogspot.com via Marie on Pinterest

You know the last few stanzas of that poem are so familiar to me. I've heard them many times . . . but I've never known where they came from until today! I love it! It got it from a little book I picked up one time called "Best Loved Poems." Edited by Neil Philip and Illustrated by Isabelle Brent.

I love the way the earth feels when the snow has been falling fast and deep. It is like a wonderland . . . silent, mysterious. You can hear the snow falling, but nothing else. All larger sound appears muffled. It's quite beautiful really. I don't do much walking in the snow over here though . . . not that we get it in any huge quantities very often. I just don't have the boots or other things to wear in the snow. I think if we ever travelled home to Canada in the Winter we would both be ill equipped to deal with either the temperatures or the terrain!



This is one of my favourite Winter/Holiday songs. It's Believe by Josh Groban. It's the theme song from Polar Express and is quite, quite beautiful. That Josh Groban can really sing. His voice is just gorgeous.

I went to the Doctors yesterday and I am on anti-biotics now, so that's a good thing. I think I can feel a difference already! Fingers crossed that this knocks this chest infection on the head for good!

This is a delicious smoked salmon appetizer that I often made when I worked in the Manor House. It's quite elegant and would be great for a holiday meal. It doesn't have to cost a bomb either as you can use the packets of smoked salmon bits that you can buy instead of the slices. They're always a lot cheaper, and work just as well!



*Smoked Salmon Tartar with Horseradish and Dill*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

Serve this delicious tartar with crisp slices of grilled bread and thin slices of cucumber.

8 ounces cold smoked salmon
2 TBS minced red onion
1 TBS nonpareille capers, drained and rinsed
1 TBS coarsely chopped fresh dillweed
1 1/2 tsp prepared horseradish
1/8 tsp grated lemon zest
1 tsp lemon juice
2 TBS sour cream
1/4 tsp Tabasco sauce
1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper
thinly sliced English cucumber
Frisee salad leaves for garnish
Tomato vinegar to drizzle on the salad leaves
thinly sliced bread, grilled

Cut the salmon into small dice. Combine with the onion, capes, dill weed and horseradish in a medium bowl. Stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice and the sour cream. Add the Tabasco sauce and pepper. Fold all together gently, taking care not to over mix it.

Cover and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

When ready to serve pack into individual molds. Place some of the thinly sliced cucumber on the edge of a chilled salad plate. Unmold the salmon just slightly overlapping the cucumber and arrange some frissee salad on the other side. Drizzle the salad leaves with a little tomato vinegar and serve with a few slices of the grilled bread on the side.



Over in The English Kitchen today there's a delicious Pear and Ginger Trifle!

“When our wagon gets stuck in the mud, God is much more likely to assist the man who gets out to push than the man who merely raises his voice in prayer—no matter how eloquent the oration.”
~Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Poetry Saturday . . . Dandelion Days . . .

Dandelion, dandelion,
Won't you tell me true,
Where all the years have flown away
Since first your seeds I blew?



Since first I ran through meadow-grass
And days stretched long and free,
With dandelions the only clock
To tell the time for tea.



Yet do the days just disappear
Like seeds that drift away?
Or do they live forever on
In some mysterious way?



For still within me dwells that child
Who hears Truth's teasing call
That clocks are but a human toy
And time means naught at all.
~margaret ingall



I just adore this poem. It takes me back to barefoot summer days as a child . . . when the school summer holidays stretched before me seemingly like forever, and time had not much meaning. Endless days of warm sunlight and play . . . and golden twilights before bath and bed.



We were so excited yesterday to discover not one, but two frogs in our pond, sunning themselves on the lily pads! We were looking at the lily pad flowers which have begun to bloom and I discovered one sitting right at the edge of one of the lily pads . . . and then, as I pointed it out to Todd, I discovered another one at the edge of another pad! It is amazing to think that out of all those hundreds and hundreds of tadpoles, only these two have survived! There could be more that we just have not noticed yet, but we are grateful for these two and quite happy with them!

