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Post by nana on Dec 18, 2016 19:51:47 GMT -5
When I was a small child my uncle gave me the Pooh Cookbook, with easy, kid friendly recipes inspired by the Winnie the Pooh stories. (Just about each one involves honey.) This is a recipe that my family has made every Christmas since about 1969. I'm posting pictures of the book, just because they're so cute, but they'll probably be upside down until you click on them. And in case these pictures are too hard to read... 1/2 cup sugar 3 cups sifted all purpose flour 2 tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt 2 tsp powdered ginger 2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp each powdered cloves and nutmeg 1/2 lb butter cut into dots 1/2 cup honey (As written they are a pretty delicately spiced cookie. I like mine really strong, so I double all the spices. Personal preference, that's all!) Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Work the dots of butter into the dry ingredients with your fingertips. Add the honey and stir until blended. Wrap in plastic wrap or waxed paper and chill for an hour or more. Roll out about 1/8" thick on floured board, cut into shapes and bake at 350 deg for 12-15 minutes. Remove from oven, and after a minute from the cookie sheet to a rack. Decorate them as you like. It's a lot of fun to make this dough with small children because they really love mixing it with their hands!
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Post by vaporvac on Dec 18, 2016 23:31:15 GMT -5
That is adorable, Nana. Are you making these this year?
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Post by nana on Dec 19, 2016 20:13:44 GMT -5
Even as we speak!
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Post by nana on Dec 19, 2016 21:15:18 GMT -5
And there's nothing like a 5 degree night to cool down your cookie sheets in between each batch. And let me also put in a good word for the baking ability of a Chambers--not one batch even slightly burned. With my old stove the temperature would kind of creep up bit by bit, so you had to adjust either the baking time or the oven dial as you went along. These were perfect 12 minute batches from start to finish.
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Post by pooka on Dec 20, 2016 2:09:55 GMT -5
Those look picture perfect thanks to a little Chambers magic. What a fun tradition for you. I think you got that book when it was first published. I looked around a bit, & there are a number of other Pooh cookbooks out there. One I saw on eBay called "Winnie-the-Pooh's Cookie Book" is a set that comes with cookie cutters with the book. The one you have is still in print, although the cover is a little different, & they've changed the title to "The Winnie the Pooh Cookbook". Another is titled "Winnie-the-Pooh's Picnic Cookbook". Still one more is "Winnie the Pooh's Teatime Cookbook". Finally one last one published in England is titled "The Pooh Corner Cook Book" by Katie Stewart. There may be more. Cookbooks for kids is a great way to get them interested in cooking early, with hope they'll develop a hunger for it. As a kid, I remember copying a recipe out of a grade school math book for something called "Mellow Cake". It had an accompanying recipe for an icing with cherries in it, but I didn't try it. I made it at least once, but now it's lost to the mists of time. It intrigued me at the time, because it was made from scratch. My mom was using box mixes for all her cakes, so the thought of doing it from scratch interested me.
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Post by nana on Dec 20, 2016 19:17:35 GMT -5
My Uncle Michael used to give the best presents. He had no children of his own, so he spoiled us. He was the kind of uncle who was as likely to give you a magic kit or a flowering cactus as a book or a toy. We couldn't wait for him to make the trip to Queens from Brooklyn on Christmas Day. You never knew what you were going to get, but for sure it wouldn't be socks or a sweater!
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Post by pooka on Dec 21, 2016 6:58:22 GMT -5
All kids should have such uncles, but then I guess they wouldn't seem so special then. They can be one of those wonderful unknowns in life. You never know what's next, but you do know it'll be unpredictable & maybe mind expanding. Sometimes a push to make you step outside yourself & try new things.
All my uncles but one had their own family's. The one that didn't, Uncle Leon was a bit slow. He was always just a little childlike so he lived with grandma & grandpa, then by himself after they passed, one then the other. All the siblings looked out for him until he was found dead of natural causes not long after my father passed. He was mentally impaired from malnutrition during his pregnancy in the late teens. Times were tough in rural Kentucky then. He was our cool uncle when we'd visit my grandparents in Waverly, KY til grandpa died. He was like a big kid who told us how they did things on the farm when he was growing up. His gift was just being fun to be around.
