~ I hope all of you are having or have had a great Easter. It is a beautiful day here. The temperature is warm, but not humid, and rather pleasant. The sun goes behind a cloud now and then and the breeze blows ever so gently.
Frank and I went to WalMart this morning. I found the Dark Chocolate Jello Pudding again. They had four packs of them and I was selfish and bought all four. The sell by date is June 29, 2009... but they won't be around that long. I so needed a good chocolate dessert... after all that Chocolate on The Brain ☺
Frank baked fresh pork boston butt roasts on the grill yesterday. Enough for dinner today and tomorrow and plenty to put in the freezer. I baked a Squash Casserole and roasted asparagus with a bit of olive oil and raspberry balsamic vinegar. We were too full to eat any homemade whole wheat bread (more on the bread tomorrow).
Frank planted the tomatoes the other day. He planted several different types. That way if one got a disease maybe another would be resistant to it. He got one grape tomato plant. I am looking forward to them. I usually place them in a bowl or basket on the counter and we snack on them. Here are some from a previous year.
The tomatoes are between the cane poles. Later on those poles will be needed to help support the plants.
We had a salad with the lettuce and onions the other day. It was very good.
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The potatoes are leafing out really well too. The carrot tops are getting bigger too. Nothing like fresh vegetables!
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In the flower bed... the amaryllis are blooming. They are very beautiful this year.
I still haven't bought plants for my flower pots or for the flower beds. Maybe sometime next week.
Frank and I went for a long walk Friday and yesterday. The back of Frank's right knee is hurting him. He thinks just because his muscles have been lazy. The extra work has my knee hurting some. My right knee cap went all wonker-sided a few years ago and I had to have surgery on it. It is much better now, but sometimes it doesn't like a lot of work or little work or the weather. So we will take a couple days off from long walks... just go for the short ones.
It has been nice to go over a week without going to the doctor's office. Frank did have to call the doctor's office for a prescription. Tuesday is the oncologist surgeon appointment.
The greatest gift of the garden is the restoration of the five senses. -- Hanna Rion
~ Just a note wishing each of you a safe and Happy Easter!
The picture below is of me on Easter day when I was nine years old. Our house had blue asbestos shingles. Many of the chips on the shingles were from our baseballs hitting them. Somehow we missed the window ☺
My dress is pink... probably my socks too. My sister's dress was blue. It seems like when we were growing up most of the Easter dresses were either pink or blue. My sister and I would swap the colors each year.
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Back in 1930, Kenneth and Ruth Wakefield purchased a Cape Cod-style TOLL HOUSE located halfway between Boston and New Bedford, on the outskirts of Whitman, Massachusetts. Originally constructed in 1709, the house served as a haven for road-weary travelers. Here, passengers paid toll, changed horses and ate much-welcomed home-cooked meals. It was also here, over 200 years later, that the Wakefields decided to open a lodge, calling it the TOLL HOUSE Inn.
In keeping with the tradition of creating delicious homemade meals, Ruth baked for guests who stayed at the TOLL HOUSE Inn. As she improved upon traditional Colonial recipes, Ruth's incredible desserts began attracting people from all over New England.
One day, while preparing a batch of Butter Drop Do cookies, a favorite recipe dating back to Colonial days, Ruth cut a bar of our NESTLÉ Semi-Sweet Chocolate into tiny bits and added them to her dough, expecting them to melt.
Instead, the chocolate held its shape and softened to a delicately creamy texture. The resulting creation became very popular at the Inn. Soon, Ruth's recipe was published in a Boston newspaper, as well as other papers in the New England area. Regional sales of our delicious NESTLÉ Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar skyrocketed.
Ruth eventually approached NESTLÉ and together, we reached an agreement that allowed us to print what would become the TOLL HOUSE Cookie recipe on the wrapper of our Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar. Part of this agreement included supplying Ruth with all of the chocolate she could use to make her delicious cookies for the rest of her life.
As the popularity of the TOLL HOUSE cookie continued to grow, we looked for ways to make it easier for people to bake. Soon, we began scoring the Semi-Sweet Chocolate Bar, and packaged it with a special chopper for easily cutting it into small morsels. Shortly after, in 1939, we began offering tiny pieces of chocolate in convenient, ready-to-use packages and that is how the first NESTLÉ TOLL HOUSE Real Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels were introduced.
Since they were first used by Ruth Wakefield in what would become the most popular cookie of all time, NESTLÉ TOLL HOUSE Semi-Sweet Morsels have satisfied the chocolate cravings of millions. Today, they're used to make many of the hundreds of delectable chocolate desserts all across America and around the globe.
