just one of yesterday’s finest gifts
What is the price of distraction?
Have you ever passed by the same place thousands of times and because you were single-mindedly focused on finishing a task or just plain thinking about something else, you passed by something that has the potential to turn out to be the highlight of your day?
Yesterday, I had the most fun photographing a small flock of sheep about a mile away from my house. I have to tell you that I have been wanting to meet them for a long while now. As I was off set on a list of errands, my chance presented itself. The weather was not too cold, and the light was ok. I hastily pulled the car over and parked on a ragged and rock embedded strip of ground – but I was out of danger’s way. I went over to see if I could encourage the group to come over to the fence and visit with me. It took about 10 minutes of speaking to them in a soft and encouraging voice and finally their curiosity got the better of them. They were most adorable.
Hmmm, who’s that?
a timid approach
hmmm, what does she want?
trust- it’s all in the facial expressions:
Do you have any food, lady? “That cell phone looks pretty tasty.” said the one on the left, below, who tried for a grab…….
I’m not exactly sure what evoked this particular response toward me. #bayingbleeting
Ok, so speaking of pretty tasty, if you cellphones aren’t in your culinary repertoire, today I’m baking the following recipe, only with a few of my personal adaptations:http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/cardamom-crescents-368951
I thought about naming these Serpents of Venice, after re-reading Carol Field’s excellent chapter on Natale in Italy in her book, Celebrating Italy. Dining on eel at Christmastime is very common all over the country. It’s just that, for me, the name doesn’t really evoke the positive imagery I was going for, now does it?
Cardamom Hazelnut Crescents – adapted from Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez – Epicurious/Bon Appetit
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 tsp ground cardamom*
1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg*
generous pinch of ground cloves*
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar, divided
1 cup hazelnuts, ground in food processor until finely ground, but not pasty
1 cup unsalted butter, room temp
1 tblsp cognac
white/clear sanding sugar for sprinkling
Preheat oven to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Whisk, flour, cardamom, nutmeg, clove and salt in a medium bowl. Combine 1/2 cup of the confectioner’s sugar and the ground hazelnuts in the food processor until just mixed – use pulse for this. In the bowl of your electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter and cognac until creamy, 2-3 minutes. Add the nut/sugar mixture and blend. Add the dry ingredients and blend. Mixture will be moist but crumbly. Transfer to a lightly floured work surface and knead very lightly to form a ball. Roll 1 tblsp pieces of dough into a log – about 1 1/2″ long. Gently form into a crescent shape, pinching ends to taper. Place on prepared sheets. Repeat with remaining dough. Bake 12 minutes or just until lightly golden brown. Sift remaining confectioner’s sugar onto a piece of parchment paper. Roll warm cookies in the powdered sugar to coat. Repeat. Sprinkle tops with sanding sugar, if desired for a sparkly finish!
*make sure your spices are fresh!
Hope you will enjoy these – this batch was made for a friend as a holiday gift!