Happy Spring!

This morning I woke up with a hankering for just a little something special to celebrate Easter, (more like spring time, for us. Although, look here….still snowing). We ran to the store so I could get some vinegar and I picked up a loaf of just baked french bread, too. We almost ate the whole thing instead of making bread pudding but I really do love bread pudding. I served it in my girly cups with whipped cream and it was super.

 

“Now, you can’t have any till I photograph it. Oh screw it, let’s eat!”
(Edited to add: the recipe for this pudding is in the comments on my flickr photo. I add a little heavy cream to top it off.)

After that Paul went to the studio and I stayed home dyeing eggs. I only dyed 7 since I’m really the only one who likes hard-boiled eggs. And actually, that left plenty of room for experimenting. I decided to use wine glasses to hold the dyes and they turned out to be the perfect size.  Here are the tablets dissolving in vinegar:

 

This year I wanted to try wrapping the eggs in lace, which I saw in Martha Stewart Living. On top of that, I wrapped them up tight in hosiery to hold the lace in place (seal the hosiery with a twist tie). I wasn’t sure it would work but figured I would try some other things while I was at it, too- so I also tried metallic mesh, rick rack and paper flowers. Here’s one of them about to go into the dye bath.

 

The added benefit of the hosiery is that you can run a skewer through it and then hang just part of the egg in the dye bath. As a girl I used to sit there with my wire egg dipper, ever so patiently. I once tried to make a plaid egg using all of the different dyes– I don’t recommend it.

Here’s the finished lace batch. I don’t quite understand why the lace works at resisting the dye but the pantyhose don’t affect it.  Easter magic, I say. I love the seeping in quality of it, too. On the red/yellow one, I first dyed the lace-wrapped egg in yellow, then moved it, hanging skewer style, into the red bath. The dye creeped up the hosiery and gave it a weird marbled effect, which I like.

And here are the eggs I made with the other materials. The paper flowers worked quite well- almost better than the stickers (which made the hearts). The heart egg was also wrapped in metallic mesh which gave it a cool faded grid effect. To get the yellow flowers on the blue egg, I dyed the whole egg in yellow first, let it dry, then added the flowers/hosiery combo and let it sit in the blue dye.

 

I also made one with rickrack at the far right of this photo (see me removing it here). You can see more pics of the process over at flickr. Hope you’re all having fun, wherever you are.

Feast For One

I am all alone this week, as Paul is down in Texas for the College Art Association. Cue “All By Myself.” We went to the grocery store before he left (did I mention that I don’t really drive…yet…I hope) and I stocked up on some stuff I’ve missed eating. I finally gave in to the completely ridiculously priced frozen shrimp. We’re landlocked, people.Oh, and I had a glass of wine. It’s been a long time since that’s happened.

I turned the frozen shrimp into roasted lime sesame shrimp (thanks to a bottled marinade) then had some leftover v-day accoutrements. Holy crap, those oils and vinegars Paul bought are SO good. Completely fresh and delectable. I also seasoned some rice with one of the spice mixes for our dinner last night, heavenly! I really miss Indian food. And Asian food. And Mexican food. So let’s all cross our fingers that the next place we go will involve other cultures.  I keep meaning to make a return visit to New York, but it’s just too expensive.

I have been working on some crafty things, I promise. But some of them are gifts, one is a custom job, and lots of things are work-related. It’s feast or famine in this freelancey life, so right now I’m somewhere leaning towards feast. Since I can’t show you anything, let me share these darling dish towels I bought at the Winter Fest instead. They were so cute, and they were made by retired seniors, so how could I say no?  There were about six stacks of them at the display and I started looking through every one until I felt very self conscious and decided on these two lovelies.

Happy dishes.
I’m hoping to get a lot of work done this week, but today I just felt mopey and sad and missed Paul. Tomorrow will be better!

Moving Slowly

That’s me, above, excited to sell my wares at the Holiday Bazaar. Possibly too excited, as barely anyone came by. Due to a mix of poor advertising and who else knows what, I barely sold a thing. I’m not going to lie- it was a let down. But that just means there’s more stuff in my etsy shop for fun people like you. Have a look if you like– I’ve updated all of the hats, some sewn journals, and a few button necklaces. More will trickle in if I start feeling a little  better, but I think I caught that cold that’s been going around on the internets.

