too much, congrats! ... it's 44 yrs. for DH & I ... we were high school sweethearts & when we graduated, he went off to the Army & I went off to college...our separate ways...but, 9 mos. later I left home and eloped to Ft. Carson, CO.! (who needed college???) And, now he we are, many many yrs. later. (went back to college in my early 40's & changed careers) God has certainly blessed us with good family & friends! nana...we're hoping to hit that "50" mark! Blessings to you as you continue your journey without Bill...I love the memories you share with us. luna, purplemoon & marlene...TFS your special guys! Jeanne S.

Tea Brack recipe first, then how to make homemade buttermilk. -Grainlady TEA BRACK (source: Irresistible Irish Breads - magazine article by Deborah Krasner) Brack, an Irish word for bread, is often used when referring to fruited mixtures. Tea Brack is a traditional tea bread which is an easy version of barm brack. Makes 1 loaf. 2 c. dark seedless raisins or dried currants (I use currants) 1-1/2 c. firmly packed dark-brown sugar 1-1/2 c. strong brewed tea, chilled 1/4 c. rum (I use 1/8 c.) 2 c. unsifted all-purpose flour 1-1/2 t. baking powder 1/2 t. ground cinnamon 1/2 t. ground nutmeg 1/2 t. salt 1 large egg, at room temperature, lightly beaten 1. Several hours or the night before baking, in large glass bowl, combine raisins/currants, brown sugar, tea, and rum. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit overnight. 2. Heat oven to 325°F. Grease an 8-1/2x4-1/2-inch loaf pan and line with waxed paper. Grease waxed paper. 3. In medium-size bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Slowly beat flour mixture and the egg into raisin mixture just until combined to form a batter. 4. Pour batter into greased loaf pan. Bake brack 1-1/2-hours until browned and cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack 5-minutes. Turn brack out of pan and remove waxed paper. Cool brack completely on wire rack. Grainlady note: I use two 7-1/2x3-1/2-inch loaf pans or three 5-3/4x3-3/4-inch loaf pans and reduce the baking time accordingly. This is a very moist bread - more currants than bread, almost. I like the smaller pans so I can cut the bread into thin slices that don't fall apart. If you make it in a regular loaf pan, the slices tend to split and fall apart. -------------------------- I use a large amount of buttermilk when it comes to baking on St. Patrick's Day, so I make a homemade version of it using information from "Natural Meals In Minutes" by Rita Bingham. I use a non-instant powdered milk, but regular commercial milk works VERY well. Homemade Buttermilk To a 1-quart canning jar add 1/2 c. buttermilk and fill the jar with regular milk OR reconstituted powdered milk. Note: You can use commercial buttermilk as the starter, or a reconstituted liquid made from powdered buttermilk, or buttermilk from a former batch of homemade buttermilk - your choice. Stir well and cover (I use a plastic lid designed to use with canning jars). Let stand in a warm place (at least 80°F) until clabbered, about 12-18-hours. Stir until smooth. Refrigerate. Grainlady note: I keep mine in my oven with the light on. The temperature at the opposite side of the oven from the light is about 80°F. You can use homemade buttermilk from a previous to culture the milk for the next batch. Just make sure you use it within 2-weeks. Older buttermilk doesn't work as well as newer buttermilk. If you've ever used reconstituted powdered buttermilk, it's rather insipid, thin, and tasteless compared to commercial buttermilk. The homemade buttermilk is more like commercial buttermilk.

We don't really celebrate Valentine's Day. I don't care for the overly sentimental cards and it's hard to enjoy roses or other flowers if you know they've jacked the price up. We didn't even celebrate it when we were newlyweds. But...my DH's car died and after calculating the cost of repair combined with the 150,000 miles on it we opted to buy a new car. So yesterday we decided to take a nice drive into the country and made reservations at a great little pub, restaurant and brewery. It was thoroughly enjoyable and neither of us mentioned the 'Valentine' word.

I have been hearing about intermittent fasting as a way of getting your body to use body fat and to get it out of the taking up insulin . I am trying a 18 hour fast/8 hour eating period every day. So far so good. No hunger. I eat dinner by 8 and "Break"fast at 12 noon. The hardest part is eating by 8 for me. I am a late eater.