Foodie Friday-- Hoagie Buns

4 cups white flour

8 t. vita wheat gluten flour

2 1/2 t. dry yeast

1/3 cup sugar

1 3/4 cup warm water

3 T butter or olive oil

Mix all the ingredients together.  Add additional flour until the dough is smooth and firm.  Allow the dough to rise 1-1 1/2 hours.  Kneed the dough and form into buns.  Allow the dough to rise again until almost doubled. 

Here is where hubby stepped in to the process... Hubby oiled the counter top with olive oil.  Then he separated the dough into 5-6 pieces.  Then he rolled them into long tubes (not too thin).  

The dough was then allowed to rise again until about doubled. Hubby cut a shallow slit down the center of the loaves (the long way). 

 We then baked them for about 30 minutes in the oven. I covered them with tin foil for 1/2 of the baking time so that they would not get too brown.

Here is what we ended up with:

Urgent prayer request!!!

My friend (yes, she has Cystic Fibrosis) is bad shape.  She is in a lot of pain. Her C02 levels are not right and her breathing is very difficult. She also had a very bad headache (likely due to elevated C02 levels).  They have have her on a Bi-pap.  They are hoping it will help her breathing.  She has been in the hospital since before Thanksgiving.  They had to remove her PICC line as well.

Please send up immediate prayers for Melissa.  Please also say prayers for her family.

Another good-bye...

I just found out that we lost another CFer.  Ginger got H1N1 and got really sick a few weeks ago---  she was on a ventilator.

Please pray for Ginger's family-- she left behind a young son and a husband.

This rose is for Ginger and her family....

I didn't know Ginger very well.... Something happens in ones heart when a fellow CFer breathes their last, not matter how well you know them.

Countdown to Christmas-- My Favorite Things

Day 3--

As a kid I loved baking cookies with my mom and my grandma.  We would get together on a Sunday and bake together.  My grandpa would join us and he would make his famous fudge.  With all of the cookies we would also make peanut brittle.  I loved peeling the cooled peanut brittle off the baking sheet.

We would make all kinds of cookies-- peanut blossoms, M&M cookies (with red and green candies), spritz cookie, and cut out cookies.  In later years they added chocolate cover pretzels to our "to make" list.

Baking day was long and tiring but oh, so much fun.

The Art and Flair of Christmas-- Mini Tree and Purse

Oops!!  I forgot to post my last Art and Flair of Christmas post.  My brain was in other places.

Here is my mini tree that sits near all of my medicine and diabetic supplies.  I needed a bit of happiness in that corner of my room. And yes, those are my Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls from my childhood (and my teddy bear "teddy").

This is my new Christmas purse.  My mom got it on clearance last year.  I just  love all the "bling" on this purse.  I had fun carrying it around last Sunday doing the last of my Christmas gift shopping.  I felt so feminine carrying it with my shopping bags.

Here is a close up of some of the "bling".  There are glass "diamonds" all over this purse. Oh, and tons of sequins.   The main purse fabric is a soft dark green velvet.   Even the latch that opens the purse has tiny glass diamonds in it.

 This purse sent me over the edge.  Now I need to find more glitzy "girly" purses for other holidays. Mom--- you created a purse monster!!!!

What was I thinking???

I tried having a cooking blog.  I spend so much time here that I kept forgetting to update my cooking blog.  So.... I am going to be slowly moving my recipes here to this blog. 

I will be participating again in Foodie Fridays (not every week, but as my creativity moves me). 

If you are a follower of my cooking blog... move your following here and check in on Fridays.

I should warn you... the recipes will of the healthy nature since I have diabetes and my family has lots of food allergies. 

After the first of the year I am thinking about doing some different kinds of posts here at "The Art and Flair". Stay tune for more details. If you have any suggestions for post ideas... what you would like to see... let me know.  (In other words leave me a comment).

Countdown to Christmas-- My Favorite Things

Day 2--

I love white lights decorating a house or a tree at Christmas time.  I am not opposed to colored lights (they still so pretty) but there is something elegant and crisp about white lights.

Countdown to Christmas-- My Favorite Things

Day 1--

One of my favorite things at Christmas is my mom's hot apple cider.

When we are home around the holidays my mom puts cider in her percolator.  I love the sound of it warming up-- the sizzle and popping sounds.  My mom sets out lots of mugs and cinnamon sticks.

What warm holiday drinks to you enjoy??

The Art and Flair of Christmas-- Kitchen

Sorry about the fuzziness of this picture... this side of my kitchen is a touch dark and the overhead light was not helping.  :-(

Here are the mugs from my Christmas dish collection.  We leave them on the kitchen table all the time just in case someone wants a hot drink.  A bit of tea or  hot cocoa....

This is a vinyl tablecloth... I just love the snowflakes on the edges.

This is the railing that divides the kitchen from the living room.

The stockings were hung by the kitchen with care.... :-)


Hope you have a terrific Tuesday!! Tomorrow is my last installment of the holiday decorations.... my mini tree and my Christmas purse.