Addled Cook
Vacation for me has meant extra time to do "normal" things like shop (finished my Christmas shopping yesterday!), read, watch movies, and cook or bake. Tomorrow I'm hosting a Christmas tea for the young ladies in our church, so in preparation for the little sandwiches we must have, I boiled a chicken and eggs (not together!). Let me preface my story by saying that I had a busy week last week and a long weekend with late nights. So I'm still pretty tired and low on nervous energy. And I'm reacting to all the sugar and dairy I had last week. Grrr...Why can't allergies and hypoglycemia take a vacation, too?
I decided to make some candy cane cookies. Not because we really needed them for tomorrow, but because I wanted to make cookies! It's been a good 50 years or so since I've made these particular Christmas cookies, and I'd forgotten how much work and effort they take. You color one half of the dough "red" (more like pink, and my hands still look pink), and then twist a piece of "white" dough and "red" dough together to form a candycane. The trick is figuring out just how much dough to use and how thin to roll the pieces. My first candycane turned out really fat. Oops. My next one was too skinny. (Sounds like a fairytale.) Some of them came out skinny at the top and fat on the bottom or the other way around. BUT by the second cookie sheet, they were looking pretty good, if I do say so myself! And they taste very good, too!
As I said, I was boiling a chicken, which was quite frozen when I put it in. And it took forever. I'm never quite confident about judging the doneness of a chicken, so I finally consulted my guru mom. She said (and I did know this) that the legs need to wiggle loosely. I said, "Well, the little legs are loose, but the big legs are still pretty firm and they're a little bleedy." She looked at me oddly and said, "Little legs? Do you mean the wings?" She started laughing her head off and I couldn't help joining her once I'd realized my mistake! Of course, I knew in theory they were wings, but somehow they'd registered in my mind--today anyway--as little legs. I'm sure my mom won't let me forget that one. I'm still laughing about it as I write. Oh, dear.
Then I was putting eggs in a saucepan in preparation for boiling. I had to go out to the garage frig to get a couple more eggs. I brought them in, took an egg, and without hesitation, cracked it on the rim and dropped it's contents onto the other very whole eggs. I let out a Tiggeresque sort of holler as soon as I saw what I'd done, and then started laughing hysterically about it as I proceeded to wash off all the eggs and rinse the pot. Sigh. What is wrong with me?! I'm too young for this sort of thing!
Ahem, in other news, my Christmas party last Friday went very well and everybody had lots of fun. There were about 27 of us, plus my parents. This is the seventh year in a row that I've hosted this party. People dress formally and we eat decadent desserts, drink mocha punch (wonderful!), play games, and visit. Such a jolly time. No alcohol needed to make this group merry. A particular highlight of the evening was the Yankee gift exchange. The hottest item, I think, was the Starbucks gift card. Many people didn't leave till after midnight and we didn't get to bed till 2 a.m.!
Oh, good news! Natalie and Brian and Benjamin came home today!! So I guess that's a very positive sign that the little guy is doing better. Praise the Lord for great things He has done!
I decided to make some candy cane cookies. Not because we really needed them for tomorrow, but because I wanted to make cookies! It's been a good 50 years or so since I've made these particular Christmas cookies, and I'd forgotten how much work and effort they take. You color one half of the dough "red" (more like pink, and my hands still look pink), and then twist a piece of "white" dough and "red" dough together to form a candycane. The trick is figuring out just how much dough to use and how thin to roll the pieces. My first candycane turned out really fat. Oops. My next one was too skinny. (Sounds like a fairytale.) Some of them came out skinny at the top and fat on the bottom or the other way around. BUT by the second cookie sheet, they were looking pretty good, if I do say so myself! And they taste very good, too!
As I said, I was boiling a chicken, which was quite frozen when I put it in. And it took forever. I'm never quite confident about judging the doneness of a chicken, so I finally consulted my guru mom. She said (and I did know this) that the legs need to wiggle loosely. I said, "Well, the little legs are loose, but the big legs are still pretty firm and they're a little bleedy." She looked at me oddly and said, "Little legs? Do you mean the wings?" She started laughing her head off and I couldn't help joining her once I'd realized my mistake! Of course, I knew in theory they were wings, but somehow they'd registered in my mind--today anyway--as little legs. I'm sure my mom won't let me forget that one. I'm still laughing about it as I write. Oh, dear.
Then I was putting eggs in a saucepan in preparation for boiling. I had to go out to the garage frig to get a couple more eggs. I brought them in, took an egg, and without hesitation, cracked it on the rim and dropped it's contents onto the other very whole eggs. I let out a Tiggeresque sort of holler as soon as I saw what I'd done, and then started laughing hysterically about it as I proceeded to wash off all the eggs and rinse the pot. Sigh. What is wrong with me?! I'm too young for this sort of thing!
Ahem, in other news, my Christmas party last Friday went very well and everybody had lots of fun. There were about 27 of us, plus my parents. This is the seventh year in a row that I've hosted this party. People dress formally and we eat decadent desserts, drink mocha punch (wonderful!), play games, and visit. Such a jolly time. No alcohol needed to make this group merry. A particular highlight of the evening was the Yankee gift exchange. The hottest item, I think, was the Starbucks gift card. Many people didn't leave till after midnight and we didn't get to bed till 2 a.m.!
Oh, good news! Natalie and Brian and Benjamin came home today!! So I guess that's a very positive sign that the little guy is doing better. Praise the Lord for great things He has done!
posted by Kristi | 4:20 PM
9 Comments:
Mocha punch! Oh my. That sounds good. give me the recipe, would you please?
As for all the "mistakes", that was just hilarious to read :) One more reason I let Wesley be the "chef" of us two brothers :)
Chuckle. "Little legs" indeed. I am still laughing. Thanks for making my day!
You'd be gratified to see the spit on the computer screen after I guffawed about the "little legs"!!! Good job with the cracking eggs for boiling, too, Julia Child! :)
You could chalk it all up to low blood sugar...but hey, if it brings joy and laughter, why stint telling the silly stories?
:O) Thanks for the smiles...
How fun. (I can think of no cute joke about the little-legs, but I may be back!)
Only 2:00? For me it was 5:30! (About 20 minutes after I got home, I heard a car wreck up on the road, and was up there until nearly 5:00.)
I'm still tired!
Hi Kristi
50 yrs ago! You must be older than I thought!
I made those candy cane cookies for a cookie swap
last year. yours sounded better than mine tasted...
Hmm...maybe I was thinking dog years? Or just rounding off my age to the nearest 50!
The "little legs" made total sense to me! Still funny, though! Wish I could have been a fly on the wall to see your mom start laughing!
The Fat Candy Cane and the Skinny Candy Cane- it sounds like a dream Pharaoh might have had in an alternate universe/fairytale version of the Bible...( "And then the skinny candy canes came up out of the Nile and devoured the fat candy canes...")
I liked the part about the bleedy legs, or whatever it was you said. Pretty funny about the little legs too. :-) You were brave to make candy cane cookies. I made them four years ago and swore I'd never make them again, but this year I tried again because every kid should have the joy of making and eating them. I think it'll be another four years before I try again.
So glad your party went well!
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