Weather Reports

The big story around here has been the snow/ice we've had this week.  All week we've had snow or ice.  The only day with enough to really play in was Sunday night/Monday morning.

Little kids and snow are just a good combination!  Too bad this snow is all powdery.  No good snow balls or snow men yet.  Maybe next time...

Why don't kids mind being cold outside?  I was FREEZING!  Hope was all smiles.  We only stayed out a few minutes but she would have stayed out a lot longer.  I had to bribe her to go back inside.

I bribed her with candy making.  "We'll go make candy snow." I said.  Divinity was what I had in mind.  This is only the third time in my life I've made it.  Once in a food science class in college, once when we were first married and then today.  Turns out, it's kind of tricky.  There is boiling sugar/syrup to "hard ball stage" which I do the old fashioned way as I don't have a candy thermometer.  And, there is beating egg whites to stiff peaks then working very fast to get the stuff out of the bowl before it hardens.  Here's a tip for all you kitchen aid owners....switch attachments.  Don't beat the candy with the same whip you used to beat the egg whites.  See those flat discs....that's not what we're going for.

This is more like it.  All I did was change to the paddle attachment and voila!  Snow balls of divinity!

Turns out, Hope loves the stuff! Goody! Growing up, my Granny always had divinity at Christmas.  It's a staple of my childhood Christmas memories.  Besides the kitchen aid tip, I also learned to add nuts.  Whew! That kicks it up.  It's yummy in the same way that the Halloween mix with candy corn and peanuts is good: salty/sweet, chewy/crunchy.  Go make yourself some! And if it doesn't work out: blame the weather.  That's what all good divinity makers do.  "It was too humid!" or "It was too dry that day." Either way, blame mother nature!

A side note: unfortunately, we have recently been under the weather lately at our house.  The nurse said there's a fever virus going around.  We've got it!  It's been over 50 hours since I've left my house.  I'm going crazy.  And I'm on a sugar high.