Hi Everyone! 😊
For those of you in cold climates, are you keeping warm? With daytime temperatures reaching "highs" of -25 C, it's just too cold to be outside for very long! In the winter, when the sun is out and the sky is blue, that means frigid temperatures! It sure is beautiful on the mountain though!
It's so cold that even our rugged little husky girl Charlie needs a sweater and some boots for her daily walk!
Charlie and I are the only ones with the stamina to handle an hour walk every day in this cold weather! (The selfie was her idea!) 😁
Alex's birthday was last week. I asked him what he wanted for dinner. He said he didn't want dinner this year...just a BIG breakfast with TWO birthday cakes. I made his Gramma's recipe for Toasettes, some Lacy Hash Browns and my Fart and Dart Beans. I also made him Iced Coffee and one of his favourite cocktails, a Strawberry Gin Fizz.
His two birthday cakes were a Kahlua Cheesecake and a tiramisu cake.
This cheesecake was simply decadent! The recipe is a bit intimidating because of the number of ingredients, but it's super simple to make! It has an Oreo cookie crust with a layer of chocolate ganache, then the cheesecake filling AND a sweet creamy topping covered with ganache threads...total winner!
I made this tiramisu cake totally from scratch - including the Mascarpone Cheese! This was definitely delicious, though my Mascarpone recipe didn't make enough, so the cake was rather flat. Also, I feel like the ingredient amounts may have been a bit off in the original recipe...I'll include the recipe link here, though I may have to tweak a few things before I add it to my own recipe archive!
Another fondue night!!! (Good thing I exercise every day!)...this is one of my favourite fondues: Tomato Pizza Fondue. Believe it or not, this was a "clean out the fridge" meal! I had a bit of Fontina cheese lying around and a half loaf of bread so I figured why not? 😊
Before the cold snap, we had a few days of heavy snow and high winds. Here's Marlene braving the winds - she loves to be outside!
Here's a photo I took while I was in bed watching some art lessons...cats and dogs sleeping all together - I love our pets! 🐶🐱🐶🐱🐶🐱
Once Jack gets a toy, he won't give it up! Look at this silly little hound dog with a big ball in his mouth.
We are entering another cold snap and then a few days of heavy snow, so I am HIBERNATING!!! See you on Thursday for our art date! The theme is Chinese New Year!
Happy Birthday Alex! My, what a party you made for his breakfast, I am drooling just looking at all the lovely things. And dart and fart beans ? Toooooo funny, I'm not sure I could handle those! Your weather sounds really cold, you are brave to go out. Love the photo of Charlie in his boots and coat, and the other pics, too. All together on the bed looks so cosy. Our temps have dropped from mild 15° last week to 3° today, I'm not sure what -25° must feel like! Thanks for sharing, have a great day, hugs, Valerie
ReplyDeleteSuch eye candy!
ReplyDeleteThis is amazing. It has been cold. I'm going to have to go out and shovel soon...
The pic of you and Charlie is fabulous. Good shot! So is the pic of all your pets in bed, lol. Any room left for the humans? And of course, Happy Birthday to Alex! Great idea to ask for two cakes instead of a regular meal. :)
ReplyDeletei don't even know where to start!!! the food is amazing! i just showed paul the whole post. the animals are just too cute and jack....what a heartbreaker! i sure wish we had some of that snow. at least we have a few flurries today.
ReplyDeleteOMG - that selfie is the so adorable, and kudos to you both for braving the cold for an hour walk! That's pretty commendable for sure! Please come to my house for my birthday this year.(lol) I'll bet you could come up with some fabulous recipes for us to celebrate. Everything just looks entirely yummy!!! Hugs to you Radiant Rain! RO
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday to Alex. What a lucky guy to have you cooking for him. BTW, you are so pretty. I lived in extreme cold and snow most of my adult life and loved every minute of it. My friends and husband, spent hours of snow hiking, bow hunting, and even snow camping. I taught, mostly women and children, survival skills in summer and winter. You are right there is nothing like stepping out into the cold, allowing your lungs to adjust and then to feel how strong your body is to tackle the frozen terrain. I miss that. Have a wonderful Sunday and the next time you are out send a thought to me.
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice photo of you and Charlie. Love the photo of all the pets on the bed too. Happy Birthday to Alex!
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday to Alex -- and what a breakfast feast you provided, plus those two gorgeous desserts! We've been in the polar deep freeze here for the past week but thank the Baby Jesus, it's finally warming up today to -15C. And then all week it will hover around 0C! We'll be in heaven!
ReplyDeletehappy birthday to your partner Alex, loved seeing all the snow there - we have not really seen much winter here in the UK, it's just been a light frost the last 2 mornings and is so unseasonally mild it's great to see your Wintery landscape.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday, Alex! What a festive feast. I have never had tomato pizza fondue before. You have a recipe for it? I would be out in the snow no matter what. I love walking in the snow and the pictures are so beautiful. It makes me wish I was there. Awww the fur babies. They are so much like children but without the problem of dressing them or making sure they get to school on time. We just give them unconditional love as they give it to us.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday to Alex, spoiled thing 2 birthday cakes, lol! Your dishes look delicious. 9 weeks till spring!
