I hadn’t planned on it, but today I sorted through some of his belongings with my mom.  In the midst of boxes and boxes of nuts and bolts, old keys, and a glorious amount of pens that probably don’t work anymore, we happened upon so many memories. In between old sermon notes, stacks of barbershop quartet music and wood-working books, we came across various cards I had given him through the years thanking him again and again for being a great dad for me and grandpa for my children. It was meaningful. And difficult. And although I don’t feel it yet, I am sure very healing.

My favorite, though, were the giggles mom and I shared as we happened upon things like these…

A can inside a can. Only my dad. I mean really, can your dad do the can can? Mine can.

This sweet little number  makes me so happy – I’m guessing from the early eighties.

To top the can inside a can,  how about a Whitman’s Candy box inside a Whitman’s Candy box. Did I mention that my dad loved Whitman’s Chocolates? Or maybe he just needed more storage boxes.

That Disney ticket? Yeah. That’s from the trip where my dad went down Splash Mountain at the age of 75. It was brilliant. Dad got stuck in the back seat and I got conned into the front. We were drenched  by the end of the ride and my kids loved it. What I wouldn’t give to do it all over again one more time.

Ladies & gentlemen, I introduce you to the original imdb.com. I am not kidding you when I tell you there is an index for the cards in the front of the files. Dad kept this for his TV Guide crossword puzzles. I am willing to bet we shall find about 294 old TV Guides from the seventies and eighties in a box later on, one of which is bound to have Alf on the front cover. I don’t miss Alf.

On a completely unrelated note, I really miss the Carol Burnett show.

And for the grand finale? I present thee with a Whitman’s Candy can inside of a Whitman’s Candy can. You’re welcome.

This Coconut French Toast with Orange Cream Cheese Syrup is the talk of the town this month. There is nothing quite like her. She is nutty. She is comforting. She is refreshing. She is creamy.

COCONUT FRENCH TOAST INGREDIENTS:

• 1 long loaf French bread cut into about 1 inch slices
• 1 cup chocolate chips (optional)
• 8 large eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2-3 cups coconut
• 2 tablespoons butter (to coat baking pan)

Prepare French toast the night before. If desired, use a knife to cut a small slit into the sides of each slice of bread and place about 10-20 chocolate chips inside the middle for a chocolate-y surprise. Whisk together eggs, milk, and vanilla until very well combined & golden in color. Dip sliced bread into egg mixture and coat each slice well. Pour any remaining egg mixture over bread. Cover with saran wrap and allow to rest in fridge overnight (or at least for a couple of hours) to soak in eggy goodness.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat 9X13 baking pan with butter. When ready, remove French toast from fridge. Place coconut onto a plate and press each slice of bread into the coconut until both sides & edges are coated. Place each one into baking pan. Place a little extra coconut on the top side of each slice of bread. Bake for about 1/2 hour or until egg coating is fully cooked and coconut is light golden brown. (Turn French toast try around, if needed, half way through baking time for even browning.

ORANGE CREAM CHEESE SYRUP INGREDIENTS:

• 16 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 cup  (1 stick) butter, room temperature
• Juice & zest of 4 fresh oranges
• 4 cups powdered sugar

Cut cream cheese and butter into small pieces. Warm syrup ingredients, except powdered sugar, over low heat in a large saucepan until fully melted. Whisk in powdered sugar until becomes a lovely syrup. If needed, pour syrup into blender and blend for smoother texture.

Drizzle syrup over each piece of French toast or serve on the side in a lovely pitcher.

Make this for mom and she will love you forever. She will also ask you for the recipe. And then you will be her favorite. You’re welcome.

She’s my St Patrick’s Day baby. I told her over lunch the other day about the day she was born. She was mortified. It’s payback for her deciding to grow up.

I hid her birthday party supplies up high on a shelf but since dotter is also taller than me, I discovered that my high is not high enough. Thankfully she approved. She’s into owls lately.

But what she did not see was all the hard work and heartache that was going into our party plans. And by heartache, I mean that these are not chocolate. I forgot about them baking for an hour and a half. It’s a six to eight-minute baking time recipe. Sigh.

Ahhhh that’s better.

We found these adorable white chocolate shamrock mints at Common Folk in Bellevue, Washington. If you have not been, please do. And tell them I sent you. And buy mints. They are loverly.

