Hello Blog friends!
It’s September, EEK!!! Schools have already reopened here in Québec, after the long summer vacation, the nights are beginning to draw in and although the weather is still very warm, the evenings are slightly cooler, which is a blessing.
Work around here has been turning to plans for various autumn events and activities, as well as continuing with revisions to the All Ages Gatherings E-Book. This week I agreed (somewhat reluctantly) to be a “Presenter” at a Children’s Ministry Event being organised by the Diocese of Montreal. There is what I consider to be a rather daunting panel of “experts” in various areas of ministry with children and I feel a bit out of my depth. Fortunately each person has a maximum of ten minutes to speak so at least the ordeal will be fairly short. I have been asked to present the E-Book and since I have been working on it most of the summer, at least it is a topic about which I can speak with some degree of expertise. The event is not until mid-October; however there will be a couple of planning meetings on Zoom prior to the date.
I’m beginning to get nervous about the Thanksgiving Cook-Along course as we still have only 2 families registered and the first session is only 2 weeks away. I have sent out numerous emails and posted on FaceBook and there is even an ad in the Diocesan Newspaper. I totally understand that September is a very busy time for families as they enter into the school year and since in most areas of Canada there are still added Pandemic restrictions to navigate maybe we should have not tried to plan a Thanksgiving-Themed series. I guess we will give it another 10 days or so before deciding if it needs to be cancelled. Fortunately we have our September Day Camp committee meeting next Tuesday so there will be an opportunity for a group of us to talk about it.
On a more positive note, plans are slowly coming together for the Alumnae Day Retreat. I was delighted, this week, when Miriam and Donna agreed to coordinate Taizé worship music for the day. They did such a good job of preparing all the songs for our July Team Gathering and I know they will do excellent work for the Retreat. We still have not had a sub-committee meeting to look at plans but hopefully that will be happening one evening in the next week or so.
Outside of office hours, I have completed the chasuble alterations and Deacon Susan came this morning to collect them. She tried on the white one, which she will be wearing at the Ordination next Wednesday, and was pleased with the fit. (Yay!)
This week there has only been one visitor; Jillian came by on Tuesday afternoon for a short chat and a snack. It was the first full day of classes at the French language private school where she is an ESL teacher. I got to hear all about the groups she will be teaching and she brought me some watercolour paper so I can do more sketches for the E-Book designs.
Yesterday afternoon I had a virtual visit with Arnee who is the Mum of my dearest friend Michelle. Arnee lives in Montreal, although Michelle and her family moved to the UK about 20 years ago. Arnee’s husband, Howard was an active member of the Day Camp committee during my early years as Director and of course I met Michelle when she was on Travelling Team in the years when I was on the committee but not yet directing. So suffice it to say, we all go back a long way in the world of Day Camps! I hadn’t seen Arnee since before the pandemic as she previously had a house in the Eastern Townships, about an hour away from Montreal but a few months ago she sold it and is now living permanently in her Montreal apartment. Pre-Pandemic she was always travelling and rarely in the city so it was lovely to connect with her again.
This morning, once the chasubles were out of the house, I did a whiffle around the garden and then started baking. Thomason needed another batch of “Cricket Biskets” and I needed a batch of scones and some bread!
The scones have turned out very nicely so here is the recipe if you want to give them a try!
Apricot Coconut Scones
- 1⅔ cups flour
- 2½ tsps. baking powder
- 3 Tbsps. sugar
- pinch salt
- 3 Tbsps. butter
- ½ cup milk
- ½ tsp. vanilla
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup dried coconut
- 3/4 cup chopped dried apricots
Preheat oven to 400º F.
In a food processor add the flour, baking powder, sugar& salt. Pulse to mix together well then pulse in the butter until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in the dried coconut and chopped apricots.
Whisk together the milk, egg and vanilla. Reserve a few teaspoons of the liquid to brush on top of the scones. Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and stir in quickly with a wooden spoon until a soft dough forms. It should be a little sticky. Don’t over work the dough or your scones will get tough and not rise well. Turn the dough out onto a well floured surface. Lightly sprinkle the top of the dough with flour and just using your hands, form the dough into a round about ¾ of an inch thick.
Using a 2½ inch cutter cut out scones and place about 2 inches apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. Re-roll the scraps and cut out the rest. Brush the tops with the reserved milk and egg liquid. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the tops of the scones are lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.