Living with Loons + Homemade Brownie Mix

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...The rain has been beating a soft but steady tattoo for hours now, and when the mist lifts, you can see gentle ripples expanding and coalescing as they ruffle the glassy surface of the lake. While it is too early to mate, the loons who give this lake its name, communicate with one another, and as they land and skid upon the water, their mournful wails heighten the solitude and isolation of winter on the lake. If you've never heard the loon's mesmerizing wail and are curious, your can hear it here. We are here to help open the cabin of friends who have often shared their home and hospitality with us. The work has gone quickly and we are left in three small rooms with thoughts fueled by the fragrance of the madrone that feeds the fire as well as the imagination. The cabin is half an hour and a winding road from the nearest store, so the staples that are needed to open the kitchen came with us. The kitchen is small and storage is limited, so little "from scratch" cooking is ever done here. Aside from beer, which is submerged and chilled in the lake, nothing is kept in quantity. The shelves hold the basics: flour, sugar, salt, oil, coffee and powdered milk. Whenever possible, those of us who stay here bring food that needs only reheating or hydration. So, to that end, I've brought biscuit, cornbread and brownie mixes to round out the casseroles that will be dinner for the next few nights. The brownie mix is easy to prepare and makes brownies that will satisfy those in our group who have a demanding sweet tooth. If your summers include a cottage with a barebones kitchen, you might want to keep the recipe on hand. Here is how the brownie mix is made and used.