Category Archives: Desserts

Birthday Party x Four!

Saturday the 27th, the girls arrived home from our Tea Party in Idaho to the aroma of ribs cooking on Bayles Mountain. Dan was in charge of dinner for our birthday x4. There was a happy birthday sign up and a helium balloon for each of the 4 along with presents for each. Laura and I got busy decorating the little bundt cakes that were baked the day before. Each cake had it’s own unique twist.

Applesauce Spice cake for Katie who turned 40 on this epic day, the 27th of December.

Jamie’s birthday will be the first of 3 family birthdays in January. Her cake is lemon with lemon frosting.

Dan’s follows the day after Jamie. His cake is Applesauce Spice cake.

Three days after Dan comes Joshie’s birthday. He is our firstborn. His cake is chocolate with chocolate frosting.

Lots of birthday love all around.

Our birthday girl with dad.

After dinner and before cake we had each one open their gifts. Josh is reading a hilarious card he received from Andrew and Katie. We were all laughing.

Photo Fail: I did not get photos of each of the birthday kids sitting in the birthday gift chair.

The brothers got matching jogging suits. The girls were each treated with a very special gift from Tiffany’s from Josh and Laura. Fortieth birthdays are treated with special flare in our family and I’m sure in other families, too. There were other gifts for the four like, hoodies, coats, a massage certificate, and a Buck Skinning knife. There is one other special event planned for our two fresh forty year olds, a trip to Maui in October of 2026. There will be 12 of us making that trip, Lord Willing, our ten and Jamie’s mom and granny.

The four with their individual cakes and balloons.

When it was time for the oldest in the group to go home, another surprise was lit!

We all went on the front porch for some unknown reason and there to our surprise was an epic fireworks display preplanned by Dan! What fun that was. I wish I was able to share the video here.

It was a wonderful day from beginning to finish.

After all our birthday celebrations on Saturday we were all in church taking a full row for the last Sunday of 2025. Addy played a special number, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, on the piano.

Addy does not have that common fear of performing in front of a crowd. It will be interesting to see how that plays out in her life.

The last sermon of 2025 was excellent and we all were challenged and encouraged.

After the service, Andrew and Katie started their long drive home. The rest of us gathered again on Bayles Mountain for the day. Table games, Prime rib sandwiches for lunch, hearty soup for dinner that the two oldest of the crew had ‘to-go’.

The Grands helping gramps get up off the couch. He made it more fun by being a ‘dead weight’!

On Monday morning after Josh and Laura left for home, I changed up the table linens and pulled out this puzzle gift from Josh and Laura.  I finished it on New Year’s Eve. It was a fun one to put together.

The last days of 2025 at our country bungalow were quiet with little accomplished and that was okay.

New Year’s Eve we spent at home. We got a photo of our local kids enjoying the fireworks in town.

Those sun roofs come in handy!

Moving on to 2026 and trusting God for what He has in store for us.

A Hodgepodge Happy New Year!

A Very Happy New Year to All! Welcome very soon to 2026!

This is my Happy New Year Post for Hodgepodgers. This post card was sent to Greg’s Great Great Aunt Emma. The card was sent from Chicago to Denver in 1906! It is a hundred year old Happy New Year greeting! The stamp was one cent. The written greeting is in Swedish.

Making room for the last Hodgepodge of 2025! Thank you, Joyce From This Side of the Pond.

1. Did you make resolutions or set goals for the year we’re waving goodbye? How did that work out for you? Will you set any goals for this new year, new season, or new month? Share one or two if you’d like to share. 

The only goal I set for 2025 was to read the Bible through alongside Everyday Gospel, A Daily Devotional Connecting Scripture to All of Life by Paul David Tripp. I found it to be a good combination and encouraging. One other highlight was using our Church History Study Bible with notes stretching back from the first and second centuries and reaching forward to the twentieth century. As the introduction states about the contributors in the notes, ‘these are theologians, pastors, poets, laity, all offering perspective on God’s Word’ to aid us in escaping the ‘tyranny of the present to see wisdom from the past’.

The Puritan John Owen (1616-1683) offers us this encouragement:

If you have any regard to the constancy of your faith, to the comfort of your life, the honor of God, or the salvation of your own soul, labor immediately to get your belief of the Word better founded. Read the Scripture constantly, study it seriously, search it diligently, hear it explained and applied by others, meditate on it yourself, and beg of God an understanding of it and a right faith in it. 

