Soul Food #137 ~Cire d'Abeille~Beeswax~

I had been reading about the benefits of beeswax~  2 of my little grandsons have bouts of eczema..beeswax.. combined with other things seemed to be a nice add-on for calming the redness and itch..And who could resist having a little heart rubbed on him or her:)

So I went to the beekeeper..

And picked up a few things..I could not resist the dear little candle.. they make them there..I have to say the scent of beeswax..  is fabulous to me.
I combined equal parts of beeswax..coconut oil and olive oil..and melted together..I did add some Lavender oil also..poured  the delightfully scented warm liquid into silicone heart molds..and very soon..the little hearts became..hand rubs..leg rubs..anywhere rubs..
I brought one over to Oli~ and he let me rub it on his small beautiful toes..and the crook of his arm:)
So worth my making it just for that..and his little dear smile..he rubbed some on me too:)
I have to admit I like them also..:)

I gave one to Jacques..One to Oli..and I have one in use ..I put it on my hands and feet and face~
Feels great~I love to put little sockettes watching  Downton Abbey or Parenthood:)... my tastes are varied..  :)at -6 F many would enjoy a blanket and sockettes:)
I used The Graphics Fairy graphics to make parchment paper wrappers..and to do the collage below~ Love Graphics Fairy graphics..:)
These are super easy to make..
I used ap 85 grams..of the Beeswax..Coconut Oil and EVOO.. with a few drops of Lavender essential oil~
It made 6 hearts.

They are easy to make..And the house smells amazing!I might put less Olive Oil in the depth of summer..~

Enjoy..I think they make such sweet Valentine gifts also~♥♥
Footnote..it thrilled me that Max came over a few days later and said:"you know what Oli  has? "I have it too..and he pulled up the sleeve of his shirt..
I said..you must want a heart?
Yes:-)

After all February is for ♥'s~

Blog Rolls:-)

 Don't get me wrong..I can appreciate a beautiful loaf of French Bread..with the crispy crust and holey interior~
But sometimes..you just need rolls:)
And sometimes you don't need 36 rolls..or even 24..or 12..
When it's just the 2 of you.. 6 is more than twice of what you need..
But I just couldn't stop picking at it!
It's that good..in my mom's cast iron pan..
It was soft and pillowy and sesame ~Y..
With buttah? Bettah:)
I am s o glad I pinned this recipe..from here:)Cookistry~

As it is a keeper for J and I..
Even for shredded beef  dunks and pulled pork..and spicy pork burgers etc:)

They take minutes..  the basic ings..I could whirl everything around in the bread machine on dough..let rise..and bake..
Trop Bons..
Just don't expect a baguette or artisan bread finish..
Pillows..Clouds..

Keepers~

You can link to the blog above..
Or just jot down from here~

La Recette~

 Small Batch Buttery Buns~

1 tsp instant yeast
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tbsp sugar(I used brown turbinado)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup water
eggwash..1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp water
 sesame seeds..

Put everything in your bread machine as per manufacturer's instructions~.
Dough cycle..
When done..let sit in machine an additional 15 minutes..


Sprinkle corn meal in your chosen pan..
Form into 6 balls..and place in pan..or tin..

I used my mother's cast iron skillet..
Let rise..

Preheat oven to 350F
Baste with the eggwash and sprinkle seeds

Bake for 25 mins..ap..mine took more like 30..
Serve warm or let cool..so so good~!
I know I am early on this post..but when inspiration strikes..share:-)

The French Laundry's Apple Kuchen~

I was totally smitten when I landed upon   a lovely recipe and glorious photos at this pretty blog..For an apple kuchen..

I loved how all the apples were so thinly sliced and inserted in the dough~

I enjoy baking desserts that are pretty as well as delicious  and this recipe offers those two things:)

It's so easy.. and looks like a little piece of art~

If you go to the link at the top..you will find the recipe there..

I did not make her sauce..I made a simpler one that Jacques likes..

I didn't have all that cream:)

It's one of those cakes..that you just like to take photos of also:)

You need such basic things..

and apples..
and I omitted the cranberries too~

And go for the FRESH nutmeg..makes all the difference~

And I did put cinnamon sugar~

Perfect for company..or simply for yourselves..

She is so right..it's just so delicious:)

Jacques loved it~

Once you have made one..you will be thinking..hmm..how can I arrange the delicate slices differently?:)

Have a Great weekend~

..C'est l'Hiver~

Hmmmm..Snow snow and more snow..Howling winds..drifts..  shovel.. shovel..snowblow.. snowblow..

The gardens looking like this are very familiar to me..amazing how in a few months..color will bounce right back as if nothing ever happened!So many secrets and treasures under that thick white blanket..

I can almost feel the snowdrops taking in their  yawns..the scillas wondering when their time will come..My little Tree of Enchantment wondering how it could ever get so cold!

My Korean Lilacs and the Magnolia dormant as dormant could be..

I love winter..I love Spring..I love Summer and I love Fall~

I just always remember what is to come and can never wait!

But today..today..

It was better indoors today..

