success and failures.

THREE days of snow days.

As a friend said, when inside I revert to my default position...baking.

1. Triple-chocolate mint biscotti.

2. I'm having some lovely dinner guests on Friday, and I've menu planned and shopped. I made the appetizers tonight. Or one of them. The other is just going to be roasted almonds.

3. I also tried to make my first homemade pie crust. Well...it went straight to the trash can. It was horrible. I'll try again later.

4. I also started on dessert for Friday. Friday's dessert is sugar cookies that I'll be serving with a blueberry/pomegranate frozen yogurt with a homemade chocolate sauce. It's just the sugar cookies I make all the time, so I felt no need to take their picture. I did cut a handful with a coffee-mug instead of with a shot-glass.

Working with yeast.

Cooking with yeast was always something that intimidated me. It is tempermental! Right temperature, timing, rising, falling, rising again...sheesh. I was at a loss when the cookbook said to let it rise in a warm place (there really isn't anywhere warm in the condo--it's winter!)

But the days of intimidation are OVER, and I'm committed to learn. I started with the cinnamon rolls...success. Bread was the next adventure. My first loaf didn't come out to well, but second fared far better (probably because I gave it 5 hours to rise as opposed to a half-hour).

Tonight I had a dinner guest and I was going to make pizza (again, requiring yeast). As I was driving home from work the idea of making anything with yeast was just too much (it's just the whole have to wait 2 hour thing that got me today), so the menu had a redesign.

I also made homemade hot chocolate with fresh whipped cream for dessert.

It was divine.

Except for while pouring it into the cups and I missed the cup and poured it all over my hand.

It really was HOT chocolate.

It hurt.