Homemade Cocoa Wheats!

One of the absolute favorites here at The Pumpkinhaus is Homemade Cocoa Wheats for breakfast (... that is, when I am not making waffles!) This is so easy to make, and the kids totally freak out for it.

Homemade Cocoa Wheats

makes four good sized bowls

• 3 cups water
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• 1 cup farina
• pinch o' sea salt
• 2 heaping tablespoons natural process cocoa (I like Penzeys)
• up to 1 teaspoon cinnamon (Penzeys the Korintje Cassia Cinnamon is my fav and the Extra Fancy Vietnamese is wonderful too.)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract (Penzeys you haven't had vanilla until you have had theirs.)
• 1 teaspoon almond extract (Penzeys one small bottle has lasted me 3 years so far, and I use it all the time)
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar or more, depends on how sweet you like it

Put water, milk and pinch o' salt in a good sized pot with a fitting lid. As this starts to heat up, add all of your spices and extracts minus the butter and sugar and stir well to melt the cocoa.

Just before the mixture starts to boil, slowly pour in farina... stirring the whole time (this is the secret to no lumps). Stir until it begins to boil, and then turn the burner to simmer and leave it for about 8 min or so, stirring occasionally. Then, put the butter and brown sugar right on top, put the lid on tight, and move it to the back burner and leave it set for about 10 minutes. While it is setting make your toast for dipping, and perk up a fresh pot of coffee.

My kids like it served up with a splash of milk and some extra cinnamon on top to make it pretty. Try dipping with a slice of buttered toast... that is the Dani and Ro special!

Enjoy!

Pumpkinhaus at the Tiny Studio

My show at Tiny Studio last friday was great! It was really wonderful to be able to have an event that included both Joe and I. For so many years now, it has either been his performance or my exibit, never really together. Rowan was there and she worked hard on her art, and then showed Mia and then Teatah around the art hop. She is becoming so independant lately... I can really tell how much she has changed and matured over the last year in moments like these. Of course, she loved it that her dad was performing as Harts Horn, and got to show him off as well!

My handspun yarn and art dolls were very well received, and I also ended up spinning for about three hours straight. Everytime I stopped, someone else would come in and exclaim "Oh wow... " so then, I would sit down and give another demo! I don't care though, I love it and could do it all day, everyday! It is really funny the people who are super interested in watching someone spin. Little boys, and grown men alike just really wanted to know all about it, and how the whole process works... my Gramma thought that was just a hoot! Even she was pretty mystified by the whole thing and watched herself for over an hour... lol.

I have so much stock built up right now, and the massive shop update begins tomorrow and should go steady through wednesday, so please stop by often to see what I have to offer! I will start with bright handspun yarns tomorrow, and then more art yarns on tuesday, and round out the update with many new art dolls on wednesday... I am so excited to have so much new stuff!!!

All right... now off to put my tiny haus back together! It is amazing how messy it can get when you are knee deep in preparations for a show!