Hit the road and listen to the Booktown Mysteries!

It seems like the author is always the last to know -- that's how I felt over the weekend when I got a Facebook message from one of my readers congratulating me for the continuation of the Booktown Mystery series in audio.

No, way, I thought. I was told unless sales improved that it wasn't likely to happen. And from the looks of my last royalty statement, I was pretty sure that was still true. But no--I checked the website and sure enough, there were Murder On The Half Shelf, Not The Killing Type, and Book Clubbed, all available for preorder and with a new narrator. And good news for those who don't like downloading to an MP3 player -- they'll all be available in CD format.

I know most people order their audio books from Audible or Amazon, but so far only Murder On The Half Shelf is listed (and, for preorders, it's for sale at half price for the MP3 version from the publisher, Tantor Media, and discounted 25% for the CD version). It'll be released on April 2nd. Not the Killing Type will be released on April 14th, so maybe it'll show up two weeks before release day.  Book Clubbed will be released the same day as the hardcover and ebook versions (July 1st).

I was lucky enough to get an author copy of of the previous books, but don't know if I will get copies of these. (And I'd sure like them in CD format because my MP3 player got screwed up.  Don't ask!)  Meanwhile, I'll be very interested to hear what my listeners think of these new books.

So, do YOU listen to audiobooks?

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Teacup Tuesday ... all those lovely teas!

Once again it's Teacup Tuesday. We had a lot of "engagment" last week in the form of contest entries, recipes and opinions.  But first ... a teacup!



Thursday is the first day of spring, and other years we've had evidence of it before the actual day.  Usually in the form of daffodil points poking out of the crumbly earth.  NOT THIS YEAR. The days are getting shorter, but so far not much warmer.  There are geese honking overhead, but they're locals and flying low, not the flocks high in the sky in the regular V form.



I sometimes think spring WILL NEVER COME.

But, I digress.

I was rather amazed at how many people reported the vast array of teas they've tried and loved.  Me, I'm pretty much an orange pekoe girl. I used to like Barry's raspberry cream tea, but they went out of business and I only have TWO bags left, which I've been saving.

Debbie K. from Houston, TX said:  "My very favorite tea is one called Almond Sunset. I think it was a Celestial Seasonings tea. I'm down to three teabags of it and can't find anywhere in Houston or online that sells it now so I've been saving them. Their website called it a "dessert tea."

Guess I'm not the only one hoarding a precious few teabags. I don't know if it's still available, but it's listed online here, Debbie.

Cara D. from Daphne, AL said:  "My favorite tea is a green tea with mint!  I love this soothing tea and it is even better with honey from my own hives!"

That sounds yummy! And I'm in awe of anyone brave enough to face a hive full of bees.

Lynn H. from Rollinsville, CO said:  "Without a doubt – Lapsang Souchong. I hated it the first time I tasted it, but, like a fine Scotch, it grows on you. I love its smoky astringency; it’s perfect first thing in the morning or last thing at night."

Ronna Lord from Potomic, MD said:  "My favorite tea is Jasmine Pearls.  First reason for liking it is that it has a lovely floral aroma and flavor. It reminds me or oriental Thai restaurants which have some of my favorite foods.  The second reason is that I love to see those pearls open up into flowers when the hot water reaches them.  And I must confess that my grandchildren are impressed with those pearls to flowers, too."

Jenni Oglesby from Louisville, KY said, "My favorite tea is currently Te Mole by the Louisville Tea Company. It's a black tea with cacoa bits and chili flakes/bits. It was a perfect tea for this miserable winter we've been having.

My favorite tea experience was years ago at the now closed Elmwood Inn in historic Perryville, Kentucky. The drive to Perryville is very pretty, and the visit stands out as one of my favorite days of all time. The service was perfect; the food and teas were exquisite and the presentation quite lovely. I'm so glad to have made it there before they closed. They still have a website selling their tea blends and I believe their cookbooks. I've had the pleasure of hearing Bruce Richardson speak 2-3 times. He's very interesting -- well-traveled and I love to hear his stories."
Kaye K. from Portland, OR said:  "I love Market Spice tea that was made for and sold at Seattle’s Pike Street Market.  Now you can find it other places, but that’s the original."

