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Today was a good day. It didn't snow. Thank God, I don't know exactly what I would have done if it did. I never really lived in the snow. Visiting for a day, maybe, but not while it was actually snow-ing. I didn't know what to do when there was frost on my front window. But today the sun was shinning and the sky was blue. Don't let that fool you it was freezing outside. But the outside at least looked pretty.

Russ and Penelope braved the cold weather for a little outside. You can see it was sunny. Here are some adorable pictures of them outside. Of course, Russell is still in shorts.

I got a picture of the Princess dolls on the window ledge in the living room. I used this cool function on my camera. I loved the affect.


I took a picture of the front of our apartment so you can see where we live.

We spent the day cleaning up and taking it easy. Russ got a nap. We invited some people over for dinner and had a good time. They are new to the area also (been here for a little over a year). I made a pasta dinner and some dessert. But I also tried to make this recipe I found in a diabetic cook book. It's Cranberry Almond Biscotti. It turned out pretty good. It is made with real sugar, not a sugar substitue. But it is not a real sweet Biscotti. Plus! It is only 1 point in weight watchers. Note: I had a hard time cutting it into 24 pieces (I got 20 pieces out). It was getting a little crumbly in the middle because it was too soft. Over cook it a little. You want to dry out the bread as much as possible. Below is the recipe:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup blanched almonds

1 egg

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup flour

3/4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1. Preheat the oven to 350'F. Spread the almonds on a baking sheet adn toast them in the oven until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

2. Place the egg, egg white, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl and whisk with an electric mixer until very thick and pale; the mixture should be thick enough to leave a trail on the surface when you life the beaters.

3. Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and baking soda onto a sheet of parchment paper, then sift the mixture again onto the whisked egg mixture. Using a spatula, carefully fold the sifted mixture into the egg mixture, then stir in the toasted almondsand cranberries to make a stiff dough.

4. Spoon the dough onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. With floured hands, form the dough into a neat log shape about 10 inches long and 2 inches wide and flatten slightly. Bake until golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes. Leave to cool on the baking tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cutting board.

5. Using a serrated knife, cut the log across, slightly on the diagonal, into 24 slices. Arrange the slices on the baking sheet and return to the oven. Bake until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. The biscotti can be kept in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

each serving: 1 cookie kcal 71, kcal from fat 14, fat 2 g, sat fat 0g, chol 9 mg, sodium 30 mg, carbs 13 g, fiber 1 g, sugar 6 g, protein 2 g, carb exchange 1.

Also I realized that I really enjoy baking. It's hard since it has so much caloric count and my husband can't have a lot of sweets. But I might get back into baking. I feel so calm and relaxed when I bake. There is something special about actually forming the dough in your hands. Forming it into place. I need to do it more often. Maybe I'll try making some bread more often. Or maybe I'll just bring it to work and have them eat it. They should love me then, right?

One thing I realized is that I put a lot of stuff in storage that I figured I wouldn't use in the time I would just be in the apartment. I defiantly sized down from the kitchen I was in. So I don't think I had room for everything. But there are some things I am seriously missing. I had to finally get Russ to go get me a square 9x9 pan. The recipe called for a sifter- I have 2. But they are in a box somewhere. The biscotti turned out fine anyways and I don't really like sifting much (ask Jen Graham why, LOL). But a cooling rack, I'm taking out my tray from my toaster oven.