So this week has been one of time to write. A bit of baking. And that quiet sense of waiting that happens just before the rush of the holidays begins next week. I like to dip my toe into the holidays before it turns into a rush and I have few things this week to ease you into that and happy mayhem.

One

Let the Christmas cookie recipe exchange commence! The first one I am sharing with you is an old family recipe, Chocolate Cookie Bars. My mom always made these at Christmastime and occasionally when we’d talk her into making them out of season. I love these cookies so much and they are are nice addition if you gifting cookies or making a mixed cookie place.

Two

I love Bookbub because they always send me alerts when a favorite author has a new book coming out.

So thank you very much for the email or I might have missed the new book by Sabaa Tahir, Sky Beyond the Storm. This is the last book in the An Ember in the Ashes series that I have loved so much. I even blogged about it here.

I adore YA fantasy and this has been a great series. Can’t wait until it downloads on December 1st. If you haven’t read it, you have time to get through the other three books before then. I’m helpful like that.

Also, this series would make a great Christmas gift to the YA reader in your life, or you. 😉

Three

Small confession: I have been crocheting this Tree Garland from Crochet Today magazine off and on since 2012. It’s one of those projects that you pull out and think you are going to finish for Christmas and then all your Christmas gift crafting takes precedence and you set it aside and then in January the last thing you want to look at is an unfinished Christmas project and back in the drawer it goes.

Am I right?

So this year I swore I was going to finish them, and realized the only way to do that was to make them for friends. So I am making little mini three tree garlands to give away. And I finished enough trees last night. Actually they are quick and fun to crochet, and really, you won’t need eight years to get them done.

Four

Here is something that is just perfect for watching while baking cookies or when you just need a bit of light romance to escape. Holidate—about a pair of singles who decide to be each other’s plus one for a year of holidays. It isn’t perfect, but when is dating ever perfect? Available on Netflix.

Five

The Seattle Times ran an article last week about old family recipes and when I saw this one, Aunt Rosemarie’s Pumpkin Bread, I knew I wanted to try it. Besides, I am sucker for pumpkin bread and this is best recipe ever. It has been declared a Keeper by my household of eaters.

Notes: the recipe doesn’t say so, but you need a small can of pumpkin—not that big honkin’ can of Libby’s. Just the small one. Or get the big one and split it—half for your pumpkin pie and the other half for the best pumpkin bread ever. The family will love you twice as much.

Also, I was totally out of ground cloves—who knew you could run out of ground cloves, but there you are—and so I used a teaspoon of ground ginger instead of cloves.

“Aunt Rosemarie’s Pumpkin Bread” is photographed at Ellen Peterson’s home in Brier, Wash, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2020. (Erika Schultz / The Seattle Times)

There you have it. A Friday’s worth of great things. Dive in. Bake. Watch. Read. Mask up. Stay safe.

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