I miss the sound at twilight of the frog's chorus that I used to fall asleep to back in Canada, with the odd loud harrumph of the bull frog . . . that and the crickets . . . and the sound of the cicadas on a warm summer's day . . . like electrical wires humming. No such sounds here, at least not where I live anyways!!

Wherever you go today, whatever you may be doing, I hope you have a lovely day, just chock to overflowing with beautiful things and small pleasures!

Here's a tasty recipe that I had not made in a long time, not since we moved up here at any rate. They make an excellent appetizer for those backyard barbeques I am sure you are all holding at the moment! Todd and I just have them for our tea with some salad on the side. We are happy with that.



*Proscuitto Wrapped Lemon Chicken with an Avocado and Lime Dip*
Makes 20 pieces approximately
Printable Recipe

Plan ahead as you must marinate the chicken pieces for one to two hours. They are fairly easy to put together and very quick to cook. I love the delicious combination of the tartness of the lemon and the salty crispness of the proscuitto!

1 pound (16 ounces) of boneless, skinless chicken breast fillets
½ cup olive oil
½ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
12 thin slices proscuitto
20 whole fresh basil leaves

FOR THE DIP:
2 large ripe avocados
2 TBS freshly squeezed lime juice
2 tsp prepared horseradish sauce
1 spring onion, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
½ tsp salt

Cut the chicken into strips that are three inches long and one half inch wide. Whisk the oil, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper together in a bowl large enough to hold all the chicken pieces. Add the chicken and cover with cling film. Place the bowl in the refrigerator and allow them to marinate for at least one hour.

Make your dip while the chicken pieces are marinating. Peel the avocado and slice. Drop it into a medium size bowl along with the lime juice and mash it well with a fork. Add the remaining ingredients and mix them in well. Taste and adjust seasoning if required. You may want to add a bit more lime juice or horseradish, all depending on your own tastes. Set aside to serve at room temperature.

Pre-heat your grill.

Remove the chicken from the fridge. Take your slices of proscuitto and cut them in half lengthwise so that you have slices that are approximately five inches long, and two inches or so tall. Place a whole basil leaf on one end of the strip of proscuitto and lay a piece of chicken on top. Roll the Proscuitto and basil around the chicken to form a cylinder. Repeat with all the pieces of chicken until you have them all rolled.

Grill or broil the rolls just until the chicken is firm and cooked through, which should take about five minutes or so. Serve warm with the dip.



Baking in The English Kitchen today, a delicious Berry Custard Pie!

Wednesday musings . . .

Every now and again take a look at something not made with hands . . . a mountain, a star, the curve of a stream. There will come to you . . . wisdom and patience and solace . . . and, above all, the assurance that you are not alone in the world.
~Sidney Lovett

It is so easy sometimes to feel like we are all alone in the world and that nobody cares. We live in such a busy world and things happen around us very quickly. People have so many places to go and things to do. Our lives seem to rush by at a frantic pace and it can sometimes be very difficult to catch our breaths.

We owe it to ourselves to, every once in a while, slow down and just take in our surroundings . . . all the majesty of our Heavenly Father's creations . . . it could be something as simple as a flower which has sprung up in a crack of the pavement . . . or as stunning as the beauty of the far off Welsh Hills, or a star lit night time summer's sky.



That is when it all comes home to us . . . that "you are not alone" feeling that can only come from taking stock of all the majesty and beauty that surrounds us. "This" did not all happen by accident. There is a deep purpose and plan in all things, and I, for one, am so grateful to the great Creator of all things! Slowing down to take note of His wonder is sometimes all one needs to be able to get on with the day and can be as refreshing and as invigorating as a holiday! (Or at least it is to me at any rate!!)



