Author Archives: Ellen

Vareniky the Bagdanov Way ~ Russian Recipe

The Ladies got together to make Vareniky together at my niece Debbee’s house. Look at those cute aprons on Michelle, Melissa, Debbee, Letty, and mom! I want to say at the top here that this recipe is for a lot of vareniky. So you’ll need to do the math and cut it down. This recipe makes about 40 or 50.

Vareniky

6 eggs
1- 1/2 C. half and half
1/2 C Sour Cream
1 T. Oil
3 T. sugar
Flour sifted (at least 8 Cups)

Update! sorry peeps! I forgot the Salt…you’ll need to add 1 Tablespoon of salt to the dough, also.

Extra cube of butter and half and half for sauce at the end…

Sift flour. Make a hole in the center of the flour. Combine eggs, half n half, sour cream, salt, and sugar. Beat until combined. Pour into the hole of flour. Mix and knead adding flour until dough stays together. Dough will be very soft.

Filling:

3 lbs. farmers cheese or hoop cheese
2 eggs
1 t. salt
3 T sugar

Beat all ingredients together until combined.

Roll out flour mixture. Cut circles about 3″ in diameter. Put about 1 heaping teaspoon of the cheese in the center of the circle. Fold in half and pinch ends together then flute with finger. Place the vereniky in boiling water until they come to the surface and float. Drain and cool. At this point they may be frozen.

 

This is what they are suppose to look like. Just remember this one was made by a pro!

 

That’s the cheese mixture in the bowl that you fill them with.

 

This is the boiling step.

To serve, place vareniky into a 9 x 13 baking dish. Melt one cube of butter and pour over vareniky. Heat up half and half and cover the vareniky with the half n half. Bake at 375 degrees until the half n half boils. Serve with sour cream and preserves or syrup.

My family traditionally has these for dessert on Christmas Eve when they get together. They are also a favorite for breakfast. The joy of receiving and eating these treats is always wonderful. I’m going to have to be in L.A. for one of the cooking parties so I can really learn how to make them and enjoy them in the future!

Photobucket is holding all my photos I stored with them from 2007-2015 hostage. They have blacked out all those photos on my blog posts. OH BOTHER! I’m slowly cleaning up my posts.

More Goodies from “Of First Importance”

Sorting & Comparing

“All trouble comes from not right sorting and comparing things: seeking that on earth which is only to be had in heaven, and seeking that in the creature which is only to be had in God, and looking for that from self which is only to be found in Christ, and seeking that in the law which is only to be had in the gospel.”

Thomas Manton, The Life of Faith (Fearn, Great Britain: Christian Focus, 1997)

ht: Of First Importance blog

WFMW ~ Backwards Day

So it’s January and all minds shift to eating less and getting into shape. I got confused over the holidays and thought I was a bear getting ready to hibernate. Needless to say I put on a few! So it’s high time to stop watching people exercise and to exercise myself. See my 5# weights are all ready to go.

I would like someone out there to recommend a good workout video to me. Nothing too strenuous. I don’t have any equipment and can’t fit any in my condo. So a workout DVD without needing equipment other than weights. Something easy for me to follow along with. Anyone, anyone???

For more Backwards WFMW click here.

8 in 2008

Play Along…It is easy to play along. Just pick out 8 things you’d like to see, do, feel, or experience in 2008! Your list can be spiritual, physical, or emotional, but hopefully not too material! If the Lord leads you, dream big as you share your heart’s desires with Him along with a willingness to see His work accomplished in you and through you in 2008.

So I’m joining in with others at Extravagant Grace and considering 8 things I’d like to see, do, feel, or experience in 2008. ~

Here are my Eight…

1. I’d love to see some of the people I’m praying for who aren’t Disciples of Christ respond to God’s call this year. I realize that my responsibility in this is to keep praying diligently for them…

2. I want to try to walk at least 6 days a week. I’m over 50 now and my body just needs an extra push in burning calories. I don’t eat excessively (except at holidays, birthdays, every 3rd Tuesday, etc. ) I need a lot of help in keeping my weight stable as opposed to gaining…

