Happy New Year

Happy New Year! I wish all of you the best for the new year - friends and family to hang out with, good health and a healthy attitude, taking time to do some things you've wanted to for years, and once in a while give yourself a break and a pat on the back.  Lily's wish for the new year would be to catch one of those pesky squirrels.

Cheetah - The Tarzan Chimp

Cheetah, a chimpanzee who starred alongside Tarzan in the franchise films of the early 1930s, died Saturday. He was thought to be 80 years old.

Cheetah was said to have performed in "Tarzan the Ape Man" (1932) and "Tarzan and His Mate" (1934), classic films about a man reared in the jungle starring Johnny Weissmuller and Maureen O'Sullivan.

Around 1960, after living on Weissmuller's estate, Cheetah retired to Suncoast Primate Sanctuary in Palm Harbor, Fla. While at the sanctuary, Cheetah enjoyed watching sports on television, listening to nondenominational Christian music, and occasionally throwing poop when he was feeling disgruntled.

Surprise Inside





Merry Christmas



Pound Cake

This is one of the mini pound cakes I made today with my fresh eggs.  This recipe makes 4 small loaf size cakes and 1 medium loaf.
I've used this recipe for years - if it sits for a day or so, it's even better, freezes well and good flavor.  These make great gifts.
Lily and I did a taste test - you know, just to be sure it was okay.



Cold Oven Pound Cake
2 sticks butter (room temperature)
3 c. sugar
1/2 c. Crisco shortening (room temperature)
5 eggs (room temperature)
3 c. sifted cake flour (I used regular all purpose flour)
1 c. milk (room temperature)
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla flavoring
1 tsp. lemon flavoring
Cream butter, shortening and sugar.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each.  Add flour and milk alternately.  Add baking powder to last of flour.  Add flavorings.  Pour into greased and floured tube pan.  Put in COLD OVEN.  Bake at 350 for 1 hr and 15 min.
Remove from oven.  Let stand 10 min in pan.  Turn out on serving plate.  Cover with cake cover.  Covering it while it's still warm helps bring out the flavor.

The Lottery

No, no, no - not that kind of lottery.  I'm getting eggs (well, only one a day for the past couple of days) and I feel like I won the lottery.  It has been months.  I'm thinking August/Sept since those girls had any kind of action. 

Elly May, named after the one and only Elly May Clampett of The Beverly Hillbillies, is the provider!

I'll be making some pound cakes soon - they're the best when you have real eggs!

Turkey Day Thinking

 

FYI - neither one of those folks is me but we're related!

And I did some serious thinking too.