When I awoke this morning it was actually SNOWING! EEK!!! Fortunately it has cleared up now and all vestiges of winter have vanished (at least for the present!). It made me very glad that the wedding we all attended last weekend was not taking place today.
This has been a short week because of Monday’s Thanksgiving Day holiday.After waving goodbye to my friends, the Huyers, last Sunday afternoon, I had planned to cook my little Thanksgiving feast on Monday. I roasted a small chicken with sweet potatoes, carrots and orange wedges and had made a batch of pumpkin ice cream for dessert.
Monday was a lovely golden day and I hoped to eat dinner outside for the last time this season but it was actually getting dark and cooling off by the time the chicken was ready. Just as I was eating my ice cream the phone rang and it was the Huyers who were on the road back to Ottawa from Sherbrooke and, having made a late start, were just nearing Montreal and wondering if they could make a “pit stop”. Of course I said “yes” and soon they were all tumbling into the house. Upon discovering that they had not eaten any dinner, Victoria and I quickly divided up the rest of my little feast, I opened out the dining table and in a few minutes they were eating tasty (if small!!) portions of the “feast” while I fed baby Andrew his bottle. It was a surprise ending to my solitary day and made a happy closure to the Holiday Weekend.
Tuesday was back to work and time to send out the agenda for the upcoming Day Camp Committee and to deal with plenty of other office paperwork as well as setting up the template for the Minutes of Synod.
Wednesday was” baking afternoon” since Thursday Stella and Steve Griffin came to afternoon tea. They were in Montreal for a few days to continue with the sad job of clearing out Stella’s Mum’s condo. Stella is with Canadian the Diplomatic Corps and she and Steve have just transitioned from New Delhi to Guatemala so it was a real treat to be able to visit with them.
And then it was Friday, our annual Diocesan Synod. This is a Conference Synod year so Synod runs over 2 days, yesterday and today, but since yesterday was the “Business Synod” day and today is a series of workshops I fulfilled my role as Lay Secretary all day yesterday and have opted to stay home today as tomorrow is an exceptionally full Sunday. There will be morning Church, then an afternoon spent with my close friend Michelle, her husband and four children. The Gallahers live in the UK and we haven’t seen each other for 2 ½ years, they are just here on a very short visit but Michelle sweetly said she couldn’t come to Montreal; without putting a foot inside my door! Her youngest child is nearly 2 years old and is the only one of the family I’ve never met, so I’m pretty excited!!
This afternoon I am baking an Apple Crostina and I’ve stocked up on juice for the children, cheese to serve with the Crostina and tea for the adults!! I have just noticed that it is now hailing outside, yuck! It looks as if we will have another unpleasant walk this afternoon.
Before I bundle up for the expedition I thought I would share the recipe for the Berry Scones I served on Thursday. They needed to be gluten-free and sometimes it is difficult to find good gluten-free recipe, but this one is really tasty!
Berry Scones
- 1 tsp. xanthan gum
- 1 Tbsp.baking powder
- 2 cups all purpose gluten-free flour
- ½ tsp. sea salt
- 2 Tbsps. sugar
- 1 cup frozen berries
- 5 Tbsps. cold margarine or unsalted butter, diced
- 1 cup whole milk
Preheat oven to 400°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine the flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, salt and sugar and whisk together in a large bowl. Place the berries in a small bowl and toss with a couple of Tbsps. of the flour mixture. Add the diced butter to the large bowl and cut in with a pastry blender or fork. Add the milk and stir to combine. Once the dough comes together, add the berries and fold them in. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board and with floured hands gently pat out into a rectangle approx. 12” long x 4” wide and ½ “ thick. Cut the dough into 8 triangles. Transfer to the baking sheet, brush with a little milk and sprinkle with a bit more sugar.Bake for 20 minutes, until puffed and golden.