English Toffee
1 pound butter
2 cups sugar
Slowly cook over med. low heat, to 305º (about 45 minutes).
Pour into 10x15 jelly roll pan.
Do not scrape the pan
Let stand about 5 minutes then lay 5 Hershey candy bars on top; let stand 1 minute then spread lightly, covering the entire surface.
Sprinkle with chopped pecans; press lightly.
Let stand several hours (do not refrigerate). Break into pieces to serve
* * * * *
Festive Eggnog Wreath with Eggnog Butter
3 tablespoons warm water
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 package (1 tablespoon) yeast
3 3/4
cups
bread flour
3 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons granulated
sugar
3/4 teaspoon freshly-ground nutmeg
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons dairy eggnog
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
For finishing:
1 egg white
1 tablespoon water
Coarse sugar or pearl sugar
Sliced almonds
10 candied cherries, halved
Combine yeast, 1 teaspoon sugar and warm water. Let stand while measuring
remaining ingredients.
Food processor method: Place dough blade in work bowl. Add flour, butter,
salt, remaining sugar and nutmeg. Pulse. Stir together the eggnog with the
extracts.
Set aside. Turn machine on and pour the yeast in through the small feed
tube. Without stopping the machine, pour in the eggnog mixture in a slow
steady
stream. Add the extra 2 tablespoons eggnog, if needed, to pull the dough
together into a ball. Let ball revolve about 30 times in the work bowl to
fully
knead it.
Place dough in an oiled bowl or a plastic bag and set in a warm place to
rise. NOTE: sweet, rich dough's often take longer to develop, perhaps 75 to
90
minutes to double.
Mixer or hand method: Put proofed yeast in a large bowl. Add eggnog,
extracts and melted butter. Stir to combine. Add nutmeg and salt. Add half
of the
flour and beat for 2 minutes. Add half of remaining flour and beat again for
2 minutes. Empty remaining flour into the dough. Knead dough for about 8
minutes.
Dough should be soft but not overly sticky. Set in warm place until doubled.
See NOTE above.
Both methods: Spray smooth work surface with nonstick pan spray. Spray a
large
cookie sheet.
Empty risen dough out onto sprayed area and shape into a roll about 22 to 24
inches long. Cut this roll in half, lengthwise. Starting in middle, working
to both ends, lap the 2 long pieces over and over each other to form one
long twisted rope shape. Lift rope onto cookie sheet. Shape rope into a
round
wreath, joining a top twist from one end to a bottom twist from the other
end. Repeat with other 2 ends. Cover loosely with sprayed plastic wrap and
set
aside to double in size. Before dough finished doubling, preheat oven to 375
degrees F.
Whisk egg white and water together. When dough has doubled, brush with egg
white mixture then sprinkle first with sliced almonds and then the coarse
sugar.
Stick halves of the candied cherries, firmly, around as you like. Bake for
25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to rack to cool. Cover when cooled.
Serve with Eggnog Butter.
Eggnog Butter:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter (DO NOT
USE SALTED BUTTER)
1/3 cup eggnog
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Beat all ingredients with a mixer until smooth and fluffy. Beat with mixer
until smooth and fluffy, about 5 to 6 minutes.
Mound in a bowl and refrigerate at least 30 minutes before serving. Enjoy.
The King Shall Come
Christmas Carol
The King shall come when morning dawns,
And light triumphant breaks;
When beauty gilds the eastern hills,
And life to joy awakes.
Not as of old a little child
To bear, and fight, and die,
But crowned with glory like the sun
That lights the morning sky.
O brighter than the rising morn
When He, victorious, rose,
And left the lonesome place of death,
Despite the rage of foes.
O brighter than that glorious morn
Shall this fair morning be,
When Christ, our King, in beauty comes,
And we His face shall see.
The King shall come when morning dawns,
And earth's dark night is past;
O haste the rising of that morn,
The day that aye shall last.
And let the endless bliss begin,
By weary saints foretold,
When right shall triumph over wrong,
And truth shall be extolled.
The King shall come when morning dawns,
And light and beauty brings:
Hail, Christ the Lord! Thy people pray,
Come quickly, King of kings.
| | Patchwork Star Table Decoration or Tree Skirt | | |
| The great thing about this project is that you can increase or decrease the size of the star to fit your needs. The star to the left is an example of a small table star and is about 24 cm in diameter. |
| 
|
| Time required: about 2-3 hours Difficulty Level: Requires some patchwork sewing experience Material List for this Patchwork Star: 
- Christmas fabric scraps that look well together
- enough matching fabric for the back side of the star
- Fusible interfacing with printed quilters grid (in 60° angle rhombus grid)
- Matching sewing thread
- Quilter's ruler
- Scissors
- Permanent marking pen or pencil
- Basic sewing supplies Instructions: 1. You can cut the pieces in advance or as you go. If cutting in advance, cut 6 same size rhombus shapes out of your interfacing. Cut 6 center rhombus shapes large enough to cover center plus seam allowance.
2. Cut 4 cm wide strips of the first color and 4 cm wide strips of the second color. The length of the strips depend on the size of star you want. Rather cut the strips longer and then you can cut away excess when necessary after sewing.
