Erika from Ivory Hut

“Our house burned down last night. Barely made it out alive. Homeless, possession-less. But we’re all safe & together. Still richly blessed.” - @IvoryHut

Many of you know Erika from the beautiful blog, Ivory Hut. Most of you have probably heard that the night before last, Erika’s home burned to the ground. Thankfully, her family was able to make it out alive, but they lost absolutely everything. Can you imagine, standing in front of your home, watching the flames and smoke take over and seeing your home and all of your possessions disintegrate into the air?

Wendy from the blog Wenderly, Erika’s mom and Erika at the Big Summer Potluck

I had the chance to spend some time with Erika during my recent trip to New York as she was part of the Big Summer Potluck event. She is one of the most genuine, authentic, humble and beautiful people you will meet. Friends, remember that big blog post about community I wrote this week? Now is our time to prove that we really are a family of bloggers and it is truly time to rally around one of our own.

A website has been created to accept donations for Erika and her family so they can get back on their feet. Please take a moment to head over to the website and consider donating. Even a $5 donation will help…skip that latte this morning, log in to pay pal, and give.

If you aren’t able to donate, which is completely understandable, stop by Erika’s blog, read her moving account of that night. Leave her a note of encouragement, letting her know that her blogging family is behind her, supporting her 100% of the way as she rebuilds from this terrible tragedy.

I need to get one quick thing out of the way, and then on to the giveaway details! I want to give a special shout out to Amy from the blog, She Wears Many Hats. Amy created this gorgeous Clicks 4 a Cause button for me to use to raise money for my friend Ann. If you haven’t read about Clicks 4 a Cause, please head over HERE. If you haven’t visited Amy’s blog, get over there right now and show her some comment love. You are in for a treat as Amy has a little something for everyone. Her fantastic travel stories, yummy recipes, great antique finds are all wrapped up in a complete package that includes some gorgeous photos. I fell in love with Amy’s blog the first time I read it and now we’ve become fast blogging friends! Thank you, Amy!

OK – now about the vanilla! When I was younger, I think it was around the time I was in Kindergarten, my grandma Sumner was demonstrating to us all how to properly use a sharp knife. I don’t remember much, except all of us kids were standing around watching her when the knife slipped and she cut her finger pretty badly (in my mind, she cut the tip of her finger off, but I don’t fully remember!). That lesson in how to properly use a knife (or not!) stuck with me because I now refuse to cut anything without a cutting board.

Fast forward 30 years later and I am in my kitchen getting ready to make my friend Sandie’s Creme Brulee. I had a couple of really tough vanilla beans that would not slice open. Being the genius that I am, I picked up one of the beans, held it in the palm of my hand and attempted to cut it open that way. That was not a brilliant decision because the knife slipped and cut open the palm of my hand. Ouch!

One good thing came from that experience. I discovered the joy of Vanilla Bean Paste. Vanilla Bean Paste is much easier to use than vanilla beans, it is less expensive, and has a stronger flavor than pure Vanilla Extract. Plus, you get those great little bean specs in everything you make!

Last week the folks from Singing Dog Vanilla and Red Ape Cinnamon contacted me about trying their products. I am currently trying the Singing Dog Vanilla Bean paste and love how strong the vanilla flavor is! I tried it in these cookies and the frosting and the sweet vanilla flavor was really defined.

Now you get the chance to get your own bottle of Singing Dog Vanilla Bean Paste. All you have to do to be entered in the giveaway is to leave a comment on this post. Make sure you complete the form with your email address so that if your name is chosen at random, I can contact you! If we get over 100 unique comments on this post, I’ll throw in a jar of their Red Ape Cinnamon for the winner as well. All comments must be left by 11pm CST on Wednesday, September 16th. Good luck!

Sugar Cookies (from the kitchen of my friend, Jo Ann Emerson)

• ¾ cup butter or margarine, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 t vanilla (I used 1 Tbs Vanilla Bean Paste)
• 2 ¾ cup flour
• 1 t baking powder
• ½ t salt
• Extra Special Buttercream Frosting (recipe follows)

In a mixing bowl, cream butter & sugar. Add eggs and vanilla; beat until light and fluffy. Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Chill for 1 hour or until firm.

