Simple, scrumptious and satisfying Sunday breakfast.

I had contemplated muffins and scones, maybe even sausage gravy and buttermilk biscuits this morning, but pancakes won out. I picked this Krusteaz Honey Wheat pancake mix up yesterday at Super Target. Good groceries are slim pickens around here, but if I travel just a few miles the shopping gets better... MUCH better. I discovered some really good grocery shopping yesterday, finally. I spotted this and in the cart it went. It looked good enough to forgo scratch, and Krusteaz is really a good choice if you do buy boxed. So.......we start with this.

Mix 2 cups of mix and 1 1/2 cups of water. Let it sit while you....
chop up a few handful of these. (yes I know they are chopped, I just did them up a bit more)

Put the walnuts on the griddle for about 5 minutes to toast them. Stir them about a few times. Once toasted, throw them in the batter.



While the walnuts are toasting, put about 3/4 ~ 1 cup of these

in a cup and cover them well with water. Pop them in the microwave and plump them. To do this just cook them on high for about two minutes. Drain and stir in batter.

Bake them on your griddle @ 350°.

Real butter, real Vermont maple syrup.......... and there you have it, a simple and very satisfying Sunday breakfast. I served Millstone Hazelnut coffee. Scrumptious!

Next time I reach for this wonderful mix I think pumpkin puree, pecans and currants will be involved. :-)

The mix is primarily whole wheat flour, there is some soy flour, and wheat bran. Add the omega goodness of the walnuts, and the concentrated flavonoid and bacteria blocking properties along with the antioxidant capacities of the cranberry.... well you have a really tasty, crunchy and chewy fiber filled, nutritious reason to have some butter and syrup.

Oh, the real maple syrup has significant amounts of manganese and is a good source of zinc. It is also packed with a concentration of minerals.

So, scrumptious and sweet that you can feel good about.

I'd love to hear what you think if you whip these up.

Sorry about the imported photo's and no finished result photo. I have to find a way to blog properly with my schedule. I'll get it all sorted.

Scottish Terrier cake!

I don't suppose you would be particularly interested in making this cake unless you have a Scottie, or someone dear to you has one or loves the breed, and you wanted to do something special for them. But for those of you that may have occasion to whip up a Scottish Terrier cake, this post is for you. This cake is so easy to make and the results far surpass the effort and, it makes for just some plain old fashioned fun. Alright then, lets get at it.


You will need a serving device at least 18 inches wide and 14 inches in height. I used an old cutting board my dad made. I covered it with foil and then parchment paper. I would steer clear of regular cardboard or the pre~cut cardboard cake servers as this cake is wide and heavy.

Now you will need to choose a cake you want to use. I made this one a white cake. Jon and I like white cake. Whether you make yours from scratch or a box, the average cake recipe or one boxed mix is what you need. Prepare your batter and bake it in two separate 8 X 8 inch cake tins. Let them cool and turn them out one at a time. You can use any frosting you like as long as it has the consistency to spread thick and hold it's shape.

And here is where we take cake into the shape of a Scottie. These are your first cuts. The cut that is vertical in this picture is 2 inches. The cut that is horizontal is 4 inches. The little obtuse triangle is to be set to the side. That is your Scottie's tail. The 4 inch by 2 inch is well..... fodder for the baker. Go ahead and taste test before you serve. :-)

Frost your larger piece making sure to get ample coverage, and get the sides done well as you won't want to mess the surface of your serving device up later.

Lift and transport to whatever you will be serving the cake on.

Now let's cut the second cake. Again make a vertical cut right at the 4 inch mark that is 2 inches in length. Then make a 4 inch horizontal cut leaving a 2" by 4" piece. Share that piece with whomever you wish, it is not going to be used either. Now, one more cut. Slice off a triangle right there in the center. Your Scottie will need ears, this piece will be just that, the ears.

Time to frost again making sure you cover the sides well. This will be the front wither, chest and legs.

Transport just as you did the the other piece. Line two pieces up as exactly as you can where the back comes together.

Here are your head, ears and tail. Frost the large piece which is the head. Again, get good coverage on the sides.

Notice the large licorice drop in the background on the right. Also notice the kettle is plugged in keeping a good supply of hot water going.

Transport your head piece just as you have the others. See the 4 cup measuring cup? That is where my hot water is. I use it to dip my frosting spatula in to slick the frosting down and cause it to be smooth and glossy. We are getting there!

Frost the tail and ear piece just as you have the larger pieces, then put them just where you want them. Notice the smooth and glossy frosting. We have boiling hot water and a metal spatula to thank for that.

Now we put a nose on, an eye on, and dress up our Scottie's furnishings. The nose is that large licorice drop cut in half from top to bottom. The eye is a drop of white buttercream frosting I always have in the refrigerator with the top of one of those large licorice drops sliced from side to side, set in. I used a #233 Wilton tip for this Scottie's furnishings. This tip is typically used to make grass, or the fur on say Elmo, Cookie Monster and Oscar the Grouch. Clicking on the picture will give you much better detail.

Wouldn't be a Scottie with out a tartan collar. The dark blue and dark green is my favorite. That is the Black Watch modern tartan. Although there a New York City blue and green tartan that was designed in 2003, I believe. Not sure of the whole story of origin there, but it is much like the Black Watch modern. I like the dark blue and dark green tartans that sport no yellow, red, white or pinks. Let's move on.

And there you have it!

Time to enjoy Baxter, family and cake!

If you make this cake please let me know. I would love to put pictures of your wonderful cakes on my blog.

Here's a little diagram to use if you ponder the idea of whipping this cake up.

As always........

Thank you, Miss Jean!

Apparently, Miss Jean passed this award to a few dog lovers on September 12. I have been so occupied with full time work, and still running a home and trying to have a life of some sort that I missed this until now. I was just tickled to get this.

Miss Jean, says I always have a kind word in the gracing me with this award. That really touched me. I believe my blog byline to be true, "Kind words are like honey ~ sweet to the soul and healthy to the body." Proverbs 16:24 I would like to think I practice that, and it so blessed me when she said I did. Thank you, Miss Jean.

As far as the dog lover award itself. Yes, I do love dogs, but it might not be fair to judge that by how much I love Sir Baxter, he is the best little dog, so faithful, playful and just a great and fun little guy to have around. Not too hard to love that... not to hard to love a Scottie in general!

Tomorrow, I will finally get the how to steps up for the Scottish Terrier cake.  Until then... and as always....

Happy Birthday, Melissa!

Two weeks to the day after her anniversary, my daughter Melissa, celebrates her birthday. Well..... this year since I live close to her now I offered to do her birthday cake. I asked her what she would like, I'd do whatever she wanted. Her only wishes were that it be black and white with hot pink. Shortly after that, she made a comment about liking zebra stripes on things like clothing and other things. I had already decided to make the cake look like a gift, and now I knew just what to make the wrapping paper and bow look like. Here was the finished product.

Melissa, is grateful for things done for her, but she has very specific tastes. It is not always easy to please her. She gasped, basically teared up, and verbally expressed delight about her zebra striped cake. I was little nervous about the prospect of ruining her 30th birthday with a cake she did not like. I was so surprised and pleased when she hugged me and said she did not really want to cut into the cake. Mission accomplished! Happy girl, happy cake....... Happy Birthday, Melissa!

Oh, they just had the anniversary cake two weeks prior. She is a little relieved to not have any big celebrations for a month. I will post later on that celebration.

Wow it is good to spend a little time blogging again. Thanks for your comments Pam, Kim, Mary and Carrie. It may be something I really have to schedule to get it done, but I love the blogosphere and you girls I've gotten to know through it. It is worth the scheduling.