3. I want to Abide in Christ and here’s a great quote that I saw at “Of First Importance Blog” that describes abiding well. “In a nutshell, abiding in Christ means allowing His Word to fill our minds, direct our wills, and transform our affections. In other words, our relationship to Christ is intimately connected to what we do with our Bibles!”– Sinclair Ferguson, In Christ Alone (Lake Mary, FL: Reformation Trust Publishing, 2007), 114 ~

4. I want to spend more time with my parents and family. ~

5. I’d like to cut down on some monthly expenses and try to pay down some debt this year. Along with this I’d like to convert to on-line bill paying. ~

6. I’d like to call and write our older surviving Aunts and Uncles more this year. ~

7. I want to keep learning new things by reading and traveling. ~

8. I want to honor my husband more this year. I think I’ll need to come up with something more specific to accomplish this, like listening better, etc. To see more 8 in 2008 click over to Extravagant Grace.

 

Muddy Saturday Walk ~ Storm Watch So. Cal.

Here’s what our weather was like yesterday and what it’s suppose to look like today. Our muddy walk was on Saturday when we had weather very similar to Sunday.

This
Afternoon
Chance Showers. Chance for Measurable Precipitation 50%
Chance
Showers
Hi 58°FFalling Temperatures		 Tonight

Showers. Chance for Measurable Precipitation 100%
ShowersLo 44°F		 Monday

Chance Showers. Chance for Measurable Precipitation 30%
Chance
Showers
Hi 59°F		 Monday
Night
Partly Cloudy
Partly
Cloudy
Lo 39°F

We picked the rainiest weekend of the year to check out this huge empty area behind our condominium complex that’s going to look like…

 

this in a little less than a year!

I’m hoping to get to see some fun soccer just steps away from my back door. Besides all these soccer pitches they are also putting in 3 baseball diamonds on the far end.

Here are more photos from our muddy Saturday walk.

 

 

 

This was funny, no road here but there’s a stop sign and a street sign, hmmm?

I’m hoping they find a way to save this tree.

 

So is this what your dog’s paws looked like yesterday Kim?

Photobucket is holding all my photos I stored with them from 2007-2015 hostage. They have blacked out all those photos on my blog posts. OH BOTHER! I’m slowly cleaning up my posts.

Three Kings Day ~ We Three Kings

 Three Kings Day is celebrated on January 6th, twelve days after Christmas. It is often viewed as the last day of the Christmas season (the end of the 12 days of Christmas).

Also known as The Epiphany, Three Kings Day (Día de los Reyes) is a Christian celebration that commemorates the Biblical story of the three kings who followed the star of Bethlehem to bring gifts to the Christ child. According to the Biblical story, the Three Kings – named Melchior, Caspar and Balthazar – presented the Baby Jesus with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

Three Kings Day was the gift-giving time, rather than Christmas day. Just as it is common for children to leave cookies for Santa in the U.S., in some regions, it was customary for children to leave their shoes out on the night of January 5, often filling them with hay for the camels, in hopes that the Three Kings would be generous. Children would awake on January 6 to find their shoes filled with toys and gifts.

Also traditional is for families to gather together and share the Rosca de Reyes. The Rosca de Reyes is a crown-shaped sweet bread decorated with pieces of orange and lime. It is filled with nuts, figs, and cherries. Hot chocolate is traditionally served with the Rosca de Reyes.

We Three Kings

(Words and Music by John H. Hopkins, Jr., 1857)

We three kings of Orient are;
Bearing gifts we traverse afar,
Field and fountain, moor and mountain,
Following yonder star.

Refrain

O star of wonder, star of light,
Star with royal beauty bright,
Westward leading, still proceeding,
Guide us to thy perfect light.

Born a King on Bethlehem’s plain
Gold I bring to crown Him again,
King forever, ceasing never,
Over us all to reign.

Refrain

Frankincense to offer have I;
Incense owns a Deity nigh;
Prayer and praising, voices raising,
Worshiping God on high.

Refrain

Myrrh is mine, its bitter perfume
Breathes a life of gathering gloom;
Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying,
Sealed in the stone cold tomb.

Refrain

Glorious now behold Him arise;
King and God and sacrifice;
Alleluia, Alleluia,
Sounds through the earth and skies.