Finally, the big day arrived. Here is dotter smiling with her cake.

Here is dotter thinking about how amazing 21 will be.

Here is dotter thinking deep thoughts.

Here is dotter… well, I don’t know what she’s doing in this picture but she’s adorable, even so.

And here is dotter ready to eat cake.

At dotter’s request, we did a fondue party. Here is my cheese fondue recipe.

Cheese Fondue:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup hefferveisen beer
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons mustard
• 2-3 cloves minced or smashed fresh garlic
• 1-2  teaspoons cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1 pound block* sharp cheddar cheese, grated (or more, if desired)
• Sea salt & pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan. Sprinkle in flour and stir & cook for a couple of minutes (don’t skip this step or your fondue will taste yucky – like flour). Add liquids while continuing to whisk. Add remaining ingredients and cook on low heat until cheese is completely melted. Place in fondue pot or in crock pot to keep warm. If heated too high, sauce can separate, so be sure to keep over low heat.

*Block cheese is best because it’s not coated in cornstarch & will melt much better than pre-grated cheese.

And chicken broth for cooking beef & chicken. Just heat over a high heat (electric fondue pots are best for this) & add sea salt & pepper. Let everyone know how important it is that their raw chicken doesn’t touch their plates and gets cooked thoroughly before eating.

And this. Isn’t she beautiful? I adopted her from a thrift store. I love her.

Fresh berries, cutie orange pieces and banana slices ready to dip into the glorious chocolate. I love the Ghirardelli Chocolate 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Baking Chips because they don’t have the cornstarch coating that normal chocolate chips have. Instead of becoming a thick mess, they melt perfectly.

Oh, yes, and mini marshmallows.

“More strawberries, please, Dad.”

New baby cuddles for Cindy – good for the soul.

I love the way toddlers smile after each step they take upstairs that they aren’t supposed to be climbing up. This little guy is so cute, he makes me forget there is anything else going on in the room.

Oh, yeah. Dotter’s birthday. Time for gifts!

And, finally, cake. Happy birthday, dotter. My Northwest has been brighter and luckier every day since you were born.

Speaking of gifts… it is now time to give away our four tickets to the Seattle Bites Food Tour! Thank you again, Seattle Bites! Let’s do this.

Congratulations to:

Michele, I hope you and three of your friends enjoy the tour! Congratulations!

I might be a biased Seattle girl, but I really love the Seattle Bites Food Tour. The owners, Mark & Jan Marie, are my dear friends. This week I had the pleasure to making some cookies for them for a presentation they did for Visit Seattle. I can’t wait to show you the cookies they gave to the attendees but, first, let me brag some more about them and what they do…

I’ve been on the tour four times. Last time I got to meet James. You, too, can meet James at the information booth. He’s a fan of Seattle Bites as well and has the brochure to prove it.

When you introduce yourself, please tell him Deanna from The Old Hen B&B says hi. You might also like to tell him he made the blog. He’s the most photogenic James I’ve ever met, no?

Everybody who signs up for the tour gets this handy Seattle Bites bag and an ear piece that allows you to hear the tour host even when the fish guys are chanting and doin’ their thing – flingin’ fish, makin’ tourists laugh and stuff.

The tour hosts are so fun, informative and friendly. I’ve learned so much about Pike Place from them.

One day I even got to play photographer. I adore this picture of this very happy group member.

Cutie, baby Seattle’s Best Coffee? Why, yes, please! I also love that every time I’ve been on the tour the eats have been a little bit different. Seattle Bites also serves the biggest bites of any Seattle food tour.

You must. simply must go on this tour – even if you’re a local. You will never see the market in the same way again. I promise you. Why? Because you will become part of the market’s history and become friends with the shop owners.

Are you ready to see the cookies I made for Seattle Bites? I’m not sure if you are ready for this much cuteness. No really. I’m simply giddy – far more excited than I probably should be.

Yes, it’s a cookie. A cookie sandwich to be exact. Complete with lunchmeat, lettuce, tomato, mustard and mayo.

To celebrate Pike Place. To celebrate the name “sandwich cookies” taken far too literal. To celebrate the outstanding Seattle Bites Food Tours, my friends at Seattle Bites are giving away 4 tickets for their tour.

How to Enter

Just leave a comment on this blog post telling us what you love best about Seattle and a winner will be randomly chosen this Sunday, March 17th, 2013 at midnight. The winner will be announced Monday morning the 18th.