At home, we got the mittens & socks too, but we got pretty much what we asked for. We weren't spoiled, but we weren't deprive either. We were taught to be interested in anything & everything that sparked us. We had books of literature & Childcraft books of stories, rhymes & fairy tales, plus science & the natural world. I always love the big reference size art books dad had. I was fascinated by Vincent van Gogh as a young child of seven or eight. I guess we didn't need a special uncle. Something special could be anywhere we chose to look.
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Post by Chuckie on Dec 21, 2016 22:39:52 GMT -5
My Uncle Michael used to give the best presents. He had no children of his own, so he spoiled us. He was the kind of uncle who was as likely to give you a magic kit or a flowering cactus as a book or a toy. We couldn't wait for him to make the trip to Queens from Brooklyn on Christmas Day. You never knew what you were going to get, but for sure it wouldn't be socks or a sweater! Uhhhhhh, we're (Monkey & I) kinda "that Uncle" in our family!!! We buy the kids "cool" stuff--i.e. the old time games from our local "Moon Marble Factory" to include one year sending Monkey's three nephews a 'Whoopie Cushion' which was unbeknownst to their Mother in the misc 'stocking stuffers' we sent. Said nephews (discretely) put it under their 'other (father's) side' Aunt's seat cushion--who also happens to be a N-U-N!!! BOTH parents were HORRIFIED/MORTIFIED at the end result when she "sat herself" upon it to the ensuing flatulence noise, and the Nun/nephews BOTH about wet themselves LAUGHING. At least SOME had a sense of humour!!! Our B.I.L. said we are STILL " THEE talk" around the campfire when they go on a Scouting camp-out, about all the "really KEWL GIFTS" we've sent them over the years. We rather 'enjoy' the notoriety---much to the parents' chagrin methinks... CHEERS! Chuckie
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Post by pooka on Dec 22, 2016 10:54:17 GMT -5
If you can't have a little fun with life, what's the point of it.
And by the way, nuns aren't the pillars of pious reserve most people think they are, or at least not all. They are people too. I know. My oldest sister was a Benedictine nun until her passing a couple of years ago. She was the fun nun at the convent.
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Post by mach12 on Dec 22, 2016 12:24:39 GMT -5
If you can't have a little fun with life, what's the point of it. And by the way, nuns aren't the pillars of pious reserve most people think they are, or at least not all. They are people too. I know. My oldest sister was a Benedictine nun until her passing a couple of years ago. She was the fun nun at the convent. You're so right Pooka. I'm Protestant but do a lot of volunteer work and several of the things I do are with some nuns. When I was teaching at Great Lakes Naval Training Center I became close friends with a Navy Catholic Chaplain there and found the exact same thing with him. It was a good lesson for me to not label people and to especially not paint everyone in any "group" (for lack of a better word) with the same brush.
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Post by pooka on Dec 22, 2016 14:04:09 GMT -5
I've heard it said more times than I can count, people are people where ever you go.
Here's two stanzas of one of my favorite poems "The House by the Side of the Road".
Let me live in a house by the side of the road, Where the race of men go by- The men who are good and the men who are bad, As good and as bad as I. I would not sit in the scorner’s seat, Or hurl the cynic’s ban;- Let me live in a house by the side of the road. And be a friend to man.
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Let me live in my house by the side of the road Where the race of men go by- They are good, they are bad, they are weak, they are strong, Wise, foolish- so am I. Then why should I sit in the scorner’s seat Or hurl the cynic’s ban?- Let me live in my house by the side of the road And be a friend to man.
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Post by nana on Dec 23, 2016 18:02:06 GMT -5
That poem reminds me so much of my neighbor, Ed, who just passed away last month. What a mensch he was. In his later years he would sit on his front porch and wave to all the cars that went by, and call out a friendly hello to anyone who was passing by, with a joke and a smile. I would love to get a copy of that for his widow. Who is it by?
