Mud House Year

What a Difference a Year Makes

One year ago today I began this blog to chronicle the adventures of living in a little mud house.  I wanted to create a memoir of life in the Sonoran Desert, a part of the world I always considered my home. Although we signed a lease for only a year, I hoped we would live in the mud house much longer. But, as it often does, life had other plans.  It's a bit of a challenge transitioning from a place so ingrained in my soul to a place so new and different, but it's also a wonderful, unexpected opportunity.  I don't know what this year will bring or even where I will be a year from now, but for now, in this place, I will find joy in the little things and I will continue to share my memories here.

Many thanks to my family and friends for sharing this eventful year with me!

Happy 30th Sweet Amanda

 

                                                                       

We love you!

The Essence of Being Here

A few people have asked if we are happy with our decision to move to Pasadena. Now that we are settled in our new home, we are giving that question some thought.  It is an unusual thing, at our ages, to just pick up and move to another state.  It's also an enormous amount of work - finding the right place, deciding what to bring, what to store, packing, and moving.

In making such a big decision, there are so many reasons for and against, why and why not.  Everything from economic to medical to distance to doggies was discussed and considered, ruled in and ruled out.   
One thing we knew for sure was that Allen would need a home office.  That seems to be working out OK.It is hard to find the right words to describe how we feel about this big change in our lives but what comes to mind are feelings of "serenity," "peace," "joy," and "calm." 

In the final analysis, there was only one overwhelming deciding factor.In the end, we followed our hearts and landed exactly where we should be.

Chef Amanda

White Chocolate Strawberry Mousse with Lemon Crumble

I've mentioned Miss Amanda before.  She is a pastry chef who works in the most amazing pastry kitchen at the Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain.   This unique Ritz property was designed especially for its location here in the desert and it is located about thirteen miles from the Mud House.  It is truly one of the most enchanting places I have ever been, almost spiritual in its beauty.  This week the Ritz-Carlton, Dove Montain is hosting the annual Accenture Match Play Championship featuring the top 64 players in the world including Tiger Woods.

Recently, Miss Amanda created the most exquisite Valentine's Day pastry event at the Ritz, so I thought I would share!   Although the photos make the desserts look BIG, they were actually delightfully mini sized.  That's Miss Amanda overseeing some final details.  There she is again popping into the photo of the pastry buffet!  She's a tricky one!

And here are some of the amazing works of art Miss Amanda and her staff created... Chocolate Whoopie Pie with Mocha Buttercream

Opera Cake

Oreo Cremeux

Lemon Meringue Tart

Chocolate Mango Mousse

Caramel Chocolate Tart with Caramel Krispies

Chocolate Orange Pot de Creme with a Cocoa Nib Cookie

And, one final photo bomb from Miss Amanda!

Wow!  Miss Amanda is truly an artist.  She and her staff are remarkable.  Be sure to visit this amazing place if you are ever in this part of the world.

 

And the Final Elf

This is the third and final Christmas cookie post.  The first two posts highlighted cookie recipes that have long family traditions.  This one, not so much.  In fact, it was new  this year and is creatively called "Ginger Coopies."  That's right, not cookies, "Coopies."  There is an explanation for that and here it is:Cooper is the reddish-brown scruffy hound.  As you can see, he is one of many who live at the Mud House.  Cooper is an 11 years old Norfolk terrier who joined the Mud House gang a year-and-a-half ago. He isn't our oldest Mud House hound.  That distinction goes to Sparky, our 16 year-old Westie standing to the left of Cooper.  He isn't the youngest - that's Miss Marzipan in the front.  He also isn't the newest. That would be Rex, the 14 lb crazy Chihuahua who does a killer Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde impersonation. But, Cooper has been through a lot and he is one my youngest daughter's favorites (she has several) sooooo...  Now, I know what you are thinking, she made dog biscuits!  But, sadly for the hounds of Mud Houseville, they are people biscuits.  They are gingerbread cookies that just happen to look exactly like sweet Cooper.  No worries though, we shared our people biscuits with Cooper and all of his scruffy companions.  

This recipe is from Epicurious and you can find it here.  I have made this same recipe using a cookie scoop to drop dough onto cookie sheet rather than making them as rolled and cut cookies.  They are good either way. So, as the official finale to the First Annual Mud House Christmas Eve Cookie Exchange, I am awarding the Most Original Cookie Award to Sam, who came up with the great idea and the cute name for the Ginger Coopies, our newest family cookie tradition! 

 

Thank You Cookie Elves Part II

Some of the most unexpected contributions to the Christmas Eve cookie exchange came from the men in our family.  Uncle Greg made reindeer cow-pies,  Allen made his Bourbon balls, and our sweet son-in-law rolled up his sleeves, called his mom, and made an old family recipe for delicious, soft and gooey chocolate cookies. Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of the finished cookies but they were the perfect Christmas cookie and a big hit. Rich and chocolaty, a little crunch on the outside, and just the right amount of gooey on the inside. Our son-in-law tells us he has wonderful childhood memories of these cookies and he really missed them when he grew-up and moved away from home.  The good news is, he now knows how to make them and he can make them whenever he wants, creating special memories for his own little guy. We have special permission to share the recipe.  I'm not sure what they are called so I'm naming them...