2. When did you have the most fun this year? 

This was the family Christmas card photo this year taken over Thanksgiving weekend.

Hands down the most fun always happened when we were together with family or dear friends! The joy, the belly laughs, the support, the one liners, and the love flowing made for memorable moments all through the year!

One of the belly laugh moments of 2025!

3. What’s a song or song lyric you’ll associate with 2025? Tell us why. 

Phil Wickham’s Hymn of Heaven because it is the hope that encourages me in my daily life. Songs of life that are filled with truth inspire me and cause me to worship God. This is important to me. Artists like The Getty’s,  Chris Tomlin, Phil Wickham, and others who sing what is true to the Bible are my favorites. I’m not a fan of imposters. It is my prayer that these and others stay true.

4. Best (or a favorite) bite of something delicious you tasted this year? 

I grew up on my dear mom’s blintzes but I’ve not made them for several years. This year I made them twice and they are so good to my taste buds and memories. I choose them for my best bite this year!

Before you ask…you can find the recipe for Nadia’s Blintzes here.

5. What do you want to do more of in the new year? Less of? 

I would like to read more good books this year. I would like to decrease my sugar intake this year.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Happy New Year to all my friends who stop by my blog. I appreciate each and every one of you! Wishing you a new year of peace and joy down in your hearts to stay…

My Talented Helpers

These kitchen helpers took over and whew after a few hours things got done.

Addy has mastered the art of kneading. She says it’s because she helps her mom make tortillas often.

After chopping nuts, JJ decided it was more fun to wash the dishes. He said it is fun to wash dishes the ‘old fashioned way’.

We had to wait for a couple hours for this dough ball to double in size. In the meantime we also managed to get one tray of Russian Tea Cookies done. I did not have a resident photo taker available and sticky hands did not help for me to take photos. My helpers went home for lunch and we went out for Chinese giving the dough time to rise.

When we got home from lunch the dough was ready. The finished product will be delicious but both loaves cracked. I think I rolled the dough too thin before rolling it up and baking it with the nut filling.

 

I need to make these more than once a year so I can master the method.

Today is Christmas Eve Day. The main celebrations start tonight into tomorrow. I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas.

Applesauce Cake Roll

My mom used to made this Applesauce Cake Roll years ago and I had tried it once in the past and decided to try it again. It makes a nice dessert that isn’t too sweet and is festive. I made a couple mistakes and will improve on my cake rolling the next time around. My company did not mind it’s imperfection!

Ingredients:
3 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup applesauce
1 cup sifted flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves (optional)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Powdered sugar (icing sugar) for dusting

Filling:
12 oz. of cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
4 tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Beat eggs till thick.
Gradually add sugar beating well.
Add 1/2 cup applesauce.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt & cloves.
Fold into egg mixture along with the walnuts.
Spread in greased and floured 15 x 10 x 1 jelly roll pan. I updated this step and used parchment paper that I lightly greased.
Bake in 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.
Immediately loosen sides and invert onto a kitchen towel.
Pull parchment paper off and cover with powdered sugar.
Roll the cake in the towel and let it cool completely. It will be a nicer roll if you roll it on the short side.
Prepare the filling by beating the cream cheese, sugar and milk together till smooth.
When the cake has cooled unfold it and spread the filling evenly on the cake.
Roll the cake again carefully, discarding the towel.
Wrap the whole cake with foil (I sprayed the foil with cooking spray) and freeze. This will make it easy to cut when ready to serve.
When ready to serve, unwrap the cake, dust with powdered sugar (icing sugar) cut slices and serve with ice cream or whip cream.

I’ve got room for improvement but my beginner attempt was well received and devoured.

Embracing the Days…

Catching up with some events from the last week. The super moon lit up the sky and our acres. So bright, it was almost as if we had street lights.

Addy’s last basketball game of the short season was on Saturday morning, the 6th of December.

As usual she played hard and well.

After the game all the ladies and JJ took in the Lady Lion’s craft fair in Kettle Falls. When we saw all we wanted to see we met up for lunch at TJ’s in Kettle Falls. Addy and JJ sat across the table from me and I took this shot of them.

Before the rains came and while the snow was still good enough for sledding, our Colville kids searched out their Christmas tree for 2025.