 

No silly, I know you can’t catch a cold from the internet. But I definitely have something, so I decided to try this Turkey Curry Meatball Soup. It was easy to make and also delicious– plus it helped clear up my sinuses a bit.  I’d halve the recipie if I made it again since there are only two of us. I think it’d also be good with turkey or chicken chunks if you’re not a meatball fan. All of the ingredients were done to perfection just by following the recipie, so give it a shot if you’re feeling brothy.

Cheddar Corn Spoon Bread

I don’t plan on doing a lot of posting this week, as one of my best friends is coming to visit tomorrow. Yay! But, I did promise to share my recipe for cheddar corn spoon bread, and I figured I’d better do it before Thanksgiving. The recipe is adapted from Everyday Food - I add the jalapenos and tomato to give it some color and Texas kick. Also, the part about whipping the eggs to a soft peak  really does make a difference– don’t skip it.

Cheddar Corn Spoon Bread (serves 6)

1 tbsp. butter, plus more for baking dish
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups corn kernels
2/3 cup yellow corn meal (I use stone ground)
coarse salt (important for the soft peaks)
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 cup grated sharp white cheddar cheese
4 large eggs, separated
1/2 fresh jalapeno, chopped (seeds removed)
10 or so cherry tomatoes, quartered (remove some seeds/water if possible)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 2 qt. souffle dish and set aside. In a medium saucepan, combine butter, milk, corn, cornmeal, 1 tsp. salt and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring frequently until mixture is slightly thickened- about 3-4 minutes. Add tomatoes and jalapenos near end of thickening process. Remove from heat and stir in cheese. Let cool about 15 minutes. Stir in egg yolks until combined.

In a clean mixing bowl, beat egg whites with a pinch of coarse salt until soft peaks form. (You must use a mixer for this step, believe me, I have tried other ways!). Stir 1/3 of the whites into the cornmeal mixture until combined, then gently fold in the remaining whites with a rubber spatula. Pour into prepared dish.

Place dish in oven. Bake until browned on top but still slightly loose in the center- about 30 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

Sorry I don’t have a picture- but I will after Turkey Day. Hope you spend yours with the ones you love.

Softie Awards: Vote for Me!

Yay– my fruitcake is a finalist in the softie awards.

Click here and follow the link to vote– and please vote for me (if you like mine the best, of course!).

 I’ve got nothing new to report. I was at a ceramics workshop all weekend with Lea Zoltowski (I made a teapot and two serving trays– and once I glaze and fire them I’ll show ‘em off!), and after that went to an art opening in Willow Creek, so I’m bemoaning the fact that it’s Monday.

Fruitcake Softie, For the Fun of It

I’m not one to make a lot of purely-fun projects (I like to make things I “need” so I don’t end up with piles of clutter), but I decided to give a last-minute go to the Holiday Softie Awards.

 

I started last night, using mostly fabrics from my Denyse Schmidt fat quarter pack. (Let’s see, I’ve now made napkins, a house, a baby quilt top, a halloween banner and a fruitcake using fabrics from that stack. My mom took some to make me a quilt And there is still more!) Anyway, I loved the fabric I used for the side and pecans, to me it looks just like a fruitcake wrapper.

 

It was really fun to stitch this thing (although, lesson learned, I could use a thimble), and I am especially proud of the pecans.  I’ll have to pepper in some more whimsical projects to spice things up now and then. Wish me luck!

More Fall Cooking

 

Last night we tried the zuchinni pasta recipe along with some pumpkin soup. It was delish! Paul thought we could add some sausage to zing (and meat) it up- so we might try that next time. One caveat- don’t go crazy when salting the zuchinni to release the water. I wasn’t paying attention and it ended up a little salty for my taste.

Paul shelled and crushed the pistachios while I whizzed around trying to time the soup and the pasta. It’s nice to have a helper!

The soup was yummy, too. The recipe is a favorite of mine that I usually make once or twice a year since it’s a bit of a pain. I found it in my old roommate’s InStyle mag in 2002, of all places. The acorn squash I made earlier was from the same article on Thanksgiving dinner. The recipes are below.