Milton Hershey made a decision in 1894 to produce sweet chocolate as a coating for his caramels. Located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, he called his new enterprise the Hershey Chocolate Company. In 1900, the company began producing milk chocolate in bars, wafers and other shapes. With mass-production, Hershey was able to lower the per-unit cost and make milk chocolate, once a luxury item for the wealthy, affordable to all. One early advertising slogan described this new product as “a palatable confection and a most nourishing food.”
The immediate success of Hershey’s low-cost, high-quality milk chocolate soon caused the company’s owner to consider increasing his production facilities. He decided to build a new chocolate factory amid the gently rolling farmland of south-central Pennsylvania in Derry Township, where he had been born. Close to the ports of New York and Philadelphia which supplied the imported sugar and cocoa beans needed, surrounded by dairy farms that provided the milk required, and with a local labor supply of honest, hard-working people, the location was perfect. By the summer of 1905, the new factory was turning out delicious milk chocolate.
HERSHEY'S COCOA debuted in 1894 when Milton Hershey founded Hershey Chocolate Company. The item was initially sold as a beverage mix. In fact, "Great for Baking" was added to the can as a reminder that Cocoa could be included in baked goods as well. Today most HERSHEY'S COCOA is used for baking... and it's still great!
1894- Hershey introduces Unsweetened Cocoa. 1988 - Hershey replaces metal cans with plastic cans. 1989 - Hershey launches Dutch Processed Cocoa. 2005 - Hershey launches SPECIAL DARK Cocoa
1971 ROLO CARAMELS in chocolate are introduced.
When I'm standing in a check-out line and the chocolate urge hits this is the candy I usually choose. Just one little candy when I get to the the car is all it takes to satisfy my chocolate sweet tooth. Then I eat the rest over the next few days. I don't eat 200 + calories at one time :-)
There are so many Hershey products I love... KISSES, REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS and a frozen ZERO candy bar, which is a bit hard to bite into these days. I could go on and on with Hershey's line of candies... but I will only mention one more :-)
CADBURY CHOCOLATE
Founded in the 1800's, Cadbury has long been a part of England's history with ties to the British monarchy. The first Cadbury shop was established by John Cadbury in Birmingham, England and grew through the hard work and vision of his sons, the Cadbury brothers - Richard and George. Still today, CADBURY DAIRY MILK is the UK's best selling chocolate, achieving its flavor and creaminess using the traditional recipe.
Acquiring the license to manufacture and sell Cadbury products in the United States in 1988, Hershey Foods Corporation has continued that fine artisan quality of chocolate making. Among the brands made in Hazleton, PA are CADBURY DAIRY MILK bar, CADBURY FRUIT & NUT bar, CADBURY, CADBURY Roast Almond bar, CADBURY ROYAL DARK bar and CARAMELLO bar.
The most famous Cadbury product is the CADBURY CRÈME EGG available only during the Easter season. To many consumers, the Easter season and CADBURY CRÈME EGG were introduced by a very famous character - the "Clucking Bunny." The "Clucking Bunny" campaign, which began in 1982, remains one of the most recognized and beloved confectionery advertising campaigns. The Cadbury Company started making this product in 1923.
I can't say the CADBURY CRÈME EGG is my favorite. When I worked at Nichol's Dept. Store in the mid 1980s I would often work at the registers at Easter. There would be rolling display baskets by the registers and the egg candies along with other candies would sit in display there. The eggs would get warm and melt. Such a mess I had to clean up! So I'm not fond of them :-)
I've really enjoyed browsing the web for chocolate history. I haven't eaten any chocolate and don't plan on eating any chocolate anytime soon... it has been enough just to read about chocolate. I've lost eight pounds off my body in a week's time.... so my scales say. My scales are probably broken because I can't see where any weight has disappeared. Maybe just thinking of chocolate is a good weight loss plan... if my scales aren't broken :-)
I've been married (to the same man) since I was 18 years old. (we were married in 1969.. I'll let you do the math)
We have a daughter and a son. We will only have grandchildren if a miracle happens. Its alright if that miracle never happens.. we have grandnieces and grandnephews to play with ever once in a while.
Update: Miracles do happen! We now have a grandson and granddaughter. They are not by blood, but they are our grandchildren and never will be referred to as step-grandchildren. Update: We now have two more granddaughters. We are truely blessed!
We spent 20 years in the US Army. I say "we" because when a spouse in the service of their country their whole family is along for the ride.
I worked in retail until my back got the best of me. Now I enjoy the company of my husband. We travel when we can.
I crocheted up until a few years ago. I mostly did toys with an afghan or two thrown in. Update: I am now crocheting again! Sometimes I do a bit of embroidery.
I used to garden in the flower beds, but now I garden in flower pots. There are a few perennials in the yard that I water and dead-head... I do miss digging in the garden.
I still like to cook a little... just a little. You can find some of my recipes here.
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I still haven't bought plants for my flower pots or for the flower beds. Maybe sometime next week.
