Shhh...listen to the silence...

When dear hubby and I went to the Smokey Mountains last month, we thought we knew silence.

We live outside of a relatively small college town, that's pretty quiet. In the morning, we can hear the woodpeckers, and all manner of other birds that I cannot identify. At twilight in the warm months, we watch the deer come out of the woods on one side of the street and go into the woods on the other side. It is so quiet, and we love it.

When we went to the mountains, we were amazed at the silence! It was so refreshing, not to hear cars or the ambulance going by (we have two hospitals in our town, and even though we don't live near them, we do hear the sirens), or even other people. There were no telephone's ringing or even the hum of the computer. We really didn't know silence!

Now that we've experienced real silence, we crave it. Although it's not often, I'm not really upset when the electricity goes out around here. I realize how much noise pollution is in our "quiet" house. I now understand why sometimes it can be so hard for me to hear God's voice. We have decided to make it a priority to get away periodically and enjoy the "real"quiet.

Shhh....listen to the silence...and enjoy.

Recipie for Mini Baked Doughnuts

Here is the recipe for the mini baked doughnuts. It makes 20.

Dry Ingredients:
1 cup All Purpose Flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp (scant) nutmeg
1 tiny pinch or shake cinnamon

Wet Ingredients:
1/2 cup soy milk
1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar (I use lemon juice)
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
egg replacer for 1 egg
4 Tbs Earth Balance

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients with a whisk to mix thoroughly. Combine wet ingredients in a small sauce pan over medium low heat and mix until Earth Balance is melted. This mixture should NOT get too hot, you should be able to stick your finger in the mixture. It should feel slightly warm.

Add wet to dry and mix until just combined. It should form a very soft dough.

Using a tablespoon measure, scoop out dough into your ungreased nonstick mini-doughnut pan. Smooth out the top of the dough with your fingers, this will make for more even, prettier doughnuts, but isn't crucial. Also, you can put dough in a zip lock bag, cut a hole in the corner and squeeze out into pans.

If you over-fill, your doughnuts will come out looking like it has a little muffin top. Not the end of the world, but not very doughnut-like either.

Bake for 12 minutes. They should not be browned on top, but a tester will come out clean. Invert hot pan over a cutting board or cooling rack to release doughnuts. Allow to cool completely before decorating.

I just mixed lemon juice with powdered sugar to make a glaze and dipped the "bottom" half of the doughnut (the side with the nicer shape) into the glaze and then in shredded coconut.

Use your imagination with decorations! Have fun!

Success!!

Finally, I have had success making biscuits! No, really, you don't understand. I have never been able to make biscuits that haven't been flat, hard, hockey pucks. No matter how hard I've tried.



Well, Friday was my redemption day! Previously, I read an article about making the perfect biscuits. Well, I followed their advice about shifting the flour before adding all the other ingredients, using a light hand when kneading, pricking the dough with a fork before cutting them out, and not twisting the biscuit cutter when pushing it into the dough. And you know what? It works when you follow the directions! Go figure! I had biscuits that were not flat, and they were light and flaky! Well, okay, light might be pushing it. When are biscuits ever "light"? I was so excited, I had to blog about it! Whooohooo!
Oh, and P.S. the doughnut recipe is on the way....

Oh how cute! And fun too!

For Christmas, my sister gave me mini doughnut pans (Thank you Annie!).

They aren't necessary, but oh so fun! Here I made my baked doughnuts and dipped them in a powdered sugar/lemon juice frosting and then dipped them in shredded coconut.

They were so fun to make, and even better to eat. They were just too cute! I read one suggestion to roll them in cinnamon, nutmeg and powdered sugar right when they come out of the oven, and no one can tell they didn't come straight from a box at the store. I must try that next!

I know...I know...it's been awhile....

A lot has gone on since I last posted. Good and..challenging. For one, my dear hubby and I went to the Smokey Mountains for a weekend away. It was a time of quiet reflection, to listen for the Lord's voice, and to know what He wants us to do. Little did we know how much we would need it! The blessings of that weekend have stayed with us through leaks in our basement, uncommunicative contractors, and finding out hubby's job is going to end in three months!
In the midst of all these challenges, we also took a weekend to go to a Restoration International Family Camp in Florida. Their encouragement to be content in present situations, to live the country lifestyle in our homes, and to enjoy the blessings of the Sabbath, was very timely for us. Now as we face all these challenges, we have peace. The Lord said He will never leave us or forsake us. We claim that promise every day, and we believe it! He is going to see us through. We are seeking peace and finding it. Praise the Lord!