It is now Thursday evening and I have yet to write anything as I had planned, I did however get the computer turned on one morning this week. I am not so surprised, this week has been very intense, with heat, humidity, yorping cats and the need to (once) and mistake of (a different morning) sleeping past my alarm.
I did have a great pre-breakfast morning on Tuesday. Got up on time, maybe even early, got my exercise in and I experimented with a new hummus recipe.
This was not a planned or intensional experimentation but out of need. During the weekend when I might have had a quick 10 minutes to get some more hummus together I did not realize that my supply was so low. Monday rolled around and I had just enough to make the standard lunch of late, hummus and cheese with pickled something on HM roll. The pickled something refers to the two jars I have in my fridge; pickled curry green tomatoes and sweet picked hot peppers.
Lo and behold my pantry did not come through for me this time – no chickpeas. But I did have plenty of black beans, so I went for it. I was partially inspired to do a non chickpea hummus from the small spread about Fresh Peas in the May 2011 issue of Whole Living, featuring – you guessed it! - a fresh pea hummus.
One well rinsed 16oz can of black beans, a medium clove of garlic, a tablespoon of olive oil, a teaspoon each of tahini and lemon juice, a half teaspoon each of salt and cumin plus a quarter teaspoon of black pepper later I have a respectable amount of the best hummus I have ever made.
It is smooth and full of flavor, great plain (even before 6AM) or on my sandwich. The smooth part is really key for me as I usually end of adding way too much tahini and lemon juice to my chickpea hummus to try and get it to smooth out. I would, and will, say that this was a huge success.
My next adventure is eggplant parm, though I am planning for his one. What adventures have you taken in the kitchen lately?
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Dressing a Salad
Salad Dressing
The Rule of Threes..or fives depending :)
In trying to get in shape and get into healthy habits now while it is “easy” I make myself a salad for lunch every day. It might just me a side salad of spinach or the main course with spinach, beans, nuts and tomato – all depends on what I am feeling like and how hungry I was the day before.
Whatever the salad I always need dressing but I am usually not satisfied with the store bought selections. I find dressing to be too fatty or not have enough oil, too salty or with too sugar and never the right consistency. Being from a family of great cooks I have grown up with homemade dressing so it was not daunting for me to just make my own and be happy.
I make a half cup batch at a time because that it the container I have to bring to work and I can usually get 4 to 5 days out of that amount. I love this system because I like variety. Having the same dressing ever week is boring and makes me regret salad which is a very bad thing. I should say this applies for non-creamy dressings. But I guess you can mix some mayo or sour cream in and achieve what you are looking for.
Making the dressing. I find it is a rule of threes but if you like dressing to be lighter on the oil it should be a rule of fives. The basics are one part flavor and acid two parts oil though your preference might be 2 parts flavor and acid to 3 parts oil or vice versa. The creamy ingredients would be on the oil side of the parts and maybe use a daily liquid to loosen not oil. I always season with 2 pinches of ground pepper and a ¼ tsp of kosher salt. For the spices I use dashes so the absolute max amount would be a ¼ tsp, the sweeteners could range from a ¼ tsp to a full tsp and anything chunky (onion flakes, or dried herbs) usually is a main flavor so ½ tsp to a full tsp.
The main combinations I use are:
curry, ginger, cumin and garlic with brown sugar and white wine vinegar
ginger, honey and lemon juice with white wine vinegar
ginger, garlic, chive and soy sauce with a few drops of sesame oil with light oil
garlic, mustard powder, brown sugar and balsamic vinegar
onion flakes and parsley with balsamic vinegar
I try to experiment with the herbs and spices I have to find new and interesting (but never again) combinations. I would recommend working in small batches until you get the hang of it. There is nothing worse than being stuck with or throwing out a large amount of nasty dressing.
The Rule of Threes..or fives depending :)
In trying to get in shape and get into healthy habits now while it is “easy” I make myself a salad for lunch every day. It might just me a side salad of spinach or the main course with spinach, beans, nuts and tomato – all depends on what I am feeling like and how hungry I was the day before.
Whatever the salad I always need dressing but I am usually not satisfied with the store bought selections. I find dressing to be too fatty or not have enough oil, too salty or with too sugar and never the right consistency. Being from a family of great cooks I have grown up with homemade dressing so it was not daunting for me to just make my own and be happy.
