my quiet life at home . . . the comforts of wintering

a celebration of all the comforts of wintering 

before springtime begins . . .

{{ dark chocolate chip scones }}

All i really want this winter is to be a hobbit. 

I want to stay home, eat lots of comfort food, 

and read lots of books in my cozy library.

~ Unknown ~

{{ Valentine's Day chicken pot pie }}

In winter, I often spend all day in the kitchen, it is in winter that I love it best, and it is then that I most enjoy my own particular sort of cooking best, too, for one of the richest pleasures of domestic life is and has always been, filling the house with the smells of food, or baking bread and cakes, bubbling casseroles and simmering soups, of vegetables fresh from the garden and quickly steamed, of the roasting of meat, of new-ground coffee and pounded spices and chopped herbs, or hot marmalade and jam and jelly.

~ Susan Hill ~

{{ Valentine's Day chocolate strawberry cheesecake with dark chocolate covered strawberries }}

All the kitchens along Brambly edge were warm and busy. Hot soups, punches and puddings bubbled and in the ovens pies browned and sizzled. Clover and Catkin helped Mrs. Apple string crabapples to roast over the fire. 

~ Jill Barklem ~

{{ a cheesecake close-up ~ a little plus is that each of the desserts I shared here today are sweetened with either coconut sugar or maple syrup }}

It's winter. Slow down and embrace the quiet. Wrap yourself in a cozy blanket.

Enjoy a cup of chai as the snow falls. Light a candle and let warmth fill the room.

~ The Motherhouse ~

{{ a chocolate fudge caramel cake to celebrate a snow day...because, why not?!?! }}

{{ poetry that just gets me }}

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

What home comforts are you savouring these last weeks of winter?