Made banana date muffins yesterday in anticipation. Today maybe cranberry apple muffins, cream of vegetable soup and roasted veggies with what is left over in the produce drawer. I should make some Christmas cookies but am trying to pace myself and wait until the cookie jar is empty. I also have plans for baked beans in the crockpot but that would involve going to the store and that has to wait until I feel like going out in the cold. I'm giving myself at least a one day break from it, I was out all last week decorating the gardens at work for a program on Saturday.

Snowy and wintery here too. No big cooking for me as we head south in three weeks. The only thing I miss about winter is cooking cold weather comfort food and sipping red wine in front of a wood fire.

It's not late enough here for winter snow here in NC - that comes along about February sometimes, sometimes not, but it is colder than my new 6 quarts of kraut. I defrosted the upright freezer and rearranged my pantry, made a new list of what is in each, and canned water. The wood was split and stacked last spring so it'll be ready for the Tulikivi. We are waiting for the Arctic Blast to come our way next week but the parched dry South won't get much moisture from it. Just enough to kill the garden plants. "Taxi! Taxi! Take me to the Caribbean!!"

Just a small dusting of snow here a couple of days ago, but temps have been very cold and this morning we got large sized sleet. I did most of my canning and freezing starting last spring in order to fill my freezer and pantry for this winter. I did make a large batch of stew two days ago and froze some of it. Most of my recent work was getting a new coop and run made for the chickens then heat for it then getting the house ready. A chimney sweep told me his charge for cleaning the pipes for the wood burner would be $150. Yesterday the young man who bought the place next door and his fiancé came over and he brushed the pipes. They didn't even need it. He wouldn't take any pay for it, so I gave them a pretty wrought iron park like bench that needs new boards and they were very pleased. Gave them a large electric wok that had never been used and they were very pleased. Its comfy cozy in here and I have plenty of food and wood so when the snow comes and I'm snowed in, I will be ready.

Madonna

It's snowing right now! Almost up to four inches! Before Thanksgiving we got a 3-4 inch snowfall. Ugh.

im making tons of beef stew and chili and soup.

No snow here, but we did finally leave the 80s behind. I've baked bread the past two weeks and been making hearty soups. Last night was split pea with pearl barley and ham. Maybe gumbo later this week.

We're in the deep freeze here, -32 C ugh! We had 15cm of snow 2 weeks ago and a 3 day blizzard last week that dumped 35cm more, so almost 2 feet of snow after a beautiful balmy November! I made a huge pot of chili yesterday, and started baking Christmas cookies today. Still have to process my venison & pork sausages. Too cold to smoke them now .....

Wondering if i can get to work tomorrow...but heard the salt and plows go by a few times the past hour . Tomorrow is another outdoor workday but my CanadaGoose coat is like wearing Spring it is so warm. Last Friday outdoors all day in horrid wind at GroundZero i told co-workers i could grow Spring bulbs in my coat.

Pkramer... what is it about cold/snowy weather that makes everybody want to COOK... and eat?!? How do you process your chili for canning?

Original neighbors were both teachers, so they and I would look forward to a "snow day". They would make the BEST pizza! Remember one big snow storm when it seriously drifted against front of houses making it impossible to get in front doors. We had to come out our back door (balancing pitchers of beer from basement beer meister) then climb over fence to get out of our yard. Then over neighbors fence to get into their yard.

Some good cooking going on. I think the cold and snow make us crave warm comfort foods and hunker down.

Chase, you can always crank up the AC and fake it.

Madonna, you are too organized prepping in the spring for winter. I am jealous. I did stock up on canned goods this fall when the forecast came out for a cold, snowy winter, but I think I will get more on the shelves. Sounds like you have some good neighbors.

Cindy, 80's????? Nuff said. You could come up here for the -20 windchill on Wednesday.

I really want to see the flowers sprouting from your coat, Sleeve.

The snow has finally stopped and I am watching Frozen. Ironic, right?

Peppi, your weather is about like ours. School is already closed for tomorrow, we've gotten about 8 - 10 inches total and by Wednesday the temps will be in the teens for the high and below zero for lows, with 20 MPH winds. That'll knock the windchill right down there.

I know you met Copenhagen, my Morgan saddle horse. He died on Friday, after 3 vet visits. It's hard going to the farm because he's not there. He's been there for 23 years, but he was old and sick. Now he's running with his tail up and snorting fire, like he did when he was young.

I've just been putting cookie dough in the freezer, Elery's family will be here the day after Christmas for the family party, then they'll spend that night and leave the next day. That means a big meal at noon, supper later, and breakfast the next day. 6 adults and 4 kids, plus 3 extra dogs in addition to Elery and me.

