The View From Mrs. Sundberg's Window

A lot we didn't get around to

January 2, 2013

Listened to the show Saturday and it was not bad. A bit rough to hear it all with everything going on. People were rushing in and out all day - out for skating and sledding, in for movies and breakfast for dinner. We had French toast, because we hadn't in a while, and it was a cozy night, and somehow French toast seemed right. I made it the way my mother does, dipped in egg and milk and fried in oil and rolled in cinnamon sugar. Butter a must, syrup optional.

We often have Chinese food over the New Year stretch of days, but didn't get around to it this year. There's a lot we didn't get around to, which could be viewed as a sad thing. Didn't listen to Handel's Messiah all the way through. Didn't get the Christmas letters in the mail, again. (Have to shoot for a Valentine's Day Letter.) Didn't light the advent candles and do the readings as we often do. Didn't go caroling. Didn't make The Ham with Caribbean Sauce. Didn't call the Faraway Loved Ones on Christmas Day (too much running).

As I think about it, this New Year, when you have a long list of what doesn't get done, it's not necessarily a bad thing. Not bad at all. Just means you had a hope for something. I'm pretty much at peace with what I didn't do. What I DID do was just enough, and just right. Drove around for three whole hours just looking at lights. Listened to my dear friend Angela's recording of "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." Lit a lot of candles and made a fantastic turkey with mediocre gravy. Made it to church, all of us, on Christmas Eve. You know, that alone, really, was enough. That we were together, and we were. A true blessing, indeed.

There was a request along the way for this recipe, which makes it a repeat -- but a good one -- and a lovely snack for a January afternoon in a new year.

Chocolate Cherry Cake

1 chocolate cake mix
21 oz can cherry pie filling
2 beaten eggs
1-2 tsp almond extract

Mix above ingredients in a bowl. Pour into a greased and floured 9x13 cake pan. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until cake is set in middle. May also be made in a larger pan for thinner bars. Use below recipe or frost with a can of your favorite ready-made chocolate frosting.

Chocolate frosting:
Bring to boil 1 c sugar, 5 T butter, and 1/3 c milk; boil 1 minute. Remove from heat. Add 1 c chocolate chips. Stir well. Pour over cake and let cool.

Serve plain or with whipped topping.