The Avalon Ladies Scrapbooking Society (57 page)

1 cup (6 ounces) chopped semisweet or bittersweet chocolate or chocolate chips

½ cup (4 ounces) heavy cream

1. In a double boiler, melt the chocolate in the cream, stirring occasionally until smooth.

2. If you prefer to use a microwave, combine the chocolate chips and cream in a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on medium power, stirring after every minute, until the chocolate is melted.

3. Dip cooled biscotti into chocolate and let cool.

1 cup Amish Friendship Bread Starter

3 eggs

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

½ cup milk

1 cup sugar

¼ teaspoon lemon extract

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

1½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking soda

2 cups flour

2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

1 small box lemon instant pudding

1 tablespoon flax meal (optional)

Easy Lemon Glaze (recipe follows)

Sprig of rosemary (optional)

Lemon rind (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 325°F (165°C).

2. In a large mixing bowl, add ingredients as listed, and mix until smooth.

3. Grease two large loaf pans.

4. Dust the greased pans with flour, coating the pans evenly on all sides.

5. Divide the batter evenly into loaf pans.

6. Bake for one hour or until the bread loosens evenly from the sides and a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack.

7. Drizzle with the Easy Lemon Glaze (recipe follows) and garnish with a sprig of rosemary or lemon rind.

8. ENJOY!

Juice of 1 lemon

2 cups confectioner’s sugar

Dash of lemon extract

1. Mix lemon juice and powdered sugar and stir until desired consistency is reached.

2. Add dash of lemon extract and mix in thoroughly.

3. Drizzle glaze over cake before serving.

4 pork chops

2 tablespoons flour, or as needed

Salt and black pepper to taste

2 tablespoons vegetable oil (to coat the bottom of the skillet)

1 onion, sliced

1 red bell pepper, seeded and sliced in rings

4 tablespoons uncooked rice

1 16-ounce can chopped tomatoes with juice

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1. Preheat oven 400°F (200°C).

2. Dust the pork chops with a mixture of flour, salt, and pepper.

3. Add the vegetable oil to a skillet, and brown pork chops on medium-high heat.

4. Place pork chops in a casserole dish.

5. Place a slice of onion, a ring of red bell pepper, and a tablespoon of uncooked rice inside the red pepper ring on the pork chops.

6. Pour the can of tomatoes evenly over the pork chops.

7. Add the Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper.

8. Bake for about 45 minutes. Serve with a salad and hot rolls.

2 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and cored

2 8-ounce cans of crescent roll dough

2 sticks butter

1½ cups sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon plus cinnamon to taste

1 12-ounce can Mountain Dew soda

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F (175° C).

2. Butter a 9 × 13-inch baking dish.

3. Cut each apple into 8 slices. Roll each apple slice in a crescent roll. Pinch to seal and place in baking dish.

4. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon.

5. Pour the mixture and then the Mountain Dew over the apple dumplings. Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake until golden brown, about 30–45 minutes.

4 ounces fresh spaghetti

2 ounces extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

1 shallot, finely minced

¼ teaspoon pepperoncini

2 cups plum tomatoes (San Marzano if possible), seeded and crushed

1 box of spaghetti

2 tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, freshly grated Salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces

1. Heat and salt a large pot of water. Bring to a boil.

2. Add 1 ounce of the olive oil to a medium-sized pan, and sauté the garlic, shallot, and pepperoncini. Add tomatoes and sauté on high heat for about 2 minutes.

3. Drop fresh pasta into water and cook for about 30 seconds. Add to mixture in sauté pan.

4. Add 2 ounces of pasta water to sauté pan and turn the heat down to low.

5. Toss the pasta until cooked to desired doneness. Add additional pasta water as necessary.

6. Remove from heat. Toss with cheese, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. Garnish with basil leaves and serve immediately.

2 cups all-purpose flour, with extra for dusting and as needed

1½ cups boiling water

5 tablespoons sesame oil

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon white or black pepper

½ cup chopped scallions, white and green parts

1 cup vegetable oil, as needed

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and boiling water, stirring with a wooden spoon until a soft dough ball is formed.

2. Once the dough is cool enough to handle, continue to knead with your hands. Divide the dough into 8 portions. Leave in bowl and set aside.

3. In a small bowl, mix the sesame oil, salt, and pepper.

4. On a floured surface, roll one portion of the dough until thin.

5. Drizzle a layer of the sesame oil mixture over the dough, using your hand or pastry brush to coat the surface evenly.

6. Sprinkle scallions over the dough.

7. Starting from one edge, roll up the dough (scallions included) to form a log.

8. Coil the log into a circle.

9. Use the palm of your hand to press the circle flat. Use a rolling pin to roll into a pancake, about ¼ inch thick. Continue to make pancakes until all the dough has been used.

10. Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat.

11. Place one pancake in the skillet pan, cooking until the edges and center are a crisp golden brown. Flip pancake and brown other side. Drain on paper towels.

~ Chose the photos you’d like to scrap. Cluster them by theme, people, or place in chronological order. You can also choose an event or special occasion (holiday, birthday, trip or vacation, new baby, etc.). Place them in a Ziploc bag or paper envelope until ready to use, labeled with the theme of the album.

~ Choose your album size. You can buy pre-made albums or create your own.

~ Choose your papers and embellishments. Craft stores carry a
wide selection of materials, the only limitation being your creativity (and possibly your budget!).

~ Begin laying out your page, which means putting everything down on the page. Don’t glue anything yet. Have fun, move things around, experiment with different looks. If you’re not sure where to begin or what looks good, flip through some magazines to get layout ideas. Think about adding a title to your page that captures the theme and photographs.

~ Journal each photo or page. Write down details, memories, key words. Think of it as a caption or diary entry. Don’t forget to include dates. You can write directly on the page or use pre-made journal cards. You can also type it up on your computer and then trim to fit the page.

~ When you’re ready and everything is positioned as you’d like, glue everything to the page.

~ Insert finished pages into page protector sleeves or into your album directly. You can also scan the page and create a digital image so you can share your album virtually with friends and family.

~ Choose and agree upon a theme. Some ideas are family, friendship, holidays, birthdays, trips, school, sports, pets. Why not scrapbook about your book club meetings and members?

~ Tell members to bring 4–6 photos that fit with the theme, sharp scissors, glue, and any other ephemera they’d like to include.

~ Provide 12 × 12 scrapbooking paper (solids and patterns), fun embellishments (brads, eyelets, buttons, ribbon, stickers, alpha letters, chipboard shapes, rub-on transfers), extra glue and scissors. A paper cutter, paper punches, rubber stamps (and ink pads) are also great to have on hand.

~ Provide and/or have people bring Amish Friendship Bread cakes, cookies, or muffins. Over 250 Amish Friendship Bread recipes are available on the website. Or try any of the recipes in
the book, such as Connie’s Mountain Dew Apple Dumplings or Frances’s Chinese scallion pancakes.

~ Download discussion guide questions from the website.

~ Share your layout or a photo of your book club with Darien by posting it on the book’s page at Amazon.com or on the Friendship Bread Kitchen Facebook wall.