We had beef slaughtered on Saturday, I'll be saving the tongues for you!

Annie

oh, Annie, I'm so sorry to hear about your dear Copenhagen. :( Our weather forecast is essentially identical to yours -- but always a day later. We'll be getting the 20mph winds and -6F temps on Thursday. :p

Not the best pic, but it was snowing and windy.... bon fire and fireworks in December. :)

ETA: we got more than 2 feet of heavy snow a few days before Thanksgiving, and I was thrilled that it melted before the next round started!!!

oh heck... one more. Life in a small village. :)

Oh Annie, I am so sad to read about Copenhagen. I can only imaging how hard it is going to the stable and having him greet you. Big strong hug to you from all of us.

KLS, here is the recipe for the chili. As it is written, it is not very spicy/hot, so I do add more chipoltles and I used some hot Mexican chili powder. I made 1 1/2 recipe and now have 7 quarts in the pressure canner, and 1 left for dinner this week and 1 that I will freeze. Because we like beans in the chili, I add another or two 15 ouncers when serving.

Texas Chili

2T of bacon grease or oil

4 medium yellow onions, chopped

6T chopped garlic

6T chili powder

4T paprika

2T cumin

4t dried oregano

2 pounds of ground beef

4t kosher salt

4 28oz cans of crushed tomatoes

30oz of cooked kidney beans

30oz of cooked black turtle beans

2T minced chipotle chili’s in adobo sauce

Heat the grease in a large stock pot. Add the onions
and garlic and cook until tender. Add the chili powder, paprika, cumin,
and oregano and stir until the spices are well combined. Add the ground
beef and 1t of the salt. Cook, stirring frequently until cooked
through. 8-10 minutes. Stir in the remaining ingredients.
Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally for 1 hour*.
Adjust the seasonings with more salt or chipotle chili’s if necessary.

*If making this
recipe to can, delete this step. Cook just until heated through. It
will finish cooking during the canning process.

Serving suggestion: top with any one or all of the
following: grated sharp white cheddar cheese, chopped white or green onions,
sour cream, crumbled blue corn chips, chopped jalepeno chilis or pasta.

This gets us about 7
quarts with a little bit leftover to sample.

Leave 1” head space.
Process pints for 75 min. and quarts for 90 min. at 10# PSI.

Partymusic, I love the carriage ride. They used to do one in our area of Chicago, as our street is a 1 mile circle. Unfortunately, it got out of hand with people coming from other areas and organizing it turned into a nightmare.

I've been wondering about something, and I think I've found just the right folks for the answer! I've been watching dopey Christmas movies on Hallmark (yes, I confess), all of which are located in snowy places. I know zip about snow, but what people wear makes me wonder if it's just the people in the movies or if real people actually dress that way. For instance, a character hears something amazing outside first thing in the morning, puts on a bathrobe, and rushes out to see, and stays out for more than 2 minutes. A bathrobe (which may or may not be tied closed) and slippers in the snow? How about out looking for Christmas trees in the late afternoon while wearing a warm jacket that isn't zipped up, and no hats or gloves? Really?

LOL, we saw a couple of Hallmark movies this weekend as well. In one the girl wore just a vest and a long-sleeved sweater, and no gloves, and she said she was cold. Not very believable, but both movies happened to be filmed in British Columbia, AND in June! Maybe if she were in an actual winter province like Alberta or North Dakota or Colorado for example, she might actually have been cold.

Bathrobe and slippers in the snow......well, my neighbour down the street will actually walk to my place in pj's a bathrobe and slippers. The sidewalks are shovelled, but still..........

LOL on the snow wear. You should see what we wear when it's 60° F here!

And while we don't have snow, it has been cold. We made a quick beef stew (3 hr./4-6 servings) for dinner last night, with lots of vegetables and plenty of hot peppers. Very warming. :) I read all your posts and try to imagine but it sounds so very different from the sunny day snow on the ground that is the only kind I've seen... The cooking sounds great, though.

Condolences on your loss, Annie.

I'm so sorry about your horse, Annie!

Our cold weather was the week before last, and I had to wear a sweater to work. It got down to the low 40s in parts of my yard, but I had already moved the orchids indoors for the winter. They get plenty of light in the art studio, as it has a skylight, glass patio doors, and a very large double window. It was not cold enough to damage my herbs or tomatoes, however, but I'm not thrilled with the tomatoes I've been getting lately.

