Tamara Landre

Col. Lowell H. Landre, (Ret.), 1926 - 2011

2012-01-19T18:49:00.000-08:00

My beloved grandfather's obituary posts tomorrow in the newspapers of the towns of his friends and relatives. Modesto, Reno, Tahoe.

This is what it will say:

Retired U.S. Army Colonel Lowell Henry Landre, 85, died in comfort at his home in South Lake Tahoe, California on the morning of November 22, 2011. He was born in 1926 in Yakima, Washington, to Ralph Weston Landre, Sr. and Mary Josephine (Keesee) Landre.

The Landre family moved from Washington state during the depression, seeking work in the fields and orchards of California. From humble beginnings as migrant workers, the family later owned a beautiful home on Depot Hill in Capitola, California, and a restaurant on that town’s beachside esplanade.

Lowell graduated from Santa Cruz High School, Santa Cruz, California, in 1943, thereafter furthering his education at the Municipal University of Omaha in Nebraska, the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and the Air War College. He also attended UCLA, North Texas Agricultural College, the University of Texas, and numerous other civilian and military educational institutions.

It was while attending UCLA that he met the love of his life, best friend, and wife of 64 years, the feisty and petite Rose Waszkiewicz, a proud girl of Polish descent, who had come to California from her hometown of Detroit, Michigan to work as a rivet-driller in the manufacture of airplanes for WWII. Rose Mary Waszkiewicz and Lowell Henry Landre were married by a Justice of the Peace in Wayne County, Michigan in June of 1945. They would spend the next seven decades traveling the world and raising their three boys, Lowell Dean, Lance Henry and Lee Raymond, together and apart, as the world’s battles shaped their lives.

Lowell served in such diverse locations as Indochina (before and during the Viet Nam war), Greenland, Puerto Rico, Panama, Japan, Europe, the Canadian Arctic Islands and numerous other classified locations. He also served with the armed forces of other nations and had multiple tours in the former Fort Ord complex (Forts Ord and Hunter Liggett and the Presidio of Monterey), Fort Bragg, NC and Fort Benning, GA. Among his awards and decorations, he particularly prized the Combat Infantryman badge and the Master Parachutist badge.

He also served as a senior military advisor to the Vietnamese city of Hué, nearly losing his life the night of January 31, 1968, when North Vietnamese troops broke a two-day holiday cease fire agreement and attacked the city during what is now known as the Tet Offensive. The loss of many of his fellow soldiers, and the shocking civilian massacre in the city, affected him for the rest of his life. Forever respectful of those who served our country and others, no matter their rank, he was a role model and mentor to his fellow soldiers throughout his military career and his life. He will be greatly missed by the local veterans’ community.

Between combat assignments, he specialized in military research and combat development. His duties in the military intelligence field and also in other classified postings required multiple linguistic capabilities. Learning languages was a life-long passion for Lowell. In addition to the English language, he spoke Russian, Vietnamese, Korean and Polish, and dabbled in many others. He delighted in surprising people he’d meet with a short conversation in their native tongue, whether it was Spanish, Hungarian, Mandarin or Hindi. One of his great joys was relating these stories to his family.

He retired from the U.S. Army in 1977 as a Colonel after 32 years of active duty in the U.S. Navy (WWII) and the U.S. Army. He was a parachute and glider infantry soldier, leader and commander. He received many U.S. and foreign decorations and awards and was wounded in combat multiple times. Among numerous decorations and presidential citations, he was the recipient of the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star for Valor.

After leaving the military, Lowell assisted other military veterans with various governmental agencies. He also researched and developed a comprehensive family genealogy spanning more than 400 years. He was both an author and an artist. He was a sports parachutist and pilot and a founding member of the Parachute Club of America. A prolific and talented oil painter, he filled his home with beautiful images of the forests of the Sierra Nevadas, Bavaria, where he first learned to paint in a class offered for officer’s wives, and Alaska, where he and Rose lived for a decade while stationed at Fort Richardson.

Lowell had a soft spot for dogs of any shape or size and was never without a treat for them in his pocket. He loved to laugh, and treated everyone he encountered with respect. He loved learning and was relentless in his constant pursuit of self-improvement. He was a true gentleman and a consummate soldier. Lowell was loved profoundly by his family, and was a beacon of strength and support. Strengths and faults, successes and failures, there will never be anyone quite like him. Dad, Grandpa, Great-Grandpa and Great-Great Grandpa, we love you more than words can convey. We will see your smiling face in every flower, every star, every sunset, and every wagging tail.

Colonel Landre joins his loving wife Rose Waszkiewicz, who preceded him in death in 2009, somewhere in the stars overlooking us all. He is survived by his two sons, Lowell D. Landre of Tennessee and Lance H. Landre of California; four grandchildren, Tamara Landre, Nicolle Landre, Laura Clendenning and Michael Landre; six great-grandchildren, Kayleigh, Jessica, Justus, Dylan, Conor and Casey, and one great-great-grandchild, Milo. He is also survived by his sister-in-law Shirley (Foote) Landre, widow of his brother Ralph Weston Landre, Jr., and their sons, Tim, Jon and Jeff, and their families. He was preceded in death by his wife, his youngest son, Lee Raymond Landre, his oldest grandson, Christopher Shawn Landre, and his canine buddy Murphy.

Per his wishes, his ashes will be scattered at sea with those of the loved ones who preceded him.

Those wishing to honor Colonel Landre should reach out a hand to the next veteran they meet and thank him for his service, treat others with respect and kindness, and never, ever stop learning.

If it isn't clear to anyone who is reading this, I loved my Grandpa. I was lucky beyond imagining that he was not only my Grandpa, but my friend. We were so fortunate to have recognized that our time together would soon end, and we made the most of it. There were times that he was my best friend, my only ally, and I his. I hope that I have done justice to the great love I had for him, and the unshakeable faith he had in me, in this tribute.

Simple, Silky Butternut Soup

2011-10-17T13:19:00.000-07:00

One butternut squash, halved, seeded, brushed with olive oil and roasted until tender in a 375 degree oven
+/- 1/3 cup Butter or olive oil
Chicken stock or water to thin, as needed
1 tsp sage
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
Nutmeg (fresh grated if available, to taste)
Salt to taste (gray salt if available)
Grated parmesan cheese as garnish if desired

There are a lot of ways to attack this, depending on your time limitations. You can roast the squash ahead of time, refrigerate, and make the soup when needed, in small batches if you like, or put it together the previous day and season to taste as you reheat it. Give yourself about 2 hours to complete this recipe from start to finish if you are roasting the squash the same day. You will need a blender or stick blender to produce a smooth soup. This soup is also delicious cold, if your fall weather is as fickle as ours.

Roast squash 1 hour, check for doneness and roast until very tender, approximately 1/2 to 1 hour more. Allow squash to cool enough so that it's comfortable to handle, then use a large spoon to scoop the flesh away from the skin. If you're roasting the squash ahead of time and making the soup the following day, refrigerate scooped squash in a covered bowl or zipper bag.

If making in a blender, combine squash with sage, pepper and nutmeg, adding stock as needed to reach the proper consistency. Blend until smooth.

(Note: be very careful when bending hot soups in a blender. Put the lid on loosely, and cover with a kitchen towel to prevent spills and burns. I recommend waiting until the squash has cooled just enough that it barely melts the butter.)

If serving later, refrigerate blended soup and adjust seasoning as you reheat the next day.

If using a stick blender (a versatile, relatively inexpensive tool-- get one if you can), place roasted squash in a saucepan with butter or oil, and all remaining ingredients except salt, and blend, adding chicken stock to thin to the desired consistency, then season to taste.

Apple Picking Time

2011-09-06T13:06:00.000-07:00

Hey, Zucchini Farmers!

2011-08-02T14:16:00.000-07:00

It's that time again! The time when the residents of a certain small town lock their cars, not because they are afraid something will get stolen, but because their neighbors, who have a zucchini plant or two, will sneak a bag onto the front seat of any car that is left unattended!

Don't forget:
Zucchini Cheddar Breakfast Biscuits
Ratatouille
Grilled, marinated zucchini (below) for an Italian Antipasto plate
and best of all: Zapples!

A zapple is what you do with a big, woody zucchini that's too big for any of the other uses, except maybe ratatouille (the diameter of an apple), peeled, seeded, cut into thick slices, and stewed with cinnamon, lemon juice and sugar. I tell you true, you can bake zapples into a pie, strudel or tart, and no one will know the difference. Also makes lovely zapplesauce and zapplesauce muffins. All courtesy of Andrea Chesman's great book The Garden Fresh Vegetable Cookbook.

To grill zucchini, eggplant or radicchio for antipasto, cut into manageable slices (for zucchini and radicchio, quarters lengthwise usually work, eighths for larger specimens. Thick slices for eggplant, also lengthwise. Marinate in olive oil and balsamic with a sprinkle of salt, grill until just tender, then put the warm vegetables back into the marinade to come back to room temp before serving. Salt more or add fresh chopped garlic or herbs to taste if desired.

Mike and I made some delicious burritos the other day with barbecued chicken, grilled zucchini, sour cream, homemade salsa fresca, lime and cilantro. We were using up leftovers, so we were both pleasantly surprised by how delicious our healthy meal turned out.

Berry Buttermilk Cake

2011-08-02T13:35:00.001-07:00

This recipe is from the July issue of Bon Appétit magazine, originally for Blackberry Buttermilk Cake. I used blueberries and raspberries, as the blackberries from the garden have already come and gone.

If you read the comments on the recipe link, you'll see that there was a wide range of results, from overcooked to raw. I used a 10", glass-bottomed springform pan, set slightly higher than the middle of the oven. At 1 hr, the top of the cake did look quite brown, probably due to my poor positioning of the oven rack, so I covered it with a loose piece of foil, and it turned out just right when checked at 1:20.

As I sometimes (but not always) do when trying a recipe for the first time, I followed the recipe almost to the letter, including the double-sifting of the cake flour. (I did leave out the orange zest.) All ingredients were at room temperature. The sugar was a slightly coarser grain than my usual baking sugar, but as I said, it seemed to turn out just fine. The cake was moist and had a nice, creamy flavor, and the raspberries added just the right tang to the sweet blueberries. (About 3/4 blueberries to 1/4 raspberries).

When I do this again, I don't see any reason to use a springform, rather than the upside-down cake method (Plum or Pear) in a regular pan, as long as your pan is both wide and high enough to hold this amount of batter. A thicker pan will transfer heat more evenly than a thinner pan, so use a good quality cake pan.

I found the sequence below of, "Remove pan sides. Invert cake onto rack and remove pan bottom; peel off parchment." to be unnecessarily complex, not to mention awkward with a warm cake. (We had a bit of a fail on this part, which didn't affect the deliciousness.) Much easier to invert a single cake pan onto a plate, allow to cool further and remove, or, if you've used a parchment circle, cool, invert, de-pan, remove parchment. If you do use a springform, I'd recommend loosening the edge with a knife, then inverting onto a plate, then removing the sides, then the bottom, then the parchment, rather than trying to get a rack involved.

All that said, this is a very tasty cake. I may just adapt my normal USDC recipe and use sifted cake flour and buttermilk to get the flavor without the fuss.

Berry Buttermilk Cake

Ingredients

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan and parchment
2 1/3 cups cake flour (sifted, then measured) plus more for pan
2 1/2 cups (10 ounces) fresh blackberries
1/4 cup plus 1 1/3 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk
Powdered sugar (for dusting)
special equipment:

Use a 9"-10"-diameter springform pan
Preparation

Position a rack in middle of oven and preheat to 350°. Butter pan; line bottom with a round of parchment paper. Butter parchment. Dust with flour; tap out excess. Arrange berries in a single layer in bottom of pan; sprinkle evenly with 1/4 cup sugar.
Sift 2 1/3 cups flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda into a medium bowl; set aside. Using an electric mixer, beat 3/4 cup butter and remaining 1 1/3 cups sugar in a large bowl at medium-high speed, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl, until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla and zest. Reduce speed to low; beat in flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with buttermilk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with flour mixture and beating just until incorporated. Pour batter over berries in pan; smooth top.
Bake until cake is golden brown and cake bounces back when pressed gently with fingertip, about 1 hour 25 minutes for a 9" pan and about 1 hour for a 10" pan. Let cool in pan set on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then run a thin, sharp knife around the edge of the pan to loosen. Remove pan sides. Invert cake onto rack and remove pan bottom; peel off parchment. Dust top generously with powdered sugar and let cool completely.

Read More http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2011/07/blackberry-buttermilk-cake#ixzz1TuJ47OSM

Sheila Landre's Towel Manifesto

2011-07-21T17:34:00.000-07:00

My mother asks that I post this as a public service announcement to all towel users, present and future.

ABOUT TOWELS
An Expository Essay

These guidelines for towel usage will help you form good habits and save money in the future when you are in charge of towels of your own. There are many kinds of towels and each has its own purpose. Some require extra care and some do not. Some are more cost effective than others. Some have sentimental value to their owner and some do not. Some are disposable. Some last forever if properly treated.

Bath towels are decorative and useful. They are usually made of cotton terry cloth, come in several sizes, and are often purchased to match the decor in color and style. They are intended for public viewing as well as private use. They are meant to dry by absorbing clean water from human skin. Please do not mop the floor with them, wipe off hair dye, toothpaste or whitener, or bodily fluids with them.

Rinse all that off before you get to a towel so that you are merely wet. Then hang the towels neatly on the rack or a hanger to dry out for the next usage. Otherwise towels must be washed using extra soap, water, and electricity. Over time utility bills will increase as more and more towels are unnecessarily washed and dried. Eventually the towels wear out faster and need to be replaced.* Someone has to pay for these.

*Such worn-out or nonstandard towels may be redesigned as “Utility Towels”, used whole or subdivided, stored separately, folded to indicate they are no longer for use on human surfaces, and can be marked as such with an indelible marker. (See Paragraph 4. Use as an alternate to Paper Towels).

Kitchen towels serve a similar purpose and come in two categories: small towels for drying hands, usually terry cloth, and small towels for drying tableware such as plates, pots and pans and silverware. These are cotton or linen and are often decorative, even seasonal. Some households choose to use the same small towels for both hands and dishes while others differentiate. Each is used to dry plain water from surfaces. Dishcloths (sometimes called “dishrags”) are meant to be soaked in soapy water in order to wash dishes, etc. and countertops. They are then rinsed clean and hung by the sink for future use or put in the washer and replaced by a clean cloth.

