Everything was cancelled today - church, school concert, even the mall is closed. The DOT is telling everyone to stay home, so I'm happy to comply! The snow has stopped, but it's hard to tell how much we got. It is blowing so much that it's 1" deep in some places and 12" in others.
So what do I do with a snow day? Spend it in the sewing room! I've been working on a Wrapped in Paisley Christmas quilt, but it's not for a gift or even necessarily for this Christmas. It was just a cute kit I fell in love with and have been having fun sewing. I've also been making some wool ornaments from the pattern Primitive Gatherings gave away at their open house.
I made apricot bread last night - one of our Christmas "must-haves." Someone asked for the recipe, so I'll post it for you - it's great, although not as healthy as it probably sounds. One of my loaves is already gone, though, so I'd better freeze the rest pretty quick!
Apricot Bread Recipe
2 cups dried apricots, diced
Warm water to cover apricots
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
4 Tbsp. butter or margarine
½ tsp. baking soda
½ cup water – from apricots
1 cup orange juice
4 cups flour
4 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1 cup nuts, chopped
Cover apricots with warm water and let set 30 minutes. Don’t skip this step or the bread will be really dry.
Drain apricots, reserving water. Mix sugar, eggs, and butter. Stir in ½ cup of apricot water and orange juice. Stir flour, baking powder, soda and salt together and add to creamed mix. Add apricots and nuts and mix. (I don’t know how long to mix – I just hand mix until everything is mixed together- won’t take long.)
Grease and flour pans. Pour into pans. Let stand 20 minutes. Bake 50-60 minutes at 350 degrees.
This makes seven little loaf pans, or you can make larger loaves if you want. Start checking after about 40 minutes – the little pans cook faster. I use a toothpick test to check for doneness. They will crack across the top when done.
These freeze well if you wrap them in foil. Enjoy!
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