Tuesday, January 5, 2021

T is for Tuesday... and toasting the new year

 

toasting to a fresh start. Today is T is for Tuesday.... the glasses hold almond champagne sipped as we went to a zoom party with good friends from Maryland. 

We always spent holidays with Hal and Jacquie and their crowd, playing board games, eating good food, laughing and celebrating. Zoom allowed us to kind of do that this year although it's less simple to break up into groups of two to chat. I loved seeing old friends again, and making new ones. 

After midnight EST the party broke up and we looked at each other with two more hours til midnight here. 

"time is relative" we agreed and went to bed. 

My word of the year, (  read it here ) at least the first 6 months, is "recover" Not a simple process, and it has already become a goal several times already. When I wake up I now think of some one thing that's good, before leaving the soft comfort of warm bedding. When  I decide to drink water which is hard for me, I think of healing physically. When I choose to watch a baby elephant video instead of news I think of emotional recovery. Not denial of facts, just diversion so that my spirit can repair itself. 

(collards... clean leaves, fold in half and pull the stem free, layer leaves roll and chiffonade, then steam in water, salt and pepper and a bit of butter til tender)
We had the Southern Traditional foods collard greens and black eyed peas (for money and luck) as well as homemade cranberry sauce, and ambrosia.

(Sectioned red grapefruit, sectioned navel oranges, banana slices, Maraschino cherries and some juice, coconut, and if you can find it, fresh pineapple chunks)

before peeling the oranges we zested them and froze the zest for recipes... it's so much better than dried zest. So is fresh grated ginger better than dried.

I found a no knead recipe for cinnamon buns online, and tried it making the frosting with orange zest and almond extract instead of coffee. So good!

 changed it up a bit...but this is the recipe:

https://www.savingdessert.com/wprm_print/24972

 There are two of us, and we are sugar freaks so I chose to make 1/2 of this recipe which is already one half of the pioneer woman's recipe. It made 23 rolls at that. 

Before baking I poured a bit of cream on each bun because someone once said that makes them gooey like mall sweet buns and it worked a charm!

Changes made to frosting: 

again, used half this recipe which was for half of pioneer woman's and I used powdered sugar made with tapioca not corn starch (allergic to corn) and used a bit less than called for.

yum... the addition of zest and almond was inspired Mama

I sketched another lady while listening to a podcast

if I had curly pink hair this would be a selfie

to finish....

 donkeys like iced tea too...

I leave you with this quote, an affirmation by Gabriel Halpern (https://gabrielhalpern.com/affirmations-r-thru-z/)

"I desire truth in my inward most heart."

linking to
 



23 comments:

easyweimaraner said...

cinnamon buns... they scream my name....

Sara said...

Your cinnamon buns look divine!! I'm still trying to settle on a Word for 2021.

Quiltdivajulie said...

Recover is a most excellent word - gentleness, kindness, patience, gratitude, wellness (like your water drinking), and hopeful thinking will help all of us get through the mental challenges ahead.

Rebecca Jo said...

Those cinnamon rolls.. OH MY GOSH - I'd devour those! YUM!!!!
I love doodling & sketching while listening to things. I heard it makes your brain take in information more actually!

Brian's Home Blog said...

Those cinnamon buns do sound good. Our Dad made a copycat recipe of Cinnabon for Christmas morning, they sure smelled good. Hey Milo, good job on the clean up!

Divers and Sundry said...

We always have ham and black-eyed peas on New Year's Day for luck, not that it seemed to help last year ;) Your cinnamon buns look delicious! Happy T Tuesday!

Molly the Airedale said...

Your cinnamon buns look so yummy and Milo got to lick the beaters! yay! The donkey video was just too cute!

Kaja said...

Recover seems a good word - I'm too stuck to think of one this year - and your New Year sounds like a good celebration. A very happy 2021, LeeAnna - keep being kind to yourself.

Mae Travels said...