On a floured surface, roll a 1/3 of dough to ¼ inch thickness. Cut with cookie cutter. Place on lightly greased baking sheets. Bake at 375^o for 8-10 minutes. Cool on wire racks. Repeat with remaining dough. Frost. Yield: 2 dozen large cookies

Extra Special Buttercream Frosting (from the kitchen of my friend, Jo Ann Emerson)

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup vegetable shortening
• 2 lbs. powdered sugar
• ½ t salt
• 2 t clear vanilla (I used 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste)
• 6-8 oz. whipping cream

Cream butter and shortening until fluffy. Add sugar and continue beating until well blended. Add salt, vanilla and whipping cream. Beat on high speed until icing is fluffy. Note: This frosting should be refrigerated. Yield: 7 ½ cups

This recipe makes enough to frost 2 batches of sugar cookies or an extra large cake. Always start with a little whipping cream and gradually add (humidity affects the amount needed).

Today, I witnessed the most loving, most beautiful, and most heart breaking wedding ceremony ever. My friend Ann, and her husband Hal, renewed their vows to celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary. In a packed sanctuary, we watched as Ann walked down the aisle, flanked by her two young daughters, to meet her groom at the alter. Tears streaming down both their faces, they renewed their vows of marriage, similar to what they did ten years ago today.

I was crying, my husband was crying and nearly everyone around us who witnessed this beautiful event was crying. You see, this wasn’t any ordinary vow renewal. Hal and Ann took the same vows that Nick and I took ten years ago, but the significance of the words behind their vows has taken on an entirely different meaning. ‘Through sickness and in health’ has meant Cancer. Ann has been battling breast cancer since before I met her 7 years ago. She has valiantly stared cancer in the face and has been an example to us all of what it means to fight. Ups and downs. Good times and bad. Hal, her husband, has stood by her side and has cared for her thorough this all. He has watched his best friend, the mother of his children, bravely fight all the while maintaining the faith of one of God’s true soldiers.

Ann’s blog recently read…“We are saddened to say that we did not get the results that we were hoping for. The cancer continues to spread in my liver and in my back and some still in my chest area. Numb is a good description of how we feel.” Ann continues, “To be truthful, I feel like giving up sometimes that I cannot possibly keep doing this but when I look into my girls eyes then i know that i can do it. I don’t want them to ever ask why mom gave up.”

I wrote about Ann a few weeks ago in my Cupcakes for Cancer post. At the time I was struggling to think of something I could do for them… something besides praying and making meals. I don’t have a lot of talents, but I do have a blog. How can I turn my blog into something that could help to benefit Ann, Hal and their girls? After the ceremony today, it dawned on me. From now through the end of 2009, I am going to donate all of the advertising dollars I receive through my blog to Ann and Hal. It won’t be much, but right now I think every bit counts.

How can you help? Well, I’m starting a “Clicks 4 a Cause” network and would love for you to join. My goal is to continue to provide quality content and good recipes for you to enjoy and my hope is that you simply will continue to visit. Pass the word on to your friends to visit Dine & Dish. Whatever it takes to get people to at least stop by on a regular basis so that through viewing the ads on my blog (you don’t even have to click ON the ads), I can raise more and more money for Ann and her family. (Signing up for new post email updates is the easiest way to know when there is new content at Dine & Dish. Click on the red envelope in the right hand sidebar & fill out the easy form.)

If you have a “cause” you would like to raise money for in a similar way, please join the Clicks 4 a Cause network. I will provide you with a “Clicks 4 a Cause” badge for your blog that says “Clicks 4 a Cause.. My clicks are for <insert name>” (example mine would say “My clicks are for Ann”. (My blogging friend, Amy, is graciously creating these badges…will let you know when they are ready!)Write a post on your blog with your intentions and a link back to this post and I will include your link on my “Clicks 4 a Cause” network page, which should be up and running shortly. As part of my commitment, I will visit your site on a regular basis and will ask that you do to the same for those included in the network.

Now for a recipe. After the ceremony today, there was a dessert reception. Tables and tables full of scrumptious desserts. I made these delicious Zucchini Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting. If you have any leftover zucchini hanging around your kitchen, put them to good use with this delicious bar recipe…. hey, if it has a veggie in it, it has to be good for you, right?

Zucchini Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

SERVES 12