Sylvia's Scenario

Since we've been home from Hawaii, I've had the urge to cook some of my favorite recipes...plus some.  It always feels good to return from a trip and be able eat the comforts of home again.  The first day home I made my  Pumpkin Bean Chili  which lasted for a couple days.  It tasted so good especially being back in cold weather.  I make this recipe probably twice a month in the winter since it's a favorite.  Then I made a batch of  Clean Cream of Mushroom Soup , another favorite.  That was consumed immediately.  These two recipes were a real switch from all our Hawaiian vacation food, although we are still eating fresh pineapple daily.  I had received a whole new batch of recipes from  Hannah Freese, RD  for the month of February so I decided to make this new recipe from her and we loved it.  It definitely turns boring chicken breasts into an exciting concoction of flavors. I have so many frozen chicken breasts in the...

Of all the years we've been doing Super Bowl parties, I realized that I have not posted the recipe for the Super Bowl cookies that I always make.  The above photo are this year's cookies which were easy since both teams had the same colors.  I always make the cookies to go along with the two teams that are playing.  Sometimes the teams have intricate logos which are challenging.  If I was a professional cookie maker who used royal icing, the cookies would turn out perfect but I still use the old fashioned buttercream frosting because of the taste.  You can't beat the taste of buttercream on a good sugar cookie and these two pair so well together that I just can't bring myself to switch to royal icing.  Our friends prefer taste over looks, for good reason.  The cookies still make for lovely table decorations for a party.    Here are previous Super Bowl cookies from past years.  Can you guess what teams were playing in the Super Bowl? ...

Super Bowl Sunday this year will be remembered by...the remarkable comeback by the Patriots in overtime?  No.  Lady Gaga's halftime show? No. The commercials?  No. It will be remembered by the over night snow blast that arrived right about the time the game ended. It snowed all night and still continues today for an accumulation of 2 to 14 inches, depending where you live in the area and your elevation.  Here's what our backyard looks like.   We don't get snow here very often so it's a big deal.   Driving is treacherous because of all the hills so the schools were cancelled and a lot of people stayed home from work today.  By Thursday, it will warm up to 50 degrees so this will last about one day.  It's beautiful outside while it lasts, which usually isn't very long when it snows here.  I'm just glad our friends got home safely since it was snowing when they all left our party. I was a little worried about that....

This year was the 50th anniversary of the Super Bowl and our first Super Bowl party since returning to Seattle.  We decided to do our usual; the betting board and  cookies . Besides tasting delicious, the cookies are a big part of the decor.  Edible decor.  The best kind. We cooked a ham and I made my cheesy potatoes and everybody else brought delicious salads, appetizers and desserts.  There was an abundance of food - what Super Bowl Sunday is all about.  But this year was a little different. It wasn't about football this year. Now that we live in a town with a team, I'm sorry to say that it just isn't as interesting if it isn't our guys playing.  This football season was so exciting, planning every game day around the Seahawks kick-off time.  If it's not the Seahawks in the Super Bowl (after being spoiled the past 2 years) then it's a let down.  So, this year, the Super Bowl party was about something so much more...