This give-away has now been completed.

Oatmeal? No.

Bacon & eggs? No

Omelet? No.

Hashbrowns & sausage? No.

Strawberry anything and black coffee at the age of five? Yes!

Ingredients:

• One recipe of homemade whipped cream
• 8 large eggs, farm fresh is best
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 cup butter (for frying)
• 1 loaf high quality white bread, unsliced
• 2 pounds fresh strawberries, cut into quarters
• 1 1/2 cups sugar

Make whipped cream, cover mixing bowl with saran-wrap when done and place in fridge until ready to use.

Remove & discard strawberry stems and then cut into quarters. Place in a large bowl and stir in the sugar. Using a strainer that fits well on the large bowl, quickly move the strawberries into the strainer then place the strainer on the bowl so that the strawberry juices can drip down into the bowl. Set aside.

In a shallow and large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk and vanilla with a fork until well-beaten. Set aside. Cut six slices from the loaf of bread – into about 1 1/2 inch slices each. Cut each piece almost in half again as if to cut into two slices but not quite.

Melt butter over medium-high heat in a large, (preferably) cast iron pan. Give the butter your full attention so it melts and then sizzles a bit but doesn’t burn. If pan gets too hot, turn heat to medium.

Quickly dip inside fold of one slice of bread quickly into the egg then dip the outside, making sure to coat the outside of the bread completely. Once coated, open the bread so the inside fold is facing downward and place into frying pan. Cook until egg is cooked and toast is golden brown. Do NOT lift bread to early. Test to see if it’s ready to flip first but nudging it with the spatula. If it slides freely, then peek to see if it’s golden brown. If it is, then it’s ready to flip. Fold toast in half again and toast both of  the outsides of the bread until golden brown as well. Repeat until all six toasts are finished cooking. As each toast is finished, it can be placed on a baking sheet and loosely covered with foil and placed into the oven at 170 degrees to keep warm until the others are done.

Place strawberry juices into a small saucepan using a spatula to be sure to get all the sugar and juices out of the bowl. Heat strawberry juices on medium heat and allow to simmer. Keep a close eye on sauce to be sure it doesn’t over cook – about 3-5 minutes should reduce the juice into a loverly strawberry sauce. Set strawberries aside again until ready to assemble.

To plate, Place each toast upon a plate. Open toast up and drizzle bottom half with strawberry syrup. Pile about 1 cup of strawberries into bottom of toast as well. Then place whipped cream upon the strawberries. Bring top half of French toast up and over the whipped cream. Sprinkle with sifted powdered sugar until you smile. If desired, place a small dollop of whipped cream on top of each French toast & place one strawberry into it.

How I ended up spending my life creating a million delightful breakfasts (my least favorite meal of the day for almost forty years) I’ll never know. But I am sure of one thing… grandma-mom & grandpa-dad are up in Heaven eating strawberry-filled breakfasts, drinking Folger’s Coffee & enjoying the show.

Why “grandma-mom” and grandpa-dad”? Well, I hear their oldest grandchild was kind of a nut.

Prep:

Soak 20 large corn husks in water (there are usually about 40-50 to a bag sold in grocery stores). Place a clean plate or tray upon them to keep them from floating out of the water.

Ground Turkey Tamale Filling:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 20 ounces ground turkey 
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon oregano powder
• 3 teaspoons cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder
• Sea salt & pepper
• 1 teaspoon leaves from 2 sprigs fresh oregano, minced

Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large frying pan. Add diced onions and fry until translucent then add ground turkey. Stir in chili powder, garlic powder, oregano powder, cumin, chipotle powder and plenty of  salt & pepper. Cook until done then set aside.

Enchilada Sauce:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 4 – 5 cups chicken stock and/or water
• 3 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• Seas salt & pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in frying pan over medium high heat. Sprinkle in flour and whisk continually while cooking for a couple of minutes. Whisk in chili powder and then pour in 4 cups of chicken stock and/or water. Sauce will thicken as it heats. Evaluate thickness of sauce and add 1 more cup of water or broth if desired. Cook down for a few minutes again and then turn heat to low. Stir in remaining ingredients. If you don’t think sauce is flavorful enough, it probably needs a bit more salt. Add salt just until you experience all the wonderful flavors. Stir 2/3 of the sauce into the ground turkey set remaining sauce aside for serving.