I've found that the center of my back yard gets the coldest, and the fountain can get down to 42° while the perimeter of the yard is closer to 50°, and so I keep my herbs and chili plants close to the house, which is more convenient for me anyway. Certain herbs, such as dill, parsley, and cilantro do better at this time of year, and I harvested some dill yesterday to make tartar sauce for some tempura Rockfish that I was frying.

Last week our sprinkler system went out, and we had to have new controls installed. I showed all my plants to the installer so that he could know how things needed to be watered, and he told me that what I thought was epazote was really just a weed. I had been using it in the beans that I had been cooking, but I have since pulled it out and will plant new epazote seeds. I have no idea what I have been eating.

I turned my sprinklers off because we have been getting rain, and it's supposed to rain again around Thursday, and I will leave them off. We're having highs in the low 60s (colder than normal for here) and so the plants will not require as much water anyway. I love it when it rains because I don't have to do so much watering. We've never had snow here, but we did get some hail one winter, and it damaged some of my succulents - not from the temperature because it was not that cold, but from being hit by the hail.

Arctic blast should reach NC by Thursday night, Nancy, and so you might want to bring plants in before then.

I have somewhat fond memories of winter storms in Texas. One time the swamp across the road from my parents' house froze - or so I thought - and so I decided it would be safe to walk out over it. However, once I got halfway into it, I found that only small parts of it were frozen, and it was difficult for me to get back out without getting wet or sinking into mud. We used to get frozen mud puddles also, but only in the early morning, and they did not freeze solid. I've only ever ice skated indoors, but I did like it. My snow experience is pretty much limited to Mount San Jacinto, overlooking Palm Springs.

I agree about Hallmark Christmas shows. They apparently film some of the exterior scenes outside because I can sometimes see the actors' breath as they speak. But their coloring is rosy, they dress so prettily rather than practically, their hair stays in place, and their noses don't drip. So they must film in barely cold temps.

Well, plllog, today I went to the farm and I wore two pairs of socks, a sweatshirt, fleece lined jeans, long underwear and a Carhartt coat, along with insulated boots, warm gloves, a hat and a scarf. You couldn't even see any of me, LOL, let alone those skinny jeans/high heeled boots/unzipped vests in the movies! I think the only area of skin that was exposed was a strip across my eyes so I could see!

Thank you, everyone for the condolences on Copenhagen, he was such a good boy. He was 23, we think (he was a rescue animal) and I'd had him for 20 years. He'd been having trouble for the last couple of years, first it was laminitis, I gave him aspirin all spring just to keep him on his poor sore feet. Then he got long curly hair that he never shed, and he got fat. I told myself it was because he was getting no exercise, he couldn't be ridden because of his hooves. The vet came out, did lab tests for Cushings because of the hirsutism, thought it had to be hormonal. Those tests were negative, then he tested for thyroid issues and got a "maybe". The vet was leaning toward insulin resistance, and then he started losing weight fast. Like 200 pounds in a couple of months. I just put big round bales of hay in the feeders and the animals eat all they want, so I couldn't increase that, I added oats and a senior pellets to his diet to try to put weight on him. And then last Friday I went to give him his medication, which I mixed with his oats, and he was down in the snow and couldn't stand up. I sat in the snow with his head on my lap, and I covered him with a quilt and we waited for the vet. The doc said there was nothing he could do, so he euthanized him while I held him. And that was it. He was a great horse, the neighborhood babysitter, my girls' 4H horse, and if I had a dollar for every kid that took a ride around my training pen I'd be a lot richer. There's a great big horse sized hole in my life now, and I miss him, but I'm happy he's not sick or in pain and I got to keep my promise to him. When I rescued him I told him he'd be with me until I died or he did, and I kept that promise.

I cross posted this on What's For Dinner, so if you see it again, you aren't having deja vu. (grin)

We got 10 inches of snow yesterday and this morning, and so we raked the snow off the roof, shoveled the walks, Dave came and plowed the driveway and I had to take a walk up to the pond to rip up the beginnings of a beaver dam. Again. Tomorrow I have to sort through the butternut squash in the pole barn, it'll stay pretty well when it's in the 20s, but lower than that and things freeze in there, so I'll have to bring some into my "cold storage" back room. And my son in law is a police officer on the county SWAT team, so they are using the old farmhouse for ERT training on Thursday. Maybe. There's no heat and no plumbing there, LOL, so we'll see how tough the guys really are! I did tell them they could come to the house for the bathroom, for coffee and just to warm up...

Annie

Annie, you have me in tears. The head in your lap really got me here. He had the best Mom a horse could have. BTDT with some of my doggies. I always said they came in the front door and would never sneak out the back.

