On March 14th, 2020, I finished packing suitcases and set my alarm for an early flight the next day. Bags packed, plane seats chosen, book downloaded and plans in place for a beautiful week in Charleston. I woke up to a changed world. It was heartbreaking. I know many families suffered so much more than a missed vacation. We were quite blessed really, but it still hurt. Finally, two years later, we had the opportunity to put those plans into place. It was worth the wait. Some cities just grab your heart the moment you open your hotel room door. Annapolis is and will always be our beloved home town, but Charleston was like a home away from home. It was the perfect spring break destination.

Where we stayed. Our hotel, The Harbor View Inn, was the perfect location for downtown excursions. We were near the Battery, steps away from Rainbow Row, and a short walk to the City Market. It was beautifully appointed, served a wonderful breakfast to your room and generously provided wine and cheese at 5:00 and milk and cookies at 9:00 each day.

Where we shopped. Of course, King Street is a shoppers’ Mecca with beautiful boutiques, high end antiques and specialty stores of every kind. It was fun to window shop but most of our shopping was done at the City Marketplace, a fun place to find the perfect souvenir or gift. It is also a fun place to see local artists and sample well known Charleston treats.

We finished our day meeting a dear friend for diner at California Dreaming, a fun restaurant with great South Carolina dishes and flavors.

Inspire me Monday. Inspire me Tuesday . Metamorphosis. You’re the Star. Tuesday with a twist. Wonderful Wednesday. Keep in touch. Beautifully made. Wednesday blog hop. Share your style. Grandma’s House DIY. Vintage charm.Friendship Friday. Funtastic Friday. Grace at Home Thursday favorites. BFF open house. Morning Cup Of Joe. Home matters.Create bake grow. Happiness is homemade Create with joy. Creatively crafty Senior salon. Turn about Tuesday Saturday Sparks Farmhouse Friday All About Home Flaunt it Friday Pink Saturday encouraging hearts and home Wednesday Centerpiece. Dare to share. heart and souls simple sunday silverado. The Fabulous Party. homestead blog hop traffic jam busy Monday. Love your creativity Karen’s Kottage. Crafty creations inspiration party share the wealth Sunday sunshine

Senior Salon@Esme Salon

Encouraging Hearts and Homes@Slices of Life

Full Plate Thursday@Miz Helen’s Country cottage

A Light exists in Spring
Not present on the Year
At any other period –
When March is scarcely here

A Color stands abroad
On Solitary Fields
That Science cannot overtake
But Human Nature feels.

It waits upon the Lawn,
It shows the furthest Tree
Upon the furthest Slope you know
It almost speaks to you.

Then as Horizons step
Or Noons report away
Without the Formula of sound
It passes and we stay –

A quality of loss
Affecting our Content
As Trade had suddenly encroached
Upon a Sacrament.

Inspire me Monday. Inspire me Tuesday . Metamorphosis. You’re the Star. Tuesday with a twist. Wonderful Wednesday. Keep in touch. Beautifully made. Party in your pjs. Wednesday blog hop. Share your style. Grandma’s House DIY. Vintage charm.Friendship Friday. Funtastic Friday. Grace at Home Thursday favorites. BFF open house. Morning Cup Of Joe. Home matters.Create bake grow.. Happiness is homemade. Create with joy. Creatively crafty Senior salon. Turn about Tuesday Saturday Sparks Farmhouse Friday All About Home Flaunt it Friday Pink Saturday encouraging hearts and home Wednesday Centerpiece. Dare to share. heart and souls simple sunday silverado. The Fabulous Party. homestead blog hop traffic jam busy Monday. Love your creativity potpourri Karin’s korner. Sunshine blog hop

A restful weekend here in Annapolis, in no small part thanks to a crazy burned out electrical transformer that led to a blown out Verizon box that led to a service call to happen between 9am and 9pm that led to a mandatory day at home.  It is a wonder how we ever did anything without the internet…or Fios TV. Anyway, it did give me time to put together a St. Patrick Day mantel.  I have never attempted to capture the luck of the Irish in my decor, but like my Valentine’s mantel, I am quite pleased that the simplest additions really do have major impact.  Do you like the sparkly shamrock? I give the Princess full credit!