  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

And the winners are!

Sharon S. won the bone china mug and said, "My daughter recently gave me a 24 oz teapot decorated with cherry blossoms. She also included a package of Londonderry loose tea. I love it.  Since we can't always drink tea together, I think of her when I am brewing the tea. It is a black tea and has a relaxing, floral fragrance. When I am drinking it, I can taste a hint of the strawberry and lemon. I have only tried it hot, since she gave it to me over winter, but I think I would like it iced too."

Debbie C. won the teabag holder and said:  "An old standby that I love is Earl Grey with bergamot.  I love the aroma of it and while I wait for my water to heat up, I stand there sniffing the teabag.  How sad am I?  I love the strong flavor of it too. I also have a new favorite which tastes like dessert to me is Licorice Spice.  It has a natural sweetness and tastes absolutely nothing like black licorice. All of my tea is hot.  For some reason, I detest iced tea.  I like it plain with no sugar, no dairy products of any kind in it. Yes, I'm a teaholic.  At this moment, I have 16 different flavors in my house."

And the winner of the free sample of tea from Latteda.com is Mickey S. from Louisville, KY who said:  "I would be hard pressed to pick a favorite tea blend, but I suppose White Jasmine would be it. It's hard to find and can be pricey, but it has a lovely aroma served hot, and a cool refreshing taste with a bit of bite when served cold. Green Jasmine is almost as good and a lot easier to find, so that tends to be what I drink at work."

  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Next Week's Contest ...

... we'll be giving away a darling little tea-for-one pot and matching teabag holder, another teabag holder, plus the free tea sample from Betsy Bean at Latteda.com!
And we'll talk about the virtues of loose tea verses tea bags.  Do you prefer an infuser (a tea ball) or to use teabags.
To enter the contest, send your preference and perhaps a story about why you like your tea made a certain way to contest @ Lornabarrett.com (close up those spaces).  If you're not already on my mailing list and you sent your mailing address, I'll send you an envelope of my bookmarks.

Come back tomorrow for talk about The Booktown Mysteries!

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Teacup Tuesday: Fond Memories of Teatime

Hapy St. Paddy's Day, Everyone!

Tonight we're having corned beef, cabbage, potatoes and carrots.  (Truth be told, I like the boiled veggies the best.  What are you having?

Baking for St. Paddy!

I know that in Ireland the don't have corned beef and cabbage for St. Paddy's day. And they probably don't have Irish Soda Bread, either; but that's what WE have to celebrate the day, so why wouldn't I want to share our recipes for Irish Soda Bread?

I included this recipe in Booktown Mystery #1, Murder is Binding, and next week it'll go up on the website.  (I'm in the process of putting up ALL the recipes from the Booktown Mysteries.)  But, if you want to try this for Monday (and we sure will be baking it), here's an easy recipe we've put together from a number of recipes. It works well for us!

Ingredients
4 cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1½ cups buttermilk
¼ cup corn or canola oil
2 teaspoons caraway seeds
1 cup golden raisins
1 tablespoon milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Foil-line a baking sheet, lightly grease.

In a large bowl, stir the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together.  In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, buttermilk, and oil together.  Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the buttermilk mixture.  Add the caraway seeds and raisins.  Stir until a soft dough forms.

With floured hands, shape the dough into a large ball on a lightly floured board or waxed paper.  With a sharp knife, make an X across the top of the dough.  Place the dough on the prepared baking sheet.  Brush the top with milk.  Bake in the center of the oven until golden brown (30 to 40 minutes).

Serve warm with butter. 

Yum!

How are you celebrating St. Patrick's day?

