What a Treat!

Doug came home last night with a huge surprise for me. A foodie surprise. He got a kiss and he was just the messenger. It was a Thank You from his Aunt Karen. I made some rosaries for her and she thanked me with the most wonderful foodie gift. I can't imagine what she does for people who do truly wonderful things for her.

Since this was such a spectacular foodie gift I had to share the contents here. I know you guys will appreciate it.

First of all, everything was stowed away in a fabulous thermal bag from Trader Joes. Among the goodies inside the bag was:
■ White Balsamic Vinegar for one of my favorite salad dressings
■ Orange Muscat Champagne Vinegar (maybe for a delicious Christmas salad)
■ Trader Joe's Sipping Chocolate
■ Dark Chocolate Covered Edamame (how can you beat heart-healthy dark chocolate and soy protein in the same bite?)
■ Rye Mini Toasts (not pictured because they're, um, gone)
■ Cranberry Caramel Popcorn Clusters (which you can see are half gone)
■ English Soft Peppermints
■ Crystallized Ginger Slices
as well as a jar of homemade Apple Butter and a loaf of incredible Pumpkin Ginger Bread. The recipe for this bread comes from Aunt Karen's daughter Theresa who owns and runs Baked and Wired in Georgetown. It is an incredible pumpkin bread jazzed up with tiny bits of crystallized ginger, and frosted with a thick layer of the yummiest buttercream frosting to which a tablespoon of powdered ginger has been added. This bread just makes your eyes pop out. It is just a wonderful combination of rich and sweet and spicy.

I can't share the secret recipe, but I'll tell you that if you add, say a 1/2 c. of minced crystallized ginger, to your favorite pumpkin bread recipe, and frost it with buttercream frosting with a hint of ginger (add a tablespoon if you really like it spicy), you'll be on the road to some good stuff.


Karen also sent a pretty poinsettia to adorn my Kitchen Madonna.

God love ya Aunt Karen. You made my day.

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