Some green depression, vintage postcards and a bunting of shamrock pennants gives homage to Old Saint Patrick.
A close-up of the gorgeous green of the glass.

Vintage St. Patrick postcards are known for their amusing nature and exuberant love of the perfect Irish lass! I love these examples of both.

After 2 years an Annapolis tradition is back! Our annual St. Patrick Day parade. A beautiful day for a festive parade.

Inspire me Monday. Inspire me Tuesday . Metamorphosis. You’re the Star. Tuesday with a twist. Wonderful Wednesday. Keep in touch. Beautifully made. Party in your pjs. Wednesday blog hop. Share your style. Grandma’s House DIY. Vintage charm.Friendship Friday. Funtastic Friday. Grace at Home Thursday favorites. BFF open house. Morning Cup Of Joe. Home matters.Create bake grow.. Happiness is homemade. Create with joy. Creatively crafty Senior salon. Turn about Tuesday Saturday Sparks Farmhouse Friday All About Home Flaunt it Friday Pink Saturday encouraging hearts and home Wednesday Centerpiece. Dare to share. heart and souls simple sunday silverado. The Fabulous Party. homestead blog hop traffic jam busy Monday. Love your creativity potpourri Karin’s cottage

Senior Salon@Esme Salon

Morning Cup of Joe@The Cottage Market

So you walk into your local library to pick up some books…and COVID tests…and see this beauty just waiting, what do you do? You check it out immediately and patiently wait for your weekend baking time.

The Usual Cast of Characters

8 ounces chocolate, coarsely chopped (about 1-1/4 cups)

2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter

3/4 cup (170g) light brown sugar

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup (31g) unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup (150g) toffee bits

1 cup (175g) semisweet chocolate chips

The Steps to Glory

Preheat oven to 350°F. 

Gently melt together the chopped chocolate and butter. You can do this by combining them in a microwave-safe bowl and heating in the microwave 15-30 seconds at a time, stirring well after each burst of heat until smooth. Or in the top of a double-boiler or in a heat-proof bowl set over a pot of simmering water. I have not had good experience with the microwave and chocolate, so I use the bowl method.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a medium bowl working by hand, beat the brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, baking powder, and salt together. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the cooled melted chocolate. Beat well again.

Fold in the flour, toffee bits, and chocolate chips, and gently stir until just combined.

Using a tablespoon, portion the dough onto the baking sheets about 2 inches apart to allow for spreading.

Bake for about 12 minutes, until the tops look cracked, rotating the baking sheet halfway through the baking time. Allow to cool on a wire rack for a few minutes before removing the cookies from the pan and allowing them to cool completely.

Inspire me Monday. Inspire me Tuesday . Metamorphosis. You’re the Star. Tuesday with a twist. Wonderful Wednesday. Keep in touch. Beautifully made. Party in your pjs. Wednesday blog hop. Share your style. Grandma’s House DIY. Vintage charm.Friendship Friday. Funtastic Friday. Grace at Home Thursday favorites. BFF open house. Morning Cup Of Joe. Home matters.Create bake grow.. Happiness is homemade. Create with joy. Creatively crafty Senior salon. Turn about Tuesday Saturday Sparks Farmhouse Friday All About Home Flaunt it Friday Pink Saturday encouraging hearts and home Wednesday Centerpiece. Dare to share. heart and souls simple sunday silverado. The Fabulous Party. homestead blog hop traffic jam busy Monday. Love your creativity potpourri Karin’s kottage Full plate. Share the wealth what’s for dinner. Sunday sunshine

Potpourri Link up@ My Bijou Life

Encouraging Hearts And Home@Slices Of Life

Full Plate Thursday@Miz Helen’s Country Cottage

Morning Cup Of Joe@The Country Cottage

What’s For Dinner@The Lazy Gastronome

You’re the Star@Gods Growing Garden

For whatever reason, I have attended many a potluck in my lifetime. When asked what I was going to contribute, I always said “I can bring homemade sourdough bread!” This statement was almost always greeted by a look of pure awe or barely disguised disbelief. Even now, some of you are thinking…sourdough bread isn’t that really hard…time consuming…better left to the experts? Just have some faith…and a good starter, and you can impress your family and friends with the crusty, chewy goodness. The basic starter is probably the most challenging aspect. However, if you can measure and mix flour and water, you can make starter. There are terrific recipes all over Pinterest, or let me know and I can give you my own secret recipe.