Kitchen towels should not be used to wipe up spilled drinks or food, mop the floor, clean spaghetti sauce off the stove or jelly off children’s faces. Do you think somebody’s grandmother embroidered these things just so you could destroy them? If you want to clean up messes which might leave stains, use the dishcloth and then rinse it or use the paper towels (or utility towels) --that’s what they are for!

Modern paper towels --or “PT” not to be confused with “TP” (toilet paper) on a shopping list--come in a variety of configurations and absorbencies as well as with colorful decorations. They are meant to be disposable. Please fit the product to the need and do not use more than necessary. Paper towels now can cost nearly $3 a roll so why would you waste great gobs of them simply to dry your wet hands when there’s a perfectly good hand towel right there? And while you’re at it, why not hang the towel back up the way you found it? Paper towels are ideal for those little messes which are dropped on the floor, for cleaning jelly faces or the emergency bodily fluid situation. Don’t overlook the usefulness of a box of tissues or an efficient house pet to augment your kitchen towel needs. They come in a wide variety of sizes and styles.

Of course if you have unlimited financial resources your choices are broader. You may choose to use paper towels for all your cleaning and drying needs. You may not care if your best bath towels are stained with tomato sauce or bleached with tooth whitener. You may delight in washing every towel after every use and drying them until they are hot enough to burn your hands. You may enjoy the feel of masses of paper toweling soaking up water from your barely damp hands and then filling up the garbage can with their wadded masses. Some people find that very satisfying. Maybe you enjoy defiling your grandmother’s handiwork by using her lovely day-of-the-week tea towels as a mop. When you are calling the shots, that will be your choice.

Thank you for reading my essay on towels. I hope I have given you something to think about and that someday you will consider passing this information on to your children, grandchildren, other family members, and closest friends.

Happy drying!
Sheila

Summer

2011-07-13T15:53:00.001-07:00

Spent an afternoon catching some pretty light around the ranch.

The Moon's Twin

2011-07-13T14:57:00.001-07:00

Where DOES the time go??

I have been doing a lot of reading lately, mainly Natalie Angier's The Canon: A Whirlygig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science. A whirlygig tour, indeed! Whether you are a science-head like me, or just a fan of fantastic prose, this is a book worth reading. Ms. Angier has a flair for the alliterative and the poetic. Reading her paragraphs is like a hyper-speed Easter egg hunt. Just when you think you've spotted every pop-cultural reference and hidden couplet, you realize, in retracing your steps, that there was one more gem hiding in plain sight. Not only do I love the book, but the book makes me love and treasure science again. The wonder of childhood magnifying glass adventures is restored, and the magic of our world is made real again. Tall order, eh? Yes, and delivered with a bow on top in this fast-paced, fluid and compact volume.

Speaking of magnifying glasses, have you seen this piece about grains of sand? It makes me want to run out and buy a magnifying glass right now. And spend all day at the beach looking at sand.

(copyrightProfessor Gary Greenberg, SWNS)

Gorgeous!

I've just finished the chapter on Astronomy, and am headed into Geology (completed Statistics, Chemistry, Molecular and Evolutionary Biology and Physics). Here's something I've learned that you might not know either: at the center of the Earth, there is a moon. Rather, there is a dense, solid central core, made mostly of metals, about the size of our moon.

The original chunk was part of an orb that collided with the Earth in the early days of our planet's formation. In return for giving up a chunk of itself, this roller-derby queen of a planetary object lopped off a section of Earth that now floats in orbit around us, tethered by the gravity of our comparatively large mass, and the weight of our dense, metallic center. Like Shel Silverstein's Missing Piece, or the long-lost human halves in The Origin of Love, the pale, reflective, floating moon is doomed to circle its lost counterpart, held tight by its gravity, forever kept at a distance by its magnetism.

Isn't science beautiful?

Maryland Farmer

2011-06-14T11:20:00.000-07:00

If you ever have the opportunity to watch the dubbed-for-TV version of Jackie Brown, get yourself a bowl of popcorn and prepare to crack up. I don't know who is responsible for the alternative language, but they must have had a great time. Still looking for the definitive list of all the substitutions.

Here are a few culled from the internet:
1. Mamajamma
2. Maryland Farmer (as in: Shut the farm up you farming Maryland farmer.)
3. Mud shoveler

These I managed to write down between belly laughs:
4. Melon-peeler (Picture Samuel L. Jackson saying, "You tell that farming melon-peeler I want my money.")
5. Motorscooter
6. Mortgage broker
and the mysterious
7. Mobyfinger
8. Snack was substituted for the s-word on more than one occasion. (I don't want anymore of your snack, Mobyfinger!)

At Long Last

2011-06-14T11:01:00.000-07:00

For all of you who have moved too far away to share this with me here in Napa. This is a little different from the original granola recipe I posted, but this is the real deal, brown-milk-making, addictive nuggets of molasses-y goodness that you know and love.

Auntie Tam's Molasses Granola

Mix together
6 C old-fashioned oats
1 C blanched, slivered almonds
1 T cinnamon
1 C unsweetened shredded coconut

*Melt together below ingredients and drizzle, stirring, into above
ingredients*
1/2 C brown sugar
1/4 C butter
1/4 C molasses, dark
1/2 tsp salt

1 cup raisins (or currants, or any other dried, unsweetened fruit)
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Oven 275 degrees, spread mix on parchment paper on deep-sided cookie sheet
or roasting pan (mine is 3-4" deep)
Bake for 30 minutes, stir
Bake for another 30 minutes
Stir in 1 cup of raisins, currants, dried blueberries, cranberries etc., and extra nuts if you like.
If necessary, bake for another 15 minutes, until evenly pale golden all over.
Cool completely and store in air-tight containers. Don't stir while cooling, as this is when the nuggets of molasses-covered goodies form.
I usually have to split the dry ingredients into two big bowls, as this makes a huge batch. Once the granola is in the pan, I also drizzle just a little more molasses in a thin stream across the whole thing to make sure there are plenty of nuggets. Iron and B vitamins! And deliciousness, of course.
Love,
Tamara

Still Breathing

2011-05-07T11:33:00.000-07:00

The soundscape at the winery sparkles with birdsong in the morning when I arrive. Mockingbirds, finches, acorn woodpeckers, yellow warblers, bluebirds, robins and assorted other peepers, cheepers and songsters throw their two cents into the mix.

Tiny gray and black, blunt-beaked birds pick through the cracks between the stones for insects and seeds. A tall heron occasionally strolls through the vineyard, and hawks and turkey vultures cast slowly looping shadows on the hills. Some days it's downright Snow-Whitish around here.

A pair of rosy-capped House Finches, in particular, has its nest in the joint of two beams under the eaves in front of my office window. This morning, as guests were arriving for the first tour, I could see one couple standing on the picnic bench on the patio, pointing at the nest. Three babies huddled inside, close enough that we could see them breathing. The nest seemed to be built at an angle, sloping towards us. That was when we noticed the two hatchlings on the ground below the nest.

One of the nearly-naked little babies was already a goner, but the other still gasped weakly for breath. I got a ladder while the gentleman who had spotted it held it in his hand to keep it warm.

Some of you may already have your wagging finger at the ready to scold us for touching baby birds, because everyone knows their parents won't accept them when they've been touched by a human. And you would be wrong. According to naturalist Lyanda Lynn Haupt, the author of Crow Planet (and probably many others) it's ok to quickly scoop them up and pop them back in the nest. Bird parents would rather have a live baby bird that smells funny than a dead baby bird. This doesn't mean that we should go around poking into nests and petting them, just that in an emergency, we'll likely be forgiven. (Having just finished the book yesterday, I was perhaps a bit overzealous in the encouragement of my accomplice.)

I'm ready for your second objection as well. Baby birds fall to the ground for a reason, and bird parents who can't build a proper nest for them don't deserve to reproduce. We should let nature take its course for the betterment of finches everywhere. On this count, it turns out, you may be right.

Within the hour, the poor, pathetic little thing was back on the ground. On closer examination, it appeared that the nest had been pulled or tipped out of position, its edge at a coy angle, like a lady's cloche hat. The three remaining hatchlings were clinging fiercely to the far edge, their half-bald backs pulsing with breath. And something else: they were twice the size of the two fallen young.

Holding the tiny, gasping creature in my hand, I realized that the parents were not just foolish birds who had built a faulty nest, but perhaps the intentional architects of this catastrophe. Three healthy babies, two weak ones. Without the physical strength, (or maybe even the ruthlessness) to pick the weaklings up and drop them elsewhere or push them out, they simply pulled at the nest's edge and let the rest happen as it would. And it did. The stronger siblings prevailed. I held the unfortunate thing in the warmth of my palm until I could find a small box so that at least it would have a quiet place to slip away. I heated a wet towel in the microwave and placed it in a zipper bag under the box for some warmth in the chilly office.

Defying Charles Darwin's tenets and nature's wrath, I climbed back on the ladder and tacked a few supporting twigs to the beams like a balcony railing, to keep the rest of the nest from falling completely. The three strong babies can relax their frantic grip and maybe get some rest. The finch-parents have returned to tend them without any visible fuss or dismay, and their remaining offspring may well live to breed next spring.

The warm, quiet little box sits on the desk next to mine. Inside it, the little bird is still breathing, still moving now and again, no longer gasping or writhing. This could be a sign of improvement or decline, it's hard to tell. Even if it recovers from this morning's ordeal, it is too small to survive much longer.

Having disturbed the natural course of events, I'm now left with the dilemma of what to do with it. Was it perhaps the wind, or the gropings of an unwelcome predator, that set the whole drama in motion, and not the will of wise birds? If it lives the remainder of the day, dare I slip it back into the nest?

I don't know the answer.

***

Update: Believe it or not, the little thing made it through the day and seemed to stabilize. Because it was still too weak to hold its head up to feed, I decided it was best to deliver it to the local wildlife rescue.

At the rescue desk, the veterinary nurse who accepted my little package said that they had received at least nine other little birds just as feeble and featherless that day, so it will be in good company. It's up to him/her now!

Your Irises Are in Bloom!

2011-04-26T19:46:00.001-07:00

2011-04-18T20:11:00.000-07:00

Ahhh, Spring!

2011-04-11T10:12:00.000-07:00

I couldn't resist these radishes at the store yesterday. I also bought a couple of French baguettes at Model, and some local, fancy European style butter (and bresaola and pâté maison) at Fatted Calf, in another attempt to love radishes and butter on a baguette. With salt, I *like* radishes and butter on baguette, but frankly, I'd just as soon have butter on a baguette. I'll keep trying, though.

But aren't these radishes just gorgeous? I think when the Easter Egg radishes arrive, I'll buy another bunch just to gaze upon, and maybe try the recipe I saw in one of the food magazines (now, where was that...?) for roasted radishes. Or this one, for butter-braised radishes, from Orangette...

Also made the Lemon Pudding Cakes again. Turned out deeeelicious. This time, I used buttermilk instead of milk, and added a tablespoon of sugar to offset the extra sourness. I had the extra time before our guests arrived to cover and chill them, and this time, the pudding did separate out from the cake on top as promised. Topped them with whipped cream and more raspberries, and they were gobbled up before I could get a shot of them. Next time!

Spring Menu:
Baguettes, cheeses, butter, radishes and charcuterie
Asparagus risotto with whole asparagus
Grilled pork tenderloin with garlic and rosemary
Lemon pudding cakes with whipped cream and fresh raspberries

Road Trip!

2011-04-05T19:49:00.001-07:00

After stopping off at the cemetery to see some relatives, we headed out to Lighthouse Point to visit some more of our loved ones.

Grandpa attempting to explain the finer points of Steamer's Lane surfing to Molly. She moves so fast, this was the only non-blurry picture of her!

Grandpa looking out over Capitola, the town of his youth, the next day.

A very nice young man named Matt invited us in to see the inside of the Cliff Avenue house that was purchased by my great-grandparents for $5,000 in 1939. This is Grandpa showing us the corner wall where he and his brother would have their height marked in pencil each year. He is demonstrating the fact that my great-uncle grew to be 6'4".

Our missions were accomplished, the weather was perfect, and a good time was had by all. Thanks, Molly, for doing almost all of the driving! (Sorry about the picture, but it was the only one where you weren't blurry or making a funny face.)

Supercalifontalisticexpialidocious

2011-04-02T20:05:00.000-07:00

I do not know what is going on with the fonts on this blog. I was pasting from Word, and I think some of the font commands were sticking in there like popcorn kernels in the teeth, even after I took them out, but I think it is under control now. Sorry about the chaos.

Return of the Caesar

2011-04-02T19:10:00.000-07:00

This will be the second time I've posted this recipe, but I don't want you to miss it, since today I made a Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad and it hit the spot. Now I know that is the opposite end of the spectrum from avant-garde, GCCS being ubiquitous these days, from McDonald's to the haute-est retro steakhouses, but the difference between a vibrant, punchy, fresh-tasting CS, and one that is bland and greasy, is in the dressing. THIS is the dressing you want: lemony, garlicky and full of depth and flavor. On a warm evening, a moderate amount of this dressing, tossed with cold, crisp romaine lettuce and fresh grated Parmesan (put that green can away before I smack someone!), eaten with grilled chicken from the barbecue, will revive your sense of what this salad can be.

I posted this once here, in 2007, and it's true that I did learn to make it in a five-gallon bucket in Michael Chiarello's Tra Vigne kitchen, under the tutelage of the impish cold-side wizard Peggy. It is still the best, the original, authentic Caesar salad dressing. If you must, due to health reasons, omit the egg yolk, the dressing still tastes ok with the Dijon as the only binder, but take care when you emulsify that you go slowly with the oil at first so that it doesn't break.

A couple of things you need to know about this recipe: one, it makes about a half-pint of dressing, which is a lot. Be prepared to share, or to have more than one salad in a week. And two, both people had better partake. As with all things garlic and anchovy-y, this dressing packs a serious wallop in the breath department later. But raw garlic is good for you, and it's soooo delicious. I used Meyer Lemon juice, so I added a full tablespoon more for the right amount of tartness. I like my Caesar dressing lemony.

This was also my Grandma’s favorite Caesar salad, reason enough to justify a trip down from Tahoe just to eat at the restaurant.