Masa Dough:

• 2 cups masa
• 2 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, minced
• Sea salt to taste

Place all ingredients into a large bowl. Stir well with a wooden spoon until everything is combined. Taste and stir in additional salt of needed.

Assembling the Tamales:

Place about 6 cups of water in steaming pot and turn on high. Bring to a boil & turn heat down to medium to simmer. Don’t let the water get so high that it rises to the steaming rack as to not get the tamales wet.

Lay a softened corn husk out with top facing away from you. Press about 2-3 tablespoons of masa dough on the upper left side. Pressing with fingers, cover about 2/3 across the husk, leaving about 2-3 inches free at the bottom of the husk. It helps to pretend your making it the shape of the blue corner on the American flag.

Place a line of about 2-3 tablespoons of ground turkey filling straight up & down the middle of the masa dough. Turn corn husk so the left masa edge is facing you. Roll tamale away from yourself. Fold the bottom (which has no masa dough on it) up toward the top of the tamale. Repeat and place tamales on a tray.

When all tamales are prepared, place upward in the steaming rack. Simmer for about one hour.

To Serve:

It is most fun to place tamales in or on a pretty dish and serve in husks, allowing each guest to unroll their own. Of course, they will be very hot & steamy, so everyone will need to be careful. Serve with sauce and, if desired, grated cheese, sour cream, chopped fresh cilantro and maybe diced tomatoes. The possibilities are limitless.

And to my friend, Roz, who recently sat with me, patiently picking cilantro leaves, let us make tamales next time and pick cilantro on the front porch together in rocking chairs. Today, tamale, or whenever you’d like to pretend we’re in an Anne of Green Gables movie – only, you know, based in Tijuana.

I call them my little chicken nuggets. I may or may not have walked out of the store with 16 Mc Fuzzballs. I couldn’t contain myself.

Setting up the brooder (cute, warm little fuzzball house) isn’t easy when you skip a year. Everything gets stored away in places you never knew existed – including the keys to the shed.

But the peanut gallery cheered me on. Or maybe they just wanted grain.

Scavenger hunt finished… cage behind the barn, waterers in the shed, feeders in the attic of the barn and comfy bedding shavings in the back of the truck. Chicken nugget warmer ready. I will not need exercise for two months.

Twenty-five pounds of special, baby fuzzball food. Check.

Ooooooo shnooky wooky. You so sleepy?

Giving me the stink-eye, huh, sassy sweetums?

That’s okay because someday you will be a diva and look like Cher so I’ll let your miniature attitude go for now.

Sun bathing beauty. My little California girl. My little sunshine bunshine.

And this one? I bought her just because of her breed name. She is a Frizzle. She will be frizzly. My little frizzly bear.

I shall talk normal again in a few months. I promise, my lovey dovey pookie wookie. Thank you for visiting.

Have I ever mentioned that I’m a counselor too? Yeah. That. For realz. For the last twenty years, I’ve helped many people find their fresh starts and this always – and I mean always – includes grieving the past. There are textbook guidelines for grieving but there is no perfect recipe for getting over stuff. I mean, sometimes it just comes on too fast to keep up with the grieving. And sometimes we just don’t want to grieve yet. And sometimes no one has ever told us how important grieving is for the soul. And sometimes we excuse every bit of pain in our lives which just allows the stink to take up residency in our soul.

May I recommend a weekend away alone at your favorite B&B to find your fresh start? And may I recommend this fresh start salad to nourish your beautiful person in the meantime?

Balsamic Fresh Fruit Salad

• 4 nectarines
• 1 pound fresh strawberries
• 1 pint fresh blueberries
• 1 pint fresh blackberries
• 1 pint fresh raspberries
• 2 kiwis, diced (optional)
• 3/4 cup apricot jam (for sugar-free, use sugar-free jam)
• 1/4 cup warm water
• ½ cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 basil leaves, minced
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 4 Sprigs of mint (for garnish)

Rinse & drain nectarines & berries to clean. Cut nectarines in half. Set 4 halves aside.

Dice the remaining nectarines and place in large bowl. Peel and dice the kiwi and add to bowl. Remove stems from strawberries and dice then add to bowl. Add remaining berries to bowl as well.

In a separate bowl, passionately whisk together jam, water & balsamic vinegar. Add minced basil leaves and salt & pepper to taste. The salt should simply help bring out the other lovely flavors in the dressing.