This recipe is a good beginner’s sourdough bread because most of the uncertainty of the rise is removed with the addition of a little yeast. It is great for a newer starter…and absolutely delicious.

The usual Cast of Characters

1 cup “fed” sourdough starter

1 1/2 cups lukewarm water

2 teaspoons instant yeast

2 1/2 teaspoons salt

5 cups Bread flour

1 tbs dough enhancer…optional but highly recommended.

The Steps to Glory

1. Combine all of the ingredients, kneading to form a smooth dough. I use a kitchen aide mixer on low about 8-10 minutes
2. Allow the dough to rise, in a lightly greased, covered bowl, until it’s doubled in size, about 90 minutes. Keep in a warm spot.
3. Gently divide the dough in half; it’ll deflate somewhat.
4. Gently shape the dough into two oval loaves. Place the loaves on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover and let rise until very puffy, about 1 hour. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 425°F.

4.Spray the loaves with lukewarm water. This step is essential for the crusty outside, soft inside beauty of sourdough.

5. Make two fairly deep diagonal slashes in each using a serrated bread knife. Sprinkle with sea salt.

6. Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes, until it’s a very deep golden brown.

7. This is my secret tip just for you…turn oven off, prop open door with an oven mitt and allow the bread to cool in the oven. Don’t remove until the outside is cool enough to touch. Why do this? It prevents the Bread from having a soggy outside from the evaporation as it cools. Soggy bread is just sad.

8. Remove, slice and enjoy…and accept all the compliments. Just don’t tell them how easy it was to do.

Inspire me Monday. Inspire me Tuesday . Metamorphosis. You’re the Star. Tuesday with a twist. Wonderful Wednesday. Keep in touch. Beautifully made. Party in your pjs. Wednesday blog hop. Share your style. Grandma’s House DIY. Vintage charm.Friendship Friday. Funtastic Friday. Grace at Home Thursday favorites. BFF open house. Morning Cup Of Joe. Home matters.Create bake grow.. Happiness is homemade. Create with joy. Creatively crafty Senior salon. Turn about Tuesday Saturday Sparks Farmhouse Friday All About Home Flaunt it Friday Pink Saturday encouraging hearts and home Wednesday Centerpiece. Dare to share. heart and souls simple sunday silverado. The Fabulous Party. homestead blog hop traffic jam busy Monday. Love your creativity potpourri Karin’s kottage. Full plate. What’s for dinner Sunday sunshine

Funtastic Friday@Two Chicks and a mom

Pink Saturday@How Sweet the Sound

By Elizabeth Barrett Browning

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

I love thee to the depth and breadth and height

My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight

For the ends of being and ideal grace.

Love and a messy kitchen.

Inspire me Monday. Inspire me Tuesday . Metamorphosis. You’re the Star. Tuesday with a twist. Wonderful Wednesday. Keep in touch. Beautifully made. Party in your pjs. Wednesday blog hop. Share your style. Grandma’s House DIY. Vintage charm.Friendship Friday. Funtastic Friday. Grace at Home Thursday favorites. BFF open house. Morning Cup Of Joe. Home matters.Create bake grow.. Happiness is homemade. Create with joy. Creatively crafty Senior salon. Turn about Tuesday Saturday Sparks Farmhouse Friday All About Home Flaunt it Friday Pink Saturday encouraging hearts and home Wednesday Centerpiece. Dare to share. heart and souls simple sunday silverado. The Fabulous Party. homestead blog hop traffic jam busy Monday. Love your creativity potpourri Karin’s cottage. Share the wealth. Sunshine