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Showing posts with the label PRESIDENTS' DAY

Chonky Boys: The Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches that Scream Summer!

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Featuring my thick and nuggy Chonky Boy Chocolate Chip Cookies, these ice cream sandwiches are the stuff that summer dreams are made of.  If you've ever had the Cookie Ice Cream Sandwich at Disneyland , you are going to LOVE these!  These big and bold chocolate chip cookies are based on a recipe from my culinary school studies at Auguste Escoffier, but with a few modifications to give them that Jennuine touch.  They make the perfectas book for a fat slice of real vanilla bean ice cream.  And those mini chips?  You just gotta have that extra cronch! Thank goodness this recipe only makes 8 sandwiches, otherwise I would be eating them for breakfast lunch and dinner.  This way, my big family can help save me from my inner child diet-saboteur.   Print With Image Without Image Chonky Boy Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches Yield: 8 Author: Jenn Erickson Loaded with chocolate chips and buttery, brown-sugary vanilla flavor, these mall-sized cookies form a perfect partnership with a

Hoecakes ~ Make George Washington's Favorite Breakfast for Presidents' Day

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Sharing a family tradition~ HOECAKES ( George Washington's favorite breakfast) HOE....cakes?  Indeed, these delicious little cornmeal-based pancakes were a favorite of farmhands and statesmen alike back in George's time.  They got their unusual name from the way they were originally prepared.    B ack in our nation's more agrarian days, field hands (for lack of a decent frying pan) would remove the blade from their hoe and use it like a griddle over an open fire. Back in George's day, the hoes used in the fields were much larger and flatter than the streamlined models we use for today's home gardening.  Hoecakes were served both for  breakfast, like pancakes, and as an accompaniment to a savory meal.   Today, we make our hoecakes on a griddle.  In fact, every year I enjoy bringing a griddle in to my daughter's classroom to make hoecakes for the whole class! For the recipe and more historical information, visit my origina

Celebrate Lincoln's Birthday with Mary Todd Lincoln Tea Cakes!

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What are you serving for Abraham Lincoln's birthday?  Well, if you were Mary Todd Lincoln, wife to the 16th president of the United States, you'd probably whip up your signature vanilla almond sponge cake to delight "Honest Abe" on February 12.   You needn't travel back to the 1860s to get a taste of this historical cake.  The cake is easy to prepare, and you'll find everything you need to make it at your local grocery store.   I found a recipe for the "Mary Todd Lincoln Cake" adapted to today's measuring conventions by Amy of visit-gettysburg.com.  It can be prepared as a bundt cake or as a layer cake.  When served as a layer cake, the cake is typically layered with preserves.  My take on the classic is to make individual tea cakes filled with just a spot of tart raspberry preserves, and topped with a dash of powdered sugar.  The combination of the ground almonds and raspberry preserves reminds me of a Linzer Torte.  They mak

Celebrate Presidents' Day with George Washington's Favorite Breakfast -- Hoecakes!

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Looking for a fun and easy way to celebrate Presidents' Day with your family? Try making George Washington's favorite breakfast -- Hoecakes! One of the things that brings me the greatest joy is being able to use my creativity to create special and magical little moments for the people I care about ~ transforming the ordinary and sometimes mundane moments of life into something that shimmers!  Many of us long for "a life less ordinary", but find that commercialism has narrowed our focus to a few favored holidays.  In reality, almost every day is a day being celebrated somewhere in the world.  What better opportunity to learn about the people with whom we share our globe, than by acquainting ourselves with the unique ways that they express joy and celebrate life? Since my many talented friends in the blogosphere have already produced a wealth of original, creative, and fun Valentine projects this year, I'd like to offer up a sweet little tradition

HOE! HOE! HOE! HOW TO CELEBRATE PRESIDENTS' DAY

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One of the things that brings me the greatest joy is being able to use my creativity to create special and magical little moments for the people I care about ~ transforming the ordinary and sometimes mundane moments of life into something that shimmers!  Many of us long for "a life less ordinary", but find that commercialism has narrowed our focus to a few favored holidays.  In reality, almost every day is a day being celebrated somewhere in the world.  What better opportunity to learn about the people with whom we share our globe, than by acquainting ourselves with the unique ways that they express joy and celebrate life? I started this blog, partly out of a desire to share my new traditions and revamped customs with a greater audience.  While continuing to offer original recipes, crafts and tutorials, I hope to provide a more cohesive direction for Rook No. 17 in the months to come ~ with an emphasis on simple, yet profound ways to create everyday magic. Chance