Celebrating the Queen's Jubilee with Baked Beer Bread

We celebrated the Queen's Jubilee yesterday! To get in the spirit, I baked some yummy Beer Bread to go with our Toast to the Queen!

The adorable Cath Kidston dish towel hanging on my kitchen door came to me all the way from Scotland. It was a gift from my sweet blogger friend, Christine. Isn't she so thoughtful to give me the cutest dish towel ever? I can't think of actually using it! Thank you, Christine!

(Christine's blog, 'Writing From Scotland' is on my blog list)

Here's to the Queen!

Sixty years of dedication! She is an amazing Queen and I just love her. I love all the Royals. I think it would be so fun to have our own Queen.
And wear hats like the Royals.
I love hats.
Here in the Northwest, if you wore a fancy hat, you had better be going to a 'themed' party. Hats here are either knitted wool caps (winter) or baseball caps (summer). East of the mountains, you can find cowboy (and girl) hats. I have a few garden hats, but rarely have to wear them. We just don't have many days of hot sunshine!

O.k. I am getting off the subject. Where was I?

Oh yea, after toasting the Queen, we had some beer left over, so I thought I would bake some Beer Bread!

With the beer gone, the colorful carton served as a flower holder for some buttercups!



Beer Bread

Preheat oven to 375*

Grease a standard loaf pan

3 cups sifted flour

3 tsps baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/4 cup sugar

1 (12 oz bottle beer)

1/2 cup melted butter

Mix dry ingredients. Add Beer. Gently mix just until blended.

At this point you can pour batter into the loaf pan and drizzle with the butter if you prefer a crusty top.

If you prefer a softer crust, mix butter with batter and pour into greased loaf pan.

Bake for 1 hour. Cool 15 minutes before removing from pan.

(Don't try to substitute the beer. Beer is the 'yeast' for the bread and it won't rise otherwise. Also, always sift your flour, then measure. It makes a difference between light and fluffy bread or hard as rock bread!)

Add beer to dry ingredients.

Add melted butter to batter. (my preference)

Enjoy this bread with soup, chili or warm from the oven with butter! I like it toasted the next day with blackberry jam.

Enjoy!

Here's to the Queen!

Rain

It has been so drippy and gray here for the last few days. It has also been very cool. We can see our breath in the morning and evening air.

The foothills are hidden by the drooping clouds.

My roses want to unfurl, but are held in suspended animation in the cool, chill air.

It is only when the setting sun dips below the cloud cover that we see it's colorful presence.

Cool temperatures outside call for warming up on the inside!

My daughter, J, stopped by for a visit on Friday night and helped us put some home-made banana bread to good use!

That was after big bowls of home-made minestrone soup. Soup is just the thing at the end of a cold and wet Northwest day.

(You can find these in my recipe section)

Daughter J also brought along some friends for poor Whitey, who has been missing his companion, Little Bear. Weenie Baby and Peanut stayed for the weekend and were good company for not only Whitey, but also Hubby, who spent the weekend burning storm debris from this winter's ice storm.

It was easy for them to stay warm! Notice Hubby's heavy canvas coat - that is Northwest gear, nearly year round.

Well, at least until after July 4th. That is when our summer's begin.

In the meantime.......

We do a little complaining. But just a little. If you can't deal with true Northwest weather, well you had just better pack up and go home. To Florida. And take me with you. (please?!)

Just kidding.

I have too much to do here.... On  rainy days there are always alterations to do. Especially if you have daughters!

Sweet little dresses and tops, all finished and awaiting final fittings.

The 'Girls' forgot their warm sweaters, so they came inside with me while Whitey stayed with Hubby at the fire. The Girls do love their comfort.

  

Later, we went downstairs and made some rib-sticking macaroni and cheese for Hubby's dinner. (Recipe under 'Main Dish')

Well, I did the cooking while The Girls waited for a hand out! 

It was just the thing for a cold, wet Saturday night.

Sunday morning was still cool and wet. It was a good morning to catch up on my nature journal. This entry was 'Buttercups'.