I make a half cup batch at a time because that it the container I have to bring to work and I can usually get 4 to 5 days out of that amount. I love this system because I like variety. Having the same dressing ever week is boring and makes me regret salad which is a very bad thing. I should say this applies for non-creamy dressings. But I guess you can mix some mayo or sour cream in and achieve what you are looking for.
Making the dressing. I find it is a rule of threes but if you like dressing to be lighter on the oil it should be a rule of fives. The basics are one part flavor and acid two parts oil though your preference might be 2 parts flavor and acid to 3 parts oil or vice versa. The creamy ingredients would be on the oil side of the parts and maybe use a daily liquid to loosen not oil. I always season with 2 pinches of ground pepper and a ¼ tsp of kosher salt. For the spices I use dashes so the absolute max amount would be a ¼ tsp, the sweeteners could range from a ¼ tsp to a full tsp and anything chunky (onion flakes, or dried herbs) usually is a main flavor so ½ tsp to a full tsp.
The main combinations I use are:
curry, ginger, cumin and garlic with brown sugar and white wine vinegar
ginger, honey and lemon juice with white wine vinegar
ginger, garlic, chive and soy sauce with a few drops of sesame oil with light oil
garlic, mustard powder, brown sugar and balsamic vinegar
onion flakes and parsley with balsamic vinegar
I try to experiment with the herbs and spices I have to find new and interesting (but never again) combinations. I would recommend working in small batches until you get the hang of it. There is nothing worse than being stuck with or throwing out a large amount of nasty dressing.
on my mind...
Lately I have been bursting with great crafty ideas and filled with a yearning to do...something.... Every time I turn around a new idea comes to me; a cotton shell to wear over tanks for work, a sandwich roll idea using pizza dough, trying to adapt my bread recipe into cinnamon swirl, making a skirt.. and the list goes on. I also again find myself starting blog posts in my head but I never write anything. This is frustrating for me because if I don't take the time to write things down and think projects through I forget – either the whole thing or some key part.
All of this creative thought leads me to believe that summer is finally here and that I am more effected by the seasons than I realized. The season thing can and will be remedied as I have quite a few months and even some snow magic before I really get down. The Summer thing is something much harder to believe. Yes, there are blooming flowers – my azaleas looked fabulous this year, and the weather is warmer but I have yet to see the sun for more than a few hours at a time and we have had more rain that I know what to do with. In fact we had flash flooding just last weekend – the 100 year cycle coming around again me thinks. Of course it was in the middle of the night so the pictures are just aftermath.
 |
| This is our side walk covered in the silt from the river breaching its bank and flooding our neighborhood. The water came right up to the foundation of the house. We luckily had minimal damage. |
But that is not what I am here to declare.
Since I am up at a totally unreasonable hour and have an excessive amount of time in the mornings, even after feeding the cats and myself, making lunch and doing a small exercise routine, I plan on doing 5 to 10 minutes of writing a day. Not everything will be published but I think it will help me to get thoughts out and recorded and to make more progress on the substantial back log of blog post subjects that I have.
We shall see how it goes.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Baby's First Haircut
Today Henry got his first hair cut; I think it was harder for me than for him. I was very nervous about how he would react and if he would have a really hard time with the whole ordeal. I had my husband take him so that I would not have to watch the freak out. Henry is the black and white long haired one on the right.
I had nothing to worry about though. Adam came back with a full report of considerably good behavior and reaction. The Groomer did cheat a bit with 'Rescue Remedy' - Natural stress relief for pets, which may have mitigated some of the panic. Whether it helped or not, she did manage to get all ten of his nails clipped as well.
I think the most shocking thing is how small Henry really is. We consider him to be the big man on campus. He is heavier than the other two and just bigger overall. But let me tell you; its all hair. All of it. My Mother- in- Law was correct in calling him the Marshmallow.
I had nothing to worry about though. Adam came back with a full report of considerably good behavior and reaction. The Groomer did cheat a bit with 'Rescue Remedy' - Natural stress relief for pets, which may have mitigated some of the panic. Whether it helped or not, she did manage to get all ten of his nails clipped as well.
I think the most shocking thing is how small Henry really is. We consider him to be the big man on campus. He is heavier than the other two and just bigger overall. But let me tell you; its all hair. All of it. My Mother- in- Law was correct in calling him the Marshmallow.
I guess we will have to come up with some new nicknames....'Big Fluff' just does not seem very fitting...
Thursday, April 21, 2011
New Project Love
Two of my favorite couples are getting married this year, and I am pumped. Both couples were at my wedding (kinda) and all four people are extremely important to me. What does this mean? Wanting to put thought and meaning into their wedding gifts.
