Step 1Reserve 3/4 cup of chicken broth, and pour the rest into a large saucepan. Stir the salt, ginger and chives into the saucepan, and bring to a rolling boil. In a cup or small bowl, stir together the remaining broth and cornstarch until smooth. Set aside.
Step 2In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and egg yolk together using a fork. Drizzle egg a little at a time from the fork into the boiling broth mixture. Egg should cook immediately. Once the eggs have been dropped, stir in the cornstarch mixture gradually until the soup is the desired consistency.
Divinity Candy recipe is a Southern classic. Just one bite and you’ll be hooked on this chewy, soft vanilla treat packed with crunchy pecans!
Tips to make Divinity Candy:
When I was young set out to give this a try, and if I’m being honest, my first attempt was a fail.
There is a lesson to be learned from me…don’t rush it.
In your final step, you need to beat the mixture for about 6 minutes, until it loses it’s glossy finish. You want to be able to scoop some out of the bowl and it will stand on it’s own. My first attempt spread into a puddle on my baking sheet after several minutes.
If I were to describe the texture, I would say once you sink your teeth into the candy, it’s got a fluffy texture like a homemade marshmallow. However, as you continue to bite into it, you’ll find a soft fudge like texture is revealed.
How to make Divinity candy recipe:
First, you’re going to need an electric stand mixer. A handheld mixer will not do the job on this one, as you need a little higher power, and you allow it to run for minutes at a time!
Second, don’t attempt to make this on a humid day. Much like meringue cookies, this candy will not set up nicely if it’s too humid. Or so I’m told!
Use a good quality PURE Vanilla Extract (or Almond Extract). This will make the flavor stand out.
Check your candy thermometer before using it, to make sure it’s calibrated correctly. To do this, place your thermometer in boiling water for a few minutes. It should register at 212° If it is above or below that, add or subtract the same difference in degrees from the recipe temperature! Also, make sure while you are boiling the mixture, the bulb of the candy thermometer is completely covered with liquid and is not touching the bottom or side of the pan.
Store your Divinity Candy in a tightly covered container at room temperature. ENJOY!
August 25 is Kiss and Make Up Day, a day to let go of resentment, grudges, anger, and indignation. The unofficial holiday encourages people to make up and reconcile with anyone they are estranged with – at work, school, or in their family.
Conflict is one of the biggest truths in life. No matter how much we may try, disagreements are a big part of our relationships with others.
Most of the times, these differences can be easily set aside and forgotten. Sometimes, however, arguments and misunderstandings can take an ugly turn, estranging and isolating people from each other.
Kiss and make up is an English language idiom that means to forgive someone and be friends again with them.
A Second Chance
Kiss and Make Up Day provides a second chance – it is a day to set aside all difference and let people in our lives know that despite all the quarrels and the disagreements, they mean a lot to us.
How to Celebrate?
Staying angry with a loved one can be harmful not only to a relationship but to one’s own mental and physical health. So, take this day to let go of all the anger and make up with someone you have quarreled with.
Did You Know…
…that in many cultures kissing on the cheek is a sign of respect and friendship?
Pluto Demoted Day on August 24 commemorates the day in 2006 when Pluto’s status was downgraded from a full sized planet to a dwarf planet by the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
Discovered in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, Pluto was the Solar System’s 9th planet for 76 years. Given the name of the ancient Greek ruler of the underworld, Pluto was named by an 11-year-old girl called Venetia Burney.
250 Year Orbit
Because Pluto is very far from us – on average it is about 6 billion kilometers (4 billion miles) from Earth, little is known about the dwarf planet. In size, Pluto has a diameter of about 2250 kilometers (1400 miles), which is about two-thirds the size of Earth’s Moon.
Pluto’s orbit is highly eccentric. In other words, its orbit around the Sun is not perfectly circular. This means that the distance between it and the Sun varies over time. It takes Pluto about 250 Earth years to orbit once around the Sun, and about 6.5 Earth days to make a full rotation around its axis.
Demotion to Dwarf Planet
The IAU defines a planet as a celestial body that “orbits around the Sun, has a nearly round shape and has cleared the neighborhood around its orbit.” Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet because it does not meet the third criteria to be a full-sized planet. It is not the dominant object on its orbit around the Sun – other bodies can be found in the region around its neighborhood.
How to Celebrate?
Celebrate Pluto’s previous status as a planet by spendings some time in the day reading about planets and their characteristics.
Have children? Take them on a visit to your local planetarium and introduce them to the joys of astronomy. Teach them everything you know about the Solar System and about planets. Maybe you could make a model of the Solar System with them in order to understand how it works?