Later, my youngest son, D, and his lovely girlfriend J came for a nice visit.

Time spent with loved ones goes by much too fast!

But we consoled ourselves with this - Strawberry Shortcake! (Follow the recipe on the Bisquick box!) Daughter J once again showed up right at serving time. Mmmm - strangely coincidental, don't  you think?

So although it is raining cats and dogs outside right now, we are cozy inside. Living in the Northwest, I am used to a little rain. I put on my 'big girl' pants and boots and wait it out. Because I know as soon as that sun comes back, I am living in paradise once more.

And needing real 'big girl pants' until I can work off all of this home cooking out in the gardens once more!

I hope you are getting some sunshine where you are. And if you are, would you send some my way?

I would be so grateful!

xoxo

Fields of Gold

 

Every year at this time, the fields blossom with wildflowers. Buttercups, Purple and blue Phlox, Lupine, Iris, Daisies, Forget me Nots.

But the flowers that are sprinkling the fields with gold right now are the Buttercups.

Drops of liquid sunshine

Fallen from the sky

To light up even the gloomiest day!

Yellow Buttercup and Blue Phlox

Sun and Sky

Brought to Earth

Along a Country Road.

Linking to:

http://www.theviewfromrighthere.com/blog/?p=7382)

Vintage Style Recycled Wraps For Special Gifts

I put together a little gift basket for my sweet sister-in-law who lives 3000 miles from me, in New England where I grew up.

I have been working on crafting and gathering little gifts for her for quite some time.

The first thing I made for her was the Hand Colored Art Nouveau Journal. (You can see how to make these under 'Crafts' on my side bar)

I wanted to wrap it creatively, so I used the crossword section of the newspaper.

As a last minute personal touch, I included her birthday horoscope. I glued it on the cover page over a cut out of the newspaper crossword puzzle!

Some vintage millinery dogwood blossoms and sheer french ribbon dress up the graphic wrapping. When you are using newspaper for wrapping, find interesting graphics or photos to display. I have used the real estate section featuring million dollar homes for the second gift. You know, just in case she wins the lottery and wants to move here. You never know.

And remember the photo magnets I made? (You can also find the directions under 'crafts'.) Well, I put these in an interesting chocolate box that I recycled.

I wrapped a sheer brown french ribbon around the box.

I made her one of my special 'Boudour Bottles', too. (Directions under 'Crafts'.) I found the rusty heart in a shop a while ago. The 'label' is an interesting Jeans Clothing tag with it's hanging ribbon wrapped around and re-tied. The little ribbon and charm on top are vintage.

To wrap the handmade soaps from a shop, I put them in a wooden fruit basket lined with tissue paper.

You can find the fruit baskets at www.rhshumway.com

I then placed the basket inside the mesh from a produce bag, tied it with french ribbon and added some dogwood blossoms.

This is a cute way to recycle those little mesh bags that hold lemons, limes and avocados.

This interesting photo from the newspaper was used to wrap around the Boudoir Bottle.

First the bottle was securely wrapped in bubble wrap.

Then it was rolled diagonally in the newspaper photo, wrapped in a scrap of netting, and tied with french ribbon and dogwood blossoms.

Pike Place Market Tea is wrapped in craft store advertising from the newspaper.

A summer T-shirt is rolled in brown paper bag and wrapped with the 'Classified' section and tied with brown french ribbon.

Lastly, a vintage style hankie is wrapped around sweet scented potpourri. Every gift box should have something scented to delight the recipient when the box is opened.

Everything is tucked inside a sturdy cardboard blueberry crate and tied tightly closed.

Sweeter than Love

Then everything is tucked into it's shipping box for the 3000 mile journey!

I hope this gives you inspiration to wrap your own gifts using recycled boxes and wrappings from around the house.

Sturdy fruit crates make excellent 'gift baskets', berry baskets and chocolate boxes make unique gift boxes, and newspaper wrapping gives an interesting vintage flair. Netting produce bags and vintage silk flowers are worth saving to add that special touch.

Just add your very own creativity!