Teacup Tuesday: Weeee! Lovely Recipes!

Last week the topic was recipes and I'm rather disappointed to say that there were only two entries on that account, and both were WONDERFUL.  But we did have two prizes (a lovely teacup and a free sample of Boneyard tea from Latteda.com) that will be rewarded.

The first of two of my daffodil teacups.

As runner up, we have Strawberry Soup, from Jenny Ellis  She wins the free tea sample from Latteda.  She said:  "This may seem a little strange since it's a cold item but ever since I had it at a tea house in my hometown I adore it. It's chilled strawberry soup.  Also since her recipe was printed in the local newspaper, I have occasionally made the soup myself.  I've already checked to see what ingredients I already own so once it starts to get warm outside I can make the soup myself. She also makes a chilled pumpkin soup that is yummy in the fall."

Strawberry soup
Ingredients
1 pound frozen strawberries with juice (if any) mostly thawed
3/4 cup powdered sugar (not necessary to sift)
1/3 cup grenadine
1/2 cup imitation vanilla
2 cups (1 pint) sour cream
3 cups half and half

Directions
In a large blender, add the ingredients in the order listed above. Blend on high (or puree) for about 15 seconds until no chunks of berries remain. At this point, you may divide this in half and freeze part for later. Add approximately 1½ cups half and half to each batch. Blend well. Makes about 20 to 24 servings total. Note: if using fresh berries, cut in half, add 1/3 cup sugar, shake well to make juicy before doing soup.

And the winner of the floral teacup is Lorie Mink, for her recipe for ... Starbucks Lemon Loaf.  She said:  "I really enjoy the Starbucks Lemon Loaf with tea. I found a copycat recipe through Facebook, but am unsure of who shared it as I only copied the recipe and not the name of the person who shared it. However, a Google search showed there are several versions of this recipe. I love a good lemon cake and as I am not that proficient as a cook, found this recipe easy to follow. I made it the first time for a couple of friends and we enjoyed it with English Breakfast tea. I have since made it for a work potluck and even substituted the flour with a gluten free all purpose flour so my husband (who is gluten intolerant) could enjoy it too. It is fast becoming one of my specialties and there is nothing I like better
than a slice of this with a good cup of tea."

Starbucks Lemon loaf
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
 1/2 teaspoon salt
 3 eggs
 1 cup graulated sugar
 2 tablespoons butter, softened
 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
 1 teaspoon lemon extract
 1/3 cup lemon juice
 1/2 cup vegetable oil

 Lemon Icing
 1 cup confectioner's sugar; plus 1 tablespoon
 2 tablespoons milk (I used 2% milk)
 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a bowl.  Use a mixer to blend together the eggs, sugar, butter, vanilla, lemon extract and lemon juice in a medium bowl.  Pour the wet ingredient into the dry ingredients and blend until smooth.  Add the oil and mix well.  Pour the batter into a well- greased 9x5-inch loaf pan.  Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick stuck into center of the cake comes out clean.  Make the lemon icing by combining all the icing ingredients in a small bowl with an electric mixer on low speed.  When the loaf is cool, remove it from pan and frost the top with the icing.  Let the icing set up before slicing.

 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Next Week's Giveaway

What is your favorite tea blend?  Orange pekoe?  Earl Grey (hot or cold)?  Send your preference and explain why to contest @ lornabarrett.com  (close up those spaces) and you might win the lovely rose bone-china mug at the right! Entries will be taken until Monday March 17th.

Don't forget, you'll also be in the running for a free tea sample from Latte Da -- two chances to win!

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Foodie Friday: Dahl is never dull!

Believe it or not, a few years ago when I asked my publisher if I could write a Booktown Cookbook I was told no. They wouldn't know how to market it.  (Huh? What's with that? They're a book company!!!)  Anyway, they've now seen the light and are going to do a cookbook filled with recipes from various cozy mystery series, which will be out in September.