August 23 is Ride Like the Wind Day, a day to well, ride like the wind if you can. The day also commemorates the first time the Kremer Prize was awarded in 1977. The prize is awarded to people who pioneer human powered flight.
Human powered flights are aircraft that use human muscle power to run. Due to technological issues – they are unable to fly for long distances or for a considerable amount of time – human powered flights are usually flown for experimental and recreational purposes.
The first authenticated human powered flight that was successful in taking off and flying for a significant distance took place in 1961. Derek Piggott, a glider pilot in the British Royal Air Force flew Southampton University’s Man Powered Aircraft on November 9, 1961, for about 600 meters.
Running Away
The holiday is a play on the English language phrase run like the wind, which means to run very fast. It is sometimes used in the context of running away from someone or something – the 1980 song Ride Like the Wind, by American singer-songwriter Christopher Cross, recounts the story of an outlaw who runs away to Mexico to avoid punishment.
Ride like the wind is also sometimes used to refer to the act of doing things without purpose. Just like the wind can change direction at any time, someone riding like the wind can change the course of their lives without any warning and do things without any rhyme or reason.
How to Celebrate?
Learn more about the history and science of human powered flight.
Take flying lessons and ride like the wind.
Take your bike out for a spin and feel the wind in your hair.
Did You Know…
…that Jacqueline Cochran was the first woman to break the sound barrier on May 18, 1953?
August 22 is Be An Angel Day. Established in 1993 by Jaune Howard Feldman, the day encourages people to be angels to those in need.
In many religions, angels are supernatural spirits that are thought to be responsible for protecting humans.
The day reminds us that even though we can’t be actual angels, we can emulate the kindness they are known for. Being kind and good to our fellow human beings is not hard – all we need to do is to stop thinking about ourselves for a while (or a day) and to think about how we can make the world a nicer and kinder place.
How to Celebrate?
Be kind to others. Do something to help a stranger.
Do random acts of kindness without any expectations of reciprocation. For example, give up your seat on the bus or train to someone else, pay for the coffee the person behind you may buy at the coffee shop, or leave a small gift in your neighbor’s mailbox.
Volunteer your time and money to a charitable organization.
Do something that will bring a smile to the face of people.
If you know of someone who is going through a difficult time, give them your support and let them know that you are there for them. Help them out in their difficult times.
If someone is being an angel to you, thank them, and let them know that their kindness is being appreciated.
Did You Know…
…that Angelology is the theological study of angels?
August 21 is Spumoni Day, so treat yourself to a slice (or two) of the delicious layered Italian ice cream dessert.
Originating in Naples, Italy, Spumoni is a dessert made of layers of ice cream that are mixed with candied fruits, whipped cream, and nuts. Served in slices, spumoni traditionally includes chocolate, pistachio, and cherry flavored ice cream, though sometimes raspberry or strawberry ice cream can be used as a substitute for cherry.
Christmas Dessert
Popular among Italian immigrants in the United States, Canada, and Argentina, and it is believed that Spumoni was the inspiration for Neapolitan ice cream – the three layered dessert made up of vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry ice cream.
In many parts of the United States, Spumoni is considered a Christmas time dessert and is usually paired with cookies of some kind.
The unofficial holiday is also sometimes called National Spumoni Day in the U.S.
How to Celebrate?
In mood for some ice cream? Why not visit your local ice cream shop for a big slice of spumoni?
Can’t find spumoni where you are? Don’t despair, making spumoni from scratch is easy. All you need is chocolate, pistachio, and cherry ice cream, homemade or store bought, some nuts, candied fruits, and whipped cream. Layer the ice creams mixed with the nuts and fruits and the whipped cream one-by-one in a loaf pan, or any other mold of your choice, and let set. Unmold, slice, and enjoy. Don’t forget to share it with family and friends.
Did You Know…
…that in Canada, Spumoni Day is celebrated every year on November 13?
Don’t wait till the holiday season to treat yourself and your loved ones to the dessert that many believe is southern United States on a plate – chocolate pecan pie. Enjoy a slice or two of this decadent dessert on August 20, or Chocolate Pecan Pie Day.
A variant of the pecan pie, chocolate pecan pie is made by baking a mix of pecans, chocolate, eggs, and sugar syrup or honey over a pie crust.
A Rich History
Considered to be a quintessential southern US dessert and usually served during Thanksgiving and at Christmas time, the pecan pie is thought to have evolved from treacle pies popular during the middle ages in Europe and molasses pies popular in the U.S. during the 19th century.
Very little is known about the invention of the pecan pie – no mention of it was made in cookbooks until the early 20th century, but some food historians credit the French in New Orleans for creating it after being introduced to the pecan nut by Native Americans.
