Beans and Buckeyes

I'm going to try and be brief today. I know anyone with even a pinch of respect for human life is mourning those lives lost in Newtown, Connecticut. We remembered this and one of our former colleagues who died last Sunday at the age of 52 at our Christmas lunch yesterday. Our friend's sudden death was a shock to us all. I pray for his family and for the families of those in Conn. 

I wanted to share something I've learned about burnt beans from one of my fellow Kentuckians and this photo of my buckeyes (chocolate-covered peanut butter balls). Even us transplanted southerners love our beans and even those of us who make the best-tasting soup beans, as we call them in my family, sometimes get busy doing something else and burn the beans. How I hate the smell! To save the beans that didn't burn transfer to another pan, wash them and add more water and a tablespoon of peanut butter. According to Gilda, the peanut butter works and your beans come out delicious and there is absolutely no burnt taste. Makes me want to burn them just to try out this trick. Only joking! 

I imagine some of you are making lots of goodies for Christmas, like me. I've made another batch of buckeyes today and some Russian teacakes. I don't imagine I'll post anything next Sunday, but will try to wish you a Merry Christmas on facebook, ipernity, blogger or google +. Enjoy the holidays.