(AND GUESS WHO WAS NOT INVITED TO PARTIPATE???

That would be me.)

Of course, that disinterest didn't stop me from writing a cookbook, either. Only I wrote one for my Victoria Square series. (Recipes To Die For.)

I admit it: until recently I've haven't been as interested in cooking as I am in baking. But lately I've taken a BIGGER interest in preparing food from scratch simply because I want to know what is in my food, and processed food is just not good for people. It's full of sugar and salt we don't need if we want to stay healthy.  (And you know what, it's FUN!)

I'm trying to integrate legumes and pulses into my diet. (Lentils are pulses.) I also happen to love Indian food, so earlier this week I made curried lentils (also known as dahl).  OMG -- it was sooo GOOD! Indian food looks scary to prepare because it seems like there are a million ingredients (mostly spices), but I decided I wanted to eat dahl and make it myself.

Here's an easy recipe. I didn't have any garlic cloves or ginger, so I substituted with a teaspoon each of the powdered stuff and it tasted just fine. (Indian food is very forgiving.)

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive or sesame oil
1 cup finely chopped white onion
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger
4 cups water or vegetable broth
1 cup dried lentils, rinsed and picked over
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon cardamom
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
2 tablespoon tomato paste
scallions, chopped (Optional as garnish)

Directions:
In a 3-quart stockpot or other medium-sized soup pot, heat the sesame oil over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the onion, garlic and ginger. Cook, stirring often, until the onions are translucent, about 6 minutes.

Stirring constantly, add the water or broth, lentils, spices and salt. Bring to a low boil, then turn down the heat to low, cover and let the mixture simmer for about 30 minutes, or until the lentils are very tender.

Stir in the tomato paste until well combined. Cook for 10-12 minutes more, or until the mixture is the desired temperature and consistency. Serve hot on rice.

Yum! (You better believe I'll be making this on a a regular basis.)

What's your favorite ethnic food?

Half off or free -- sample my writing!

Not all my readers have read everything I write. : (

Now you can sample some of my work for free or at reduced price thanks to the Read An Ebook Week promotion over at Smashwords. You can download a version for any e reader format (Kindle, Kobo, Nook, Sony, iBooks).

First up, for 50% off, LOVE AND MURDER:

Love & Murder by Lorraine Bartlett (and her alter ego L.L. Bartlett) explores the highs and lows of love, and humanity. This sampler will give you an idea of the kinds of themes she explores in her New York Times bestselling novels.
The collection contains:

Abused: A Daughter's Story
Cold Case
An Unconditional Love
We're So Sorry, Uncle Albert
Love Heals
Prisoner Of Love
Blue Christmas
Click this link and use the coupon code REW50 at checkout time!

And if you STILL haven't tried my Jeff Resnick Mysteries, get the first two books for free.

MURDER ON THE MIND: When a brain injury leaves mugging victim Jeff Resnick able to sense people's secrets, he feels compelled to investigate a murder.

DEAD IN RED:  Jeff Resnick takes the job of a dead bartender and must also find out who killed him, endangering everyone he cares about.

Click this link and use the coupon code RW100 at checkout time!

Foodie Friday: Homemade ranch dressing. YUM!

 I'm trying to get away from processed food.  I'm eating more grains, more veggies (which I love), and limiting what I eat that comes out of a can, box, or bottle.  The latest?  Homemade (low-fat) ranch dressing.  The recipe calls for fresh herbs, but I've made it with dried and it's still pretty tasty.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup fat free sour cream
3/4 cup fat free Greek yogurt
1/3 cup olive oil mayonnaise
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tbsp chopped fresh chives
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp salt
 freshly ground pepper
1-2 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
2 cups 1% low fat buttermilk

Directions:
In a small bowl or large measuring cup, combine the sour cream, yogurt, mayonnaise, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, chives, salt, and cracked pepper. Mix well. Stir in the white balsamic vinegar; then buttermilk.  Adjust the seasonings to taste, adding another tablespoon of balsamic vinegar if desired. The flavors will become bolder over time.

