I can’t show pictures until the baby blanket is done, but wow am I moving slowly on it. I just hope I’ll finish before the kid’s first birthday!
No puedo mostrarles fotos de la manta para el bebe hasta q la termine, pero ¡guau! toma mucho tiempo. ¡Espero q termino antes de su primer cumpleaños!
English:
I’ve decided to join the 11 blankets in ’11 challenge!
So, I need to pick what I’m doing, huh? (Order is subject to change!)
1) Blanket for the couch, so I stop having to bring mine from the bedroom!
2) a Tunisian baby blanket for my cousin’s impending baby!
3) a lapghan for my husband’s grandmother!
4) at least one for charity!
5-11) who knows?!
Español:
¡He decidido participar en el desafío de hacer 11 mantas en 2011!
Entonces, necesito escoger las mantas, ¿sí? (¡Es posible q se cambie la orden!)
1) ¡una manta para el sofá, para que la mía se pueda quedar en mi cama!
2) ¡una manta en crochet tunecino para el bebé de mi prima!
3) ¡una pequeña para la abuela de mi esposo!
4) ¡al menos una para una entidad benéfica!
5 a 11) ¡¿Quién lo sabe?!
May your day be merry and bright, feliz año nuevo, prospero año y felicidad. 
I was too impatient to wait!
Maybe the best part of the winter holidays is the cookies. We don’t like sugar cookies here, so we decided to try cutting out gingerbread.
Here’s the recipe in English: (I will post it in Spanish later)
GF Gingerbread Cookies
Cookie dough:
1/2c shortening
1c + 2Tbsp sorghum flour
1/2c + 2.5tsp coconut flour
1/2c + 2.5tsp tapioca flour
1/4c + 1tsp hazelnut flour
1/2tsp xanthan gum
1/2c sugar
1/2c molasses
1 large egg
1tsp baking soda
1tsp ground ginger
1/2tsp cinnamon
1/2tsp all spice
1. In a medium bowl, combine flours and xanthan gum. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, beat shortening until soft (about 2 minutes when done by hand). Add half of the flour mix and all the remaining ingredients, then beat until thoroughly combined. Gradually, add the rest of the flour.
3. Divide the dough in half and wrap each half with plastic wrap. Set in the fridge to chill for at least 3 hours. The dough can stay like this for 2 or 3 days. After that, it may dry out too much.
4. After chilling, remove the dough from the fridge and preheat the oven to 375°.
5. Roll out each half to a thickness of 1/8″ to 1/4″. It works really well to lay out a sheet of wax or parchment paper, unwrap the dough but keep the plastic wrap over it in a single layer, then roll the pin across the plastic wrap. You won’t need to add flour to the pin to keep the dough from sticking.
5. Cut out cookies and carefully remove them from the excess dough. Don’t throw away the extra or a cut cookie that breaks! All of this can be lumped back together to make more cookies.
6. Place the cookies on a baking sheet 1-2″ apart and bake 7-8 minutes on a centered oven rack. Bake until the edges are firm and start to darken lightly. Let cool a few minutes before frosting them.
Powdered sugar frosting:
1c powdered sugar
1/4tsp vanilla extract
1Tbsp milk — I used almond milk
1. Combine everything and blend until smooth. If necessary, add more milk.
2. Pipe, drizzle, or spread onto cool cookies.
Note: To make a colored icing, I recommend Wilton’s gels. Two ends of a toothpick dipped in Leaf Green got the color on the Bo’ Cookies.
We used a heart-shaped cutter, cutting out as many as we could first, then carefully removed the excess. Then we added “stems” and placed the cookies on the baking pan. Of course, you can use any cookie cutters you would like.
Enjoy!!
Today in the Bajo el Bodhi Tree household, we celebrate the day that Siddartha Gautama became a Buddha, reaching Enlightenment beneath a bodhi tree.
Not all Buddhists celebrate Bodhi Day. Our temple is one that does, and we love holidays in our home, so we have chosen to participate. We also celebrate the seven days after Bo’ Day, which represent the seven days Siddartha spent in Nirvana, after attaining Enlightenment. As the days of this celebration pass, I have some crafts planned to help celebrate. We practice dāna (giving), as we try to in everyday life. While we disagree with the commercialism of Christmas and do not celebrate it ourselves, we are trying to balance that with our life in a country where Christmas rules. Our goal is to not make them feel “deprived” of Christmas while still not overwhelming them with gifts or teaching that the gifts are the important part of this holiday.
Theme: Toni. Blog at WordPress.com.