Looking out at the sun..remembering the beach:)..Watching my lavender grow:)

My daughter gave me lavender in a pot for Mother's Day last May..I brought it in and it is very happy..

So is MINT..hate mint in your garden? Bring it in..NON invasive:) And happy.

The whole week was a bit upside downish weather wise and baking wise..

I did make those Joy Of Baking scones again and added chocolate chips..

Bons!

With that coarse sanding  sugar on top?  So pretty:)

I am still ISO a wood scone cutter:)  The old old vintage ones..

No luck yet..until then..these do fine..these are small..2 ~3 Inches:)

Love ♥s too~

You can find the scone recipe via a little trip down memory lane..through me..and Diane..

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star How I wonder How You Are~

Aromatherapy~Knitting Therapy and a Recipe~Or two~

MMM..I love this scent~ I have mentioned it to you before..It is my one liquid kitchen splurge~
Every time I wash my hands..I love the scent that lingers..It actually makes the kitchen smell delicious..
I have also recently discovered Meyer's..And I just love the Countertop Basil scent and product..I found it at Target in the USA~ But Canadian Tire also carries it here..just not in that favored Basil scent.
I bought the Lavender  and really the Basil beats it~
I find it a pleasure to clean with something that appeals to me aromatherapy wise:)
Anyone else?

Craft therapy wise ..I enjoyed my debut with the neck warmer I mentioned.. I knit ap 30 stitches.. until it could fit comfortably around my neck..twisted it once and sewed it up..Added a felt flower from this link..
(Thank You Mollie Makes~:) )
I enjoyed every minute of making it and will make more..would love to better myself and do something a bit more detailed..But it fits well like a thick turtle neck without the sweater part..and sits high and firm:) Great for necks:)

If you can watch a video..you can knit this..no pattern..  one ball of wool..(Michael's) and size 10 needles I used..
Just thought I would share..because I enjoyed it so much..

Baking wise..I had wanted to make these for Christmas and ended up making them afterwards..
They are so good~
I liked them even better w/ the white chocolate drizzle on top..
They would be pretty for Valentine's too~

Cranberry Pistachio Shortbreads with White Chocolate Glaze~

You can find the Joy Of Baking recipe here~
I simply melted some white chocolate and drizzled~

  Very Good little cookies~

I made the Cranberry Bliss bars everyone raved about on Pinterest ..Starbuck's?  And although they were good..No one really said wow what are those?
:)

A good little Oatmeal Muffin was made..Courtesy of Curly Girl~
What I liked about these...
 is that the oatmeal is cooked first.. makes them very different.

I love freshly grated nutmeg..  and the addition of the brown sugar on top was nice..
These are not too sweet and delish warm..I used only all purpose unbleached white flour.
La Recette~  Thanks to Curly Girl..Have you been there?  So nice!

Have a good week everyone~

Miss Kitty~aka Hello Kitty:-)

I truly think sometimes I bake just to be happier~ I do..I enjoy being in the kitchen..creating..Especially Saturday..the sun finally came out..the white snow..the blue sky..our sunny kitchen..
Noah was coming for a sleepover with his big sister Giuliana..I had promised him I would make special cookies..
He had been to the Pantomime of Puss N Boots yesterday with his mommy..cousins and aunt..so these aren't that far fetched:) I mostly took the occasion of a girl sleeping over to make these cute cute cookies..G is probably too grown up for them..but..I thought if I think they are cute..maybe she would too:)

I first saw similar cutters at Hungry at Midnight:)..  I love that blog..remember the present cookies?
Same cuteness..same blog~
I searched the net and found some..and sure enough they were delivered while we were in Florida~
Came home and it was tree trimming..Christmas baking time..so the cutter waited patiently until I was ready~

I smiled making them..baking them..assembling them:)
I used a past favored sugar cookie recipe I had from none other than beautiful Sol~
If you have never been to her blog..give yourself a present and go..right now:)

She bakes and cooks and photographs beautifully..
I think I am so lucky to be able to peruse such gorgeous blogs and learn so much~

This is the recipe Sol shared.. years ago..~

La Recette~

2 1/4 cups AP flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
12 tbsps unsalted butter softened
1 large egg
1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
1 tsp vanilla extract

Cream the sugar and butter together until fluffy~
Add the egg,lemon zest and vanilla extract and beat until blended~
 In another bowl..combine the remaining dry ings..(flour and salt)~
On low speed gradually add to the butter mixture until combined..~
Press the dough into a flat disk and wrap in cling~
Refrigerate at least 2 hours..


  That's when I did this..

I am so not good..but it's a beginning..:) It's just that neck warmer..~I only remember how to start..knit..purl..and I hope castoff!:)On verra bien~

Then~
Roll out to 1/8 inch thickness on a lightly floured surface.~
Cut out and bake ap 8-12 mins  (I did at 350F)~
For even baking rotate the cookie sheet half time~
My note 
After cutting out..I stuck my cookie sheet in the freezer for a few minutes..I always do now..to keep the shape ..Maybe I did not need to..But I do~.