Do you have a favorite homemade salad dressing? .

Will spring ever arrive?

Despite this repeat of Laura Ingalls Wilder's THE LONG WINTER, spring must be in the offing. All the stores are selling seed packets. I picked up a few myself!

Because of all the critters, I'm going for container gardening. I've got a deck that gets sunlight most of the day. I've got a bunch of other herbs I'm going to plant, too.

What are you going to plant this year?
.

Teacup Tuesday: Moms and Daughters...memories of teatime

Thank you to all who wrote a fond memory of teatime. I thought I'd share a few that involve the special bond between mothers and daughters.

"My favorite memory is of my Mother, She loved tea and had two cups every morning. She would have one cup in the afternoon too. I can still see her sitting in my kitchen drinking tea. She lived to the age of 91, so I guess it was a healthy thing to do."
--Diane L., Manchester, CT

"When my daughter was young we would go to the large closet and open it up and choose a "special cup" from our collection.  Many were my grandmothers and mothers.  They collected from auction sales since I was young.  When people would come to visit they would choose their favorite cup.  There are never two the same.  My daughter would choose a different one every time and we would use pretty colored sugar from "Hess's Department Store" and have tiny shortbread cookies, wear vintage hats and discuss clothes and "pretties".   She is turning out to be a wonderful and lovely young woman and I think it all started with a tea party."--Suzie F, Bethlehem, PA

"After a busy Christmas, my adult daughter and I went thrift shopping at a local store that benefits the local hospital. We found beautiful teacups there and bought two cups with matching saucers. That evening after my husband went to bed, my daughter and I had tea in our "new" teacups. My daughter lives in San Francisco so I don't get to see her that often. When we get together we always have tea in the evenings when it's quiet. It's a time that I look forward to and I hope that it will be a happy memory for her as well."
--Suzie S, Santee, CA

"When I was a little girl, my mother would have tea with me. She would give me a cup more than half filled with milk. She called it 'Cambric Tea.' I've always had my tea with milk and sugar."
--Barb W, Skandia, MI

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

And The Winners Are!

The (randomly-picked) winner of the Dutchess teacup is Deb L. Her teatime memory was:  "I guess my favorite tea time memory was from high school. I would go with my friend Janet with her to her house after school. She lived near the high school so we wound up at her house instead of mine. Whenever we had a particularly challenging day, her mom would make us both tea and we'd all talk about it. Every time I drink tea I think of Mrs. Richards." 

The winner of the Boneyard Tea sample (courtesy of Latte Da and Betsy Bean) is Debbie B.  I have contacted both winners via email to let you know how you can obtain your winnings!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Next Week's Giveaway

Queen's bone china by Rosina

Teatime is celebrated (in one way or another) all over the world. Where in the world would love to have afternoon tea, and with whom?  Send your answer to contest @ lornabarrett.com  (close up those spaces) and you might win the lovely roses bone china teacup above!  Don't forget, you'll also be in the running for a free tea sample from Latte Da -- two chances to win!

.

And yet something else to collect ...

I have yet another weakness I have so-far not confessed in 8+ years of blogging.

I love tile. I look forward to going to Home Depot just so I can stand in the tile aisle and gaze upon what's available. I don't dare go into a dedicated tile store for fear of never leaving.

On the most recent Sunday Morning episode, they did a whole segment on azulejo Portuguese tile.  OMG! It was wonderful!

It only occurred to me after watching that episode that I collect them, mostly using them as coasters.  (A little glue, a little felt--and you've got a coaster.) I have them all over my house. I have tile hanging in my office.  I have a tiled mirror in my guest bath.

My favorite is Victorian tile.  But I have a bunch of tiles from Mexico that we bought when we were in the Southwest.
Hmm...I have a lot more tile than I thought.