Caesar Salad
(From the Tra Vigne Cookbook, "Piadine with Blue Cheese Caesar Salad" by Michael Chiarello and Penelope Wisner. Blue cheese, though I love it dearly, is a terrible waste of the subtle and not so subtle flavors in this dressing. I prefer the original recipe.)

1T Champagne vinegar
2T Fresh lemon juice
1 ½ tsp minced garlic
1 egg yolk
1 tb dijon mustard
Dash Worcestershire sauce
6 anchovy fillets (buy the filets in a jar of oil rather than the can-- they are much neater and easier to store, and keep almost indefinitely in the refrigerator)
Pinch fresh ground black pepper
1 cup pure olive oil
2 tb freshly grated Parmesan cheese plus more for sprinkling on salad

Using a blender, food processor or stick blender, mince the garlic, then add the vinegar, lemon juice, egg yolk, mustard, Worcestershire, anchovies and pepper and blend until well mixed.

With the machine running, add the olive oil, at first by drops and then in a thin, steady stream until all of the oil is incorporated.

Pulse in the finely grated parmesan

Refrigerate in a covered container until ready to use. Toss with chilled, chopped hearts of romaine, and extra parmesan until the greens are evenly but thinly coated.

Do not overdress; keep a bowl on the table for those who like more. Top with chicken if you like. Or dip raw vegetables in it, or make a warm/cold piadini (a folded flatbread sandwich) with it, using some Trader Joe's raw pizza doughs cooked up on the barbecue grill or in the oven, or soft, storebought flatbread. Trader Joe's also has a good one.

Note: If you have no food processor or blender, chop the ingredients very fine, then whisk them together with a wire wisk, or pummel them using a mortar and pestle. Emulsions are a little tougher to do with a whisk, but that's the way they were done forever and ever, so just roll a damp towel into a tube and wrap around the base of a stainless or glass bowl, tilted slightly, so you'll have two free hands, and whisk away, remembering to go very slowly at first with the oil, and you'll be just fine.

Enjoy!

Heartwarming

2011-04-02T18:53:00.000-07:00

Recently, after a not entirely unpleasant but not fun dentist appointment, I thought back fondly to my childhood dental experiences. (Yes, you read that right.)

We had the very best dentist* from the time I was ten or so until I left Modesto at 18: Dr. Robert Venn. He is still practicing.

(*Due in no small part to the very comprehensive insurance that my dad worked very hard for at Pacific Bell)

I am so thankful for those early experiences with a gentle and compassionate dentist, whose staff was friendly, and whose treasure chest was always full of toys. I remember one experience in particular when I bravely, silently endured the giant needle, but great big tears rolled out one after the other anyway as I stared at him with big, wide eyes. He wiped my tear away with his finger and said, "Why you're a little waterfall, aren't you? I'm sorry this hurts, sweetie." For some reason, the memory of that tenderness still brings tears to my eyes.

I looked him up on the internet and wrote him a thank you note, to let him know what a lifelong impression his professionalism and kindness made on me. As an adult, I have no stress when it comes to dental work, and can almost fall asleep in the dentist's chair. I told him so.

Here's the response I received:

Tamara-

It was wonderful for me to read your card and feel the sentiment you shared.

I have found that life's joys are around human connections and for that reason your extra effort in contacting me is greatly appreciated.

I've also noticed that the graces in life which we receive are best appreciated when we are open hearted, and it is with that attitude that I thank you and wish you open-hearted possibilities for your future.

Bob Venn

I post this not because I want to pat myself on the back for thinking of writing him a note, nor to betray the confidence of his personal reply, but to shine a light where it is deserved, on a truly lovely and remarkable individual who is still influencing the lives of those he treats.

Dr. Venn, you are awesome.

Loyal Gum Chewers

2011-04-02T18:25:00.000-07:00

I thought about that phrase, "loyal gum chewers," and all I could picture was a gang of slack-jawed, flabby patriots convening under limp banners.

Fear not, Southern ladies! I do not (ever) chew gum in public, as long as you don't count the inside of my car as public. I never chew it at the store or in front of anyone other than Mike, or very, very close friends, inside the car or inside my private home.

And, for the record, I have been choosing Trident White or Orbit White lately, because they are in wrapper-free packaging AND they claim to whiten. I am all about maintaining the choppers.

Homemade Lemon Curd

2011-03-30T15:24:00.000-07:00

Homemade Lemon Curd

5 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup lemon juice (from 2-4 lemons, depending on size)
lemon zest from 2-4 lemons
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into pats and returned to the fridge

Fill a medium saucepan with water to 1” up the side. Place water on med-high heat. (This is for a double-boiler, so make sure you have a metal mixing bowl that is big enough to sit in the saucepan without touching the water.)

In the bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until smooth, about 1 minute, then whisk in lemon juice and zest.

When the water reaches a steady boil, reduce the heat slightly and place the bowl on top of the double boiler. Continue whisking on the heat for approximately 8 minutes, or until the mixture is a light yellow and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon thickly.

Remove from heat and drop in the pats of butter one at a time, whisking until each is completely melted and incorporated before adding the next.

Pour into a container and refrigerate for at least one hour, covered with a sheet of plastic wrap placed directly on top of the curd. Lemon curd keeps 2 weeks covered. (Recipe from Alton Brown's Good Eats.)

Mike used this as the filling between the layers of my fantastic birthday lemon layer-cake. It would be nice with any sponge/white cake, and whipped cream frosting is lovely and doesn't make a cloyingly sweet cake. With so many Meyer lemons about right now, we've got to use as many as we can!

You could also...
spread it on a hot buttered scone
layer it with Greek yogurt and blueberries in a parfait
fold some into whipped cream to top a fruit dessert or tart
stir it into vanilla ice-cream
layer it in a trifle with lady fingers and fresh fruit
or use the lady fingers to make little lemon-cream sandwiches for an easy dessert…
lots and lots of uses to keep you from simply eating it from the container with a spoon!

Waffles

2011-03-30T11:37:00.000-07:00

(Sorry, you'll have to use your imagination here. As usual, the waffles were gobbled up before they could be photographed.)

I love waffles. Pancakes, I can take or leave, but if there is a waffle on the menu, chances are I will have it. My very favorite breakfast out is a crispy waffle with an over-easy egg or two on top. I eat half of the waffle with the egg, and then the other half with syrup or powdered sugar and butter. Add a side of bacon and a good, strong cup of coffee with cream and I'm in breakfast heaven. (In Seattle, you can find a very delicious version of this at Glo's.)

As is the case with many food items, once you have the perfect waffle, anything less is just not worth eating. When I received a waffle iron for Christmas (now, that's just dangerous) I researched the heck out of recipes before attempting any of them at home.

Fortunately, Molly over at Orangette had already tested a number of recipes and recommended two that she found to be superior. Since hers was the Dutch Baby recipe that started it all, I tried both. Orangette Waffle-Off

Marion Cunningham's waffles were mind-blowingly crispy and creamy, but the yeastiness didn't work for me- they tasted too much like beer. Of course, lacking beer, the batter could be used to cloak some big shrimp before frying. This recipe also needs to be started the night before, which is great if you think about it the night before, but a bummer if you don't.

The waffle we have come to love is the one she calls "Great Make-the-Morning-of Waffle". More details at the link above than I've given here. It's a good idea to read through her thorough description of the method before beginning. (Adapted from this, originally written by a nice lady named Aretha Frankensteins. If that isn't a great band name, I don't know what is. If you search under "Waffle of Insane Greatness," you will find that this recipe has been pretty thoroughly tested all over the blogosphere.)

Because we all need our fiber and whole grains, I added ground flax and use about half whole wheat flour. I've tried corn and buckwheat too, but I like this combination the best.

Waffles- Batch for 2 + a few for the toaster

Dry
¾ c flour, half all-purpose, half whole wheat (adjust flour mix to your liking)
(or 100% AP for standard recipe)
¼ cup cornstarch
½ tsp bp
1/4 tsp bs
½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp sugar
+/- ¼ cup ground flax (to your taste)
(omit for standard recipe)

Wet
½ cup buttermilk
½ cup milk
1/3 c oil
1 lg egg
¾ tsp vanilla

Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
Lightly beat egg, add remaining wet ingredients
Mix dry and wet until blended, a few lumps are ok
Allow to rest for 30 minutes while your waffle iron heats
Use ¼ cup measure partially filled to ladle into the center of each waffle space
Cook until golden, serve immediately, or cool on a rack and freeze and re-toast as needed.

Double Batch for Guests or extras for the freezer
1 ½ c flour
½ cup cornstarch
1 tsp bp
1tsp bs
1 tsp salt
3 tsp sugar
up to ½ cup ground flax

1 cup buttermilk
1 cup milk
2/3 cup oil
2 lg eggs
1-½ tsp vanilla

These waffles toast up so crispy and delicious. They are a treat and quick to toast on a busy workday. Thanks, Molly!

Got an Extra Minute? An Open Letter to the Manufacturer

2011-03-28T08:59:00.000-07:00

Dear Makers of Extra Gum,

My husband and I both chew gum after meals during the day when we aren’t able to brush. We’ve been loyal purchasers of Extra for at least 20 years.

I appreciate the updated flat packaging, but I think you are missing some opportunities to add value to the product. If someone is taking the time to read it, chances are they have an “Extra” minute, so why not make it count? Here are some ideas for the flap:

1. Things to Do with an Extra Minute

Time saving tips

Simple stretches to ease tension or improve posture

Money saving tips

Nice things to do for others or yourself

Links to worthy charities for quick click and donate programs

Traffic safety tips (Got an Extra minute? Here’s how to adjust your rear-view mirrors properly. )

Any helpful, healthy or useful things to do with 60 Extra seconds

2. Tales of Extra Effort

Very short stories about ordinary people doing the Extra-ordinary

Unexpected discoveries that took an Extra minute

3. Extra Brain Builders

Word games, brain-teasers, puzzles, optical illusions

Inspirational quotes or sentences from great novels or writers

Short poems or pieces to memorize

Brain improvement exercises

Easy puzzles with links to an Extra website with more challenging puzzles, challenges, etc.. Solve a series of puzzles or riddles to collect points and win things, like a Nintendo DS with brain games, an Xbox Kinect, or a family game night set. Consumers could come back each time they get a new pack to get a fresh set of puzzles and earn more points.

Be useful, be smart, be interesting, make the most of that minute, and add value to the product. No matter which category, include a link to more of the same, plus the other two, on a website that engages and interests. Should you decide to include them in your marketing plan, even commercials could be used to give people a brain-teaser or party-trick skill challenge. I can imagine people saying, "Wait, wait, I need to watch this Extra commercial," so that they could pick up the next clue, or stand up and challenge their TV watching partner to a one-minute skill test before the next show starts.

These ideas are just starting points, and I’m sure you’ll think of many more. I think it would be neat to bring back the fun of opening a new pack of gum, kind of like Bazooka bubble gum. You always knew you were going to get a joke, and it was usually silly, but it piqued your interest to see what it would be, and you always shared it with someone else.

Best regards,

Tamara Landre

A Cleaner Cleaner Plate Club

2011-03-27T21:43:00.000-07:00

If you haven't checked out The Cleaner Plate Club blog ever, or in a while, now's the time to check it out again. The layout is updated, with bright-colored childlike art, and the whole site is streamlined. Looking good! I told Ali that I felt like I'd just run into a friend who lost 40 lbs and went on What Not to Wear-- except that I still like her!

Ali, in addition to being a lovely human being, is a terrific writer, and she's put together a book full of personally-tested recipes for making good food for the young people you love. Much of the posting now is done by her writing partner, Beth, whom I don't know so well, but the site is looking good, so I'm off to catch up on my reading. Definitely check it out, and the book, too, if you have a chance.

Today's Project

2011-03-27T21:05:00.001-07:00

Besides my nifty new blog header, I also made this little postcard today from a collage I did a while back. I feel so empowered with my Epson Artisan printer/scanner! I was able to scan some sketches of chrysanthemums I'd done last week, and incorporate them into the background of the collage too. I thought I ought to have some pictures, since the last two posts were lacking images.

Pho and Gyoza

2011-03-27T20:04:00.000-07:00

Pho has become such a comfort food for me. On a cold, rainy night like tonight, the aromatic broth soothes while the bright scents of cilantro, basil, lime and scallion lift the spirits.

I wrote this post about making a quick Pho a while back. I had devised a recipe for replicating the flavors on days when I had the craving, but not the time, nor the 3+ lbs of oxtails. But today, Mike and I used Nina Simonds Asian Noodles recipe for "Hanoi Beef Noodles" to make up a batch from scratch. Surprisingly easy, if you have the time, and so very satisfying. (This is a fantastic book to have around if you frequently crave Asian food and don't have access. The "Chinese Peanut Sauce" is addictive.)

Nina Simonds' Hanoi Beef Noodles

For the broth, put in a large stockpot:
3 and 3/4 lbs of beef shinbones or oxtails with meat and marrow
16 cups water
4 shallots, thinly sliced
6 slices fresh ginger, peeled and smashed lightly
4 stars anise
2 cinnamon sticks

Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer for 1 1/2 hours, skimming foam from the surface.

While the stock is simmering, you might as well prepare the garnish:
1/4 cup minced scallion greens
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
1 cup Thai or sweet basil leaves, shredded
1 thinly sliced serrano pepper if desired
1 lime, cut into wedges
2 cups bean sprouts, rinsed and drained
and, optional
1/2 lb boneless beef sirloin, trimmed of fat and gristle and cut into paper-thin slices about 1-1/2" square

After the broth has simmered, strain the broth into another large pot, remove the meat from the bones and slice thinly. Skim fat from the surface of the stock.

Add
1/4 cup fish sauce (nuoc mam)
1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
and keep warm over low heat

Soak
6oz thin flat rice stick noodles in warm water for 15 minutes to soften. Boil for 45 seconds, rinse with warm water, drain, and divide among 4-6 soup bowls.

Add the bean sprouts and the sirloin to the hot soup, bring to a boil, and cook until the sirloin loses its pink color, 1-2 minutes. Skim the surface to remove any impurities.

Ladle the beef, bean sprouts and broth over the noodles, sprinkle with garnishes as desired, and apply lime and pepper slices to your taste. Oyster or soy sauce, and sriracha are the typical accompaniments.