Anyways..these made me feel childlike to bake..So thanks to both blogs..to the person that sold me the cutter..to the sun shining..and to two cute  kids:)

Not really Puss N Boots:) ~He assured me of it when he saw them..but liked them:-)
G did too and had the cutest T-shirt..Keep Calm And Eat A Cupcake:-)
Adamo came too..A full house:-)
Love the Hello Kitty face..
Today ..Sunday..is a very different day..
Grey..but snowy and winterwonderylandy..
Fire's going..Guiness stew in the oven..
Huge  waffles for breakfast..not for me....but they did look pretty delish..:-)
Noah had 2:)
P.S.
Thumbs up for Sol's cookies..the lemon did it..and that face:-)

PPSS~

the little dots..are..vanilla bean paste dots:)

Paris ~ Cookies.

Our Grandson Noah came for an afternoon this past Monday and it was cold..not as cold as today..-11 F but CCCOLD  nevertheless.

So after lunch..and coloring..and playing with some toys we decided to watch A Monster In Paris as he wanted to see Francoeur again~

he remembers everything.I had never seen it..and really enjoyed it..I have yet to see the end though..his mom came to pick him up before I had a chance..

So taht was Noah wanting Paris..  that blog I enjoy so much..Paris Breakfasts..she is there at the moment..so I get my little share of charming Paris aquarelles and vistas.

I went to Plattsburgh NY yesterday with my other daughter..there's a Target there..and even in their dollar aisle..they had all these cute pink j'adore Paris stationary..I resisted.:)

G Depardieu is constantly in the French news..so I am getting my France fill there.

There's Pinterest with favorite French pinners..Bloggers..

I'm glad it's popular..always was and always will be..

Because I gave into temptation once again for a cookie cutter :)

I know it looks quite like the other French "Tampons" I have..but see?  there are little flexible chocolate molds to put OVER the cookies to make "Petits Ecoliers "type cookies..but of France:)

So much fun to make..They come with a little cookbook..as with most of their "coffrets"

I found them easy to make..

and very good .

I did however find the actual tampon..too big for the size of the chocolate.So I used my "Biscuits Maison " tampon after the first try..and they were then perfect.

These kits..coffrets..are really like a new toy when they arrive..I watched my grandsons with their shiny new Lego boxes etc..and thought ..well that's what I feel like ..a new Lego box..with pieces and a booklet..

J'aime beaucoup.

Cute eh?

There are many recipes in the darling little cookbook..

But I used the recipe I had used for the Biscuits Maison..since they had worked so well with the "tampon"

La Recette~

200 gr sifted flour

90gr of homemade vanilla sugar or 80gr of plain sugar w/ one envelope of vanilla sugar

125 gr semi salted butter

3 egg yolks + one yolk mixed with one tbsp of milk and one tsp of icing sugar.

In the mixer ..mix the sugar with the egg yolks on med.speed..hen add the softened butter in little clumps..then the flour..Mix everything quickly and as soon as a ball forms..Stop:)(Or else they will be hard)

Make a roll with the dough of ap 6-8 cm of diameter..Wrap in cling wrap and let rest at least 1 hr in the refrigerator.

Remove from fridge and cut slices of ap 2-3mm with thread(I use unwaxed,unflavored dental floss).

I put mine on my parchment paper..and pressed w/ my stamp that  was lightly floured..removing the excess..(not much)You can use a cookie cutter.

Use the egg yolk/milk/icing sugar mixture and baste the cookies..

Bake in a preheated 356 degree oven  for 5-7 mins.(I did 325 convection..  until they started turning golden~

Cool immediately on a cooling rack.
Please see link to see where the recipe actually came from.
You could really use any cookie recipe that cuts out well~

My Note..I did not baste as I was adding chocolate on top:)

Hope you all enjoyed your holidays.I am enjoying reading yours and some other lovely blogs..So many of you have already put away the tree ..the decorations..on an organization trend:)

We leave ours up until  Epiphany..even when it was real.. OY..we just put it up later and took it down later.

I must admit because it gets so dark so early..the lights in the tree and the mantle..add an "ambiance" I enjoy.

It's always "funner" to decorate the tree than undecorate.I always plan on putting the decorations away in a more orderly fashion..but it never looks like the blogs or Pinterest.

We all agreed Pinterest had an influence on us..From decorating ideas..to hors d'oeuvres this Christmas..

Today..I will tackle my craft room that looks nothing like Blog Craft Rooms or Pinterest craft rooms..in fact at the moment..I have several ornaments  cut out..and ready for winter production:)

I needed to pick up sequins to continue and some floss..so today I will organize my chaos:)

I had a dream someone came to visit and they had tidied everything up and set up a bed with a quilt on it..Must have been because we looked at quilts at TJMaxx and HomeGoods yesterday..and maybe because Noah and Giuliana are having a sleepover here Saturday.

I picked up needles yesterday and a ball of wool to try and get back into knitting..Found the pattern on Pinterest..it said knit until you have almost no yarn left..that's the pattern..I will have to Google to remember how to finish and stitch it together..

It's here:)..To Knit~

Like a neck warmer:)..would love to learn to crochet..my friend offered me a beautiful pot holder/doily and dish dryer.So intricate and lacy and pretty..

We'll see:)

Have a lovely weekend~