Easy right? Ha!
I was at a complete loss until Sam (future wife in couple P) asked my husband to make them a gift and then BAM! I had an idea-quilts. YES!!!! Nothing quite like a good comfortable idea to send my creative motivation through the roof (and my work attention span down the drain).
Obviously I cannot speak of my ideas and plans but I will, hopefully, when they are done and given away.
I have not been excited about quilting since I was a Freshmen I college and wanted something to express my creative side as Art classes sucked. That idea turned into a 6 year labor and a King Size quilt. I learned a ton about quilting but I made some big mistakes as well. I really look forward to taking the time to plan everything out and do research on how to do things properly.
Wish me luck!
Easy right? Ha!
I was at a complete loss until Sam (future wife in couple P) asked my husband to make them a gift and then BAM! I had an idea-quilts. YES!!!! Nothing quite like a good comfortable idea to send my creative motivation through the roof (and my work attention span down the drain).
Obviously I cannot speak of my ideas and plans but I will, hopefully, when they are done and given away.
I have not been excited about quilting since I was a Freshmen I college and wanted something to express my creative side as Art classes sucked. That idea turned into a 6 year labor and a King Size quilt. I learned a ton about quilting but I made some big mistakes as well. I really look forward to taking the time to plan everything out and do research on how to do things properly.
Wish me luck!
Monday, April 18, 2011
Sweater Progress
In a turn of success, I was inspired for another attempt at the bolero but this time I had the correct needle, checked my gauge and rejected the pattern stitch and just K the knit and P the purl. The Bolero turned out just how I wanted it, big and cozy. This is a great success for me and it seems like I was against the odds after reading all of the reviews of the pattern. In the end I had to look up a different Lion Brand pattern to get the specifics on how to do the finishing on part of it. I might have been a bit liberal with the length on certain parts as well-it's my sweater darn-it!.
I have recently bought one of Elizabeth Zimmerman’s books, Knitting Without Tears. The concept of a sweater with no seams is so exciting I can’t stand it. I read slowly-which killed me-but I wanted to make sure I really absorbed as much as I could. The book changed my knitting life- I now understand gauge and how to make it work for me and the percentages system is so far working well.
I have completed the body up to the arm pits and did the 3/4 length sleeves this weekend. This sweater project was a test of my tolerance during the first try but now it is an exciting challenge where I am learning new things and honing my skills. The project is now sentimental as I am using my Nana's size 5 metal circular needle and the set of size 5 double point needles are from my mother.(Thats right, metal knitting needles. Dude. I have found the trick with metal needles is the tension-too loose and they slip right out causing a heart attack but just right and they happily stay.)
Anyways, I will be adding the sleeves today and starting with the yoke part!! YAY!!! I plan on making it a wide neck and I intend (right now) on doing a simple eyelet detail around the neck to make it interesting.. we shall see how I do..
I have recently bought one of Elizabeth Zimmerman’s books, Knitting Without Tears. The concept of a sweater with no seams is so exciting I can’t stand it. I read slowly-which killed me-but I wanted to make sure I really absorbed as much as I could. The book changed my knitting life- I now understand gauge and how to make it work for me and the percentages system is so far working well.
I have completed the body up to the arm pits and did the 3/4 length sleeves this weekend. This sweater project was a test of my tolerance during the first try but now it is an exciting challenge where I am learning new things and honing my skills. The project is now sentimental as I am using my Nana's size 5 metal circular needle and the set of size 5 double point needles are from my mother.(Thats right, metal knitting needles. Dude. I have found the trick with metal needles is the tension-too loose and they slip right out causing a heart attack but just right and they happily stay.)
Anyways, I will be adding the sleeves today and starting with the yoke part!! YAY!!! I plan on making it a wide neck and I intend (right now) on doing a simple eyelet detail around the neck to make it interesting.. we shall see how I do..
Friday, March 25, 2011
Wait a Moment
Oh My Gosh, it has been along time since I invested a few moments for my blog! Life has been very busy for the past few weeks with a business trip and the associated catch-up and with house improvements that my husband has hinted at, I have so much to write about and no time!
I will get to it, though I can't promise..not with the other promised- yet still missing- posts hanging over my head.
Though our visit has been short, it is a hello none the less and a commitment to stop by again soon!
I will get to it, though I can't promise..not with the other promised- yet still missing- posts hanging over my head.
Though our visit has been short, it is a hello none the less and a commitment to stop by again soon!
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