Hello Blog Friends!
And now we are well and truly on the Advent Journey 😊.
It has been another full week around here as we finally had all our ducks in a row and felt able to launch “Come Together”, the e-book, which I wrote and illustrated this past summer and for which Jessica has created a super layout. Tuesday morning I sent out the first promotional email and by that evening had already sold the first two copies. Yay!!!!!
This week also saw the publication of CTM’s quarterly “Networks” newsletter. I had been anxious to have it sent well before December 11th since that is the date of the Day Camp “Carols & Cocoa” concert and I have included the Google Meet link in Networks as there are some people who read it but are not connected with our other social media platforms.
Thursday evening was the monthly DC Committee meeting and there was plenty to discuss there as well 😊 We spent quite a lot of time talking about Carols & Cocoa, which will be happening just one week from today, woot woot!! Sadly several presenters have had to drop out (all for very good reasons) so Jillian and I have been scrambling to come up with alternatives. It was good to talk the problem over with the whole committee and do some strategizing. We really want C&C to be a lovely concert event and have been planning it for several months. Do log in next Saturday; it is a free event (although we won’t say “no” should you wish to make a donation).
Outside of office hours I have had a couple of FaceTime visits with friends in other provinces. Wednesday evening my former boarder, Steven and I had a lovely chat and I got to hear all about how he is doing as a Medical student in Edmonton. He has his pilot’s license now too, which is exciting for him.
Last Sunday afternoon I took time to wrap all my Christmas gifts, so now I have a bushel basket full of them adding to the festive scene in the living room.😊
A friend who is a Spiritual Director has recently been taking a course on spiritual direction with children. She asked me if I could make 3 sets of prayer beads that are used as tools when working with children so I have been painting wooden beads for one set as she would like 2 sets in natural wood and the third set with painted beads. Also, Victoria (mother of 3 of my Godsons) has asked if I could make William a new hoodie. I made him one for Christmas 4 years ago and apparently he is still trying to squeeze into it although she would like to pass it on to one of his younger brothers 😊. Some of the fabric arrived on Tuesday but she has ordered the contrast colour from an organic fabric producer in British Columbia where there has recently been some serious flooding and so that parcel has been delayed. I should still have time to complete the project for Christmas but as they live in Ottawa I’m not sure about getting it to him by post, since parcels sent at Christmas have very early deadlines for guaranteed delivery.
Of course the next activity on my to-do list is Saturday Baking. This week I’m making a Christmas favourite- Porcupines, from my Nana’s handwritten cookbook as well as 2 loaves of Ciabatta. My friend Sue was recently in Toronto and brought me a copy of the Christmas edition of a favourite cooking magazine so I have been inspired to try Gingerbread Biscotti and Chocolate Orange Cookies from it, I might also make some of Jessica’s Herby Cheese Scones (from the Autumn Cook-along series). All of this to say I should close off this post and get to work!
Last Saturday for dinner I made a favourite from one of my Christmas Cookbooks, it’s called Feta Strata and makes a great brunch or supper dish.
Feta Strata
- 1 loaf country bread (I used my homemade ciabatta)
- 8 oz. Feta, crumbled
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 5 eggs
- 1 cup light cream
- 4 Tbsps. melted butter
- 2 tsps. Herbes de Provence
- 2 Tbsps. chopped fresh parsley
- ½ tsp. each salt and pepper
Grease a 9” deep round or square casserole. Beat together the eggs butter and cream. Combine the herbs, salt and pepper in a small bowl and the 2 cheeses in another bowl. Cut the loaf into 1” cubes. Place a layer of bread cubes in the casserole and top with a layer of cheeses and then a layer of the herb mixture. Repeat to make 2 or 3 layers and all the ingredients have been used. Pour the egg mixture over the casserole and place in the fridge for at least 3 hours or overnight. Remove from the fridge ½ hour before baking. Bake in a 350ºoven for 50 minutes. Serves 4.