Our ice storm, Jupiter, provided the area lots of beautiful scenery the past few days. If you're local, you probably agree that it was pretty as long as you didn't have to get out in the cold and freezing rain. I think a combination of well-prepared roads and people following the suggestion to stay home resulted in fewer accidents and congestion. The trees looked pretty encased in ice and, thankfully, the surface temperature was warm enough that there wasn't extensive snapping of tree limbs and branches. That did happen in a few communities and our hearts went out to those who lost their power as a result. The trees looked like a fairy land and pictures just don't do justice, but here are a few shots from our yard.
What do you do when your schedule is changed by the weather? It was always a little treat when I was teaching. Even though snow days meant rearranging academic lessons and even realizing the days required being made-up somewhere in the school year, they were still a little pleasure to students and teachers when they rolled along! With the icy mess which arrived Friday morning, I had obligations and errands which were postponed, so I caught-up here. I accomplished odds and ends, made some phone calls which had been on my list, did light housekeeping things, etc. So, what else should a girl do? Deep clean the house? Maybe, but no. Dig into a massive storage room reorganization? O.K., but just for a limited time. Bake some cookies, which we don't need? Sure! Don't you think the smell of baking cookies goes perfectly with cold weather? I whipped-up some of my grandma's famous molasses goodies. They were delicious warm from the oven! I did show restraint, though, and froze most of them for sharing and future use. If you love soft molasses cookies, these are the best!
Lumberjack Cookies
1 cup sugar
1 cup shortening
1 cup dark molasses
2 eggs
4 cups flour
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
Cream together sugar and shortening. Add eggs and molasses and mix. In another bowl, mix flour, salt, cinnamon, soda and ginger together. Add to the sugar/shortening/egg/molasses mixture. I used my cookie scoop to make round balls which need to be rolled in a small dish of granulated sugar. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 12 minutes (depending upon your cookie sheets and oven).
***I made a half recipe and it yielded around 3 dozen, so plenty.
Enjoy!