On Sunday while on greeting duty, I took this photo of the entry at our church. The Joy is real.

Our son planned a very special weekend in Nashville to celebrate Laura’s birthday. When they arrived an unexpected surprise for Laura was that cousins David and Kristin joined them for the celebration. It was an epic weekend for the four of them.

This is Nashville, not Iceland. Ice at Gaylord Opryland Resort.

All four of them described this weekend as unforgettable.

Monday was cheesecake baking day here at our country bungalow. I made two for our annual Staff/Deacon Christmas dinner which will be on Tuesday the 9th. While I mixed and baked our Christmas CDs were playing. While I was finishing up we got these two photos of our grands helping their Great Grandmother decorate her little corner tree.

This was our comp dessert at our anniversary getaway last week that I wanted to remember. It is a cotton candy sundae and it was delicious and unique.

In other news, I’m happy to report that our Christmas cards were mailed on Monday. This always comes with a sigh of relief and a smile of satisfaction.

Hopefully, I’ll remember to take photos at our dinner party tonight along with the finished cheesecakes.

Everyday Images #73

October Prompts – Everyday Images #73
I’m linking up with Kim from A Fresh Cup of Coffee for Everyday Images/October Prompts
~~~~~
More photos, less words.
leaf or leaves
at home (monthly)
harvest
gold as in golden anniversary
doorway (quarterly)
on my plate (quarterly)
Something that is on my plate this time of year is clearing out the flower beds in front and back of our property.
We have company coming today from Southern California and are looking forward to time to catch up with each other. My computer time will be limited.

Four Days, 864 Miles

We drove to Bothell on Thursday and enjoyed the evening with our West side kids. Laura made a crockpot of chili and some cornbread for us to enjoy together.

On Friday we drove across the border to Abbotsford B.C. to celebrate the 50th Wedding Anniversary of one of the Mennonite Girls. Some of us ‘girls’ joined Lovella at her home. She volunteered to bring finger sandwiches for the open house and we helped her fill them. We transferred all the sandwiches to the party and added them to the dessert spread that Anneliese had prepared.

It was a great celebration of H & Anneliese’s 50th wedding Anniversary.

On Saturday we drove back to Bothell bright and early.

We spent another evening with our kids and enjoyed a meal out.

Early Sunday morning we left for home and were happy to get over the mountain pass and finally see some sunshine through the rain.

Things got brighter and windier the farther we traveled east towards Spokane.

We made it home safely and are thankful for all the good catch-ups we had with our Washington family and with our friends in Canada. Our Border crossings were good both ways.

I’m behind on visiting you, my bloggy friends. Thanks for all your comments on my recent posts! I’ll be catching up little by little…

Hear Ye, Hear Ye, Hodgepodge

It’s another week with fresh questions for Hodgepodge Wednesday. Thank you, Joyce!

1. Do you make an effort to see/hear live music? Last time you went somewhere for the live music? 

We enjoy live music every Sunday at church.

We haven’t made an effort to enjoy live music elsewhere lately except for attending evensong while in Great Britain, Scotland or Ireland and our Church’s Children’s Musicals at Christmas.

We are looking into attending a live performance of The Messiah this year.

2.According to HGTV the colors of the year for 2026 are mostly decided. Top paint companies declare a color of the year, and decorators will incorporate that into their new year home and room designs. Here’s what’s on tap in terms of paint trends for 2026 (check out the link here to see photos)

  • Sherwin Williams-universal khaki (inspired by heavy canvas and outdoor gear)
  • Behr-hidden gem (a confident shade of teal)
  • Valspar-warm eucylyptus (a warm sliver tinted green)
  • Dutch Boy-melodious ivory (a honey tinted beige)
  • Glidden-warm mahogany (a classic brick red)
  • Krylon-matte coffee bean
  • Clark and Kensington -Hazelnut Crunch (warm reddish-brown)
  • Graham and Brown-Divine Damson (cherry red with a subtle violet undertone)
  • Dunn and Edwards-midnight garden (the green that works everywhere) 

First question-did you know there were so many different paint manufacturers?

Yes, I’m married to a former painter and his first job was with his father in a painting business.

Which color on the list most appeals to you in terms of your own decorating style?

Decorating style is not a term that I would use for me or my home. 🙂 The base color in our home is Khaki Shadow with white trim.

Do you have plans to do any painting in your home in the coming year, and if so might you choose a color from this list? 

The only plan is to complete some areas that were started awhile back. Just a little trim here and there.