 

(Adding the cream is the best part!)

I really do like to cook, and since I’m only working part time (& restaurants here make me sad), I’ve actually had the time. Tomorrow I want to make roasted asparagus and lemon garlic chicken….and I plan on using the leftover asparagus in a quiche for the weekend. I’ve also got the ingredients for an apple pie, once I get to it. Mmm!

Pumpkin Soup (I halved the original, so this serves 6 generously.)1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil

2 carrots, chopped
1 rib celery, chopped
1/2 large onion, chopped
24 oz. chicken broth
15 oz. pumpkin puree
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme (I never add this)
1 cup heavy cream
Salt and pepper to taste
 
Heat oil in soup pot over medium heat. Add celery, carrots and onion, sautee 7-8 minutes or until softened. Add broth, pumpkin and thyme if using. Lower heat, simmer 15 minutes. Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender or food processor.  (VERY important!– Let the soup cool a bit and don’t over fill your blender– the soup will rush up and you’ll feel it’s heat through the lid, possibly making you stop holding the lid on. I did this once and it led to pumpkin soup everywhere! Till you get the hang of it, fill your blender about 1/3 full.) Return to soup pot. Stir in cream, simmer until heated through. Season with salt and pepper.

Baked Acorn Squash

1 large acorn squash
1/2 c. dry, plain breadcrumbs (I usually make them myself with fresh bread and a cheese grater- they’re coarse and less crunchy)
1/2 c. cornmeal (stone ground)
1 tbsp. chopped garlic (you can add garlic salt, too, since it’ll stick better)
3 eggs, lightly beaten
Salt and Pepper to taste

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a baking sheet w/nonstick cooking spray or butter.  Cut squash into 1/2″ rings and scoop out seeds. (I cut the rings in half to make more fit on the sheet.)  In a medium bowl, combine bread crumbs, corn meal, garlic, salt and pepper. Place beaten eggs in a pie plate or flat bowl. Dip both sides of squash into eggs, then  dredge in bread crumb mixture. Place on baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil (don’t be shy, the oil makes it soooo tasty!). Bake 30-40 minutes, turning once, until squash is fork-tender. Season with salt.

Enjoy!

Packing…and Procrastinating

So lately, this has been what’s confronting me: Packing. And more importantly, sorting! In general the number of “give away” bags outnumber the “take it with you” boxes, which is good! I carted 4 trash bags full of clothing to the drop box nearest to my house on Saturday. I hope someone enjoys the handmade goodies in there. I actually like moving, because it makes me feel lighter to sort through all of the stuff that just accumulates. I mean, I love notecards, but I don’t need ten boxes of them.

Other than that I’ve just been feeling a little restless (10 more days till Paul gets here!), so I’m doing short term projects.  I made some change of address cards this week, and a little baby hat (in the right corner) for my friend. I also need to think of a project for the 4+ day drive, but I know if I start it now, I’ll finish it before I even load a box! I’m thinking of a baby blanket, but we’ll see. In the mean time, I’m trying to enjoy other things. Like sauteed pears. Yum. 

I have a recipie for chicken and pears (from Jane Doerfer’s Going Solo in the Kitchen) that I’ve never quite achieved perfection with, but it’s still fun to make. I just always forget that the chicken doesn’t take as long to cook as the pears. Maybe next time!

Simple Things

Last night I made some delicious italian panzanella from Everyday Food. It is what it looks like– cannellini beans, red onions, cucumbers, tomatoes (I substituted cherry tomatoes- which I almost always do– because they are just so good!), fresh mozzarella (another sub), olive oil, pepper, and  red wine vinegar. I added the bread and olive oil/vinegar this morning so it wouldn’t get too squishy before lunch. It was a feat of strength to not eat this last night– all the fresh smells were so enticing, and it is so simple. This is what my brother would call an assembly meal. Thanks to Shawnee for the heads up on the recipie. I subscribe to the mag, but hadn’t had a chance to sit down with it.

 

And here’s another little moment of beauty from the sidewalk. We don’t have tons of trees where I live, but I do have these lovely roses that are planted in the mini gardens outside of the buildings on my block. I always see people stopping to peep at flowers from my window. Thank you to Sanda, my super’s wife, who plants them each year.