Cinnamon buns sound like a good start to the New Year. I hope your 2021 will be healthy and able to be more sociable than 2020.

be safe... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

Linda Kunsman said...

Great word of the year and I love how you've expressed using it. I also love said not watching the news isn't denial but a diversion to lift the spirit. I'm with you on that one.
Glad you were able to be with friends via Zoom. I don't know anything about it.
Your cinnamon buns were delicious I bet but that's a bit too much for me as I'm not so into sweets. Speaking of, oh how sweet are the tea drinking donkeys:):) Thanks for sharing, happy New Year, and a happy T Day!

Kate Yetter said...

Those buns look yummy. I have never heard of pouring on cream before baking but I think I need to try it. Mine never turn out gooey and the tops are too hard. Maybe this tip will do the trick.
Happy Tea Day,
Kate

Karen said...

Oh my that looks yummy ~ So does the champagne! We went to bed early too ~ Your word is a good one and very important to do indeed! be kind and gentle to yourself as well as others ~ Happy New Year!!

Linda Kunsman said...

Hi Leeanna, I saw your comment on my blog so I've come to tell you that the Law of Attraction deck I was speaking of is "Little Reminders... 36 Oracle cards to guide you to wealth and prosperity".

Let's Art Journal said...

How wonderful to enjoy the new year with your friends, what would we do without zoom 😀. The cinnamon rolls look so delicious and those donkeys made me smile! Happy T Day and wishing you all the best for the New Year! Hugs, Jo x

Ann said...

Those collard greens look delicious but I can't have them anymore. I enjoy looking at them though.
Delightful to have a Zoom NYE with friends. We are fortunate to have ways to get together even if it's not physically. And like you, I'm staying away from the news.

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

Almond champagne sounds very different. I'm not one to drink champagne, but I would at least try a sip.

I always ate black eyed peas on New Year's day, but I would prefer the cinnamon buns. They look so yummy. I've never cared for collard greens, so skipped that tradition.

I like your word of the year. I hope by June we have all recovered, but I fear that's a pipe dream. Still, I like how you justified it.

Wow, those donkeys got a thrill out of that tea. I loved the braying, too. So cute.

Thanks for sharing your champagne, your New Year's traditions, your cinnamon buns, your adorable dog, and the video of the donkey drinking tea with us for T this Tuesday.

BTW, time is relative. It's those pesky time zones that cause so much trouble (grin).

My name is Erika. said...

I think you had an exciting New years. It sounds fun to be able to zoom with friends. Thank goodness for technology. And your cinnamon buns look delicious. I am a sugar freak too. I try not to over eat it and eat it all the time, but I am not against having a treat. Milo is like my dogs when it comes to licking the bowl or tools. Wishing you a happy New year and hope your T day has been great too.

Dianne said...

cinnamon buns and champagne...brilliant! love your doodle too. Happy New Year!

CJ Kennedy said...

Great word. We all need to recover from 2020. Wow, those cinnamon buns. I got my recipe from a friend, but I'll have to go check out the recipe you used. Happy New Year and Happy T Day

DVArtist said...

OOhhhh Almond Champagne? I bet it is very good. Love the sweet roll and your art. Donkeys, how cute are they? Have a great day.

Meditations in Motion said...

So glad you could celebrate New Year's Eve with your friends, even if it was on Zoom. I have the same issue with Zoom as you - I would like to be able to break into smaller groups for more intimate chats. And I never heard of almond champagne, but it sounds delicious!

Eileen Bergen said...

Your Zoom party was a very good idea. I too miss seeing my friends IRL. Your word for the first part of 2021 is one we all need to aspire to after 2020. It sounds like you've made a very good start. Good luck.

The cinnamon buns look and sound yummy. You made some excellent change-ups to the recipe.

Wishing you the best in 2021 and a Happy T-day! Hugs, Eileen

pearshapedcrafting said...

We had a zoom party with my family - not so good with the hugs!!
Love the idea of home baked cinnamon buns - must look or a recipe! Belated Happy T Day and Happy New Year! Chrisx