Luckily for us, we had tried out another new recipe last week from Food & Wine magazine: A Lesson in Dumplings, so we had frozen gyoza, or potstickers, and lemongrass-pheasant meatballs (made from leftover potsticker filling) in the freezer to augment our sirloin-less pho. The dough could not have been simpler: 2-1/2 cups flour + 1 cup water. Check out the recipe link, and be sure to allow yourself plenty of time to make the dumplings: it's simple, but time-consuming. It would be a nice thing to do on a rainy afternoon like today. The dumplings cook just as quickly from the freezer as they do fresh, so they're always ready to go when you need them. Before you get excited about the pheasant, and think we're fancy people, I have to tell you that Mike gets it from a guy he knows at the pool, who trades us for wine when he has excess booty from his hunting trips. Thanks, Bob!

Where are the pictures, you ask? It's hard to get up on the table in my stocking feet and shoot the beautiful food when there's a hungry man waiting to eat! Sometimes I'm just not fast enough!

It's good to be back!

I (Heart) Healdsburg

2011-02-28T11:32:00.000-08:00

Mike and I spent yesterday's sunny, blue-sky afternoon on one of my favorite drives, northward and out of the Napa Valley through sleepy Knight's and Alexander Valleys to the town of Healdsburg.

The drive takes more than an hour, longer if you stop to taste wine at one of the friendly family wineries along the way. Since Mike and I are both in the wine business, we tend to shy away from tasting rooms unless we have out of town company.

Depending on when you start your drive and from how far south, if it happens to be lunchtime when you pass through Calistoga, do not miss our number one favorite barbecue joint: Buster's BBQ. The tri-tip sandwich is the maneuver here. Definitely, positively, do NOT get the "Hot" sauce on your first visit. Or if you do, get a little side container of it to dole out or dip in as you eat, unless you are a glutton for searing, sweat-inducing, lip-throbbing pain. It IS delicious, though, with depth of flavor and tang that will impress as well as inflame.

This time of year, pink plum trees are in bloom and line the roadsides of these quiet valleys, whose stumpy, head-pruned vineyards are interspersed with yellow mustard. It feels like farm country, with old stone buildings, knoll-top farmhouses, and faded wood-barns spaced well apart among the green hills and the occasional sprinkle of goats or sheep. In one pasture, three out of four horses were sunning their round barrel bellies on the ground, making it look like an especially strong wind had come through and blown them all over.

Once in Healdsburg, head for the square. Beer-lovers, go directly to the Bear Republic Brewing Company, just off the main square. There is ample parking behind the Brewing Company in a large lot, or on the square itself. Mike and I sit at the end of the bar and drink a pint or two with lunch. The food is not extraordinary, but it's good for pub food. The beers are the star of the show here, but it's also possible to have a pretty good burger, a cup of fairly healthy and flavorful chili, or a salad, and not feel like you need to see a cardiologist immediately.

After people watching and sipping our favorite brews, we sometimes stop in to at the eclectic Erickson Gallery across the street, but yesterday we bee-lined it for one of my favorite bookstores anywhere, Levin & Company. I love to browse the big flat tables stacked with new hard-cover and paperback fiction, non-fiction, and big coffee-table design books. It's such a pleasure to book-shop with a bit of a beer-buzz going, running my fingers over the textures of the covers, letting my loosened subconscious mind lead me to my next long read. Yesterday I picked up F in Exams, a collection of funny bad answers to test questions, , and Dave Eggers' annual Best Non-Required Reading. Many cozy evenings of enjoyment to come. Someday I may read many of my books on an electronic device, but I will surely miss the smell of a book. Maybe in the future, Kindles and Nooks et all will be fitted with devices that atomize that inimitable papery smell so that we can still pretend.

Next, we stopped in at 14 Feet for an eyeful of uber-retro-chic design inspiration. Marne and her partner have an eye for furniture, fabrics and objets d'art that will make you take a second look at your storage unit. Well, only if it's crammed with well-loved mid-century and industrial furniture. I wish I could afford to buy all of my furniture from them.

Last stop on the square for the day was Flying Goat. A perfect espresso for me and a house-made chai for Mike. The art installation changes all the time.

You may wish to pick up a snack and browse the wonderfully curated collection of items at the JimTown Store. An eye for vintage treasures and a quirky, retro sense of humor and style is evident at the store. More notes here.

Ahhh, Sundays!

Ricotta Gnocchi, Part 2

2011-02-25T14:19:00.000-08:00

The verdict: Gnocchi, delicious. Sauce, tasty, but waaaay more butter involved than was absolutely necessary. (See recipe link in previous post.)

This dish would be just as tasty with mushrooms (I used shiitake) sauteed in olive oil, rather than half a stick of butter, then the garlic and shallots.

I used frozen peas, and pre-cooked them with a quick dip in the boiling gnocchi water, but they would have been better going into the mushroom mix frozen, so that they'd be just-cooked and fresher tasting. The mushroom portion of the sauce sits while the gnocchi is browning, so keep that in mind and undercook the mushrooms by just a bit as well.

Gnocchi could be browned in a mix of half butter and half olive oil as well, making the whole dish with 1/4 of a stick of butter rather than the 1 stick called for, and I don't think it would be harmed a bit.

These light, slightly lemony gnocchi were surprisingly easy to put together, and could also be delicious sauteed as in the recipe, then served with just the fresh peas over arugula or spinach, dressed with a little lemon and olive oil, with shaved parmesan or even prosciutto, for a much lighter dish.

Ricotta Gnocchi, Part 1

2011-02-23T13:48:00.000-08:00

Ricotta Gnocchi

3/4 c flour
1/4 tsp salt
Zest of one lemon
1/2 cup grated parmesan
(mixed together well)
plus
1 cup ricotta
1 egg

Mix ricotta, flour, lemon zest, salt, egg and parmesan together into a light dough that just holds together on a floured surface.

Cut into thirds and gently roll into 1" thick ropes. Chill ropes, uncovered, in refrigerator, at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.

Cut ropes into half inch pieces. Roll pieces across the tines of a fork and back onto floured surface.

To cook: Drop into boiling, salted water for 1 minute, use a slotted spoon to remove. Saute in a little butter until browned.

This recipe is from Micheal Symon. Further instructions for cooking and making a brown-butter sauce at this link. I'm making a mushroom-butter sauce with peas and parmesan tonight (also from Michael Symon) which I hope to be able to photograph before it is gobbled up!

Michael's recipe does not call for the traditional fork or paddle-rolled shape, but to me, it's not gnocchi without that. It takes a bit of practice, but can easily be mastered in one batch. They don't have to be perfect!

Something Bright

2011-02-22T11:28:00.000-08:00

I love these ranunculus (ranunculuses? ranunculi?) this time of year. So cheery and bright. And my favorite color!

Easy, Pretty, Little Lemon Pudding Cakes

2011-02-15T10:26:00.000-08:00

I've had this recipe, from Sunset magazine, since it came out in print in 2009, and finally decided to test drive it last night for Mike for Valentine's Day. Easy and very cute.

Changes: I used four larger ramekins instead of the 6 called for. No milk, so soy milk was substituted. I dropped the raspberries in, instead of folding. I think that's it. Picture above is before fresh raspberries were added.

Raspberry Lemon Pudding Cakes
Time: 50 minutes, plus 30 minutes to cool. "This light and tangy lemon dessert satisfies my longing for lemon pie," said reader Jeanette Hennings about her original version of this recipe. We added loads of berries for a more summery take. The tender berry cake rises to the top, and the creamy lemon cake sinks to the bottom.

Yield: Serves 6

Ingredients

2 large eggs, separated
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons melted butter
Finely shredded zest of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup low-fat (1%) milk
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 2/3 cups (12 oz.) raspberries, divided
Powdered sugar

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Set 6 ramekins (2/3 cup size) in a 9- by 13-in. baking pan.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks and granulated sugar until thick and creamy. Whisk in flour, butter, lemon zest and juice, and milk until blended.
3. In a deep bowl with a mixer on high speed, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until whites hold stiff, moist peaks when beater is lifted. Stir one-quarter of whites into yolk mixture until blended, then gently fold in remaining whites. Gently fold in half of raspberries.
4. Spoon batter into ramekins. Pour enough hot tap water into baking pan to come 1 in. up sides of ramekins.
5. Bake until cake layers are set and tops are golden, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove ramekins from water; let cool at least 30 minutes. Serve with more berries on top and a dusting of powdered sugar.
Make ahead: Chill airtight up to 1 day; pudding layer will become more distinct.

Fishing

2011-02-10T16:39:00.000-08:00

Kelp heads bob among the rolling breakers of the foggy cove. A spiffy scenic-route-sign seagull preens on the wet sand to my right, casting furtive lunch-seeking glances my way.

Mike is standing on a medium-sized, irregular boulder to my right, which overhangs a shallow, turbulent area of the surf zone that is free of kelp. This is where he hopes the rockfish will be waiting, poised attentively on fin-tips, watching for his bait of chopped frozen squid to drop.

There is a light, cool wind and a crush and rumble of surf. The sun is casting a weak light through the scrim of fog that makes it bright enough for sunglasses.

He is still preparing his bait. Seagull still equidistant between us, in case there is food in the near future.

This little rocky cove is infinite in its possibilities. To my left, the fine lace of a dessicated leaf, left strung together by its intricate vasculature, sits amid a pile of shredded plant material: lacy, golden leaves, delicate fern-like fragments, waxy, long, narrow strips of seagrass, a sinewy tendon of kelp, wisps of feathery, Seussian moss, all captured by a softly waving hand of dried kelp whose end is lodged-- or planted-- under a rock on this sometimes submerged beach.

The sand, a mix of tiny pebbles reluctantly yielding to sand, really, is gilded and strewn with this tinsel of the land and sea. The leaves are most remarkable.

The sun may burn through to this little cove today, or it may not.

He stands patiently atop his rock, shifting his weight... Hey! He's caught a fish! A nice, big one. Looks to be a surf perch from here.

Seagull keenly observes from above, but no fish guts are on the offer this round. Mr. Perch is thrown right back in as the sky shows patches of blue through the fog. The perch are mild-flavored, fine-textured fish, pleasant enough to eat, but we have the luxury of choosing not to. Or, he was simply too small.

He prepares another baited hook and casts again, resuming his alternating stance in the saddle of the boulder.

The fog recedes further.

Crows and seagulls cross paths overhead as they commute to daytime stations. Misty clouds zoom southwards, but the distant fog seems to be growing and advancing.

After the first fish slaps back into the ocean, he and I communicate via matching baby claps to signal, "Yay! You caught a fish!" I approve with quick taps of my fingertips, "Yay!" "Mr. Fish goes free!" he claps. "Yay!" I answer. And on we go.

The wind is more gusty now, as the land behind heats and the air rises.

Reeling, reeling in... is it kelp, or nothing, or another fish? The latter. Almost looks like he caught the same one, only just a little smaller. And back in she goes.

More bait, more casting, more standing. We've been here an hour. Two fish: not bad.

I think I'd rather read a book than write one. Because, well, dialogue, for one thing. How do you make conversations purposeful, intentional, serve the end of what needs to happen, when in reality they are clumsy, haphazard, awkward and frequently pointless?

He straddles the front crest of the big rock now, for a different angle on the shallows, looking like he's riding behind the ears of a giant hunchbacked toad. He flings his lure with intent and gusto but reels it right back in and shakes his head at me.

The sea here dances with a range of blues, browns and greens, fringed with a rustle of white.

Reeling, reeling....kelp!

Each time the sun burns through the mist, the colors reveal themselves in its light. I have completely lost feeling in my rear end and also have to pee.

How was it that there was no warning of the tsunami in Indonesia? Although, to be fair, I know that when a tsunami warning was issued in Santa Cruz in college, we responded not by loading our loved ones in the car and heading for higher ground, but by filling our stomachs with beer and making for the cliffs. So it may not have helped at all.

At least one person and one dog have been here already today. The person's footsteps, still clearly impressed, a purposeful segment from one area to another, the dog's a joyful, erratic tangent of punctuation marks through the sand.

Mom's "Secret" Pumpkin Pie Recipe

2010-11-07T09:53:00.000-08:00

This recipe, for the very best pumpkin pie, is one my mother got from a cookbook in the 1960s. It is legendary in my family and outside of it, and has been shared with many friends and neighbors. Warm wishes and fragrant kitchens for the holidays ahead.

Mom's Famous (Secret) Pumpkin Pie
(Makes 2 pies)
2 crusts, rolled and chilled
1 Large can pumpkin (or equivalent amount home-roasted and pureed): Libby is best.
2 cans sweetened condensed (NOT evaporated) milk: Borden is best.
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp eac ginger and nutmeg
+/- 2 C HOT water

Mix and pour into crusts
Bake at 375 degrees 50-55 minutes until center ever so slightly wiggly

Allow to cool to at least room temperature before serving. The pie will be more dense and solid the next morning after time in the refrigerator. (Irresistible for breakfast!)

The Very Best Pie Crust
(Courtesy of Grandma Landre)

Ingredients
2 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c cold unsalted butter, cubed
1/2 c Spectrum shortening
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1/2 to 1 cup ice water

Tools
Food processor or pastry blender
Rolling pin

Method
Place flour, salt, sugar in a food processor, spin to combine. Distribute fats on top of flour, close processor, and pulse until it resembles coarse cornmeal.
Sprinkle about 1/4 c of the water on top of mixture. Pulse a few times to mix evenly, sprinkle a little more water, pulse again. What you are looking for is a mixture that will just hold together when squeezed. You don't need any more water than that.
Scoop out into a bowl or a floured work surface and press together into a ball. Flatten the ball into a disk, roll out.
I always roll and shape my crust, then chill it in the refrigerator while I'm making the filling. Easier to work with that way.

I find this easiest in a food processor, but it can also be done with a fork or pastry blender (that weird D-shaped thing in the back of your kitchen drawer with wires or blades and a handle).

From the Vault: Applesauce Cake

2010-11-07T09:10:00.000-08:00

This easy, tasty little cake is from my grandmother's Lily Wallace New American Cook Book, copyright 1946. (This is the cookbook that we feared was missing, which to our great relief, turned up at the bottom of a box of recipe clippings during last month's garage sale.)

Just the right amount of spice and moistness. Grandma's handwritten notes suggested icing it with a powdered sugar/butter/vanilla frosting and adding raisins for a dessert cake. I made it this morning with apple slices arranged on the bottom of the pan for a simple decoration when inverted. Very tasty as a coffee/breakfast cake.