I was so thrilled yesterday to learn that Lura's operation went well and that they found no cancer, only scar tissue! Praise God and many thanks for answered prayers! She is in some pain (to be expected) but they are planning on sending her home today. I know that she must be feeling a HUGE sense of relief right now as are we all! Now she can begin to heal in earnest, knowing that all is well. Let us keep praying to that end.

I did another little painting yesterday afternoon. I hope you don't mind me sharing it with you. I don't know where these little fancies come from. I simply sit down at my work table and grab a pencil and then start sketching . . .



They seem to evolve as I go along . . . I only very rarely have something in mind before I start. I am always as surprised to see what springs from the end of my pencil as anyone is.



I am really enjoying using my water colour pencils lately and am learning as I go along as far as technique goes. I don't have any idea if I am using them properly or not. I only know for sure that I like what I find when I am done! I called this one "Moments." It is available as a print or as a card, just like always . . . and just like always you can send me a message to let me know if you would like one! Thanks!

You know . . . I look at my work, and at first I cannot see that it has any value. It is only later on when I step away from it for a time, that I can see that it appears to be pretty good. I just wish that someone who had the means to do something with it, and take it beyond my little sphere of reality, would catch my vision and afford me the means to go further!!! That is my dream, to one day be able to make a living with this. And since I am already 55 (56 on the 13th August) it should happen fairly soon as I ain't getting any younger!!



I have my fingers crossed that today will be sunny. We are off into town after my reading student leaves as I have some legal papers that need signing by a Notary Public and we have an appointment to have this done. Once that is done I can breathe a huge sigh of relief and pop all the papers into the post and then begin the long wait for things to be resolved. Once they are, then Todd and I will be a tiny bit better off financially, which will be a rean bonus! This has been a long time coming, and I am filled with a mixture of anticipation and fear. I expect that is quite normal!

I am rambling now so will close with my daily recipe. Today I am sharing one for an appetizer pizza. Well first course really. It cuts into six nice servings. Of course you could cut it into 12 appetizer nibbles if you wanted to, by simply using smaller tomatoes and laying them out a bit differently. No matter how you cut it though . . . this is quite simply scrumptious!




*Appetizer Pizza*
makes 6 servings
Printable Recipe

A delicious light first course. Simply garnish with a few salad leaves and you are set to go.

1 packet of puff pastry (ready rolled)
2 teaspoons melted butter
1 1/2 cups shredded Italian cheese blend
3 medium plum tomatoes, sliced
2 tablespoons fresh basil strips

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray the paper with some nonstick cooking spray.

Unroll the pastry and cut into two equal portions, length wise. Place onto the prepared baking sheet. Mark a border all the way around each portion with a sharp knife, without cutting all the way through. (about 1/2 inch in from the edge) Brush the middle area with the melted butter. Top with the cheese and the tomatoes. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until crisp and nicely browned. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the basil. Cut into six equal portions to serve.

Note: In order to cut the basil into strips (chiffonade) stack the leaves and then roll tightly into a cigar shape. Using your kitchen scissors cut the roll into thin strips. Voila! Basil Chiffonade!



In The English Kitchen today, a delicious Potato, Tomato, Corn and Basil Salad!

Thursday Prattle . . .

The unthankful heart discovers no mercies; but let the thankful heart sweep through the day and as a magnet finds the iron, so it will find in every hour some heavenly blessings.
~Harriet Beecher Stowe

I'm sure we all know people who might expect the worst in others or places all the time, and they usually find it. What a dismal way to live. I have found that quite the opposite is true, however and so I choose to seek out the best in all people and all things. Sure . . . I am disappointed once in a while when people or experiences turn out to be much worse than I had expected, but I can honestly say that 99% of the time I have found blessings instead.

The power of Positive Thinking? Perhaps . . . I only know it works.



My brother's eldest daughter is graduating from High School this month. It doesn't seem all that long ago that she was born, and I can remember a summer that I spent at my mother's not too long after I moved over here, when my brother was also visiting with his family and seeing her sitting at the dining room table doing some work with my brother and she was just a little girl. It's hard to believe that she is already that old! She will be going on to Graphic Arts studies in the fall. I think that the creative bent surely runs in our family!