But it's not practical to really collect it.  So why not have a virtual collection?  So Monday I started a Pinterest board for tile.  So far, I don't have many.  The one to the left is one I found online.  Can you imainge an entire wall of that tile?  It might be a bit much, but boy would it be pretty (and very busy). I guess that's why I like accent tiles in a sea of more mundane ones.  That makes them stick out more, and I think they'd be better appreciated.

Here are a few more I found.

 Isn't that gorgeous? (Is it apparent that I'm a fan of Art Nouveau?)

 A little late for Chinese New Year (and it's the year of the Horse), but stunning.

So, what do you think about decorative tile?
.

Teacup Tuesday: A Valentine Tea

Today's teacup is a from my from my set of "good" china. I used it just last week. Every Valentine's Day, Mr. L and I have an afternoon tea. It's called Silver Maple by Royal Albert.

 

 Last week on the blogger version of this blog, Loveamystery asked for a good scone recipe.  Here's one I like and I included it in my cookbook, Recipes To Die For.

WALNUT SCONES
2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter, cold
¾ cup milk
1 egg
½ cup walnuts, coarsely chopped*
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons cold water
¼ raisins (optional)

Preheat oven to 350º. Sift the dry ingredients together. Using a pastry blender (or a fork), cut the butter into the dry ingredients until crumbly. Beat the milk and egg together. Pour into the dry ingredients, stirring until a dough forms. Add the chopped nuts, combining well. You can use an ice cream scoop to form the scones and place them on an aluminum (or parchment paper) lined baking sheet, or pat the dough into a circle and score with a knife.* Beat the egg yolk with the cold water. Using a pastry brush, glaze each scone with this mixture. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Serve hot or cold. (Hot is better! *You can substitute pecans or any other nut you prefer. Pistachios make an interesting scone.)

Yield: 10-12 scones.

(*BTW, I use a scone pan that makes perfect wedge-shaped scones.)

Here's what this year's tea looked like.  (And no, we weren't able to eat it all.  We love leftovers!) Isn't my Valentine orchid gorgeous?

 ~~ And now for the giveaway! ~~

Today's teacup is called Duchess, and isn't it pretty?

How can you win it?  By sending an email to me at contest @ LornaBarrett .com and leaving a tea time memory you wouldn't mind sharing (I won't use last names) with everyone on the blog.  I'll pick a name at random.

But wait! There's more! Betsy Bean from Latteda.com will send a free sample of Boneyard tea to another lucky winner every week.  But you can't win if you don't sign up.

Fabulous Fiber!

Recently my doctor put me on statins.  I do not like them.  They have side effects.  I repeat:  I do not like them.  But, I want to live a long hand happy life, and if I want to get off of them, it means lifestyle changes. I'll find out in a few weeks what's going on with the cholesterol thing, but I've been actively working to integrate more fiber into my life.  Fiber gets RID of cholesterol.

I drink a (often disgusting) fiber-rich smoothie for breakfast almost every morning.  (Okay, once a month I have a bagel.  So hit me with a wet noodle.) It contains spinach, cuke, celery, apple, carrot, oatmeal, sunflower seeds and protein powder, plus a generous shake of cinnamon (which is the only thing that makes it palatable).

I do a lot of digging on the Internet and, as I knew, dried beans are rich in fiber. One smoothie recipe said to add them. So guess what's going into today's smoothie? I soaked the beans yesterday, and decided halfway through that, whoa! That's a lot of beans! So we decided to take 3/4 of the beans and bake them.  (The other 1/4 went into the baby crock pot for the smoothie.)

Mr. L's mother used to make THE best lima beans, but she was a "toss this in" kind of cook who never had a recipe.  So Mr. L got a recipe from his sister. I knew it wasn't the one his mother made, because her beans were white, and sister's beans use molasses--but the directions are kinda spotty.