Applesauce Cake
Oven to 350 degrees

1/2 cup shortening (1 stick butter)
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup thick applesauce
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp clove
1 1/2 to 2 cups flour (I split the difference and used 1 3/4 and it turned out just right.)
1 tsp soda

Cream shortening, sugar and egg together. (It helps if all ingredients are at room temperature.)
Dissolve soda in applesauce and add. Sift salt, cinnamon and clove with part of the flour and add to the first mixture. Add enough more flour to make a fairly stiff batter. Pour into a greased (or buttered) loaf pan (I used a deep 9" round cake pan.) and bake in a moderate oven 50-60 minutes. 1 cup raisins may be added to the batter.

After buttering the pan, I added 2 sliced apples arranged in a circle, to the bottom of the pan, along with a sprinkle of brown sugar, then poured the batter in on top of the apples, spreading it out with a spatula so that the middle was slightly lower than the edges to even the cake out.

Lovely!

The sky on my way home Friday.

Catching Up

2010-11-02T16:15:00.000-07:00

Ok, I'm combing back through the now spam-free comments...

I'll start with this one, which is election relevant, though it was made about a different election, from Kate:

"Although there are promises made the candidates may not be able to keep, at least the people I vote for KNOW what I want, and may even attempt to give it to me. What worries me is the other side doesn't even seem to have a CLUE as to what I want, so how will they ever be able to work for my interest? If my president doesn't know I want soda in my drinking fountain, I know I will NEVER get it from him/her."
Original Post

Whether we get what we hope for in 2010 or not, we have to remind ourselves that our country doesn't rest on the shoulders of the reigning political party, but on us, the people who go to the polls, enabling a system to exist that at least strives to keep our country free and fair.

As Jon Stewart said recently in response to being asked whether he was disappointed in politicians (I paraphrase): "No. If I go to the zoo and a monkey throws feces at me, I say, 'What do you expect? It's a monkey.' What disappoints me is when the zookeeper doesn't say, 'Bad monkey.'"

"oh, how cute... do you know what kind they are?" Emily
My little watering-can dwellers were Bewick's Wrens.
Original Post

"I have found your blog by a curios coincidence. My maternal grandmother was born in Long Run, Ohio in 1893. She married a Martin Milosewski , a coal miner, and they lived in Short Creek but divorced him circa 1921. She remarried and divorced several more times before her death in 1947, Lansing, Michigan. I have a photo of her with her name Valeria Waszkiewicz. She also went by the name Lily. Do you think there is any connection? I wouldn't have except for the inclusion of Short Creek Ohio." Georgia

Hello Georgia! I'm guessing you are probably long gone. If it weren't for the fact that my blog was attacked by spammers, I never would have found your comment. I would be happy to compare family history notes with you if you happen to see this follow-up comment.
Original Post

"What a lovely contemplation of the stuff we collect and carry with us. Really lovely!"

Shana, this was over a year ago, but thank you very much for the compliment. It means a lot to me coming from you.
Original Post

Here’s where to find the indispensable silicone spatulas:
Kellers in Modesto
www.kellersgifts.com

and more info from loveblueskies:

“I have the spatula and love it too!! It was a gift purchased at Sur La Table.

After much research, I learned the initials stand for William Bounds. I don't think they make the cookie spatula anymore, but they still make a Sili Jumbo Jack spatula which I must have!

I just found 2 cookie spatulas on sale at Sur La Table. The blue one was item # 520254 for $3.99 and the yellow one was item # 664730 for $1.99. Happy hunting to see if they have any left!”
Thanks, loveblueskies!

"Mmmmmmm, granola. Will you please borrow Abbie in a few years and teach her to make granola? That is exactly the experience an aunt and niece should have. I can picture the day: a slightly drizzly gray sky, Abbie in the apron that my grandmother made for me, standing on a stool next to you looking very serious as you explain why melting is done over low and not high heat. Once again I don't understand why I got a brother instead of a sister. I deserve a sister."

I would be more than happy to make granola with cutie-bootie anytime (cheap flights on Alaska right now!), though I suspect by now you might have beaten me to it!
Original Post

Thanks for the tips about silken tofu (love it!), zapple pie (ditto, though real apple is my pie du jour), pear upside-down cakes and rashguards and other sun-protective clothing in lieu of coral-polluting sunscreens.

Ok, that's it. I've used up this little chunk of time, and I'm going forward from now on, and not back. AND, very important, I'm disabling comments for future posts, to keep the spam-monster at bay.

Right now, with this beautiful, sunny fall weather, I'm in the mood to make these short ribs and some homemade cinnamon bread. Anyone have a good recipe???

Um, I guess you'll have to contact me some other way!

Oh dear!

2010-10-30T12:49:00.000-07:00

I just found the "spam comments" folder! My blog had been totally spamified, about 580 different comments, most on different posts, but 125, interestingly, on a post about spamming in comments, which was sort of funny in a way.

So if you commented, said hello, asked a question or offered a suggestion, I apologize for not ever responding.

Here are your answers:
Yes, the Dutch Baby is just as good with thinly sliced apples and a generous sprinkle of cinnamon sugar. Just slice the apples thinly so they don't weigh down the batter too much. If you do weigh it down, it's still delicious, just not as puffy.

Thanks for the tips about the silicone spatulas. I found more at the wonderful kitchen store in McHenry Village whose name escapes me now. That's a great place to shop for gifts, btw, not a chain and a Valley institution.

I'll answer more as soon as I can!

Pear Upside-Down Cake: Variation on a Favorite for Fall

2010-10-04T12:17:00.000-07:00

This is a delicious Fall variation on the Plum Upside-Down Cake from a summer or two ago. Lighter and milder real maple syrup is substituted for most or all of the brown sugar in the topping. (Thanks, Monty!) I recommend experimenting with other types of pears and apples this time of year. Not too sweet, this little cake makes a pretty breakfast or tea cake as well.

Bartlett Pear Upside-Down Cake

For the topping
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, melted
1/3- 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
(optional- add up to 1/3 cup brown sugar for a sweeter topping)
+/- 2 semi-firm Bartlett Pears

For the cake
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup milk

(vanilla ice cream as an accompaniment)

Make the topping:
This time, I melted the butter in a saucepan, then poured it into the cake pan, swirling it around to coat all surfaces. If using brown sugar, sprinkle into buttered pan. Pour in maple syrup. Slice unpeeled pears 1/4 inch thick and arrange in a pretty overlapping circle on top of the butter and sugar/syrup. Set aside.

Make the cake:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Into a bowl sift together the flour, the baking powder, the salt, and the cinnamon.

In another bowl with an electric mixer (or with a stand mixer, whisk, or wooden spoon) cream the butter with the sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy.

Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, and beat in the vanilla.

Add the flour mixture alternately in batches with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture and beating well after each addition.

Pour the batter into the pan, spreading it evenly, and bake the cake in the middle of the oven for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean, the cake is golden on top, and has pulled away from the pan edges a bit.

Let the cake cool in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes, run a thin knife around the edge if necessary, and invert the cake onto a plate.

Serve the cake warm (oh yeah) or at room temperature with the whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

2010-08-24T20:07:00.000-07:00

Litany, by Billy Collins

You are the bread and the knife,
The crystal goblet and the wine...
-Jacques Crickillon

You are the bread and the knife,
the crystal goblet and the wine.
You are the dew on the morning grass
and the burning wheel of the sun.
You are the white apron of the baker,
and the marsh birds suddenly in flight.

However, you are not the wind in the orchard,
the plums on the counter,
or the house of cards.
And you are certainly not the pine-scented air.
There is just no way that you are the pine-scented air.

It is possible that you are the fish under the bridge,
maybe even the pigeon on the general's head,
but you are not even close
to being the field of cornflowers at dusk.

And a quick look in the mirror will show
that you are neither the boots in the corner
nor the boat asleep in its boathouse.

It might interest you to know,
speaking of the plentiful imagery of the world,
that I am the sound of rain on the roof.

I also happen to be the shooting star,
the evening paper blowing down an alley
and the basket of chestnuts on the kitchen table.

I am also the moon in the trees
and the blind woman's tea cup.
But don't worry, I'm not the bread and the knife.
You are still the bread and the knife.
You will always be the bread and the knife,
not to mention the crystal goblet and--somehow--the wine.

The poem as recited by an enthusiastic three year old.

And by the author on City Arts and Lectures.
This is the same poet who wrote "Taking off Emily Dickinson's Clothes" which you will have to google yourself.

Remember- You’re not managing an inconvenience, you’re raising a human being. (Kittie Frantz)

2010-08-19T19:34:00.000-07:00

You know how sometimes you try to make something from a recipe, say, bread, but no matter how many times you try, you just find that it isn't in you to be a good baker? Other people have the touch, the time, the special knack, whatever it is, that it takes to make delicious bread. You like their bread better. They are good at it. Hooray for everyone. They make good bread, you like to eat good bread. We are all happy.

This is how I feel sometimes about children. Not that I want to eat them, of course. Other people are so damn good at making them-- not just the *making* part, but the raising part, I mean. I don't think I have the innate skills that it would have taken to make good ones.

And what is more tragic than preferring other people to the ones you made yourself?

The Power Of The Dog

2010-07-06T16:34:00.000-07:00

There is sorrow enough in the natural way
From men and women to fill our day;
And when we are certain of sorrow in store,
Why do we always arrange for more?
Brothers and Sisters, I bid you beware
Of giving your heart to a dog to tear.

Buy a pup and your money will buy
Love unflinching that cannot lie--
Perfect passion and worship fed
By a kick in the ribs or a pat on the head.
Nevertheless it is hardly fair
To risk your heart for a dog to tear.

When the fourteen years which Nature permits
Are closing in asthma, or tumour, or fits,
And the vet's unspoken prescription runs
To lethal chambers or loaded guns,
Then you will find--it's your own affair--
But...you've given your heart for a dog to tear.

When the body that lived at your single will,
With its whimper of welcome, is stilled (how still!);
When the spirit that answered your every mood
Is gone--wherever it goes--for good,
You will discover how much you care,
And will give your heart for the dog to tear.

We've sorrow enough in the natural way,
When it comes to burying Christian clay.
Our loves are not given, but only lent,
At compound interest of cent per cent.
Though it is not always the case, I believe,
That the longer we've kept 'em, the more do we grieve:
For, when debts are payable, right or wrong,
A short-time loan is as bad as a long--
So why in Heaven (before we are there)
Should we give our hearts to a dog to tear?

- Rudyard Kipling

Hot Weather Dinner Ideas

2010-07-01T21:28:00.000-07:00

Here are some of my favorites this time of year: Cold vegetables with blue cheese dip (substitute as much plain non-fat yogurt or fat-free sour cream for the regular sour cream as you like) or white bean dip; Tuscan Cold Supper; Asian-spiced chopped chicken, or any flavorful meaty mix, in romaine or iceberg leaves; bean salads; and of course hummus. It's almost time for nectarine margaritas, though any fruit will do...strawberry or cherry, anyone? And don't forget cobblers and upside-down cakes for dessert. That should cover it!

The First of July Already?

2010-07-01T21:11:00.000-07:00

I received a copy of this book for my birthday. Crawling my way through it and very much enjoying it. Reading it has revived my desire to wander out into the garden just before sundown and shoot some pictures.

Siamese twin crookneck squash!

Betrayed

2010-07-01T21:08:00.001-07:00

In the fourth grade, a girl named Mei Lin (or May Lin) pretended to be my friend at recess, and then when the bell rang, she and her friends dragged me way out into the field and then ran back. In the dragging process, I struggled to get away and also very seriously wanted to harm this Mei Lin (Wang? Wing?). I dug my fingernails into her arms and held on. By the time we made it back in, we got in trouble for being so tardy after the bell. Mei Lin suddenly conjured up an elaborate story about how I had held her down out in the field and scratched her arms. She held out her maimed limbs for the teacher to see. There was no question that I had dug in hard, but in my mind, I had been fighting for my life. I was so dumbfounded by the audacity of her lie that I had no response at all. I received the punishment (whatever it was) and she did not. It was the first time I remember someone lying so brazenly and completely to a teacher and getting away with it, but not the last. Also the first time I remember being so openly betrayed.

Poor Forgotten Little Blog

2010-06-28T20:09:00.001-07:00

Here are some of the things I've been up to in the last few months:

Vacationed on a distant island.

Had my eyes checked.

Picked some berries.

Drank martinis.

Cooled off.

Shopped for furniture.

Watched the vines grow.

Went to the seashore.

Met some princesses... and some frogs.

And still had time to read a few books.

And Whiskers on Kittens

2010-04-28T09:11:00.001-07:00

A brief wet spell in the Napa Valley makes for fun shooting. The gardens and grounds are full of blooms, some I don't remember seeing before. The pink dogwood has come and gone, and the white dogwood is just starting. I've seen irises in an abundance and diversity of colors, including a gorgeous yellow-gold. Tried to shoot that yesterday, but there was just enough of a breeze to thwart the close-up focus.

Today, blue skies are alternating with dishcloth-gray clouds seeping a bone-chilling rain and mist. The calla lilies outside my office window still look starched, fresh and white, but the deep purple irises of my grandfather's that I have in pots in the back have taken a beating. Still beautiful though.

What is spring without rain, asparagus and strawberries? I picked the last shoots of asparagus in the garden a few days ago. So sweet you could eat them raw. There may be a few more reaching edible height soon, but they are consistently available at the store now too.

Have I stressed to you the importance of buying organic strawberries? Strawberries have a soft and vulnerable flesh. Conventional farmers use pesticides and herbicides on them, and these are absorbed into the skin of the strawberry. It is number one on every list I've seen of recommended foods to buy organic vs. conventional. So, from the time organic strawberries are in season in the spring to the time they go out of season (if they do), they are a constant presence in the refrigerator.

To keep them fresh and ready to eat, I rinse the strawberries well when I get them home, then place a dry paper towel on top. Snap the lid closed (or put a rubber band around the basket and paper towel) then flip them over (on a plate for a basket without a lid). The remaining water drips onto the paper towel, preventing rot, and the moist paper keeps the berries from drying out in the refrigerator for the few days it usually takes us to polish off the basket. I call it a "strawberrium". Pics here, in case this doesn't make sense. (Strawberry Rhubarb Pie link here.)

