Life in the Scrapatch: December 2021

Wednesday, December 15, 2021

Stitch Sew & Show ~ 2021 ~ Wrap-Up

Welcome!

As the year is coming to an end, I am looking back and looking forward.

This will be the last time I post this weekly linky party.

As happens between Thanksgiving and Christmas, my energies have been focused elsewhere and I have done very little sewing, stitching or blogging.

I am in the process of deciding if I want to continue this linky party in 2022.

I have made some lovely new friends here and stayed connected with a few old ones, too.

This makes me happy.

Mostly, this is a no-stress thing for me.

If I stitch, I show.

If I don't, I am a virtual no-show at my own linky party.

Being a no-show makes me unhappy.

I have even had thoughts about putting my blog on pause.

So to continue or not?

Hmmmm ... ???

~~~

I have looked at the blog hops in the works for next year:

Sneak Peek ~ Blog Hops 2022 ~ @ MooseStashQuilting

I have signed up for the January Polar Bear Plunge Blog Hop.

I actually have a couple of blue UFOs that need sewing.

So I will be starting the year off with blog hopping goodness.

I guess this means I have resolved to blog on!

If you have any thoughts on any of this, please share.

If you have any suggestions to improve this linky party, please suggest.

If you have any thoughts on a different theme or day for a linky party,

I am interested.

Tuesday, December 7, 2021

Virtual Christmas Cookie Exchange Blog Hop ~ My Day!

It is Virtual Christmas Cookie Exchange Time!

Welcome to my home for Christmas!

This is my favorite blog hop of the year.

For this year, I wanted to make a gingerbread cookie with candied ginger.

I started with this "flight" of cookies for sampling to decide on the "best" recipe.

In the end, I made them three ways for everyone to choose.

My Ginger Snowball Cookies ~ Three Ways

are for the ...

Please visit all my friends today:

December 7

Life in the Scrapatch (you are here)

Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life

Homespun Hannah's Blog

Cynthia's Creating Ark

Samelia's Mum

My Ginger Snowballs are based on this recipe:

Gingerbread Snowballs @ Crazy For Crust

I made this as shown and then added the other goodies.

I gathered my ingredients:

1 cup butter
½ cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon molasses
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

I preheated my oven to 325° and lined two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
I mixed butter in my kitchen mixer until fluffy. Added the powdered sugar, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and molasses and mixed until smooth. Added flour and mixed until a smooth dough formed. The last part was done by hand.

For basic recipe, I scooped 1 tablespoon of dough, rolled into ball and in powdered sugar and placed on prepared cookie sheet.
I baked my cookies for 15 minutes until bottoms were just slightly brown. After removing from the oven I let them set 5 minutes and then re-rolled them in powdered sugar.
For my test flight of cookies, made one plain rolled in powdered sugar, one plain thumbprint rolled in demerara sugar cookie with blackberry jam,
two with just finely chopped candied ginger rolled in powdered sugar,
two with finely ground walnuts added to the candied ginger
and rolled in nuts,
and three with finely chopped golden raisins added to the nuts and ginger, two rolled in powdered sugar and one in demerara sugar.
Then Mr. Scrapatch and I tested while we decorated our tree.

In the end, we did not decide on a favorite.

Mr Scrapatch enjoyed the ones with just nuts and ginger

and liked the fact that the spices were not too strong.

These cookie were not very "spicy" on the ginger/clove scale.

If you like your gingerbread cookies to have a bit of bite,

you may want to double the spices.

I found the ones with chopped candied ginger, nuts and golden raisins

had a nice moist and flavorful chew.

So I made all three kinds.

To the basic dough, I added one cup of finely chopped candied ginger and scooped, rolled in demerara sugar and baked this batch of cookies.

Then I added 3/4 cup of finely ground walnuts and made another batch rolled in the extra ground nuts.

Then I added 1/2 cup of finely chopped golden raisins and rolled this batch in powdered sugar.

The recipe would make about one dozen of each kind of cookies this way.

I had hoped to have my Gingerbread Cookie Cross Stitch

completed for this post, but I have very busy doing other things.

I sat today and enjoyed my tree and latte and cookie break

while Maestro enjoyed The Tree.

Nutmeg snagged and enjoyed my comfy chair.

Thank you for visiting us today.

I hope you have enjoyed my virtual cookies this year.

May your Christmas be merry and bright and full with delicious cookies this year!

Monday, December 6, 2021

Virtual Christmas Cookie Exchange 2021 Blog Hop ~ Happening Now!

Virtual Christmas Cookie Exchange 2021

This yummy goodness starts today!

Here is the Full Schedule:

December 6

Creatin' in the Sticks

Inflorescence

Quilt Schmilt

Sew Many Yarns

Pumpkin Patch Patterns & Quilting

December 7

Life in the Scrapatch

Pieceful Thoughts of My Quilting Life

Homespun Hannah's Blog

Cynthia's Creating Ark

Samelia's Mum

December 8

For The Love Of Geese

Days Filled With Joy

Food for Thought

Karrin’s Crazy World

Becky’s Adventures in Quilting and Travel

Stitchin At Home

Words & Stitches

Colletta's Kitchen Sink

December 9

This annual blog hop is organized by the lovely

Carol @ Just Let Me Quilt

So grab a cup of coffee, tea or beverage of your choice and start sampling all the goodies!

Enjoy!

Thursday, December 2, 2021

I Like Thursday #117 ~ Sharing the Season

Getting ready for Christmas!

I have been making Christmas Stockings since 2012:

Free Christmas Stocking Tutorial Here

I added names and made this one for Everly's First Christmas,

and have welcomed new members to the family with their own special stocking.

I am posting past projects today as I always find I have very little time for sewing and stitching in the busy weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

This is a time for family and celebrating all the gifts we receive everyday of the year.

I do enjoy all the festive sewing and stitching online.

Here are some free quiltalongs: