Christmas Eve Doings

Poppy supervising the holiday baking in the kitchen.

Curly dominating the front door and protecting the buckwheat hulls. And leaving tiny little brown tic tacs all over my rug, ugh!

Getting a quilt order done for the holidays.

My Farm Pats

I think this cartoon sums me up on my farm. I always pat my animals, any animals and feel great. My husband always points this out, that I pat the animals. I do not hug and pet them, just pat them and make sure they are taken care of. Anything more will result in a messy cleanup, fur and feathers everywhere,broken heart and mourning for their loss when they go. Some get sick, some get eaten and some just grow old. A pat is best for them and for me. I wish I could pat people, but they do not like that very much and prefer hugs and kisses. Resulting in fur everywhere, broken heart when they die and mourning their loss. At least on my farm, a pat is best.

Cranberry Compote for Christmas

 A good friend of mine makes this every time we are over her place for dinner. It is so tasty and a good side to any meal. Here is the recipe: Cranberry Compote
1 cup of sugar (or honey) I used half since sugar is not the best thing for you, 1 bag of cranberries half thawed if frozen, 2 large sweet naval oranges or 4 tangerines, 1 cup chopped pecans, all the orange skins without the pith (white stuff).

First you wash the cranberries. I soak in water with 2 sprays of white vinegar, rinse in water to kill off any bad things on the skins and dirt. Rinse, remove water and wash your oranges too!

Now I chop my cranberries in the food processor until chunky. Put in a bowl, then chop the pecans chunky, add to bowl. You will be hand  mixing all the chopped stuff.

Next, I remove the orange skins from the pulp, chop well in the processor or by hand, your choice.

Now here is the trick to make this so fresh tasty and not bitter. Remove the pith (white stuff ) from the orange skins with a very short sharp knife. Cut along the pith, away from you and just the skin remains. The pith makes the food taste bitter over time. So I carefully cut this away from the skins. Put the skins in the processor and blitz until finely chopped. Add to bowl along with your sugar or sweetener of choice. Hand mix the mess. Cover bowl and set in fridge at least 1 hour before serving or overnight is best. 

Looks like a mess, but is oh so tasty. We eat along with lunch and breakfast. Note: you can add a few drops of lime juice for a zing if you like. Enjoy.