Hello, friends!
Summer is in full swing here. My husband is a music teacher, which means he works other short term jobs during the summer, so our schedule can be chaotic. I’m trying to lean into the chaos and enjoy the slow days we do have.
Now we’re preparing to head into school, and also making kind of sudden plans to move to a different town closer to our church and school. We had been thinking of moving next summer, but we got an offer on our house out of the blue, and if all goes according to plan, my next newsletter will be written from a house in Dover, OH. It wasn’t how I imagined the move happening, but God has arranged things this way. I feel peaceful about it now. I’m focusing on harvesting my garden and decluttering corners to make things easier when I need to pack. It certainly is easier to decide to get rid of things if I know I’ll have to pack it up if I don’t. :)
In this newsletter you’ll find:
Homemaking + A favorite baking recipe!
Writing update
Author Spotlight—Meet Emily Barnett!
Homemaking
I was discussing housekeeping with a good friend of mine recently. We marveled at how each us has strengths and gifts and weaknesses when it comes to taking care of our households. Neither of us is perfect, but we learn to lean into the things that bring us life. In this season of my life, that’s making food. I’ve been focusing hard on making nourishing food for myself and my family. We’re also planning to move this year, so we’re tightening our budget. Therefore: lots of baking! I want healthy, nourishing snacks, but don’t want my grocery bill to be too high. I’ve been baking something every few days, and it’s delicious and satisfying and a wonderful creative outlet.
One of my favorite recipes is these homemade KIND bar replacements from sallysbakingaddiction.com. They cost more like 50 cents a bar instead of $3, they’re sweetened with honey, and I use semi sweet chocolate chips. They’re so satisfying. I’m eating one right now while I write this newsletter. :)
CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER SNACK BARS
1/3 cup (113g) honey or brown rice syrup
1/3 cup (37g) almond meal
1 Tablespoon (15g) peanut butter (any nut butter works!)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups (300g) salted peanuts, roughly chopped
5 Medjool dates, roughly chopped
1/3 cup (60g) mini chocolate chips
optional: 4 ounces melted semi-sweet chocolate for drizzling
Preheat oven to 300°F (149°C). Line an 8 or 9 inch square baking pan with parchment paper with enough overhang on the sides to easily remove the bars from the pan. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, mix the honey, almond meal, peanut butter, and vanilla together until combined. Fold in the peanuts, dates, and chocolate chips until combined.
Transfer mixture to prepared baking pan and press very firmly into an even layer. You really want it packed in tight—as tight as possible. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until lightly browned on the edges. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack for 1 hour, then transfer to the refrigerator to chill for 1 more hour. This firms up the bars which helps them stay compact. Remove bars from the pan using the overhang on the sides and cut into bars. You can drizzle with chocolate before or after cutting.
Individually wrap each bar in plastic wrap or parchment. (I use small snack bags) Store at room temperature for 1 week or in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. I find they get a little sticky at room temperature over a few days, so I prefer the refrigerator.
You can also freeze them for up to 3 months and thaw before eating, but mine have never lasted that long. :)
Baking tool tip: I started using a food scale to measure my ingredients this year, and it helps so much. No more carefully spooning and leveling flour! My baking results are more predictable as well. I like this OXO food scale.
Writing Update
The rough draft of PROJECT SPIRALDOWN is done! The middle was the hardest part of this story, and I found myself enjoying the ending more than I thought. It’s something about how everyone’s emotions are out in the open and I get to push the tension to the max. This draft is nothing pretty, but it’s a structure to build upon.
THE SELLER OF SECRETS is still out on submission, soon to be sent to a third round of publishers. We’ve had a little interest, but no bites so far. While that is disappointing, I knew ahead of time that it’s rare to sell the first book. That’s the biggest piece of advice I’d give to a newly agented author—start writing the next book right away! Or even while you’re querying. It’s kept me grounded in the craft, reminded me of why I write stories. It’s not just so I get published, it’s because I have stories within me I need to tell. The process of creation brings life, to me and those around me.
Author Spotlight
I love my fellow authors who write stories that bring beauty and magic into the world. Emily Barnett is one of these!
Here’s what she has to say about THREAD OF DREAMS, her debut novel from Owl’s Nest Publishing:
Thread of Dreams is a love letter to a broken world. We can become so bogged down by the sorrow and hopelessness in life that we forget there is something bigger at play. There is hope in the depravity. There is newness—revival—coming. What we believe about the future informs what we believe about now. The wonder of things unseen (some might call them magical) changes how we live. I wanted to remind readers that they are not alone. No matter the darkness plaguing them, beauty is to be found. And it is powerful.
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Yum those bars look so yummy! I’ll have to try them out! And thanks for featuring me, Sheri 🥹
Kind bars are so delicious. Thanks for sharing the recipe!