Good evening, friends. My husband sent me this e-mail when he saw me barely navigating the world this morning:  

This means it’s a headache day for me, and though these fall and winter pains are no surprise and I know it’s due to the barometric pressure changing, it’s nice to see it in blue and white. This would be why I feel SO much better in the mountains.

Now, at nearly six p.m., I’m able to do some work at the computer, but earlier, about the only thing I could manage was baking. With the holidays coming up, that’s a good idea. And next Monday night, we’re having a JOYS OF CHRISTMAS PAST gathering for folks to share their holiday memories–a perfect day for me to get a head start.

This new recipe surprised me. It truly took about an hour from start to finish, and the final goodies look tempting. My daughter and granddaughter stopped in later and put their seal of approval on the taste.

Since this was such a success, I’ll share the super-simple recipe:

Mix together 1 pkg red velvet cake mix, 6 tbsp melted margarine, and 2 large eggs. You might have to add a little extra flour to make these into 40-60 balls, depending on the size you choose. I like small, because they puff up and look downright cute.

Dip the balls in a mixture of 1/2 cup powdered sugar + 1/2 teas. cornstarch. stirred. Place on greased sheet and bake 8-9 minutes at 375 degrees.They’re ready to eat when they exit the oven – enjoy using these for your holiday guests.

Of course, I had to do a little research on cake mixes…were they available to my World War II characters? Surprisingly, on December 10, 1930, John D. Duff of Pittsburgh applied for U.S. patent no. 1,931,892, thereby birthing the first baking mix (for gingerbread). It’s interesting to read more, seems his company needed to use up lots of molasses…

Anyway, there you have it. A new recipe, and some baking history, to boot.