I had a lovely Skype call with my middle son and his three boys yesterday afternoon. Oh what fun it was to see my grandsons in action. They were eating oreo cookies, well, except for the baby that is! (Jon is 5, Josh is 3 and Jacob is 7 months) Douglas is such a good father. He's been on paternity leave these past months, but will be going back to work soon. I just know the boys will miss him when he does and he will miss those lads too! He told me that his father in law has been diagnosed with Tonsil Cancer, which I had never heard of before, but like Todd says, you can get cancer anywhere. He will be having chemo and radiation therapy and the prognosis is quite good as it has been caught early. He had gone to the Doctor with a sore throat and they thought it was tonsilitis, however it did not respond to anti-biotics and so a biopsy was done and it was cancer. Please keep him in your prayers. His name is Calvin. Thanks so much!



What a wondrous time we live in, where we have all this technology at our fingertips. The ability to skype and see and talk to your family that are thousands of miles away is so wonderful and even just a hundred years ago, it would have taken weeks and weeks for a letter to arrive, and not a lot of people had cameras or even telephones. If you had been diagnosed with any type of cancer, there was not much of a chance of a cure. We tend to take many of these things for granted, instead of being the miracles and blessings that they truly are.



It looks as if the sun just might shine today. I have my student coming at 11 for his lesson and then I have a surprise visit to the Dentist at 12:10 as I think I have a cracked filling, then I am having the missionaries over for their tea, so I have a very busy day ahead of me and I guess I best get on with it now, as I have a lot to do. I wish each of you a lovely day, filled to overflowing with blessings and delights, both large and small!

Seek and ye shall find! (I hope you have enjoyed these vintage photos here this morning. I fell in love with them and couldn't wait to use them! They serve no purpose at all and have absolutely nothing to do with the topic at hand, but hopefully will make you smile as they did me!)

Here's a delicious appetizer recipe that is quick and quite easy to do. It does make use of some convenience foods, but it would not be all that hard to replace the refrigerated crescent dough with your favourite biscuit recipe, and I can well promise that they might even come out tastier still! I pinched the recipe from the Pillsbury site, and am thinking that this would work really well with small sausages or frankfurters that have been cut into thirds as well . . . kind of like Polynesian Pigs in Blankets!




*Coconut Shrimp Rolls*
Makes 16 appetizers
Printable Recipe

Delicious shrimp appetizers with taste tempting Island flavours. Scrumptious!

16 cooked and deveined large shrimp, peeled, but with the tails still on
1/4 cup of Cream of Coconut
(not coconut milk)
1 TBS rum or 1/4 tsp of rum extract
1 can of refrigerated crescent rolls (8 pack)
4 TBS apricot preserves
1 TBS grated orange zest
1/2 cup flaked coconut

Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

Pat the shrimp dry with some paper kitchen toweling. Toss into a bowl along with the rum or rum extract, and the cream of coconut, making sure they are well coated

Separate the crescent dough into 8 triangles and then cut the triangles into halves, lengthwise, so that you have 16 thin triangles. Starting at the bottom end of each tiangle, place one shrimp at the end and then roll up to the opposite end, covering the shrimp, but leaving the tail sticking out.

Place onto the prepared baking sheet, point sides down.

Mix 2 TBS of the preserves in a small bowl along with the orange zest. Heat in the microwave for about 20 seconds. Brush each roll with this mixture and then sprinkle with the coconut.

Bake in the heated oven for 15 to 18 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven. Heat the remaining preserves for 20 seconds in the microwave and spoon evenly over top of the rolls on the baking sheet. Let sit on the baking sheet for about five minutes before removing to a serving platter. Serve warm.



In The English Kitchen today, a delicious Roasted Cauliflower Soup.