Refrain

5 Things Meme

It’s time for some Saturday fun and let me tell you I started my Saturday fun by staying in bed till 8:00! I don’t know the last time I did that. So I’m drinking old coffee (Dear made it 5:00 am). We’re experiencing lots of clouds and rain here in the Southern California area so I just might pretend I’m a Hobbit and stay in my Hobbit Hole and watch the Seahawks game and try not to eat too much… Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

I found this fun meme and totally stole it from Susanne at Living to Tell the Story.

 

1. Five things found in my room (I’m in the Dining Room)

Table & 4 chairs (which is our eating table, my computer table, my bill paying desk, etc. in the Condo)

Wall candle sconce

A tin sign that says Blessed

An antique mirror

A framed self-portrait my daughter sketched

2. Five things I’ve always wanted to do.

Ride a horse on the beach

Go to Ireland

Be able to speak in front of people without shaking in my boots

Have a professional chef come into my home and make a meal for me and close friends.

Pay off all my and my kids debts

3. Five things found in my hand bag.

My digital camera (I’m a blogger after all!)

My wallet

My cell phone

My clip on sunglasses

My Hankie

4. Five things in my wallet.

license

credit cards

checkbook

photos

grocery store cards

5. Five things I’m currently into.

Blogging

Reading the new Jan Karon book (I just finished it!)

Trying to cut down on calories

Trying to walk everyday

Reading Ephesians every day for 20 days

If you decide to post this meme on your blog let me know so I can come see….

Photo Hunters ~ Delicious!

Delicious or as we like to say with a Russian accent Duhliscious!

 

This is the delicious baked treat we had over Christmas and New Years. I will be posting the recipe in the future for my Russian friends who don’t have this recipe (Roolyet) handed down to them.

For more Photo Hunters go see TnChick!

Friday’s Feast #13 ~

Appetizer
When was the last time you received a surprise in the mail, and what was it?

Just this week I got 2 packages from the Bloggy world that made my day. One package all the way from Greece and the other all the way from Tennessee! I posted about it here. I also got a late Christmas gift in the mail of the new ESV Literary Study Bible.

Soup
If you could have a summer and/or winter home, where would you want it to be?

Interesting question because my hubby and I without any master planning on our own part do have two homes right now. We have our family home that we love to spend definite seasons in Washington State and now surprise to us we have a lovely little condo in Southern California because “Dear’s” job is located here right now.  We have seasons whenever we want in the great Northwest and summer most every day in our condo in Southern California.  The hard thing is being divided and paying two mortgages. We are waiting and trusting on the Lord to make us content wherever we are until the day we are finally in the best place…heaven!

Salad
Pick one: pineapple, orange, banana, apple, cherry.

Oh my this is hard. I love all these fruits. I love them all together. But I’m suppose to choose one so I’ll choose the versatile banana that is available all year long for about the same price!

Main Course
Describe the nicest piece of clothing that you own.

Whoa! I don’t own many fine pieces of clothing. These days I prefer to shop second hand and I hate to spend full price for anything. I have some nice pieces of clothing (great labels) that I have bought at Goodwill. The most versatile nice practical piece of clothing that I own right now that I did not buy at Goodwill is a great Gortex raincoat that keeps me dry in the great Northwest rain or the Great Britain rain! I bought that coat at REI!

Dessert
If you could forget one whole day from your life, which day would you choose to wipe from your memory?

Wow just one? There are so many from my junior high days. Then there are those from High school. Ugh those early days of dating. Yuck all those mistakes in early marriage and early parenthood. Sorry there is not one day that stands out from all the rest. Thanks be to God that He has mercy on me and that I can leave these days/mistakes behind and move forward in mercy and grace!

For more Friday Feast participants click here.

Thankful Thursday ~ A New Beginning!

Lamentations 3: 21-25 ~

But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore I will hope in him.” The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.”

I am thankful for a new year, each new day that the Lord extends his love and mercy to me and my loved ones.

I am thankful that He is the faithful one and nothing that I do changes who He is.

I am thankful that He continues to teach me through His Holy Spirit.

I am thankful that He gives me the desire to continue to seek Him and wait for him.

I pray that we all grow in His wisdom and grace this New Year.

For more Thankful Thursday posts head over to Lynn’s who I am thankful to for hosting again!