Now, forget painting walls, which color name appeals to you most? 

Hidden gem is appealing.

3. What’s something in your life you have to do-watch-or participate in that’s about as exciting as ‘watching paint dry’? 

For this one, I’m going with drying my hair.

4 . Tuesday, October 14th is/was National Dessert day…did you/will you celebrate? Tell us how? What’s your absolute favorite dessert. Yes, just one. I know!! 

I would pick roolyete. A traditional nut roll our mom made and we have now duplicated. I like pastries that have a soft chew to them. Here’s the recipe.

5. Perhaps today is the day I will…

Sort through my clothes and purge.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Tuesday October 14th was also Charlie Kirk Day. It was a day to wear red in remembrance of this young man who would have been 32 on that day and I was happy to participate.

We also watched the White House ceremony to honor Charlie Kirk’s memory with President Trump awarding him the Medal of Freedom, posthumously.

Pear Tart

We had a pear tree and it seemed all the pears liked to ripen in the same week. Coming up with recipes to use up the pears was a challenge. This pear recipe was one deemed a keeper by my family.

Crust:
1-1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup quick oatmeal
3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed lightly
3/4 cup unsalted butter-cut into small cubes
1 egg yolk

6-7 fresh pears
juice from half a lemon
2 tablespoons sugar

Cut the pears lengthwise into quarters, core the pear, and slice into smaller sections, about 8 slices per pear.You’ll need 6-7 pears for this recipe. After the pears are sliced put them into a bowl and add the lemon juice and sugar and toss lightly. This will allow them to juice slightly.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine flour, oatmeal, walnuts, and sugar, butter and egg yolk in bowl. Mix ingredients until they are a crumb size. You can use a mixer.

Pour the mixture into a 10 inch tart pan and press to an even layer coming up the sides of the pan, also.

Arrange the pear slices starting on the outside edge going around in a circle and then start the center circle with the remaining pear slices. Save the pear juice left in the bowl to brush the pears when the tart is fully cooked and out of the oven. This will add a nice sheen to the tart. If you don’t have enough juice for this step add a little water and sugar to the pear juice you have and cook it on the stove top till it thickens slightly.

Bake the tart for 35-40 minutes or until it’s lightly browned. Remove from oven, cool slightly and enjoy warm or after it has cooled completely. It would be nice with a dollop of whip cream or a la mode.

Note: I reserved a tablespoon of the crumb crust to add on top of the pears in the center of the pan before baking the tart. That is an optional step.

 

Caramel Pecan Cookies

Caramel Pecan Cookies
These might seem a little involved to make, but they are worth it.

Basic Butter Cookies for Crust:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  1. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.
    Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes in a standing mixer (preferably fitted with paddle attachment) or 6 minutes with a hand held mixer. 
  2. Beat in egg and vanilla. 
  3. Reduce speed to low, then add flour mixture and mix until just combined.
  4. Grease a 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan, then line with foil, leaving a 2-inch overhang on both ends, and grease foil.
  5. Press dough evenly onto bottom of baking pan, using plastic wrap on top to prevent dough from sticking to your fingers. 
  6. Chill until firm, about 20 minutes.
    While crust chills, put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
    Bake crust until golden brown, about 30 minutes. 
  7. Cool in pan on a rack 20 minutes. (Leave oven on.)

Caramel pecan topping:

  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into bits
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups pecans (1/2 pound), toasted, cooled, and coarsely chopped

To make topping while crust cools:

  1. Cook sugar in a 2 1/2 to 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, undisturbed, until it begins to melt.
  2. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally with a fork, until sugar is melted to a deep golden caramel. Tilt pan and carefully pour in cream (caramel will harden and steam vigorously).
  3. Cook over moderately low heat, stirring, until caramel is dissolved.
  4. Remove from heat and stir in butter, vanilla, salt, and pecans.
  5. Immediately spread topping over cooled crust and bake until bubbling, about 20 minutes.
  6. Cool completely in pan on rack, about 2 hours.
  8. Run a heavy knife under hot water, then wipe dry and cut confection into 2-inch triangles, diamonds, or squares.
  9. Caramel pecan cookies keep, layered between sheets of waxed paper or parchment, in an airtight container at room temperature 1 week.