Thursday Ponderings . . .

"Now in the place where He was crucified, there was a garden."
John 19:41

So much is happening in our garden at the moment. I run this way and that . . . trying to hold everything at once . . .

The wallflowers, the tulips, the lilac and the apple blossom . . . I should like to stay the pace of time at this point and to linger over the month of April . . . but all around life rises like a great tide and moves forward . . . and I am overcome with excitement and anticipation of the pleasures to come.



Have you ever noticed that flowers have faces . . . with expressions both grave and gay. Some appear to smile at you and other's to turn their faces away. Some look piously remote . . . as if engaged in deep and secret prayer and yet still again, others look wild and frivolous. Others have a homely air.

Each one has it's own sweet meaning and it's message to convey. Indeed the Victorians put great sway on the meanings of flowers, and one could probably guess the ardour of a suitor from the bouquet given . . . red roses for love, daisies for innocence, forget-me-nots for remembrance . . .



I have my favourites . . . sweet peas, pansies, snap dragons . . . batchelor buttons, holly hocks. All old fashioned cottage garden flowers. Each flower has its own place and purpose and little part to play in our garden. We mass them into beds and crowd them into tiny spaces and containers . . . I like to stoop and admire them, and take in the beauty of each little face.

Oh yes . . . I am a dreamer . . . have a wonderful and blessed Thursday my sweet friends. Wherever you are, whatever you are doing take time to count your blessings, smell the flowers and count the joy that is only yours . . .



I am going to be having company over for an Easter Feast on Monday. I know I am going to serve gammon, but the weather will largely determine how. If it is cold and gloomy, then I will bake it and serve it hot with scalloped potatoes and a variety of other warm dishes. If we get the hot weekend we are promised, I will probably boil it and then serve it cold, perhaps with a potato salad, and other cold foods. One thing is for sure, deviled eggs will be on the menu, no matter what. Easter and Deviled Eggs just kinda go together. I used to make tons of these each week at the Manor when I worked there. There always had to be a plate of them in the refrigerator to snack on. Everyone loves these!



*Deviled Eggs*
Makes 24
Printable Recipe

I wish I had a dollar for every time I have made these! I'd be rich!

one dozen large free range eggs, cooked and peeled*
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 TBS lemon juice
dash of tabasco sauce
2 TBS finely chopped fresh chives
2 tsp finely chopped fresh tarragon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dry mustard powder
chopped chives and parsley sprigs to garnish

Cut each of your boiled eggs in half, lengthwise. Scoop out the yolks into a bowl. Mash them really well with a fork. Stir in the mayonnaise, lemon uice, tabasco sauce, chives, tarragon, salt and mustard powder. Taste and adjust seasoning as required. Spoon or pipe the yolk mixture back into the centres of the boiled eggs. Place onto a chilled serving plate. Sprinkle with some more chopped chives and parsley sprigs to garnish. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour before serving.

*To hard boil eggs:
Place all the eggs in a single layer in a large saucepan and cover to a depth of 3 inches with lightly salted water. Add a splash of white vinegar. Bring to the boil. Cover and remove from the heat. Let stand covered for 15 minutes. Drain the hot water off the eggs. Cover with ice water. Cover and shake the pot to crack the eggs all over. Drain again, then peel under running cold water, starting at the large end.



Cooking in The English Kitchen today, Baked Top Hat Pork Chops, delicious baked pork chops topped with a corn stuffing.

Wednesday prattle . . .

If you have a garden
there is always work to do,
Beds to hoe and grass to mow
and things to plan anew,
Shrubs and bushes to be pruned,
dead wood to cut away,
Fresh young shoots to tie and train
and apple trees to spray.

Plots to dig
and leaves to sweep
and compost heap to make,
Tubs and benches to be painted,
leaning trees to stake.
Edges of the lawn to trim,
a broken fence to mend,
The shed to put in order and
the rockery to tend.