Hunt's Mom's Special Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients:
1 12 oz bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 stick butter
1 can sweetened condensed milk
3 tablespoons  sugar
1 cup of flour
1 tsp vanilla

Here's How:  Preheat oven to 350. Grease two cookie sheets.  In a double-boiler over simmering water, melt chips, butter, condensed milk, and 3 tablespoons sugar.  Once melted, remove from heat and add flour and vanilla. Mix until well combined. Drop a tablespoon of dough onto greased cookie sheets and bake approximately 10-12 minutes. Let cool 5-6 minutes on cookie sheet then remove cookies to cooling rack.

These cookies can be made a day or two ahead of time and store well in an airtight container at room temperature.

I will post one more cookie exchange recipe with you tomorrow.  See you then!

Mud House Christmas Eve

I know that Christmas has come and gone and we are well on our way in 2013.  However, my next few posts are dedicated to our wonderful Mud House Christmas.   This is the first moment I have had to sit down and organize my thoughts but Christmas was just too much fun to let slip by without sharing!Christmas in the desert does not offer the anticipation of snowfall and sleigh rides but it is lovely and festive none-the-less.  At the Mud House, we share distinctive and charming traditions, some of which have been handed down through seven generations of my family here in the desert southwest.  For example, whimsical tin ornaments and sweet brass angels collected in the border town of Nogales by my grandmother, Mema,  (and later by me) grace our tree and mantel.Other traditions are more recent and some are new this year such as gingerbread tee-pee making with Chef Amanda at the Ritz at Dove Mountain.  One of our oldest family traditions began when my great-grandmother, Bammi,  first served flat enchiladas on Christmas Eve.  Family lore maintains  that Bammi actually created the recipe and later shared it with a lady down the street. This lady eventually opened  a little restaurant,  El Charro, which now has several locations and is celebrating its 100th anniversary.  Flat enchiladas, now widley known as Sonoran enchiladas, have been on El Charro's menu for a century.   They have been served on Christmas Eve in my family for longer than that. This photo does not do them justice but the contrast between the colors of the red sauce, green olives and white and yellow cheeses make them especially festive.   

My family celebrates Christmas on Christmas Eve.  We gather at one of our homes and share a wonderful dinner of Mexican food.  This year our celebration began on the porch of  the Mud House with sparkling sangria. We then enjoyed a buffet of flat enchiladas, frijoles, green corn tamales, tortillas, and fresh salsa.   The tables were set with rose bowls, mason jar candles, and individual kits to make Christmas Eve hot chocolate .This year we introduced a new tradition which may or may not take hold.  Everyone was asked to bake and bring a batch of cookies.  These cookies served the double purpose of being treats for dessert and for a cookie exchange.  Guests took them home in red Chinese take-out containers.   All the cookies were delicious and so creative!  We even had some reindeer cow-pies (thanks Greg!) However, rumor has it that some of the cookie makers were not too thrilled with their assignment.   Also, we ended-up with way too many cookies so maybe next year we will ask for one batch from each family rather than one from each person. As always, it's the little things that make our gatherings so special.  Rumor also has it that next year we will be doubly blessed yet again with more little things.

At the end of the evening,  guests were guided on their way by the warm glow of luminarias and sparkly white lights festooning dried mesquite and century plants.

Thanks to every single member of my dear family who helped make this evening so much fun.  My next few posts will share some recipes and more details about our Mud House Christmas Eve. 

As a side note, Pinterest Wednesday will return soon.

 

A Special Day

Our family is fortunate to have two special birthdays right in the middle of December! It's fun that they are close to Christmas, but not too close.  Today is my nephew, Theo's birthday.  Happy Birthday Theo!
Looks as though Theo and Santa are getting along just fine!
 

My Favorite Day

One year ago today I was in Pasadena, CA, welcoming our first grandbaby, a boy.  He has brought such joy to all of us over this past year.  Watching my beautiful daughter become a loving and competent mother has been one of the finest experiences of my life.  I am also so grateful for our caring and involved son-in-law.  Our grandson is a very lucky little boy to have two such wonderful parents.  Our grandson just met Santa for the first time and he gave the whole experience some serious consideration.  I love the expression on his face and the body language!   We are so blessed this year to spend our second Christmas with this little guy.  It's funny how a baby brings magic back to Christmas. He is such a gift to all of us.  Happy Birthday to our sweet one-year-old grandbaby boy!    

Happy Holidays to all of you!

What a Wonderful Day!

The Mud House Thanksgiving was just so much fun!
It was, as usual, a beautiful, sunny day.  The table was set with wine bottles, each holding a single zinnia from the cutting garden.  A bright red bandanna was placed above each plate for guests to wear. Everyone pitched-in and the food was delicious...

and funny...

Of course, it was the little things that made it really special.

 There is simply no substitute for being surrounded by those you love.  Thank you to my dear family for spending this wonderful day with us at the Mud House.  I love you guys!

And now, on to Christmas.

Wishing everyone a wonderful holiday season!