We had our regular Christmas dinner on Christmas, then on Sunday, my oldest son, Bill, his wife, Kelly Jo and my adorable year old grandson, Mason came up for a second Christmas, complete with a dinner, too. David’s snowmobile was down with carburetor problems. So one of Bill’s big presents to him was showing him how to take them off and clean and adjust them. After dinner, they did just that out in our new addition. Now David knows just how to do it himself. And to top it off, the snowmobile started with one, count ‘em, ONE pull! Way to go Bill!

And I got to play with Mason. We played ball and horsey rides. Kelly took him for a ride on his new birthday sled, then we went to visit the goats. David’s old pet, Oreo, just loved him and kept trying to get Mason to pet him. What a ham! I mean Oreo, not Mason! Well, maybe Mason, too. When we went inside, he was playing with the newly redone snowmobile seat (my big present). Kelly said “go night night” and he laid down, pretending to sleep. Then up he’d pop. What a game! What a ham! And oh so cute!

My last Christmas dinner is my BIG one, this year. My long-awaited sweetheart arrives for good, in Minnesota, on January 9th. So on Saturday, I’m throwing another big feed that I know he’ll enjoy. But not as much as I’ll enjoy making the meal. It’s all about incentive!

Readers’ Questions:

Flat cookies

I was wondering if you could give me any advice on flat cookies. Over the past year or so, my cookies have come out flat. I have baked for years and have made many different kinds of cookies. My molasses cookies are flat, my chocolate chip cookies are flat,and even the oatmeal cranberry chocolate chip cookies I just made turned out flat. I have tried adding more flour and that doesn’t seem to help. Any thoughts you might have would be welcomed! Thanks for doing what you do! Bless you,

Lisa Seibel
Coburn, Pennsylvania

I’d check my baking soda. It usually doesn’t “age,” but it’s a possibility. Try a new box. More “fat” cookies often have baking powder instead of soda. They also have more flour and another egg. Thinner cookies usually have more butter/margarine, fewer eggs, and less flour. Also, don’t press your cookies down when you put them on the cookie sheet. Just put a walnut sized ball on there and bake. Pressing them down results in thinner cookies. Better luck next time! I’ll bet your skinny cookies taste okay, anyway! — Jackie

Leather patterns

I have been looking everywhere for patterns to sew tanned leather hides. Could you give me some resources to these patterns. This would be greatly appreciated. I would like to make slippers and purses.

Debbie W.
Hillsboro, Wisconsin

Just type leather patterns into your browser; there are dozens of places out there, offering just what you are looking for and probably even more. Wow, what fun! — Jackie

Canning peppers

Would it be ok to can peppers, sweet or hot in plain water? I don’t want them to taste like a pickle as I saute them with onions etc to add to my rice or scrambled eggs. Thank you for reading my letter.

Helen Cavaness
Mendota, Illinois

Yes, you can home can peppers, using water as a liquid. But if you do, you must pressure can them, not water bath process them. When using vinegar, it pickles them, making the naturally low acid peppers into a high acid food. Without the vinegar, they stay low acid and thus must be pressure canned. You will pack them hot into hot jars, add boiling water, leaving 1″ of headspace. Process half pints and pints for 35 minutes at 10 pounds pressure. — Jackie

Slicing homemade bread

My family loves homemade bread but slicing it is a chore in itself! I have searched for a manual bread slicer with a cutting guide but options are limited. How do you slice your homemade bread so that slices are the same size and not thinner at the top and thicker at the bottom?

Janetta Rothmeyer
Kirtland, New Mexico

I turn my loaves of bread on its side. In that way, bread slices much better and I don’t get those thick/thin slices. One of my kids made me a bread slicer in shop, in school. It is a piece of 1″x6″ on the bottom with 1″x6″ sides and a slot cut in both sides, opposite each other. You put the loaf in it, and just push it forward as far as you want your slices to be thick. A serrated knife fits in the slot, neatly cutting perfect slices of bread each time; you choose the thickness. Simple, cheap and it works. But usually I’m too lazy and just turn the loaf on its side. — Jackie

Making new garden beds

I have been reading your columns on line for about 2 years. I have been gardening for better than 15 years, always small gardens. I have been able to get some good crops and can the harvest. I just started some potatoes in a container a couple of years ago. With the state of the economy I am looking to expand my gardens. My question is in regard to a yard where my dog is kept during the day. He has been in there for years. What do I have to do to the soil to make this ready for gardening? After I clear the yard and prepare the soil I am planning on using some raised beds near the garage in addition to other beds in the yard. Please let me know what I need to do to the soil. I can send pictures if you would like to see the yard.

John Sweger
Chesterfield, Virginia

I would be really uncomfortable about using this area (dog potty) for a vegetable garden. This is because dogs can carry intestinal parasites, namely roundworm and hookworm, that can be passed on to humans by ingesting worm eggs from the soil. And it can take up to 10 years for the eggs to die in the soil.

What I think I would do is to spread agricultural lime lightly over the area, then till it in very well. If viable, I’d make long rows of raised beds OVER the tilled area, with a growing bed of at least 12″ deep. In this way, you will not be exposed to the possible contaminated soil while working the beds and harvesting crops.

If you think you must use this area, as is, till it very well, then only plant crops that are well above ground, such as sweet corn or pole beans. When you weed, wear gloves and wash your hands very well after gardening. No root crops! Remember: possible worm eggs. Yuck! — Jackie

Concentrating citrus juice

I just had to pick my all the tangerines from my tree due to an early hard freeze. Now I’m faced with a whole bunch of fruit. I know I can can the segments, but I would also like to concentrate some of the juice. In an earlier article you commented about freezing grape juice then thawing and pouring off the excess water, but I’ve heard that also pours off good vitamins. Do you have any ideas for concentrating citrus juice that doesn’t require a ton of specialized equipment? Thanks for your help. Your articles have helped me bunches in the past.

Linda Reuter
Tucson, Arizona

I’m sure that doing the freezing/thawing concentration does reduce the vitamin content a bit, but I really doubt it does, that much, as more of the solids, where the vitamins are concentrated, stay in the ice. No. I don’t know of another “home” method of concentrating citrus juices. Any readers have any good ideas? — Jackie