Dismanteling and the post-holiday blues

I was all set to sit down and write a post about taking down the Christmas clutter and clearing out my house for January- about how great it feels to take it all down and freshen things up... but I just couldn't seem to get excited about January.


January, my least favorite month.  Cold, but no Christmas.  The decorations are put away, we've said goodbye to family, and its back to "the grind."  Thankfully, for the past few years, "the grind" for me has been staying home with my kid(s).  But while I am beyond grateful to be living out my dream job, part of me still longs for the excitement and magic, the twinkling lights, and extra time with my hubby home from work.  

Once the suitcases were unpacked, the laundry was clean and put away, and the decorations bins were hauled up to the attic, I set to work dismanteling and art-nooking.  We have this art nook next to our fireplace, which has always somewhat baffled me, but I usually keep it filled with a vase and some kind of floral-y branch-y arrangement.  Once the greenery and berries were gone, things were looking a little empty.

Umm... sad is the word that comes to mind.  Which really doesn't help when you're already suffering from a slight case of the post holiday-blues... so I decided to get a little whimsical (crazy?) and pulled a string of lights back out...

 Really, is this crazy?  Or fun?  I'm kind of wondering why I did not think of this earlier, or why I don't do this every year... not sure how long it will stay up, but its like a little warm happy place now instead of lonely and empty... am I crazy to think of my house in those kinds of terms, haha?  I think I may have just learned a lesson in decorating for myself and my family, not anyone else.

And seriously, twinkle lights make messes so much prettier! :)

Do you do anything different to your house after Christmas?

From Our Family to Yours

We are busy enjoying some of the things I love most... family, food, twinkle lights, playing games, shopping, relaxing, and coffee-drinking.  We probably won't be blogging much the rest of this week, but I wanted to take a moment to wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!  Thanks for reading and watching and allowing us to share some of our lives with you.  We both look forward to more blogging in the New Year.  So from our family to yours...

Merry Christmas!

With love,

Paul, Bethany, Charlie & Norah

CWP Episode 4 - The Bertinet Method (Sweet Dough)

Cinnamon Rolls
Sweet Dough

• 18oz. all purpose flour
• 4 Tbs unsalted butter, softened
• 1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
• 3 Tbs sugar
• 1 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk

Filling

• 4 Tbs unsalted butter, softened
• Ground cinnamon, enough to cover the rolled out dough
• Brown sugar, enough to cover the rolled out dough

Icing

• 3 Tbs unsalted butter, melted
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

- For the dough, rub butter and flour together with your hands until combined and somewhat crumbly in texture.
- Add yeast, sugar and salt and combine.
- Add the eggs and milk and stir to combine into a sticky dough.
- Remove dough from the bowl and onto a clean work surface.
- Scoop the dough up with both hands from either side.  Lift the dough, flip hands over and slap dough onto the work surface.  Slowly stretch the dough toward you and then fold back onto itself.
- Repeat this step for approximately 7 - 10 minutes, until the dough comes clean off the board and looks very smooth.
- Sprinkle just a little flour on the board and form the dough into a ball.
- Place in a floured bowl, cover with a towel or plastic wrap and let rest in a warm place (room temp) for 2 hours.
- After two hours, gently removed the dough onto a floured surface and roll out to a large rectangle.  The dough should be about 1/4" to 3/8" thick all over.
- For the filling, spread the butter all over the surface of the dough.  Sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar.
- Starting with the edge closest to you, roll the dough up into a log and pinch the seam to close it.
- Take some unflavored dental floss and slide it underneath the dough.  Pull up on both sides of the floss and cross them, cutting the dough with the floss.  Cut the roll into 12 equal sections.
- Place the rolls into a buttered baking dish, equally spaced.
- Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and let rise for another 30 - 40 minutes.
- Preheat your oven to 360 F.  Yes, I do mean 360.
- While the oven in heating and dough is rising again, combine the icing ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.  Cover with plastic wrap and set aside.
- Once dough has risen again, bake in a 360 F oven for 20 - 22 minutes.
- Remove from oven and place a dollop of icing on each of the rolls while they are still hot.
- Serve immediately.  Enjoy!

Merry Christmas

"Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come to his people and redeemed them.  He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago), salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us- to show mercy to our ancestors and to remember his holy covenant, the oath he swore to our father Abraham:  to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days."  Luke 1:68-75

CWP Episode 3 - Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies

Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 1/4 cup white granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 Tbs milk
• 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 10 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

- Preheat oven to 375 F.

- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.

- In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, combine the white and brown sugar.  Slowly add the butter with mixer on Low.  Increase speed to Medium and beat for 3 - 4 minutes, until mixture becomes light in color. 

- With mixer on Low, add the egg and egg yolk, one at a time, letting each one incorporate fully.

- Add the milk and vanilla and fully combine.  Scrape down the bowl and mix again shortly to blend evenly.

- With mixer on Low, add about 1/2 cup of flour mixture to the mixing bowl.  Increase speed slightly to incorporate flour and then back speed down to Low again.  Repeat until all the flour has been added.

- Lock the head of the mixer.  With speed on Low, add the chocolate chips and fully combine.

- Chill the batter for 5 minutes.  After chilling, stir slightly and chill for another 5 minutes.

- Using a #40 disher, place 9 balls of dough evenly on a sheet pan and bake for approximately 9 1/2 to 10 minutes, until edges are slightly brown and center is still "doughy".

- Let cookies cool on the pan for about 45 seconds to 1 minute, just long enough to prepare another pan of dough balls and get them in the oven.

- Remove cookies to a cooling rack and let cool.  Enjoy!

**Look for a special Christmas episode coming Christmas Eve**

Santa Take 2

Santa visit #2, at the library!

 Charlie was still a little anxious, so I decided to get cozy with Santa too...

By the way, that's a baby Bjorn I'm wearing that I just took Norah out of... not some weird overalls like it kind of looks like, haha.

Charlie never quite seemed to loosen up, but did get his candy as promised...

Thanks, Santa!

CWP Episode 2 - Tomato Sauce

Paul's Easy Tomato Sauce

• 3 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 medium red onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped 
• 2 14oz. cans whole or diced tomatoes
• 1 Tbs tomato paste
• 5 - 7 large basil leaves, sliced into thin strips
• 2 Tbs oregano leaves, roughly chopped or left whole 
• Salt to taste

- Heat oil over medium heat in a large saute pan for a few minutes.
- Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook for about 7 minutes until the onions soften and start to brown a bit
- Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the tomato paste, basil, oregano and tomatoes to the pan.
- Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for approximately 20 minutes or longer, if desired.