Sep
18
Since the weather started to have that fall-is-coming edge to it, I have been thinking about applesauce
Making applesauce was one of my birthday goals last year, but sadly (read: for no darned good reason), I didn’t make any. So when I checked the ad for the store where I do a bunch of my shopping and saw that Honeycrisp apples were going for $1.49/lb, I decided to go for it. I checked first, making sure that these were a decent choice for making applesauce. The Internet gave me her blessing and I went on.
I started with this recipe.
Basically, I washed the apples, then used my super cool apple corer on the apples. (12 of them.) I threw them in a pot with some water, brought it to a boil, reduced the heat, then let the apples cook until they made my place smell great and they were soft. I poured some of liquid off of the apples and pulsed them with my stick blender. I tasted the applesauce and found it fine the way that it was. Then I started to jar and process it. The first pint was plain. The second pint, I added pumpkin pie spice. With the last two pints (I didn’t think I was going to get 2 pints here), I added cranberries. It wasn’t the quickest process in the world, but it was easy and I am happy that I have some applesauce that is tasty, yet has no added sugar. That and I have now completed Goal # 23!
Sep
11
Last year one of my birthday goals was to make pretzels. I didn’t make it happen, so I carried the goal over. As I looked this year’s goals, the 33 things I want to accomplish by my 33rd birthday, I couldn’t bear the thought of having another year go by without completing this simple task, so I busted out the mixer and the yeast and went at it. A while ago, I bought a cookbook that is explicitly dedicated to the pretzel. But the base recipe in that book required an overnight proofing, so I decided to look elsewhere. Hello Internet. So, I followed a recipe I found on CHOW.
It was a pretty simple recipe.
Trying to figure out how to twist the pretzels was the biggest challenge. You can see that some are a better shape than others. This experience makes me want to go to the mall and observe the pretzel twisters there.
Next time, I think that I will try to make the pretzels a bit bigger, but I will also try to roll the dough out into thinner strips. I had a hard time with the rolling the strips. I kept trying to make them thinner hoping it would help me get a better pretzel shape, but then my strip would break before I could even twist the dough, much less get it into the pot for boiling. I thought about making ring shaped pretzels, but I thought that they might turn out too much like bagels. I hadn’t known that the alkaline water would make such a difference in how these turned out.
I baked my pretzels in two batches. The first I baked a bit longer than the second (more than the 10 minutes the recipe called for). I think that these turned out better than the other ones.
I’m pretty satisfied with this experience, but I want to go at it again. Besides, making a second batch of pretzels would go perfectly with goal 22, which is to make homemade mustard.
Dec
20
Oh looky here. I have some vacation time on my hands and here I come crawling back to the oft-neglected blog. But, hey, I have time to cook!
Alex loves meatballs. I don’t know that he has met a meatball that he won’t eat. Considering that cooking is one of the primary ways that I show my love, and I am off work for a bit, I decided to make some meatballs. Oh no, son, when mama has the time, you don’t have to sit around wishing that we could go to Ikea so that you can have meatballs.
Now on the other side of things, I love to try new recipes. So, I set out to find a meatball recipe that I haven’t made yet. I remember seeing one not too long ago in Bon Appetit so I ventured on down to Epicurious (as if I jauntily strolled down the street) to look. That’s when I found the recipe.
Yes, when I can, I will procure three different types of ground meat to make meatballs for the Young Mister. I try not to wonder whether this is sick.
I though these were the best meatballs I ever tasted. Young Mister, however, didn’t appear to be convinced. He ate one of them. Then again, he can be a light eater. I’ll know the true verdict when the topic of leftovers come up. I guess that if the next time he has a hankering for meatballs he just says, “Mama, can we go to Ikea?” that would suffice as a verdict. If he doesn’t eat them, I think I know a person or two who will.
Jun
01
I joined a CSA this year, something I have thought about in the past. Some friends had done this with Needle-Lane Farms, which I kept wanting to call Pine Needle Farms, and I followed suit.
Today I picked up my first delivery. I am very excited.
My goal here is not to waste any of the goodies from the CSA.
Here you see: green garlic, bunching onions, lettuce, radishes, chives, a mix of kale and some other greens, and stinging nettle. I am very intrigued by the stinging nettle and hope not to be stung.
I like the challenge of taking what arrives and building meals around it.
I also love that the CSA share guarantees that there is enough fiber in my life. I am very passionate about fiber. I have said to my mom that “I am going to be a prune-eating old lady.” I was serious. I am also thinking about stocking up on Metamucil. And if I see a short person reaching for something fiberful in the grocery store, I am always happy to help. I believe in fiber. Fiber begets happiness. This is going to be a good summer.
Nov
10
How do the weekends go so quickly!
Thursday evening, I bought the Nike+ sensor thingie to go with my iPod so that I could track any running that I do. I’m glad that I did. I am trying (again) to take up running. Once upon a time, I was thinking about running a 5k, but I just didn’t stick with it. There was another time about a lot of pounds ago when I was running every once in awhile. And now there is now. I took a went out running (very slowly, but running nonetheless) today, even though it was snowing. I am very proud of myself for this. I plan to do some running tomorrow either during lunch or after work. Tuesday and Wednesday, I have other exercise plans, but Thursday, Friday, Saturday I plan to run. A week from today, I plan to rest.
Though I haven’t posted everyday, I am still doing the November, be thankful thing. Yesterday, I had pumpkin pudding with a crumbled gingerbread cupcake sprinkled over it. It was so delicious. Friday, I had a gingersnap latte at Starbucks. I liked it, but the little chunks of ginger at the end of the drink were quite unnerving to me. Today, I stopped at Coldstone, because the young one really wanted to. I got the horrible service that makes me vow never to go there again, and I took home a pumpkin icecream with crushed gingerbread cookies in it.
Friday, I did my Christmas shopping for my niece. I am happy about that. I would have been even happier if I had found wrapping paper and wrapped her little gifties, but hey, now I have something to do this week. I also took care of the young one’s birthday present. He informed me today that he would like to have a race car birthday cake and pizza for dinner. I can manage that.
At the gas station today, (oh yeah, I was all about getting things done today) I saw a sign for Maverick cigarettes. I have to say that I am a bit bitter that the word is just ruined for a while. I hate to see perfectly good words go out like that.
Nov
06
Eggnog tastes like liquid cake to me. Maybe that in and of itself is enough reason to feel festive and to be happy.
I picked up a copy of Kindred, by Octavia Butler today at the library. I have picked up and checked out her work before, but I think that this is the time that I am going to read it. I felt drawn to it. Generally, I am not a science fiction reader.
I was discussing one of my ideas for a novel with someone from my writing group several months ago. She said that the concept reminded her of Octavia Butler. Now that I am trying to hash trough that novel through NaNoWriMo, I am feeling drawn to Butler. Junot Diaz, whom I really admire, had also mentioned her in an interview I read a few years ago. I think that last time I tried to read her, it was in response to that interview. Speaking of NaNoWriMo, I probably should be working on that novel right now. *sigh*