If get a good price at the market at the height of the season and have too many to eat fresh, I hull the berries, cut them into small pieces and place them in a single layer on a parchment-covered baking sheet in the freezer. After they're frozen, I allow the sheet to sit at room temperature for a few minutes, then pop them off into a zippered freezer bag to use for smoothies.

You can also make up a batch of cobbler dough, and cut or pat it roughly into rounds to fit 8 oz ramekins. If you're not going to use it right away, wrap the rounds individually in plastic wrap and place in a zipper bag in the freezer. When you feel like a little cobbler, set out a dough to defrost for an hour (or all day in the fridge), fill a ramekin with berries (frozen raspberries are delicious too), sprinkle with sugar. Top with a defrosted dough round and bake at 425 for 20-30 minutes or until dough is golden brown.

Here's my favorite smoothie at the moment:

Buttermilk Berry Smoothie

2 c buttermilk (less fat and more protein than milk or soy milk)
(You can also substitute 1 c buttermilk and 1 c milk of your choice if buttermilk is too tangy for you, or milk plus 1/2 small container plain yogurt.)
1/2 - 1 c fresh strawberries, cut into small pieces, or any other berry, fresh or frozen
(I love blueberries in this.)
4 level tablespoons hemp powder
1/2 - 1 tablespoon agave syrup, or to taste

This is about 400 calories, so it makes a solid breakfast, with an almost perfect ratio of fats to protein to carbs, and half of the daily recommended amount of fiber. To reduce the calories, you can substitute water or non-fat milk for 1/2 the buttermilk. Buttermilk (be sure to buy organic if you can get it) also has beneficial "probiotic" cultures for your digestive system. You can tinker with the quantities. Sometimes I add a tablespoon of ground flax seed, but mind the fiber if you're not used to it.

Springy watercolors here.

********
Here's another totally unrelated tip that I don't have another place for: next time you use a paper toilet seat cover, turn it perpendicular to the seat instead of trying to line up the opening with the seat. It won't slip in as easily.

2010-03-06T07:55:00.000-08:00

Rose Mary Waszkiewicz Landre
June 3, 1923 - March 6, 2009

Chicken Masala and Caramelized Carrots

2010-03-04T10:25:00.000-08:00

This was an easy to make, delicious dinner. Also from Bon Appetit. We've had the carrots on their own as a side dish as well.

Easy Chicken Masala

Position racks in the top third and the bottom third of the oven so that the chicken and the Caramelized Cumin-Roasted Carrots can roast together. This dish is part of the Chicken Masala Menu for 4.

6 Servings

Recipe by Maria Helm Sinskey

February 2010

Ingredients

1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon garam masala
2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
1 large garlic clove, pressed
1 4- to 4 1/2-pound roasting chicken, cut into 8 pieces, backbone removed
2 small onions, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices

Preparation

Mix yogurt, chopped cilantro, olive oil, garam masala, salt, and garlic in 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Add chicken to marinade, 1 piece at a time, coating all sides. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate at least 2 hours. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.
Position racks in top third and bottom third of oven; preheat to 400°F. Arrange onions in thin layer on large rimmed baking sheet to form bed for chicken. Top with chicken pieces in single layer, spacing apart for even roasting (chicken will still be coated with marinade). Discard remaining marinade.
Roast chicken on top rack until cooked through and juices run clear when thickest portion of thigh is pierced with knife, about 1 hour. Serve chicken atop onion slices. Spoon pan juices around.

Caramelized Cumin-Roasted Carrots

Recipe by Maria Helm Sinskey

Ingredients

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
12 medium to large carrots, peeled, cut on diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick pieces
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray large rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray.
Combine carrots and all remaining ingredients in large bowl; toss to coat. Spread in single layer on prepared baking sheet. Roast carrots until tender and lightly caramelized, turning carrots over once, 35 to 40 minutes.

Spring!

2010-03-04T10:24:00.003-08:00

Daphne, apple, mustard, quince and wild plum.

Adorable Little Cake

2010-03-04T09:39:00.000-08:00

This cute little cake is from Bon Appetit. I made it for my special guys for Valentine's Day using milk chocolate. This one was made for me by my adorable husband for my birthday using 70% chocolate for the cake and 62% for the icing. Besides using three bowls, it's really a simple and fool-proof cake.

Here is the recipe from their website (apparently they are a little formatting-happy over there):

Top Tier Devil's Food Cake with Sour Cream-Fudge Frosting

Ingredients

Cake

1/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1 ounce high-quality milk chocolate (such as Lindt, Perugina, or Valrhona *or Scharffenberger if substituting dark), chopped
1/4 cup boiling water
1/4 cup buttermilk
2/3 cup cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting

8 ounces high-quality milk chocolate (such as Lindt, Perugina, or Valrhona *or Scharffenberger if substituting dark), chopped
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup sour cream
4 teaspoons light corn syrup
Organic roses (for garnish) *optional- we decorated simply with shaved chocolate

Special Equipment

2 5-inch-diameter cake pans with 2-inch-high sides *I used large ramekins. The first time, I trimmed using a large biscuit cutter to adjust for the shape of the ramekin, the second cakes required no adjusting. You can make one tall, 4-8 layer cake (if you halve the 4" layers) or two four-layer cakes in this size.

Test-Kitchen Tip

Five-inch cake pans are available at some kitchenware stores and restaurant supply stores and online from cheftools.com and amazon.com.

Preparation

Cake

Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350°F. Butter two 5-inch cake pans with 2-inch-high sides. Line bottom of pans with parchment paper; butter parchment. Combine cocoa powder and milk chocolate in medium bowl. Pour 1/4 cup boiling water over; whisk until mixture is smooth. Whisk in buttermilk.
Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt in another medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat both sugars, oil, egg, and vanilla in large bowl until well blended. Add flour and cocoa mixtures; beat until blended (batter will be thin). Divide batter between pans.
Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out with some crumbs attached, 28 to 30 minutes. Cool in pans on racks 15 minutes. Turn out onto racks; peel off parchment. Turn over; cool on racks.

Frosting

Place chocolate in large metal bowl. Set bowl over saucepan of simmering water and stir until melted and smooth. Remove bowl from over water. Add butter and stir until melted, then add sour cream and corn syrup and whisk until smooth. Let frosting stand at room temperature until thick enough to spread, about 20 minutes.
Using serrated knife, trim top of cakes to make level. Cut each cake horizontally in half. Place 1 cake layer, cut side up, on platter. Spread 1/4 cup frosting over, leaving 1/2-inch border. Top with second cake layer, cut side down. Spread 1/4 cup frosting over, leaving 1/2-inch border. Top with third cake layer, cut side up. Spread 1/4 cup frosting over, leaving 1/2-inch border. Top with remaining cake layer, cut side down. Spread 1/3 cup frosting over top and sides. Chill until frosting is set, about 30 minutes. Keep remaining frosting at room temperature.
Spread remaining frosting evenly over top and sides of cake. DO AHEAD Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover with cake dome and store at room temperature.
Arrange roses atop cake and serve.

Aebleskivers

2010-03-04T09:15:00.000-08:00

SO MUCH to catch up on! I'm just going to start where I start and get where I get...

Aebleskivers! (Also seen as Aebelskivers or Ebleskivers.) Another recipe (besides Dutch Baby, which has entered my permanent repertoire) that was an obsession of my grandmother's. I don't know how many times she called to offer me the cast-iron aebleskiver pan in her garage, or how many times I refused it. It became a running joke, along with our separated eggs, that made us both laugh. I have the pan now, Grandma! And I'm using it!

AEBLESKIVERS

3 eggs, separated
2 cups buttermilk
2 T sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 c flour
1 tsp bp
1 tsp bs

Whisk yolks briskly, add sugar, salt, vanilla and buttermilk, whisk to combine.
Sift together flour, bp, bs, add to egg mixture.
Whisk egg whites to soft peak stage, fold in gently. Set batter aside.

Preheat and lightly oil an aebleskiver pan.
Pour batter to fill pan hollows. (I use a soup spoon for portioning.)

When top bubbles and edges dry, use a skewer (I use a skinny crab fork) to scoot the aebelskiver about a 1/3 turn. Wait just a minute or two for the new section to brown, then turn it the rest of the way. If you've over-filled, just poke the excess back into the ball when you turn it.

The traditional Danish version that gives the dish its name (aebleskiver = apple slices) is made by poking a small chunk of apple into the middle of the ball before turning, and is served with jam. Apple chunks are yummy, but keep them small so they aren't too crunchy.

Applesauce and blueberries, which I also tried, were too messy and sticky. Not recommended.

blueberries sticking to the pan

We like to serve these with a dab of melted butter poured over (or not) and a shake of powdered sugar. Mike likes his with real maple syrup.

(An entertaining video for Takoyaki, or Japanese Octopus Balls, a savory dish which uses a similar turning technique and pan, is here.)

I promise to use my good camera not the iPhone, from now on. I promise to use my good camera not the iPhone, from now on. I promise to use my good camera not the iPhone, from now on. I promise to use my good camera not the iPhone, from now on. I promise to use my good camera not the iPhone, from now on. I promise to use my good camera not the iPhone, from now on.

I'm Accustomed to the Smooth Ride

2010-01-13T19:17:00.000-08:00

"When you're manic, every urge is like an edict from the Vatican. No plan is a bad one, because if you're there and you're doing it, it can't be bad. Mania is, in effect, liquid confidence. When the tide comes in, it's all good, but when the tide goes out, the mood that cannot and should not be named comes over you. Because to name it would be an act of summoning."

"Years ago, there were tribes that roamed the earth, and every tribe had a magic person. Well, as you know, all of the tribes have dispersed, but every so often you meet a magic person and every so often, you meet someone from your tribe. Which is how I felt when I met Paul Simon."

My two favorite passages from Carrie Fisher's book, Wishful Drinking.

Beautiful Soup

2010-01-13T08:59:00.000-08:00

More soup. Parsnip and carrot. Potato and onion. Chicken and mushroom with collards. Some improvised, some not. We've been souping it up all week long. No pictures, because we've eaten them right up. I recommend Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone as a great foundation cookbook for anyone, not just vegetarians. One of my informal resolutions was to lighten up on the meat this year and eat more vegetables, and so far, this book has really been helpful. Andrea Chesman's The Garden Fresh Vegetable Cookbook is another good one, arranged seasonally so that you can just flip to Winter and cook what's in season and well-priced right now.

Parsnip Soup with Ginger and Parsnip "Croutons"
(from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone)

3 large parsnips, about 2 lbs, peeled
6 cups basic vegetable stock or water (below)
1/2 cup chopped cilantro stems, plus sprigs for garnish
4 thin slices ginger
3 tablespoons butter or canola oil
1 large onion, chopped
3/4 lb carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 T white rice
Salt and freshly milled black pepper
1 cup (or more) milk, cream or almond milk to thin the soup, as needed

Cut two of the parsnips crosswise in half, then quarter each half lengthwise. Cut away most of the cores. (Note: this is an important step, especially with larger parsnips, as the core is woody and fibrous.) Reserve the other parsnip (to be diced and sauteed as garnish later.)

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil or butter in a soup pot over medium heat, letting it brown a little. Add the vegetables, remaining ginger and the coriander. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion and carrots have begun to brown here and there. Add the rice and 1 1/2 tsp salt and cook a few minutes more. Add the strained stock and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, until the vegetables are very soft, about 35 minutes. Remove the ginger, then puree the soup, leaving a little texture or not, as you wish. Thin if necessary with the milk. Check for seasoning, add salt if necessary.

Dice the third parsnip into little cubes (remember to remove the cores) and cook in a skillet in the remaining butter, until golden and tender, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve the soup with a spoonful of the parsnips and garnish with sprigs of cilantro.

If you've never cooked with parsnips before, give them a try. They make plain soups, like potato, more interesting and tasty. Here's one of my favorite recipes, for a deceptively simple soup that tastes richer than it is. Cauliflower-Parsnip-Leek soup, from chowhound.

Two Delicious Soups for the New Year

2010-01-06T17:55:00.000-08:00

Tonight, I blog.*

Right at this moment, I could call AT&T from my phone and crawl my way up the service ladder in search of someone who might be able to take a sensible look at all of my plans and figure out a way that my minutes and bytes could be shared. The thought of it makes my upper lip begin to curl in a peculiar way. So I’m putting it aside for tonight, in favor of more calming pursuits.

Because what I really wanted to blog about was…soup.

One of the things Mike got me for Christmas was Deborah Madison’s classic cookbook Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone. The first recipe I made from it, which I’ve included for you below, is chock-full of green nutritiousness, cooks up quickly, and is just the thing for a cold January night. Surprisingly tasty for a soup with so few ingredients. The second soup, which Mike and I made the following night, was a serendipitous coming together of wintry ingredients that will definitely make a repeat appearance.

Chard Soup with Sorrel or Lemon (Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone)

2 T butter

1 onion or two medium leeks (white parts only) chopped

3 red potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

1 bunch chard, stems removed, about 10 cups leaves

2 cups sorrel leaves, stems removed, or juice of 1 large lemon

Salt and freshly milled pepper

1/3 cup crème fraiche or sour cream

optional: ½ cup cooked rice or small toasted croutons

Heat the butter in a soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to color, about 8 minutes.

Add ½ cup water and scrape the bottom of the pot to release the juices that have accumulated. Add the greens and 1 ½ tsp salt. As soon as they wilt down, after 5 minutes or so, add 6 ½ cups water. Bring to a boil then lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 12 to 15 minutes.

Puree the soup and return to the pot. (Note, a “stick” or immersion blender is lovely for pureeing hot soups in the pot. If you don’t have one, they are well worth the investment for this application alone. Otherwise, carefully transfer a portion of the soup at a time to a blender or food processor to puree, taking care that the top is on loosely enough to allow steam to escape, or cool the soup and puree, then finish the recipe when reheating.)

Taste for salt and season with pepper. If you didn’t use sorrel, now is the time to add the lemon juice. Mix the crème fraiche with some of the soup to smooth it out, then swirl into the soup. Serve with rice or croutons in each bowl. (Or with a crispy grilled cheese sandwich, as we did.)

