The Leaf in a Page

      You have to try this jelly recipe if you are gifted or buy a container of crab apples or dark purple  concord grapes. It is so easy and you do not need to buy pectin for the jelly as there is plenty in the fruit. My mother brought me a box of concorde grapes one day when she dropped in to see me on her way home from the grocery store. She was subtely keeping me busy as I was about 5 months along in my first pregnancy. We lived in a little house just outside of Oromocto New Brunswick that belonged to the Irvings. Our rent was 125.00 a month. It was like a little cottage house and the Irving gas station was in the front yard. Both the Gas station and the house have since been tore down. Once I made the grape jelly and it turned out so well, David, myself and the baby in the belly, who we named Julia, took a little hike down the street to an abandoned farm house which had a few crab apple trees. We filled a backpack and went back home to make the apple jelly. The cumbersome pa

  Winston Knot Challah baking in the oven.   Challah is a Jewish Celebration Bread and has much significance to the culture. It is often braided with three strands standing for truth peace and justice. Twelve humps on a braid stand for the miracle of 12 loaves for the 12 tribes of Israel. If you shape your braid into a circle it means no beginning and no end. Each style are used in different celebrrations. The cultural meaning of so many breads gives us much to learn. Wait until I do the white bread post! For a spiritual meaning of the ingredients I found one from a web site: https://www.ohelsara.com/women-and-the-home/hafrashat-challah/the-symbolism-of-challah/ which reviews the ingredient and the significance of each. It is interesting, but the main point of bread for most is that we share it, it tastes great and it fills us. Challah has loads of protein because of the milk and eggs, which makes it especially perfect for sharing and filling you up. It makes a beautiful french toa

  Triple Chocolate Chip Cookies Sometimes you just feel like loading up on chocolate and a triple chocolate cookie is just the thing to satisfy that craving. Chocolates' earliest history can be traced back to the Ancient Olmec tribes of southern Mexico where it was used in sacred rituals. Perhaps there is something almost sacred about chocolate. Enjoy these cookies in a most ritualistic way by thanking the Olmec and Ancient Mayans for introducing chocolate to the world. Feel free to add a little heat to these cookies like a small amount of cayanne pepper, to mex up the chocolate a little bit. Unsalted Butter                                                   375g                        1 ½ cups Granulated Sugar                                                225g                        1   cup +2 tbsp Brown Sugar                                                       225g                        1 cup + 2 tbsp Salt                                                                

    This recipe came from one of those cookbooks that go for sale to raise funds that mom had. The cover is no longer on the book but it did contain most of this recipe. Finding a great banana bread recipe is like finding a shiny coin while out walking.When it turns out perfectly an instant grin spontaniously forms on your face and you have no control over your glee. This one is the shiny coin. For this recipe you can add walnuts, chocolate chips or leave plain. Make muffins or banana bread. If you choose to make muffins you increase the temperature and bake for less time. If you are making the banana bread the temp is 350F for 40 -50 minutes. Most of the quick bread recipes can be either in loaf or muffin form. For these muffins I had a bucket full of mini chocolate chips and really want to use them up. They work perfectly here but there is a saying, "go big or go home". Which means regular size chocolate chips will do just fine. I am a walnut fan and would not hesitate to p