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday Alex afterwards and you made him a wonderful breakfast, cool
ReplyDeleteIs that cold with you and I say with 7 degrees it would feel cold
*laughing* Brave you and Charlie to go for an hour to walk in the snow and cold. It looks wonderful that would also be fun.
how sweetly they sleep your cats and dogs!!!
Have a nice evening, everyone!!!
greetings Elke
A very, very happy belated Birthday to Alex (a fellow Capricorn).
ReplyDeleteHis cakes look amazing.
Love the dogs, the food, the Charlie instigated selfie, and of course the comfy cats (and dogs)
Great post.
Great pic of you and Charlie- and good for you to brave the cold! I couldn't do it. Besides, I have Reynaud's Syndrome where my fingers and toes start to burn and turn blue in the cold:( Happy birthday to Alex. My, how you have spoiled him with such a completely decadent meal, drink, and desserts-and from scratch to boot! Well done girl!!And, oh how sweet that your fur babies get along so well- they look adorable all sleeping together.And I can't leave out Jack- look at those soulful eyes...
ReplyDeleteRain,
ReplyDeleteCharlie is such a ham. What do you expect but the selfie to be his idea. lol Good picture! :) WOW, you really spoiled Alex with that meal! Yum and yum, and yum!! BTW, I sent you an email today. I have a question about bread and you were the first person I knew to consult on this matter. :D
What a beautiful delicious-looking birthday meal for Alex! I hope his day was happy! And I'm just amazed that you can spend an hour outside in those temperatures. On the other hand, it sounds very healthy. What a ham Charlie is. Gotta love her!
ReplyDeleteI am not sure what that breakfast thing with the tomatoes is, but it looks lovely!
ReplyDeleteI love seeing dogs and cats together. The gray kitty there has those front lets all stretched out...LOVE it. I can't believe that you two go out in really cold temps. It was a high of 25 here yesterday....25!! This morning it is 24 with a feels like of 14 and I really need to stop stalling and get up and get ready for work. I just hate going out in this. Jack, you are just the cutest! You meals, as always look AMAZING. Happy Bday Alex. Best of all, I love the snow laying upon the trees like that. We had snow yesterday, spit that white stuff all day with nothing staying around! haha...yep, but it was pretty falling at times.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday, Alex!!! Love all your photos of the dogs and cats and when I was up North I walked every day regardless of the weather. If you're moving it's not so cold but it still feels good to get back inside. That Jack is such a hoot! Did you get your package? I need to check the tracking number. I sent it before Christmas and then it came back and I sent it again last week I think. The food looks awesome....what a birthday feast!
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday, Alex. So much snow outside, but what wonderful food inside. Blessings.
ReplyDeleteThanks Valerie :) Fart and Dart Beans, lol...I love that name. I actually found a recipe in a really old book called "Old Western Pioneer Cooking" or something like that, it was at a library I worked at many years ago. The recipes were from the "Old West"...the directions actually were to cook it over an open fire. I have changed it all up over the years so many times, I wish I could remember the name of that book! I hope you NEVER know what -25 feels like lol!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jenn :) Ugh, the shoveling. We did that a lot over the weekend too and then another cold snap! Take care out there!
ReplyDeleteThanks Leigh :) We humans squeeze into the bed...that photo only had four of them, when Charlie jumps on the bed, she stretches out and she's about 5 feet long all stretched lol...We had to put half of that cheesecake in the freezer because there was too much lol!
ReplyDeleteThanks Laurie :) We are trying to stay warm, it's cold again though. My hair froze again this morning!
ReplyDeleteThanks Joyce! :) Glad you enjoyed it! We definitely enjoyed the food and cakes!! Though I was pretty disappointed with that Tiramisu recipe, I'll have to check yours out for the next time! I hope you got snow!!
ReplyDeleteThanks RO :) Ha ha ha...I would have a cheeseburger themed dinner for you, including a cheeseburger cake, don't ask me how, but I'd figure something out! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Nicole :) Very sweet comment! :) I'm guessing you lived in Alaska since you mentioned the ice caves in your post last week! That must have been a beautiful area, I often think about traveling more north to visit. I think it's SO COOL that you taught survival skills!!! Very cool!!! Thanks for sharing!! I will send you a thought when I go out tomorrow morning!! :))
ReplyDeleteThanks Kristina :) That photo of the pets is the norm in our home! The pets just love to hang out with us, it's very cute! :)
ReplyDeleteLOL Debra, you comment made me laugh. :) Yes, "warming up" to -15, I know how you feel! We're supposed to have -2 to -5's at the end of the week, it'll be so tropical. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Betty :)) I'm glad to share our winter with you!
