LITMIR.BIZ

      JANUARY 18

      HANDMADE PRETZELS

      Pretzels are great nonfat snacks that can easily be made at home. The longer you knead the dough, the softer the pretzel will be. If you’ve got kids, enlist them—to make the process more fun, the dough can easily be formed in the shapes of letters and numbers.

      1½ cups warm water

      1 package yeast

      1 tablespoon sugar

      4 cups flour

      1 teaspoon salt, plus more for tops

      1 egg, beaten

      Preheat oven to 425°. Put the warm water into a large bowl, sprinkle in yeast, and stir until it dissolves. Add sugar, flour, and salt. Mix well, then knead dough until it is smooth and soft. Roll and twist dough into desired shapes—letters, numbers, twists, and so on. Grease two cookie sheets. Lay the pretzel dough shapes onto cookie sheets. Brush with beaten egg and sprinkle lightly with salt. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until golden. Makes 1 to 2 dozen, depending on size.

      JANUARY 19

      THE LANGUAGE OF LOVE

      Words do make the mood. We all know the usual terms of endearment—honey, dear, sweetie, angel, to name but a few. But to fan the flames of ardor and romance, why not try some less tired language, like sweeting, sweetling, or sweetkin (terms in vogue in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries). Or how about dearling (the original form of darling)? Your partner could become your paramour (literally through love) in French. Instead of attractive or cute, you could try toothsome or cuddlesome. Rather than missing, try yearning, pining, longing, or hungering, and watch the passion build.

       JANUARY 20

      CRAZY FOR CRACKERS

      Crackers are incredibly easy to make, and homemade ones are so much better than store-bought ones. I love sesame seeds, so I sprinkle some on just before baking—you can too!

      2 cups all-purpose flour

      1 teaspoon baking powder

      salt

      3/4 cup water, approximately

      sesame seeds, optional

      4 tablespoons butter, margarine, or other shortening

      Preheat oven to 325°. Sift together flour, baking powder, and a pinch of salt. With 2 knives, cut the shortening into the flour until mixture is fine. Add just enough water to make a firm dough. On a lightly floured surface, roll out thinly with a floured rolling pin. Using a round cookie cutter, stamp out crackers, prick them all over with a fork, and sprinkle with salt and sesame seeds if desired. Bake on a lightly greased cookie sheet for 20 minutes or until crisp. Cool on a rack and store in airtight container. Makes 2 dozen.

      JANUARY 21

      SCENTED CANDLES

      Surprise your sweetheart with a candlelit dinner for two with your own homemade scented candles gracing both the table and the bedroom. Their lovely fragrance will be released as they burn. Scented candles are incredibly easy to make—you just need to plan in advance. (If you haven’t planned ahead, you can still get some of the effect by sprinkling a drop or two of your favorite essential oil in the melted wax of a plain candle as it burns.)