Although tomorrow is Christ the King Sunday and we still have one more week left in the old Liturgical Year before the start of Advent it seems fitting to publish this post under the new Advent/Christmas Banner, purists, please excuse this faux pas…Well it turns out that the “Changing of the Decorations” is (just!!) done and also that my Godmotherly assistance is required again tomorrow afternoon so I’m trying to at least make a start on this post even though it is 5pm on Saturday afternoon and the oven is full of Stöllen loaves and dinner still needs to be cooked. AGH!!! But truly the work of changing the decorations went pretty smoothly. For one thing Jillian’s school was holding parent/teacher interviews this week and so Thursday she took both a packed lunch and dinner and yesterday she did manage to make it home for lunch but was off to a staff party for dinner. All this to say I have had a couple of long days in which to get the job done and today required only a few last minute details so I’ve had time to bake as well.
Last evening Matthew Brotherwood joined me for dinner as he was on his own while his mum and dad enjoyed an early anniversary get away at their cabin but I was able to pull together a quick supper of fishcakes and salad, which we both enjoyed. I’ve just found out that Victoria, the 3 boys and Guylaine will all be with me for supper tomorrow so it is a VERY good thing that the house is all in order. I had planned to make a big pot of leek and potato soup tomorrow for my own dinner so, with some extra cheeses and crackers, I think that will be great for the 6 of us 😊
One of my favourite Advent Carols is “People Look East” and as I dashed around today I was remind of the line about “trim the hearth and set the table” most appropriate around here😊 There has been plenty of morning time this week to get on with the work of Day Camps and Monday evening was our monthly committee meeting at which we made more good progress on plans for the 2018 program.
The kind committee members have been inundating me with more albums to listen to as I continue the quest for the perfect Liturgical Dance music. I still have not found it but I’m sure listening to LOT of Advent and Christmas music, both traditional and contemporary!!!
The photos of the house are not the best since it has been pitch dark and rainy all day today. I had hoped for better as the forecast was “scattered showers” thus Wil and I got pretty wet on our morning walk as I had not dressed for the deluge to which we were treated while still far from home. 😧
I think this post will need to be heavy on pictures and light on content since the timer is already ringing to say the loaves are baked but before I move on to tackling dinner prep we still need a recipe. I’ll go with something super simple. I made a batch of this yesterday and it is very yummy makes good Christmas gifts too!
Peppermint Chocolate Bark
- 200grams bittersweet chocolate
- 2 cups chocolate puffed quinoa cereal
- 6 oz. crushed peppermint candy canes
Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and melt over simmering water. Line a 9×12 cookie sheet with parchment paper. Using a hammer or rolling pin, crush the candy canes into small bits between two sheets of parchment paper. Once the chocolate is melted, stir in the puffed quinoa. Using a wide spatula spread the chocolate mixture in the prepared pan making a thin layer approx. 1/8”” thick. Sprinkle the crushed candy evenly over the top. Lay a sheet of parchment over the bark and gently press the candy into the surface. Chill in the fridge for 20 minutes or until firm then break into pieces. Keeps for 1 week in an airtight container at room temperature, or can be frozen.