Wind, Clutter and Food

We're under high-wind warnings, which is always fun.  Sustained winds are supposed to be 30 mph today (they sound higher than that right now), with gusts as high as 80.  Which is also, always fun.  Not. 

I can handle pretty much all weather, but throw wind into the mix and, yeah, no thanks.  The last high-wind day we had there were several cars at the kids' high school that had their windows blown out.

I'm taking today to try and deal with the after-holiday clutter that is beginning to really pull at me.  Everywhere I turn there's something:  boxes from the new dishes that need breaking down, the tree - which is almost empty of ornaments, ornament boxes - two that are full and ready to move and one that'll hold the remaining ornaments, furniture that was moved for the holidays that needs to move back, old dishes cluttering my kitchen counters as I try to figure out where they need to go, various stages of sorted kits spread all over the coffee table.  I won't mention the boxes stacked in the laundry room for giveaways.  It's just too much.  After this post I'm hitting it and hope to clear out half the stuff.

The holidays slow my cooking a bit.  Not that I stop, but I lean more on quick-to-cook or no-leftover type meals.  This was the first week really back into my traditional mode of planning and cooking.  I didn't cook anything from Apron Strings's Pinterest I Can Cook That board.  But I mentioned several recipes I'd marked for the Cookie Bake that I said I'd follow-up on.  Some are definitely suited for holiday baking, but there were a couple that were good anytime or for something special:

• Vanilla Cherry Chocolate Cookies - these were a big hit with the family and totally an "everyday" kinda cookie.
• Candy Cane Kiss Sugar Cookie Bars - these were a fast and easy bar to pull together.  The chopped Candy Cane Kisses definitely made them more holiday.  But bake them without the Kisses and they'd be a good, basic everyday bar.  You could even toss in other candy - Hug Kisses, Toffee. . .yum
• Chocolate Frosted Marshmallow Stuffed Chewy Chocolate Cookies - now that's a mouthful.  And they were!  These were awesome - chocolaty and chewy.  They'd be great for a picnic.
• Peanut Butter Truffles with Marshmallows and Krispies - these were good, but something didn't work for me.  I'm not sure if it was the white chocolate coating - maybe chocolate would have worked.  Or maybe they weren't peanut buttery enough for me.  Like I said, good, but probably not a repeat.
• Krispie Peppermint Bark - this was a super fast recipe to whip up.  If you need something quick during the holidays, this is your recipe!  It was good too.  Would have been a good one to wrap up for teachers or neighbors.  The Krispies lightened up the sometimes heaviness of the white chocolate; I liked that.

My 16 y.o. daughter is taking her 5 y.o. brother to the high school hockey game tonight where one of her friends, who's the goalie, will surprise him with a game puck.  The 5 y.o. is going to be beside himself.  My 15 y.o. is headed off to a retreat this weekend, which will make the house quiet - or at least a little quieter than usual.  The boat show is in town, and that's where hubby will be.  The Stock Show is in town, too, and I always want to take the kids - it's been years and years.  But, I have other, bigger plans - and it's all kit related:  sorting, packing, shipping.  Once that's done it's about removing the last of the clutter up here before I pull my wind-blown hair out.

Happy Friday,