ReplyDeleteThanks Leanna :) I much prefer furry kids to the human kind! I'm not really a kid-person at all. I love our furries and yes, just like you said, all unconditional with them. Warms my heart! Yes! The fondue recipe is awesome, just follow the link on my post! You won't want to stop eating it!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Christine :)) Alex definitely is spoiled lol! Oh, I hope those nine weeks come fast!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Elke :)) Oh gosh, I am DREAMING of -7 right now lol! Once I get outside though and walking, it's not so bad, except when there is a cold wind, that makes it hard to enjoy!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Elephant's Child! :) The cakes were so good, I think this will become a tradition, two cakes for our birthdays lol...Having all of the pets on the bed is really nice in the winter, they keep us warm! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Linda :)) Jack is the apple of my eye. He is very expressive and yes, those eyes!! Very hard to resist!! :) I love that all of the pets get along. Well, one of the cats can be a little bugger and he goes after the dogs sometimes, but overall it's very peaceful!!! A friend of mine has Reynaud's as well, and I've seen what the cold can do to her fingers...I'm sorry you go through that! NO, this cold wouldn't be a good idea for you that's for sure!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Cathy :) I wrote back to you by the way, hope you got it! :) Yes, Charlie is a ham and I swear the selfie WAS NOT my idea! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Becki :) I'm glad you liked Charlie's selfie hee hee! The worst part of going out in that weather is the first few steps...then we get moving and we're in the woods and it's bliss! though I come home with frozen eyelashes most of the time lol!
ReplyDeleteThanks TB :) It's basically a version of a toad in the hole, but I made a BIG one. It's bread, spread with cheese spread, an egg and the tomatoes, all baked for about 20 minutes in the oven. It's really yummy!
ReplyDeleteThanks Pam :)) Falling snow is BEAUTIFUL. And yeah, the weather is definitely frightful, but once we get going, it's a good walk. That's become my daily exercise because I'm too pooped when I get home to do much else besides a little stretching! That gray furball is Leo, and he is so sweet. He's the alpha cat but he's such a gentle fella. He is not bothered by the dogs at all. Being all stretched out like that, he's very confident!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Sam :)) Not yet! I actually went to the mail boxes yesterday and it was empty. I'll keep you posted! Send me the tracking number if you have it! Then when it hits the mail box, I'll go out! You're right about the walking in that weather, once you start, you really get used to it! Except if there is a bad wind!
ReplyDeleteThanks Gigi :) It's nice to come in from the cold to yummy food!! :)
ReplyDeleteLooks like it was a lovely birthday! I wish Alex a wonderful year ahead.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE that photo of you and Charlie. And, of course, Jack. I just adore him!
It's been really cold lately but it's starting to warm up. I think... :)
I'm all in for a cheeseburger themed party, Rain!(lol) Hugs, RO
ReplyDeleteThanks Martha :)) It's going to warm up a little here too on the weekend, a balmy minus five I think will be the high on Saturday. This freezing weather is hard to take!
ReplyDeleteGreat RO! :)))
ReplyDeleteMy goodness! You could win some prizes with all those dishes!
ReplyDeleteHappy B-day!
Happy belated Birthday Alex. The cakes look delicious !!!
ReplyDeleteWe just got out of a cold snap and are now in daytime temps of - 5 and wvwn -2 by the weekend. We got lots of snow and the whole house is sick. Two bugs going on at the same time. Half the house is throwing up, the other half has a fever and bronchitis ... I am in the first category but try to ignore it since I have to take care of all the sick babes.
The pictures of your pets are adorable. I love your and Charly's selfie. My favourite temperature is -20c with blue skies and sunshine ... dry and crisp...perfect :) enjoy your hibernation !!!
Belated 🎂 birthday wishes to Alex and congrats to you on such a wonderful spread of treats, Rain
ReplyDeleteBelated Happy Birthday to Alex.
ReplyDeleteAll the best Jan
Thanks so much Susan :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Nik :) Oh I'm so sorry you're sick! And you have to take care of the kids, and probably the hubby too lol...poor you! I hope you feel better soon! We have mild temperatures starting today, I'm so relieved, that frozen hair thing is growing tiresome lol but we're expecting a dump of snow on the weekend!
ReplyDeleteThanks Dorothy :) We JUST finished the cheesecake last night! I had to put half in the freezer, we though we would keep it for Valentine's day, no such luck lol!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Jan! :)
ReplyDeleteThat silly little hound dog always makes my day! Loved all of the pictures, Rain. It would take a lot to drive me out of the house in a cold for an hour these days! I remember only too well how the icy gets inside your nose and eyebrows and burns your lungs. Kudos to you. I got through my periodontal and bone grafting surgery on Wednesday just fine ~ no pain!!!!!! All the best to you, and happy belated birthday to Alex!
ReplyDeleteWhat a good, fur mama you are. Love seeing them in your posts. And what a great birthday brinner for your husband! Man it all looked good and love how he asked for two birthday cakes, LOL!
ReplyDeleteHi Louise!! :) Oh I'm so happy to hear your surgery went well...I can't imagine it. I'm so terrified of any dentist, forget a periodontist lol! :) Yes, that burning in your lungs isn't fun...I try to walk at a pace where I'm not increasing my breath because it just hurts too much!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Stefanie :)) When Alex asked me for two birthday cakes at first I laughed, I thought he was joking, but then I jumped on board, who doesn't want to eat TWO cakes??? LOL!
ReplyDeleteHappy late birthday Alex! Wow, look at all that food! Yummy! Love seeing your fur babies!! Big Hugs!
ReplyDelete