Pour dressing over diced fruit & berries. Stir in gently until fruit is well-coated.

Place each nectarine half on a plate and top with diced fruit salad . Garnish each serving with a sprig of mint. Makes 4 servings.

You got this! Here’s to your fresh start. Also, this might be a good time to admit that I still haven’t forgiven Starbucks for ditchin’ their almond syrup eight years ago. Do as I say, not as I do.

These are the ladies who taught Sunday School, confirmed the value my mother told me I had, hosted almost every potluck I’ve ever been to and who dressed up like rednecks for my bridal shower a few, four, five or twenty years ago.

Every single young lady on the planet earth deserves to have women like these in their life. One of my most unreachable goals is to honor every minute they’ve spent with me and every ounce of love they’ve poured into me (even when I didn’t deserve it) by passing it on to others of all ages just like they’re still doing in my hometown.

I’m tearing up just writing about them and I don’t have a tissue handy, so I shall go back to my outrageous shower. Hay bales, quilts and clothes lines hung across the room with care and giggles. To this day, this is the most spectacular shower I have ever attended. No pink flowers. No white linens. And no stuffy rules. Everyone had a wonderful time laughing at our hosts with blacked-out teeth, hillbilly outfits, and hilarious songs sung almost on tune with washboards and spoons for accompaniment. They blindfolded me and my job was to guess the types of about 10 cheeses. Sweet baby Jesus, I didn’t know my cheeses. I probably should admit here that my favorite cheese 20 years ago may have still been Velveeta. Okay, it was.

So in honor of every real cheese known to man. I present thee with my Wisconsin Soup.

Ingredients:

•  4 cups water
• 10 Johnsonville Bratwurst (or 2 packages of original, beer or cheddar brats)
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 8 tablespoons flour
• 24 ounces chicken broth
• 2 cups hefeweizen beer
• 2 cups frozen potato squares
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 pound block of smokey sharp cheddar cheese, grated (save 2 ounces for topping)
• 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper (or to taste)
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• Leaves of 3 sprigs fresh oregano, minced
• Leaves of 1 large sprig fresh basil, minced
• Leaves of 5 sprigs fresh thyme, minced
• Leaves of 1 medium sprig of fresh rosemary, minced
• Salt & pepper to taste

Bring water to a boil in medium-large saucepan. Add bratwurst and allow to cook at a rolling simmer for about 15 minutes.

Place olive oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Remove brats from water with tongs and place in soup pot to brown all sides. Save broth from bratwurst. Place browned brats on a cutting board to cool and place diced onion into soup pot to cook until translucent. Sprinkle flour over onions and stir while cooking for about 2 minutes. Add a little extra olive oil if needed.

Stir in chicken broth, bratwurst broth and beer. After broth thickens, add potatoes, heavy cream, all but a couple of ounces of the cheddar cheese and the herbs and spices. Salt and pepper to taste. Allow to simmer for about 15 minutes. Serve in bowls or mugs topped with, perhaps, a dollop of sour cream and some grated smoked cheddar.

And may you rock white tights with navy blue shoes, big bangs in all their glory, and sweaters with shoulder pads forever. And may this soup comfort your soul just like the wonderful, wise hillbilly’s around you for they are priceless jewels… only, you know, not stuffy.

*I measured my space and then decided on the perfect bottles for me. I bought larger ones for spices I had in larger quantities. 

I am not terribly compulsive. Unless you count my perfectly chosen vanilla bottle ribbons in perfect rows. Not compulsive. Just glorious.

Then there was that one morning I had to mix and match the plates at the breakfast table so that no two of the same color were right next to each other. Yeah. That only happened once. Okay, I’m lying. It happens daily.

I suppose I can be kinda big on rows when I line the chicken eggs up to dry. But it just makes me so very happy, you know?

Well, because ten ice cubes per water glass is just the right amount.

And the linens? Well, they need to be stacked by color because it makes it easier to find what I need. That, and it makes my soul jump for joy.

See that row of four on the left. Yeah. It’s driving me bonkers. Okay. I give. I need help. And one more ham-wrapped asparagus. And help.

That being said, I now have an organized spice storage system. I am one happy girl with issues. Now, please pass me the chili powder. You’ll find it right after the chervil.  Thank you for listening.