Ragged heges to be clipped.
The kitchen path
to weed,
Pots and boxes to be sorted,
read for the seed.
Borders to be planted out
with next year's show in view,
In a garden you can always
find a job to do!
~Patience Strong



We had a fairly mild day here yesterday, so we spent some time in the garden doing some digging and odds and sodds . . . I say "we" rather loosely, coz it was Todd did all the work . . . I just supervised!

We dug out some more of the vegetable patch, getting things ready for planting and put some of our potatoes out to "chit". Todd says that means letting them sprout and stuff. He has them on the window sill. My regular potatoes seem to just "chit" in the cupboard, without even trying!



I am really excited about the garden this year. We arrived here a bit late in the year last year to really do much with it. I have purchased all sorts of seeds . . . beetroot, chantanay carrots, little gems . . . courgettes, beans, peas . . . butternut squash, jerusalem artichokes . . . and then of course we have the potatoes . . . no less than three varieties (pink fir, an early variety and a late). My job will be planning on where to put everything and then . . . supervising of course! The missionaries are going to come one day and help Todd square everything off and I'll feed them lunch! There's something really spiritual about planning and planting a garden I think . . . I love the smell of the damp earth and all that fresh air!



Mitzie was all agog to get into the garden and run about, but it was far too wet and we didn't want too muddy a doggie so she stayed on the other side of the fence with me and supervised. She is so sweet. I think we really lucked in with her. I just adore her. She quite happily goes into her bed when we are both going out, either to church, or shopping, or even to bed! Oddly though when only one of is away . . . she frets a bit until we are both back together. She doesn't cry or anything, but spends most of the time sitting or laying near the door with her eyes planted on it. She is such a little dear . . .



I baked a marble cake yesterday afternoon, from a cake mix . . . sometimes you just get a craving for a good old fashioned cake mix cake! Then we had leftover meatloaf for supper and a new macaroni dish that I was trying out. It turned out rather well. Todd seemed to happily eat both . . . but then afterwards he made a joke by saying . . . I know what you were thinking this afternoon . . . what shall I feed the old bugger for supper? I know . . . Pasta and Chocolate! (he hates both!) Then we both had a good laugh!

Nevermind, this isn't pasta, nor is it chocolate, but it is similar to something else Todd doesn't really like . . . pizza! It's totally delicious though and very easy to make and kids just love it! You can get the refrigerated biscuits over here at ASDA, but I do confess that I often just make up my own biscuit dough and use that instead. It works just as well, and is probably a lot better for you!!



*Tear and Share Pizza Ring*
Serves 20
Printable Recipe

A pull apart snack ring filled with cheese and pepperoni, served along side pizza sauce for dipping! Makes a brilliant appetizer or snack for the kids on sleepover nights!

6-8 TBS butter, melted
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 cans of refrigerated flaky biscuits, each containing 10
about 3 ounces of small slices of pepperoni
(40 slices)
8 ounces of mozzarella cheese, cut into 20 pieces
1/4 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
1 1/4 cups of Pizza sauce, heated

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Grease a 12 cup fluted tube pan really well. Set aside.

Mix the melted butter, Italian seasoning and garlic powder together in a small bowl. Separate one can of the dough into 10 biscuits, rolling or pressing each one into a 3 inch round. Place 2 slices of pepperoni in the centre of each. Top with a piece of mozzarella cheese. Bring the dough up around the filling, pressing the edges and shaping to seal. Shape each into a ball and then roll in the butter mixture. Place 10 balls in the prepared pan. Sprinkle with the grated Parmesan cheese. Repeat with the remaining can of biscuits, placing the balls over top of the first layer. Pour the remaining butter mixture over top.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before gently loosening the bread from the sides of the pan. Carefully turn out onto a large heatproof plate. Serve warm with pizza sauce for dipping. Delicious!



Over in The English Kitchen today, delicious Pear and Hazelnut Frangipane Cakelettes!

Have a scrummy day!