Chicken and Black Eyed Pea Stew

2 T olive oil

4-6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

1 onion, quartered and sliced

1 yellow or orange bell pepper, trimmed, quartered and sliced, optional

1 T Better Than Bouillon organic chicken stock concentrate, or 1 T gray sea salt

1 container fresh black-eyed peas (if using dried, soak, cook and drain according to package instructions)

8 oz button mushrooms, trimmed and sliced thickly

3 chard leaves, stems removed, rough chopped

In a soup pot or sauce pan, brown the chicken in the olive oil, turning once. Once the chicken is a little brown on both sides, add the onion and pepper and sautee, stirring occasionally, until the onions are lightly blond. Add 4-6 cups water and desired quantity of salt or bouillon concentrate to taste, deglazing any meat bits from the bottom of the pan by scraping with a spoon as you stir. Allow to come to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer 30 minutes or more, or until the meat yields easily and falls apart.

(If desired, remove the chicken and some vegetables to a cutting board with a slotted spoon and roughly chop into bite sized pieces.)

Sautee mushroom slices quickly over medium-high heat, add to broth. Add the peas and cook in the pan broth until tender. If removed, return chicken and vegetable pieces to pan. Add chard and simmer until just tender.

This would be great with a trencher of buttered Acme levain bread.

Following the recipe up to the part where the meat yields easily is also the way we make chicken for tasty burritos and tacos, or a quick, flavorful stock to serve as a base for an ad-hoc soup. The whole soup can of course be made vegetarian, omitting the chicken and using just salt or vegetable stock. I actually made the chicken the night before and put the whole thing in the fridge, then Mike cooked the beans in the stock while he chopped the cold cooked chicken, adding the mushrooms next, then the chard.

The possibilities with other legumes—white, lima, lentil, split pea, garbanzo, and other winter greens, are endless. I like the grassy, slightly meaty flavor of the black-eyed peas. Containers of fresh peas can be found at Whole Foods. (Don’t know if they are available just this time of year, or year-round.) For me, they were a flavor revelation over the dried variety. This is one of those soups wherein the flavor is greater than the sum of the parts, the mushrooms building on the earthy flavor of the beans.

Happy Cooking!

**********

*Or tonight I would be blogging if my INTERNET CONNECTION had not been SUSPENDED. Due to geological limitations, I have few options for internet service. One is/was satellite, which was offered via Hughesnet, my nominee for the title of Worst Customer Service Ever. The other is the AT&T “aircard” which has a limit of 5GB per month. Each month, up until today, I’ve received a “Danger danger, you are nearing the limit of your coverage” notice, but had not gone over, remarkably, until last month. Today, I received said notice, and then, in the middle of my email session, prior to logging on to the blog, my connection was dropped, and my little blue “connect” button turned a forlorn shade of gray.

Each time I received the warning message in the past, I dutifully called AT&T “Customer Care” to ask what could be done. The message offers: “As a valued customer, we would like to assist you to avoid possible service interruption and minimize a costly bill. Please call us at 1-800-331-0500 or 611 from your wireless.”

Each time I call, I speak with a series of ascendingly infuriating but innocent first level Santa’s helpers, who read me the script about how many k’s I have in my plan and don’t know the difference between the letters K, M and G. I confess, sometimes I find them confusing too. The point is, there is nothing they can do for me.

I have an iPhone with AT&T, for which they charge me too much money and with which I have unlimited data. I have a home phone line with AT&T for which I am charged approximately $25 per month and on which I send approximately 3 faxes. And I have the air card, for which they charge me $59, yes, that’s $59 per month and limit me to 5GB. So I’m forking out just under two bills per month and right now I am proxy-blogging on a word document because I can only connect to the internet via the iPhone. Something is rotten in Denmark. Or wherever AT&T has its lair these days.

I’ll get back to those robber barons at AT&T later…

Facebook Ate My Blog

2009-12-09T14:07:00.000-08:00

I finally have to admit it. Did I mention that I received a trophy in the mail from the sprint triathlon back in October? Probably not. I got third in overall Athenas! I was pleasantly surprised.

Pilgrimage

2009-11-11T15:19:00.000-08:00

I woke up in the middle of the night knowing I’d go to see the butterflies. The next day, my anxious mind wrestled with my need to drive, until I’d exercised my last excuse and finally coaxed myself to the door.

They have come from hundreds, even thousands of miles away, on fragile wings, sometimes fringed with wind-wear. To see them, it’s astounding that they travel at all. Fewer and fewer of them each year, dwindling to naught or simply dipping, we don’t know.

When I lived in Santa Cruz, on the west side, the park was an easy bike ride from my shabby student rental in “the circles”. I don’t know how many visits I made on my new bike, helmetless in those days, hair blowing dangerously in the wind, before they arrived that first time. Down West Cliff Drive, hook a right at the park on a quiet weekday morning, follow the road and then head down the dirt path to the right.

Riding that bike, the first bike I’d ever purchased with my own money—probably the first big thing I’d ever purchased, if I think about it—was one of my favorite things to do. Sometimes I felt like I was ten years old again, riding wherever I wanted to go as fast as I could, with no particular destination.

The first time, I don’t know that I knew they were there before I went, or if I had heard they would come. Dripping from branches, in flickering clusters, they warmed themselves in shafts of light that seeped through the canopy of eucalyptus into the quiet grove. What I remember is how magical and serene it was to ride through the mist and stay there in the quiet of that half-lit grove among them.

Now, twenty-five years later, young, clean-shaven park rangers patiently answer questions from a road-addled tourist at the gate. Yes, the butterflies are here. Yes, you can take your dog into the park, but not to see the butterflies (duh) and please make sure your car is parked in the shade with the windows down and obvious water for the dog and don’t stay too long because other people get really upset if they see a dog in a car for a long time. Ten dollars for day use, please.

The quiet dirt path has been replaced (very necessarily) by a new boardwalk, which is attractive and sturdy, designed to take the abuse of eager nature-lovers. At the base of the walkway in the grove itself is a low multi-level deck.

At first, it is lovely just to see the Monarchs flitting silently between the trees. You'll notice that there are no close-up photos. The butterflies are very, very high up, though when it's quiet, and bored children have dragged their parents back to the beach, they'll swoop teasingly close to the deck.

A mother and her young daughter were lying on the edge of one of the deck’s steps, looking up at the treetops. They were talking sweetly, sharing an enviable mother-daughter moment. A small family group was listening to a female ranger talk in whispers about the butterflies and their journey. I caught just the end, just enough to hear her say, “…people who saw them twenty years ago, in the 80s, say that there were hundreds and thousands of them…what you can do is plant milkweed to grow during the seasons that they are traveling…”

I don’t want the butterflies to be just another thing that is dwindling, dying, disappearing. Once there were hundreds, herds by the millions across the plain, great black clouds of wings in the sky, etc., etc. My generation really is Generation D, for disappointment. Everything “used to be” bigger, more. Everything is just outside of our grasp, lost to us by just a little bit.

But then I think, how lucky that I was one of the people who saw them then, who got to stand in that grove alone, on a quiet weekday, not surrounded by well-meaning eco-tourist families whispering questions below the fluttering clusters of insects. I could come down any morning I wanted, and see them hanging on drooping eucalyptus branches, wings still too wet with dew to fly.

As soon as the woman and her daughter left, I found my own spot on the deck and leaned back, resting my head against the wood. The family group moved on, and the couples that trickled down into the grove were respectfully silent.

Directly above my head was a branch whose clustered leaves fluttered—every bare twig shimmered with the dun undersides of their orange and black wings. The sky was blue, and the smell of eucalyptus was caught up in the occasional breeze. There was a serenity in the scene that made me wish to stay. But I had promised the rangers that I wouldn’t leave my dog for long, even though she was safely parked in deep shade, and so I had to be on my way.

***

First stop: The Bagelry, downtown Santa Cruz for a "Dark Star": An "everything" bagel with thickly-layered with cream cheese, chopped olives and chopped walnuts. (PS- they call it the "Ultimate" now.) Mike’s favorite from his MBA days. Mike does not have a Master’s in Business Administration, but he was once the assistant dean at the Monterey Bay Academy. After a walk around the block with the dog, fill the water jug, use the clean bathroom for customers only and park in the free parking for customers only.

Second stop: Butterfly grove

Third stop: Lighthouse point

Fourth stop: Caffe Pergolesi for a chai (the chai by which all others must be judged-- perfect.)

Fifth stop: Pizza My Heart for a pesto pizza to bring home to Mike. Another favorite.

Sixth stop: Cemetery

For the Lovely Ladies from Ohio

2009-11-10T20:19:00.000-08:00

Here is the link to all of my Thanksgiving recipes, including the one for the delicious (if I do say so myself) Granny Smith Apple and Herb Bread Stuffing. How wonderful to spend a Napa Valley week with best friends- I'm envious. It was a pleasure spending time with you!
(Didn't realize until re-reading this post just now that it is rather autobiographical, so pardon the personal details. Scroll down to the food if you get bored. Or hungry.)

Any Fruit Coffee Cake

2009-11-10T19:50:00.000-08:00

If you're up early because you couldn't sleep, because something was troubling you the night before, you'll have the time to make this coffee cake. It's a little complex, just because there are three parts to it (cake, fruit and crispy top) but in the end, it's comforting to awaken to the smell of apples and cinnamon baking in a classic coffee cake like this. Just as good the next day with afternoon tea. If you don't have time, just pour yourself a cup of coffee and make a Dutch Baby.

From one of Grandma's old cookbooks, it's called the "Any Fruit Coffee Cake".

Note: the ingredients are grouped together to save space, but the sugar, butter and flour will be divided and used in separate sections of the recipe. In case you're one of those folks who jumps ahead without thoroughly reading the recipe like I am.

1 1/2 cups chopped, peeled apples, apricots, peaches or pineapple or 1 1/2 cups blueberries, raspberries, or any other berry. I used apples.
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
6 T butter
1 beaten egg
1/2 cup buttermilk or sour milk (since I almost never have buttermilk in the house, but I almost always have yogurt, I substituted almost 1/2 cup plain yogurt thinned with enough milk to make it 1/2 cup)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon* my own addition. Optional if using fruit other than apples or pears.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Step 1: Fruit
(If using raspberries, do not simmer.)
In a saucepan combine fruit with 1/4 cup water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat. Cover and simmer 5 minutes (or less if you like a bit more toothsome fruit) or until tender. Combine 1/4 cup of the sugar and cornstarch. Stir into fruit mixture. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir 2 minutes more. Set aside. (This will produce that shiny, pretty stick-together fruit filling you always wondered about.)

Step 2: Cake
In a mixing bowl, stir together 1/2 cup of the sugar, the 1 1/2 cups flour, the baking powder and baking soda. Cut in 4 tablespoons of the butter until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Combine the egg, buttermilk (or substitute), and vanilla. Add to flour mixture. Stir until moistened. Lightly grease an 8x8x2 baking pan or equivalent round. Spread half of the batter in the pan (it will be thick, and may only make a thin layer). Spread fruit mixture over batter. Drop remaining batter in small mounds atop filling.

Step 3: Topping
Combine the remaining 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup flour and cinnamon. Cut in remaining 2 tablespoons of butter with a fork until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over batter. Bake in 350 degree oven 40-45 minutes or until golden and a tester comes out clean (except for fruit).

Best if left to rest a bit, but too tempting warm!

Stuff

2009-09-27T20:07:00.000-07:00

Let's talk about stuff. The stuff that we crave, covet, pursue, stash and hoard.

The thing about things is that they outlive us. Look around the room you are in. Barring natural disaster, everything in it will last longer than you do, or at least it can. There are things that come and go, of course. Rubber bands, pens, bobby pins and paper clips seem to originate at the point of purchase and then slowly dissolve back into the air to be purchased all over again. And paper, in the form of mail, notes, and to-do lists, seems to do just the opposite, multiplying, spreading and clogging up the room like flat, white tribbles.

But the objects, for example, a computer, a metal desk lamp, a framed Polaroid, a picture of Karen and Abbie, a picture of my grandfather, a photo card reader and a painted rock my mother made for me on my fourth birthday. Many of these things will remain with me my entire life. If the lamp breaks, I will reluctantly throw it away, likewise the computer, though most likely both will linger in the garage for years before making it to the disposal site, if past lamps and computers are any indication. You never know which things will go the distance, but they are there somewhere around you already.

When I look at magazines about homes, I'm always drawn to the lean, simply decorated ones, or the ones that look as though every piece was hand-selected by former Pottery Barn stylists. Although I know I loved everything I have once, when I brought it home, I don't love everything now.

In fact, right now we live in a home that was furnished when we arrived. We've become accustomed to the excessive curves of the sofa and the giant bed we had to buy new sheets for on the first night we slept here, and the rattle of the handles on the dresser that signals whoever is still sleeping that the morning routine has begun. But when we leave someday, this stuff will stay, ready for another round of property managers.

So here I am, in my early 40s, with a lot of little stuff and no big stuff of my own. The vintage red chenille sofa is long gone, the platform bed dissembled. I do have a plain dresser with vintage glass knobs that belonged to my grandmother and was used by my father. And this desk, which is oak and not my style, but which I got for a very good price. It serves its purpose.

"Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful." (William Morris) Easier said than done. How useful are eight sets of headphones? How useful are a thousand books, some I'll never read again, some I've never read at all? A stack of magazines two feet high, four single-hole-punches, all the same? The things that are hardest are the things that are beautiful, or were beautiful to someone else, and now sit in a box or a drawer. Likewise the things that are useful, but not right this second. These are the things that someday someone will find in that same box or drawer or another one and say, "What was Tamara thinking? What does this mean?"

And yet they remain and we are helpless against them. It is so hard to let things go, once they are infused with meaning, even if their only significance is that they have become ours. It's more than hard-- it's painful. To think that they might not be cherished as much as we once cherished them, even when we no longer do. To think that there will be a space where they once were that has nothing in it, and that the thing, the framed card from someone we don't remember, or the wind-up godzilla, or the oak desk, will go on and perhaps end up in a thrift store with a ten-cent price tag or worse, (much, much worse), go to WASTE in a landfill, this is just too much to bear.

So we keep. And we squirrel away. And we file and stack and shelve and cram, and then one day we are weighted down by all that we have and all that we have saved and we feel like we can't breathe anymore and it all has to go, but how and where, and oh, not this little one right here, because that is very special... all the memories clinging like glistening webs to every single piece keep us mired in and tethered to things.

The thing is, things can be let go, to continue on their paths, coming from wherever they came from and going wherever they are going to go. If we can sort out what's precious from what's just passing through, maybe we can lighten our load just a little bit.