Healthful Nuts
Native to Mexico and the southern United States, pecans are some of the healthiest nuts out there. They are a good source of proteins and magnesium, and are full of antioxidants. They are also known to lower the risk of heart disease and some forms of cancer.
How to Celebrate?
With lots of chocolate pecan pie, of course! With all the health benefits pecans have to offer, you can indulge in a slice or 2 guiltlessly.
Make a chocolate pecan pie from scratch and share with your family and friends. Try different variations of this classic. Add a dash of cayenne for a Mexican twist or a splash of bourbon to elevate the flavors.
Don’t want to make a pie? What about making a chocolate pecan pie cheesecake or a chocolate pecan pie milkshake?
Did You Know…
…that pecans are technically drupes not nuts? Drupes are fruits where the seeds are covered by the flesh of the fruit. The seed is the edible part of the fruit and is called the pecan nut. Coffee, pistachios, coconuts, and olives are all drupes.
August 19 is World Photo Day. The unofficial holiday, which is also sometimes known as Photo Day or World Photography Day, is an annual celebration of the art and science of photography.
Created in 2009 by Australian photographer Korske Ara, the day encourages people to pick up their camera and be inspired by other fellow photographers to take pictures and share them with the world.
A Modern Innovation
While photography is a fairly modern innovation, the human desire to capture moments and memories and share them with others is as old as the history of humankind itself. One of the oldest attempts to record events was through the discovery of the camera obscura. It is a device with a hole through which light passes and creates an inverted image of the scene outside. Known to have been used as a way to recreate events – artists would sketch or trace the image in order to record it – for centuries, the earliest records of camera obscura date back to 400 BCE China.
Photography, as we know it today, did not come about the early 1900s when people found a way to permanently capture a scene on a surface using chemicals that reacted to light. The earliest surviving photograph dates back to 1826 or 1827. It was taken by French inventor Joseph Nicéphore Niépce. The photograph is a view of Niépce’s estate in Burgundy, France.
A Hobby of Many
Cameras and photography went through a lot of technological innovations in the 20th century. Today, the availability of affordable and high-quality digital cameras has made photography a widespread hobby.
How to Celebrate?
Whether you are an amateur, a professional, or someone who spends most of his or her day taking phone pictures and sharing them with your social media followers, World Photography Day is an easy holiday to celebrate. Here are some ways you can enjoy this day:
Learn and read more about the history and science behind photography.
If you have always wanted to learn photography, maybe today is the time to start taking lessons.
If you are a photographer, why not volunteer your time to teach your craft and trade to others?
Did You Know…
…that some 12 Hasselblad cameras were left on the Moon by various missions? Some suggest that this was done in order to compensate for the weight of rock and soil samples the astronauts brought back to Earth.
August 18 is Mail Order Catalog Day, an annual holiday that celebrates the old-fashioned way of shopping by choosing items from a printed catalog, and ordering and paying for it through the post/ mail or over the telephone.
It is believed, that the unofficial holiday commemorates the anniversary of the day in 1872 when American entrepreneur Aaron Montgomery Ward sent out the first modern mail order catalog to customers in Chicago.
Mail order catalogs or mail order catalogues are a type of direct marketing strategy where companies can communicate directly and personally with the customers. The catalog is a publication, not unlike a magazine, that lists all the items available to buy from a business and their prices.
Colorful History
Mail order shopping has a colorful history. Historians believe that one of the first shopping catalogs was produced in the late 15th century, when Italian publisher, Aldus Manutius of Venice, published a list of books his company – Aldine Press – was printing.
In 1667, William Lucas published a gardening catalog in England, and in 1744, Benjamin Franklin became one of the first people in America to print a catalog from which people could choose to buy books and scientific publications.
Mail order shopping did not become popular in the United States until the early 19th century when farmers and book publishers started taking advantage of the newly-started national postal service and an expanded railway system to sell seeds and books all over the country. By the 20th century, mail order catalogs selling anything from groceries to full-fledged homes became a big part of daily mail received by people.
Today, with the advances in Internet technology, printed mail order catalogs are quickly being replaced by online shopping.
How to Celebrate?
Order something from a mail order catalog. Yes, despite the decline in their popularity, some companies still publish mail order catalogs. Pick one up and spend some time going through it today.
Visit your local thrift store of flea market and look for vintage mail order catalogs. For many years, businesses spent a lot of money and time creating the perfect catalog. Today, they are not only a glimpse of life back in time, but are also highly coveted for their artistic value.
Did You Know…
…that the Hammacher Schlemmer is the oldest mail order catalog still in print today? The catalog was first printed in 1848 and sells hardware and tools.
Deborah & Munchkin's Adventures 