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Post by pooka on Dec 24, 2016 3:14:15 GMT -5
It's by Sam Walter Foss. Here's a copy of it I got off of eBay. These were sold by Buzza Prints in the 20s & 30s much like greeting cards are today. The one bellow is the full text of the poem. Sometimes they omit parts of it to shorten it. There are also embroidery samplers that feature part of it. I searched out this particular one because it's the full version. I've read the author was inspired to write it while visiting the English countryside & came upon an old retired couple who were congenial hosts who invited passers by to stop & share their serine repose & visit with them for a spell. I'd like to get this matted & framed with an old picture of my house as it looked when my grandparents bought it. I found the pic bellow on the web. I don't know why this was taken, but perhaps for the real estate listing at the time. The couple that built it in 1939 only lived in it for about three years. They decided to sell in 1943 because they were going to get a divorce. This was their dream house. My mom said they like to party & drink a bit too much. This is perhaps a reason for their eminent breakup. She said they never did get divorced, & would visit to see their old house from time to time. They lived in rent the rest of their lives. Before this house, my mom's family lived in rent all their lives. My grandparents, my mom, my aunt & uncle all pooled their money to buy it. My grandfather lived here until he died. Then grandma lived here with my mom, my aunt & uncle till they both got married. Aunt Ruthy moved in a few block over, then later across the street. Uncle Orville move his wife in here, & built my troublesome attic dormer for their bedroom. They later bought the house two door down from a retiring friend who was moving to Kentucky Lake. Both my sisters lived here with grandma before moving on. Grandma died in the front room at about ninety three. My brother lived here for a while with me till he moved back in with mom when she declined. This is the closest thing to an ancestral home I'm going to get. All tolled, about seventy three year in the family, & I've been here about twenty two years. It is a humble little hovel, but more than twice what I require, but I'm rooted deep here. I shall most likely die here. Then it's up for grabs. No children to leave it to. No nieces or nephews. I doubt any cousin want it. That will be for those who come after to decide. Your neighbor Ed sounds like he was a credit to the human race. Someone we should all emulate. My next door neighbors are somewhat like your Ed. They have a big porch where they sit a lot, but this can be a busy road at times & not a lot of foot traffic. They've only lived there for almost fifty years or so. About this poem, I can look around & see if I can find a selection of prints or samplers if you like. As I said, some like the one above are the complete text. Some use only parts, or one stanza. I'd offer you this one, but it's been trimmed down from it's original size. I'm sure a better one can be found to your liking. Do a search for "Buzza Prints". There's some really great ones. I've got a file of a number of them I like.
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Post by nana on Dec 24, 2016 15:13:06 GMT -5
Thanks, Pooka. I will look that up. Your house is adorable! Does it still have the sunburst over the front door?
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Post by mach12 on Dec 24, 2016 20:50:33 GMT -5
Nana - I was thinking the same thing about Pooka's house. Probably because it reminds me so much of my parents place.
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Post by pooka on Dec 24, 2016 22:29:57 GMT -5
It's all covered up with aluminum siding from when my cousin worked for a siding company years ago. It was a way to keep grandma off the ladder repainting it every few years. I've thought of stripping it off of just the two little gables over the front & back door. My house is pretty plain except that sunburst, the scrolled support brackets & a little mill work around the front door. Here's a closer shot of my parents on their wedding day, October 11. 1953. If I could expose those few details, it would go a long way to improve it's curb appeal. I'm thinking seriously of painting the front door that Chambers turquoise. That would stand right out amoungst all that white. Right now my house just looks tired, & in need of a little sprucing up. This is what the front looks like now, or at least a few years ago. It's a shame to box in all that nice woodwork, but I understand getting tired of repainting it every few years. I changed the light to a bigger antique one that matches the acanthus leaf back door light, but I think I going to put the Art Deco one back up. I bought this six sided antique copper one for the front, but it's just a smidgen too tall unless I strip off the aluminum soffit material. I have a discerning eye for details. If I can't do it right to my satisfaction, I don't want to do it. The side door is even plainer. I can just imagine it with a tiny copper roof, with the trim done in Chambers turquoise, & a vintage wooden storm door also in turquoise. It took me a long time to find that vintage globe for the light. All I ever remember growing up was an acanthus leaf iron ring with just a bare bulb. All my daydreams of what my house could be if I got motivated enough & had the resources to do it. At least daydreams are free. Twenty more payment, & it's mine free & clear. For now, my mind goes in six different directions of what I'd like to do, but I struggle to do anything. When inspired, I'm like a house on fire. When not, I'm a bump on a log.
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Post by nana on Dec 17, 2017 18:42:29 GMT -5
Yes, these are Ninjabread Men.
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Post by pooka on Dec 18, 2017 3:37:08 GMT -5
Those are so cool. Much more fun than plain gingerbread men. They're gingerbread action figures.
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