Susanne, the temp right now is about 14f. If the Princess dog needs out, I just grab my fleece jacket and dash out with her. Dad, at 89, will put on his Eddie Bauer puffer coat, scarf, knit cap and glove. Maybe boots.

If i run out on errand, I do put on a warmer jacket and boots. The car gets warm fast, so no problem there. out for a walk with the Princess, it may be a long coat, scarf, ear muffs and gloves. In the house, temp is set at 67-68, and very casual. Sweat pants, socks, and either a sweatshirt or a polar top. Might even add a tee shirt under my top.

Call us crazy, but even our dogs have coats. Being indoors, they need a little extra when they go out. Since Emma is in short hair, she has several sweaters....Princess style.

Just imagine the Michelin Man or the Pillsbury dough boy.......I want summer!

Annie: I'm in tears, too! I'm so sorry for your loss. It sounds like you had a lot of good years together and made lots of wonderful memories.

Annie, I'm so sorry about your beloved Copenhagen. So very hard to lose a member of your animal family after so many years :( He sounds like he was a true gem.

I lost my "heart" horse Quinn when she was 22, under very similar circumstances. I helped birth her when my mare foaled, and I held her when my vet euthanized her. There is a big chunk of my heart buried out in the pasture with her...

I'm just now reading about Copenhagen, and I also feel sorrow for your loss. I understand how horses can be a big part of your life, having grown up with them myself also. For that matter, I also got emotionally attached to cows that I helped raise - they both seem like gentle and trusting animals, and it is very easy to bond with a horse. Until I got my driver's license, that was my main method of transportation (on my own).

It's good you got to spend as many years with him as you did. I've never dealt with loss or death very well myself, and I hope you have the comfort and support you need at this time.

Annie sending you comforting thoughts on the passing of your sweet Copenhagen. Although we never met, I felt as if I knew him well. I know that he brought you and the family great joy and plenty of fun over the years. May his memory bring you comfort.

The frigid temperatures sound pretty brutal. I'm happy to have temps in the 50's for a change, but lower than that doesn't do much for this California gal! We are expecting a big rainstorm on Thurs into Friday. I hope it materializes and I get a break on my water bill!

Annie, my thoughts are with you. I've never had a horse, but I've lost dogs and cats and they leave a huge hole in your heart.

Annie, I am so sorry for your loss. My horse is now 25, and we used to go to hunter-jumper shows and compete when he was young and so strong and powerful. Now I still get on him, bareback so the saddle won't rub him, and we walk at a slow pace on some nearby trails which he enjoys. I worry about him during these cold winter days, but I know it is the cycle of life that I have to accept. But it's hard.

Annie, so sad to hear about your loss. It's good you were able to be there for him at the end.

AnnieB., if I remember correctly, Copenhagen starred in a video, made by either Lars or evil J.

In any case, you talked about your equine buddy for years, and I feel like I knew him. Sending my condolences to you. It seems we've both had sad losses in 2016. This is one year I would've gladly skipped.

Sol

Thank you, everyone, for your kind thoughts. That's the biggest problem with pets and furry friends, they just don't get to be with us as long as we want them to be. Horses get to stay longer than dogs or cats, usually, but that just gives us extra time to become more attached before they are gone. (sigh) Of course, they don't sleep with us either. Or not usually, although I've spent more than one night sleeping in the barn. I'm betting Dawn did too...

Freidajune, enjoy those slow rides. Copenhagen and I went from "yeehaw" to "let's go for a walk" together, and we both enjoyed those slow leisurely walks just checking out the scenery and stopping for that bite of something delicious that he wouldn't have noticed at full speed 10 years ago. The last couple of years were filled with laminitis and abcesses and respiratory issues, so I'd just let him lean on me and breathe in the smell of fresh hay and horses and we'd talk. He was always happy to see me and would whinny and come to meet me, shake his head "yes" when I asked him if he wanted a treat, and then I'd brush him and rub his back and tell him what a good boy he was.

Sol, my friend, I'm sending hugs and warm thoughts to you, 2016 was not a good year in a lot of ways, and yours was a lot worse than mine. (sigh)

But Elery got that bad knee replaced and he's recovered well and so I'm extremely thankful for that, my Mother is still going strong and we're taking her to a concert on Sunday, then out to dinner. My girls and grandkids are are upright and breathing, it seems like Bud is stablilized in his treatment and there also seems to be some glimmers of hope with Ashley's new neurologist, so I'm hopeful for 2017. I'm hopeful for yours too.

Annie