Which one?

 Hello, blog friends!  I’ve a question for you today.  Which of the following would you choose?

This one....

Or....this one....?

It is “birthday season” around here, and my sister treated us with this delicious strawberry cake!  She also brought the numerals to go on top of the cake.  Which arrangement is appropriate for our situation? 

Well, if you chose the top picture, that would be very flattering.  Going for honesty here means the bottom picture is the correct one.  Thankfully, not a lot of effort was needed to blow out those two candles!

Grateful to be able to celebrate another birthday!

Take care, be safe, stay well, and enjoy spring!

A tradition....

 For the past forty years, baking Hot Cross Buns on Good Friday has been a tradition.  This recipe is one that appeared in our local newspaper in the early eighties.  I think it has been featured on the blog in past years. I have baked hundreds of these through the years, often multiplying the recipe!  This year is no exception!

Here is one pan, just out of the oven and awash in glaze, studded with currants!  

Perfect with bacon alongside and a cup of tea!

Be safe, stay well, and may your Easter season hold special blessings for you!

April already....

 Rabbit, rabbit friends!  It’s April already!  First, let’s send along Happy Birthday wishes to my sister!  You may have read her comments on my posts.  Many good wishes to you, Sister!

It has been awhile since I’ve posted here, and I need to catch you up on the last half of March.

I suspected the pictures wouldn’t transfer in the correct order, and I was right.  This is our Irish Soda Bread from St. Patrick’s Day, baked in an iron skillet!

The table is set for Easter.  I’ll most likely leave this setting through the month.

Tulips have begun to bloom!  It’s easy to see we have a good growth of violets, too, all around the yard!  Landscape people will stop with their suggestions on clearing such loveliness.  Our response is that we like it this way.

Back to the Sunday Lunch serving.  This is from this past Sunday....Chicken Cordon Bleu roll ups, baked potato, and roasted asparagus.  I was amused to find this butter last week while shopping.

After much persistence, birds were successful in building this nest on an outdoor motion sensitive light!  Round and slick, it’s not an easy task to mount a nest on it!

This, of course, goes with the Irish Soda Bread above.  Corned beef, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, and turnips from the garden of the Country Couple!  We’re always happy to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day!

This is the first year for the hyacinths.  We planted the bulbs last fall, and they have bloomed nicely.  I’m a bit concerned about tonight’s predicted freezing temperatures, though.  Will these blooms be hardy enough to survive, or should we put some sort of cover to protect them overnight?

Now, this is the picture that should be in the first spot!  This is Chicken Parmesan Soup, a recipe from the calendar of our hometown bank.  First time for this one for us, and it’s definitely going in the file.  In fact, it feels like a good day for soup today! 

I hope all is well with you.  Take care, be safe, stay well, and wear your mask!