Oh, I remember those boxes, too!! :O) All the girls would make theirs so pretty & frilly & pink...then the boys would use black & blue & red....! LoL Oooh, and the anticipation of getting a valentine from the boy you've got a crush on!! *sigh* I never did get a valentine from the boy I wanted to. LoL Oh well, I STILL love Valentines Day!! I decorate my house with red & pink paper chains...and cut out hearts from construction paper! Make pink & red cupcakes! I go nuts, I love it!!! LoL

That steak really looks good Alexa and the Bernaise held up great. I made the citrus cheesecake Sunday but we only finally got around to eating some tonight. It really was an excellent cheesecake. I'll make it again. I didn't put the sour cream on top of the cheesecake, in case I wanted to make the lemon curd for it. Also, instead of just zest I used the juice from the Meyer Lemon and the lime. I also added a tablespoon of cornstarch to make up for the added juice. Classic Cheesecake [modified] Serves: 8 to 10 servings This is a classic cheesecake -- velvety, rich, sweet and so satisfying. We are major fans of a thin sour cream cap on top of cheesecakes; it's the perfect balance to this rich cake. Ingredients Crust: 6 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs 2 tablespoons granulated sugar Pinch fine salt Filling: 2 pounds cream cheese, at room temperature 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar 1 1/4 cups sour cream 6 large eggs, lightly beaten 1 tablespoon vanilla paste (see cook's note) or extract 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest [used zest from 1 Meyer lemon] 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest [zest from half an orange] [added zest from 1 lime] As said above I added the juice from the lemon and lime plus a tablespoon of cornstarch dissolved in the juices. Topping: 3/4 cup sour cream 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar 1/4 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract Berries, optional Directions Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. For the crust: Melt the butter, covered in the microwave, in a medium microwave safe bowl, or a saucepan. Brush a 9-inch springform pan with some of the butter. Stir the remaining butter together with the crumbs, sugar, and salt. Press the crumb mixture over the bottom of the pan, taking care to get the crust evenly into the edges. Bake until golden brown, 15 to 18 minutes. Cool. Wrap the bottom and up the sides of the pan with foil and put in a roasting pan. For the filling: Beat the cream cheese on medium speed with a hand-held mixer until smooth. Add the granulated sugar and beat just until light and fluffy, scraping the sides of the bowl and beaters as needed. Slowly beat in the sour cream, then eggs, vanilla and both citrus zests; take care not to over whip. Pour into the cooled crust. Bring a medium saucepan or kettle of water to a boil. Gently place the roasting pan in the oven (don't pull the rack out of the oven). Pour in enough hot water to come about halfway up the side of the springform pan. Bake the cheesecake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes---the outside of the cake will set but the center will still be loose.[Mine took almost 1hour and a half] For the topping: Stir together the sour cream, confectioners' sugar and vanilla. Spread over the top of the cooked cheesecake and return to the oven for 5 minutes. Turn the oven off, cook the cheesecake in the residual heat in the oven for about1 hour. This gentle finish minimizes the risk of the dreaded crack in your cheesecake. Remove cheesecake from the roasting pan to a rack. Run a knife around the edges and cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight. Bring cheesecake to room temperature 30 minutes before serving. Remove the springform ring. Dip a knife in warm water, wipe dry before slicing each piece. Serve with berries, if desired. Notes We love vanilla bean paste. It has intense vanilla bean flavor in a convenient paste form. It's a great way to add great flavor and distinctive vanilla flecks without having to use a whole bean. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- My note: Do let it set in refrigerator for time suggested. It's a very creamy cheesecake.

Serving it's going to be a bit of a challenge. It's sort of a 'pinkish' red, rather than the 'orangish' red of spaghetti sauce. And dh prefers red sauce to all others. I'm thinking I'll put a 'puddle' of red sauce in the bottom of our pasta bowls, then arrange some of the ravioli on top, with a couple of meatballs out to the side. Maybe some spinach/walnut pesto for garnish. The ravioli would look much better with Alfredo sauce, though. Maybe I'll make up a batch of my low-fat Alfredo this week, so I can send some home with DD. She loves it, and her ravioli would look nice served that way. If you scroll down the page on the link below, the ravioli look similar to the ones I bought--the stripes on mine run diagonally, though. It's just so nice to have a really good pasta factory in town. They're so nice, and make such wonderful things (I got the meatballs there, too--at $3 a bag, for really SUPER meatballs, it doesn't pay to make them--LOL) Here is a link that might be useful: Heart-shaped foods

Annie I received your e-mail. Glad you received the prizes and valentine gift. Love all the fairy packages. Rita I received your box today and loved it all. The post office is so rough on packages the cute little fairy arrived broken along with the heart box. Rita you sent so much, two boxes of candy (Yum), valentine card, two precious bear valentine figurines, angel figurine, valentine pencil-pencil sharpener-eraser and note pad. Thank you so much. Sheri-Sorry to read your Birthday gift was missing from the card...I found some black sharpie retractable markers and included one for plant labeling. If I find them again I will send you another. Melinda did receive hers so that one was still intact. Here is the message I received from Melinda via facebook. Dear Shirley, Thank you so much for the beautiful card and new marker pen! So needed that! I am trying to get on the new GW and have tried for days! Don't know if it is my computer or what, but can't sign it, can't connect with FB or anything. I may have to make a new Yahoo account and everything to make a new sign in, not sure. But it is extremely frustrating! Could you please say Thank you to all the ladies