3. Cut 6 back side rhombus shapes out of the interfacing the same size as the interfacing rhombus shapes.
4. Follow the step-by-step tutorial in the link below to complete this project.
| | | | 
| | Step-by-Step Instructions - Patchwork Star Table Decoration or Tree Skirt | | | | | | | Material List for this Patchwork Star: - Christmas fabric scraps that look well together
- enough matching fabric for the back side of the
star
- Fusible interfacing with printed quilters grid (in 60°
angle rhombus grid)
- matching sewing thread
- Quilter's ruler
- Scissors
- Permanent marking pen or pencil
- Basic sewing supplies | | | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 1. The first thing you need to do is to cut
our printed interfacing into 6 rhombus
shapes. You can cut the as large or as
small as you like but all need to be the
same size. | | 2. Take your permanent marker or pencil
and mark the lines like you see in the
picture above. Do this on both sides. These
will be your sewing and postitioning lines.
| | | | | | 
| | 
| | 3. Cut six rhombus shape centers out
larger than the center marked area of your
interfacing piece. Lay the first center on
the interfacing with right side up. Place it
between the 2 marked lines. This will
guarantee the seam allowance needed
when the next piece gets added. | | 4. Place your first strip with the right side
down over the center piece like you see in
the picture above. Allign the right side
edges and pin if necessary to hold in place
Make sure the strip is extending over the
next marked line. | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 5. Flip the pieces over, making sure that it
all stays alligned. | | 6. Starting at the top of the bottom point,
sew now the left marking from this point to
the end. | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 7. This is how it now looks on the back
side. | | 8. Flip your work over again. This is now
how it looks on the front side. | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 9. Fold the fabric over and press flat if
necessary. This is how it now looks on the
front side. | | 10. Flip your work over again and use your
ruler and roll cutter to cut away excess
fabric extending over the interfacing on the
backside. | | | | | Material List for this Patchwork Star: - Christmas fabric scraps that look well together
- enough matching fabric for the back side of the
star
- Fusible interfacing with printed quilters grid (in 60°
angle rhombus grid)
- matching sewing thread
- Quilter's ruler
- Scissors
- Permanent marking pen or pencil
- Basic sewing supplies | | | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 11. Postition your second middle strip as
shown in the picture above and pin in place
if necessary. | | 12. Flip it all over and now sew the second
line up to the first middle point, opposite of
the first sewing line. | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 13. This is now how it looks on the backside. | | 14. Flip over again and this is now how it
looks on the front side. Flip over again and
again cut away excess fabric hanging over
the interfacing. | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 15. Flip over again to the front side and
now proceed with the next color strip.
Start on the same side as you did with the
first middle strip and make sure to have
enough seam allowance in the length as
well as the width. | | 16. Flip over and sew this piece on
following the next marked lines. Since this
is the last row being added. Continue
sewing until the end of the interfacing as
shown above. | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 17. Flip it over to the front side and this is
now how it looks. | | 18. Add the final strip on the other side and
pin in place if desired. Flip piece over and
sew in place. Continue sewing until the end
of the interfacing as in step 16. | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 19. Flip again over to the front side and this
is how it looks. Fold the fabric over and
press flat if necessary. | | 20. Flip your work over again and cut away
excess fabric. Flip over again to the front
side and this is now how your piece looks. | | | | | Material List for this Patchwork Star: - Christmas fabric scraps that look well together
- enough matching fabric for the back side of the
star
- Fusible interfacing with printed quilters grid (in
60° angle rhombus grid)
- matching sewing thread
- Quilter's ruler
- Scissors
- Permanent marking pen or pencil
- Basic sewing supplies | | | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 21. Sew now 5 more pieces as shown in
the previous steps. When finished you will
have 6 pieces. | | 22. Place the first 2 pieces with right sides
facing each other. Match the middles. Sew
along the side line from the middle to the
side. | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 23. After sewing, cut the small center point
away or it will get too thick with each new
addition. | | 24. Trim the excess seam allowance after
each new added piece. This prevents
bulking. | | | | | | 
| | 
| | 25. With right sides facing again, sew the
third piece on to the second. This is how it
looks when finished. Now sew the other
three pieces to each other so that you now
have 2 star halves. | | 26. Position now each half with right sides
facing over each other, matching the
middles. Pin together and sew together.
| | | | | | 
| | 
| | 27. This is now how the star looks. | | 28. Cut 6 same size rhombus shapes out
of your back side fabric and first sew the
first three together and then the second
three pieces. As before, match the 2 half
stars and sew together. | | 
| 
| | | Finishing: Now place the back side of the star on the first side (patchwork side) with right sides facing. Leaving a side open for turning, sew the 2 stars together. Turn the star inside out so that you are on the right side. Hand sew the open edge together and press with an iron using a steam setting. | | |
| 
This is an example of the same project. It measures about 60 cm in diameter.The technique remains the same. To make a larger star, cut your interfacing nto a larger size. Just continue adding more strips of fabric until finished.
|
Things to do at Christmas time, Take a walk along a nature trail. Notice the changes for winter. Find items to use for decorations. Check to be sure it's ok to remove from the area.
Secrets of the Christmas Star
RADIO PROGRAM & PODCAST
What was the Star of Bethlehem? Was it a planetary conjunction, a supernova outburst, a comet, or a Sign from God? In this short and fascinating audio series, Astronomer Bill will take you on a scientific adventure of Biblical Proportions.
* * * * *
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