Happy New Year

I am a big one for making lists - grocery lists, to do lists, lists of quilts I've made and of quilts I would like to make. So that I am working on a list of New Year's resolutions isn't a surprise to anyone who knows me!

I will not bore you with the lose weight, walk more, be better about taking my meds stuff and just focus on the Quilting and travel "fun" stuff.

First - organize my quilting and sewing room. OK, this has been on my list every years since I first started quilting. Lets just say it is a process! I am planning however clear out the fabrics I have no plan on using in the next two years and donate it. I also want to finally clear out some craft things that I don't want to pack up and move back to the U.S. again. When we go back to the U.S. my DH has consented to my having the largest of the spare bedrooms to use for my quilting room. This gives me a much larger closet which I can fit out with shelves for my fabric.

Second - Try new things. I feel like I have stagnated a bit in the past year. I am cruising the internet and my piles of books and magazines to make a list of some new techniques or projects for the new year. I'm going to start with improving my machine quilting....

Third - Make the best use of the last year I have here in England. That is right. It looks like we will be going back to the states at the end of this year. So all the trips I have been putting off and all the folks I want to to visit I have to do soon!

Fourth - Simplify. If I don't use it or love it I will pack it away. If I don't miss it by the time we leave for the states than I will get rid of it. This extends to the large piles of recipes, home decorating idea pages, and paint chips!

Notice what is not on the list this year - finishing projects. (That usually follows cleaning the sewing room.) I'm accepting this as a non-finish/play year. I don't want to use up time working on projects I am no longer excited about just because they are half done. I think I will be more careful with my time and focus it on things I really want to do.

I was asked for the Bourbon Apple Pecan Bread recipe so here goes....

4 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
1-1/4 cups vegetable oil
3/4 cup bourbon
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 large or 6 small peeled, cored, and chopped apples scuh as Granny Smith or Golden Delicious
1-1/2 cups raisins
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 340 degrees. Butter and flour two 9 x 5 inch loaf pans and set aside.

Mix 3-3/4 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl.

In a large bowl cream together brown sugar, sugar, eggs, oil, bourbon, and vanilla.

Add flour mixture to egg mixture and stir until just mixed.

Crush apples with a masher or place in a food processor and pulse several times.

Mix raisins and pecans with remaining 1/4 cup of flour in a small bowl. Add apples, raisins, and pecans to batter and stir until blended. (Don't over-mix or the bread will be tough.) Divide into the two pans and bake in center or oven for 50-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let rest for 5 minutes before removing from pans.

Serve with cream cheese sprinkled with a bit of cinnamon.

(I apologize for not siting which magazine this came from...it was in the middle of the ripped pages that I mentioned earlier in my resolutions! It could be an old Country Living or Home Companion?! Who knows!)

Happy New Year!