They turned out pretty well.  I skipped the brown sugar, as I'm trying to cut down on sweets, and they tasted just like Grandma Brown's Baked Beans, which is what we were going for.

Ingredients:
1 medium onion, chopped
1 pound bag dried beans (navy or lima) soaked for 8 hours or overnight
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard
3 tablespoons molasses
hot water
brown suger (to taste)

Preheat the oven to 300F.  Place the onions on the bottom of a casserole dish.  Add the soaked beans. Mix the salt, mustard, and molasses in a cup measure; fill the cup with hot water and stir until mixed. Pour over the beans and gently mix. Pour more water over the beans until covered. Bake for 6-8 hours, stirring every so often, and covering with more water until the last hour of baking. (You can add the brown sugar at any point.)

They turned out pretty well. The only problem? That's a LOT of beans. But luckily, beans freeze well. I'm going to be actively looking for more bean recipes.  Are you interested?

(Oh, and we're just going to have fake it to figure out how Mr. L's mother made her beans. Makes me feel kinda like a mad scientist!)

Foodie Friday: A Sweet for your Sweetheart

Oh, how I love cake.  It used to be that cookies were my favorite dessert/sweet, but not anymore.  Mind you, I will not turn down an oatmeal cookie (or chocolate chip, peanute butter, snickerdoodles, molasses ... well, you get the drift).

Once upon a time, I even took a cake decorating course.  It did not go well.  Oh, the cakes tasted fine, and I think once or twice I might actually have made an icing rose that sort of (kind of) resembled a flower. But that was years ago.

These days, I stick to mostly unfrosted cakes.  If not, I always make my own frosting, because those tubs of stuff from the supermarket are LOADED with Trans Fats, which are really, REALLY bad for you. (And you HAVE to look at the ingredients to see it, too--they're not going to advertise the fact next to the dough boy.)

One thing that's bad about cake (one?) is a double layer or bundt cake makes a lot, and we're just two (not so tiny) people. That's why I love this recipe. It's just right!

Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
2¼ cups cake flour
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ tablespoons lemon zest
4 ½ tablespoons poppy seeds
1 1/3 cups unsalted butter, softened
5 eggs
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup lemon juice

DIRECTIONS: 
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour one 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.

Sift together the flour, sugar, and salt. Then mix in the lemon peel, poppy seeds and butter. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Meanwhile, In a saucepan over low heat; cook 3/4 cup white sugar and the lemon juice until stirring until sugar is dissolved. Let cool to just warm or to room temperature.
Remove the cake from the oven and place the pan on a wire rack-place a cookie sheet underneath this rack. Prick the top of the cake several times with a toothpick. Brush the top of the cake with the warm or room temperature syrup, allowing lots of the syrup to run down and soak into the sides and bottom of the cake. Cool slightly in the pan before removing the cake to the wire rack to cool completely. When completely cooled, wrap the cake in foil or plastic freezer wrap and let the cake rest at least one day before serving to your guests.

(Okay, I'm not very patient.  I've eaten in the same day.  Tastes great.)

What are you baking up for your sweetheart on this Valentine's Day?

Paying it forward ... with chocolate!

Today is usually Pet Peeve Thursday where I (or a friend) is given free reign to kvetch.
Not today, because yesterday Mr. L and I were the recipients of a lovely gesture.

We'd gone to the grocery store to stock up on life-sustaining supplies (you know, the usual: cornmeal, gunpowder, ham hocks, and guitar strings).

As the woman in front of us finished her transaction, she turned to Mr. L and handed him a heart-shaped box of Valentine chocolates and said, "Have a happy Valentines Day."
Flabbergasted, Mr. L said, "What?"  And again she said, "Have a happy Valentine's Day," and walked away.

Whoa!  How lovely was that?

Instead of paying it forward with chocolate, we're going to pay it forward with a donation to the local food bank and hope if the recipients don't have a happy Valentine's Day, they'll at least have a happy St. Paddy's day.

How do you pay it forward?
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