********
(George Carlin once said, "your stuff is stuff, other people's stuff is sh*t". Funny routine NSFW. Damn he was funny. RIP.)

Here's an interesting reflection on stuff from the movie The Labyrinth: YouTube link. I find myself remembering this when I set out on a mission to sort and discard and wind up sprawled on the floor with an old book amid papers and tchotchkes an hour later. Hoarders with legs. Note: despite the fact that the giggle-inducing phrase "manipulating her junk" is used, this is also a neat insight into the puppetry involved in the film, which has become a cult classic.

Just for You

2009-08-27T20:47:00.000-07:00

Voila le Gateau des Blueberries

2009-08-27T20:41:00.000-07:00

Barely caught these last two pieces before we polished off another one. I made one substitution: I used King Arthur Unbleached White Whole Wheat instead of AP. Didn't harm the texture one bit-- if anything, it enhanced it. Happy munching!

Blueberry Cake

2009-08-26T12:13:00.001-07:00

Getting started. Generously greased pan.

This butter was not soft enough-- had to mix it in with my fingers.

Batter before blueberries is like a very wet cookie dough- thick but still spreadable.

After adding frozen blueberries, a very stiff dough, looks and feels just like cold chocolate chip cookie dough. Make sure you've mixed it thoroughly before adding the frozen berries, and then press it into the pan as much as you can. It will continue to fill in the holes as it bakes.

An Easy Summer Tea Cake

2009-08-26T11:02:00.000-07:00

Another nice little breakfast cake that's fairly foolproof. It is not too sweet, and comes out somewhere between a scone and a cake. If you'd like it a little sweeter, a glaze similar to the one on these scones would be lovely. I liked that the recipe was simple and could be made with a bowl and a fork (as long as your butter is already soft), and uses ingredients that I typically have on hand.

Shenandoah Valley Blueberry Cake

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups AP flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup softened butter
3/4 cup plus 2 T sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw frozen blueberries)

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 and generously grease a 9 inch round or square cake pan.

Combine flour, bp and salt in a bowl, stir with a fork to combine.

In another bowl, combine butter and sugar and beat (with a mixer or fork) at high speed until well combined. Add the egg and beat well for 1 to 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl, until the mixture is smooth and light.

Stir in half the flour mixture, then half the milk, mixing just enough to keep the batter fairly smooth. Add the remaining flour, then the rest of the milk, mixing gently. Stir in the blueberries. (Note: if the blueberries are frozen, you are going to want to mix them in quickly and get the batter into the pan right away, as it will chill the batter to an almost solid.)

Scrape the batter into the pan and bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes or until the top is golden, springs back when touched gently in the center and is pulling away from the sides of the pan. (Note: my cake took 40-45, using frozen blueberries. I thought that my oven was running slow, but I checked it with a thermometer and it was 3 degrees warmer than it read, so FYI.)

Serve a square cake right from the pan, warm or at room temperature, cut into small squares. IF it's round, let cool in the pan on a wire rack, then turn it out to finish cooling, top side up. (From Nancie McDermott's Southern Cakes)

My grandfather would love this warm with a nice fat slab of butter melting into it. (Hi Grandpa! Maybe you can get the Viking Queen to make you one!)

Didn't get any pictures of the first one because we gobbled it up so fast, so I'm going to go make another one right now-- pictures up shortly.

*******
While you're waiting, check this out: I discovered this pink caterpillar on my magenta geraniums yesterday morning. Cool, huh? I don't think I've ever seen a pink caterpillar before.

By this morning, the pretty pink bud on the right was completely devoured. I wonder if the caterpillar started out pink, or became pink from eating all of those flowers?

Stay Gold II

2009-08-20T19:58:00.000-07:00

Here's my gang. That's me in the middle. There are a couple of people missing from the original "Table" group. You can see the neckline of the dress, but that's about it. Trust me, it worked. (I think that's my disembodied arm growing out of my friend Karen's shoulder...)

I Second That Emotion

2009-08-13T10:57:00.000-07:00

So...HOW WAS THE REUNION...I MEAN, THE DRESS?
(I know you've been waiting for this. You'll read shortly why it's taken me so long to get a picture up of the darn thing.)

The dress turned out great. I don't have a good picture of it quite yet, because smarty pants here had to replace her dead cell phone on Wednesday of last week, and got a fancy phone. The fancy phone takes videos as well as pictures, and the little button for video is well, little, and also a little too close to the one for the camera, so I got several very short films featuring me and my friend Karen standing very still and smiling while her father told us to look like we were having a good time, as well as a couple of three-second masterpieces starring two unrecognizable people dancing to Devo.

But that is beside the point. I think there could be a little bit of tailoring applied to the, ahem, forward-most portion of the dress, or I might just need a little more...comprehensive tan, if you get my drift. Maybe I'm just not used to that deep a neckline. But overall it fit very well, and I felt good. I will extract a still from the videos and post asap. Or you could just use your imagination or look on facebook at the shots other people have posted. I'm the one in the black dress. No, the other one.

The reunion weekend was delightful. It was such a joy to reconnect with some of my oldest friends. After all these years, love sees right through all the changes that have happened to each of us over the years. I wish I'd had more time to talk to each person one on one.

Friday night, I was composed, adult me. I could stand back, observe and appreciate my friends for the great people they have become. My high school friends are some of the neatest people, and parents, you could hope to know. Many of them are teachers, and collectively, they have a bunch of kids. These are the people you want raising and educating the next generation. Kind, present, bright people, raising good kids.

There's something that's been bothering me, though. I'm trying not to kick myself for this, but over a 24 hour period, I feel like I completely regressed. By midway through the reunion on Saturday night, I was high school me, just as sure as Michael J. Fox used to get hairy ears when the moon was full.

I forgot completely about my vow to have meaningful conversations with few people, rather than trying to chat with many. I forgot that people who ask "How?" have more fun. I treated myself to a shot of tequila. I squealed when a song came on that I knew. (You can hear it in one of my micro-movies!)

I don't regret grabbing my friend Rusty for Donna Summer's "Last Dance," nor do I regret going back for a round of hugs for the people I'd really enjoyed seeing.

I do regret trying to make guilty (impulsive, slightly drunken) conversation with people I didn't remember that well, or remembered but never really knew that well. When I should have just smiled and said, "Hi, how are you?" I said other things that were equally embarrassing to both parties. Something along the lines of (shouted over too loud, too old New Wave music) "I know you, you're _________, you look GREAT! WHAT?? HOT! You look HOT! I KNOW, THE MUSIC IS TOO LOUD!" as they tried to decipher my bouncing name tag. Ok, not quite that bad, but close.

Or when I told a former female classmate, who may or may not have been a bully in high school, en route to the restroom, that I'd seen her picture on facebook because we had so many mutual friends and she just looked at me and said, "Yeah?" I wanted to run. She looked really beautiful, actually. Her dress was a similar style to mine, but shimmery gold with a leopard-ish print. I should have said something about that instead.

Really, what I should have done was allow silences, moments of quiet for things to happen, for people to

***
and that's where I stopped when I realized that I was going on and on about what could or should have been rather than what was. So I put the post away, about a week ago, and didn't wrap it up. So now I am. Now I have to go pull those stills out of the "movies" so you can see a picture of the dress.

I don't know if you realize this, but I have crossed a barrier this year. In the three years that I've been blogging, I had never posted a picture of myself on the blog. Until the triathlon. Now that many of my friends have seen me on facebook, I got over the fact that I'm not 21 anymore. I look the way I look.

Here's the room where I spent the reunion weekend nights:

Oh you tease...

2009-08-06T19:00:00.000-07:00

I just realized that I never described the dress itself! (That's a link so you can check it out.) The dress itself is black. It has 3/4 length sleeves (perfect since the mosquitoes chewed up my left upper arm, so I now I won't have to explain the huge red welts to anyone. The front is "surplice" style, and there are horizontal "shutter" pleats the entire length of the dress. It is lined, and as I mentioned, heavy on the hanger. It doesn't feel heavy on, but then, I've only worn it for a few minutes at a time so far. If you are going to the reunion, act surprised.

If you look at the picture, you'll see how it looks on the professional fashion model. You might not have guessed this, but at 5'5" I am not a professional fashion model. I was once told by a theater costumer that I had a "short waist," meaning there is not much distance between my bottom rib and my hip bone. About 2 inches, I think. I've been trying to have a waist ever since. Anything belted is out of the question. In this dress, I have a waist. That is worth two times the price of admission.

The other reason I didn't want you to see the link is that you'll know what I paid for it (less $10 on sale and $20 for opening a new account, don't forget). Sometimes you want to tell the world about a bargain-- other times you want people to think you spent a fortune. I don't care if you know, but I wanted to maintain the illusion that a dress so fabulous must have cost a mint to others. I did forego renting the adorable Kate Spade bag below from bag, borrow or steal, getting some serious bling out of the safety deposit box, or even getting a professional manicure or pedicure (ok, I broke down and got the pedicure). I'm keeping it real, folks. I may look fancy this weekend, but remember, I'm still the girl who personally put Bartles and James through college.

Damn, that's a cute bag.

Ok, I'm off to pack.

Here's what I was doing this month last year. And the year before. Some cool shots of my grandma (finally) showing me how to make banana cake. Thanks, Grandma.

Yes!

2009-08-06T07:26:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning, determined to forge ahead, I called to make an appointment with a personal shopper at the Nordstrom in Corte Madera. I explained my predicament, and was told I'd get a call back over the weekend. By Monday evening, I hadn't heard from anyone.

On Tuesday, I arose in an optimistic state of mind. I walked the dogs, had a little smoothie, did a little work on the computer and prepared to shop alone. Off to Marin.

The first stop was Macy's, to return the brown dress (see previous post). I thought about cruising the dress department there, but I was on a mission to Nordstrom.

Next stop, Nordstrom's customer service counter, returned the silver dress. Easy-peasy. The customer service gal asked (as they often do) if I'd like to open a Nordstrom's account. I asked if there were any discounts on a first purchase if I did, knowing that there was a possibility I would be plunking down some serious dineiro. There was, so I signed up for a card. (Danger! Danger! In my twenties, this would indeed have been a dangerous thing to do, but I have since learned that plastic money needs to be backed up by REAL money.)

I walked about ten paces away from the desk, then thought what the heck, and went back to ask about the personal shopping services. A call was made, a personal shopper was available, and in moments, the angel appeared.

Norah has been working at the Corte Madera Nordstrom since it opened in 1985. "When I opened the store, darling, we didn't have a dress under $300." She was dressed in a navy and white dress with a pebbly texture and gold details, a thick hammered-gold choker and moderate heels. Her sandy-colored hair was cut in a classic bob, framing her large, roundish glasses.

Originally from England, Norah's british accent was all but gone, leaving behind a diction that more closely resembles a kinder version of Mrs. Howell from Gilligan's island. She may have actually sprinkled her sentences with "dear" and "darling" or I may have imagined it.

We introduced ourselves and got right to work. "What is the occasion, dear? Ah...what time? Evening? Ah, there will be lots of black, black is always elegant. Let's go to the dress department, then. What's your size?"

At first, she just cruised the racks with me, quizzing me and pulling everything close to my size. "What about this? Do you like purple? You're young, so you can show the arms, darling, not like when you get old and they go all crepey. This has a lovely neckline, you wouldn't need jewelry, and this...how about a little color? Do you mind a print? Let's just try it." And so it went until we had an armload of dresses in my size. She ushered me to a dressing room, "Let's find you a nice room, darling," and there I was. "Take your time. I'll check on you from time to time. Be sure to come out into the corridor if there's something you really love."

Just under a dozen frock contenders lined the walls of the dressing room. The fourth one from the left had many alluring qualities on the hanger, but as I've learned the hard way, you have to try it on to know. I remembered what my friend Karen said about her terrific dress: "of the meager selection they had, it was the one that fit me best" and I set myself to finding the one that simply fit me best.

I started working my around from the left. The first dress was not quite right. I can't even picture it now. The second, the same, not quite it. Norah peeked in a time or two. The third, a red and white wrap number (...a copy of a Von Furstenburg, darling) wasn't even tempting. As I used to do with my stack of books when I brought them home from the library as a kid, I very quickly abandoned my pre-decided order and jumped to the one I really wanted.

The black one. The fourth from the left. On the hanger, it was heavy. I slipped it on and had a heck of a time reaching the zipper to get it all the way up. I thought of calling for Norah, but I figured if I can't zip it, maybe I shouldn't wear it. Then I turned around.

(Is that the opening baseline of "Brick House" I hear in the background?)

I brought my black slingbacks with me from home, so I popped them on and trotted down the corridor to look for Norah. As soon as she turned from the rack she was working on, she said, "Look no further, darling. You've found it. Don't try on another dress."

I think I got goosebumps.

I did go ahead and try on the rest of the dresses, and some of them weren't bad. But she was right, none of them worked quite as well. I left the store (after less than an hour, mind you) reeling with the high of a successful hunt.

Well, I almost left. The woman at the Kiehl's counter must have spotted my delirious demeanor. She slapped some pretty smelling lotion on me and massaged my hands and I just said yes to everything. She was a pro. Crinkled some paper to get my attention, asked if I'd tried their new lotion, told me it would make my skin look pretty (lotion? not unless it is laced with diamonds or hallucinogens, which this one might be) gave me samples and caught my eye wandering to the lip gloss, cha-ching. Another pretty smelling sucker with goopy lips. I had to get the heck out of there.

When I got home, Mike didn't rave the way I'd hoped he would, but he did say, "YEAH. That's it, that gives you this (two-handed gesture meaning bounty) and this, (another two-handed gesture meaning waist-definition). Good job, sweetie."

So the saga of the elusive dress comes to an end. For now.

Now for the reunion itself....

Applesauce Cake

2009-08-02T19:59:00.000-07:00

This is a pretty swell cake, which takes only 45 minutes to bake, isn't too sweet, and still works for breakfast. Which is good, because it takes exactly 45 minutes to walk the dogs if I don't do the full 3 mile run.

Applesauce Cake

1 cup raisins (I used less)
1 1/2 c flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp clove
1 tsp salt
1/2 c butter
1 c sugar (I used light brown with 1/8 c molasses)
1 tsp soda
1 cup applesauce
(I added 1/2 cup chopped walnuts)

Oven 350, 9 inch square pan greased and floured

Cream butter and sugar
Sift dry ingredients together except baking soda
Stir baking soda into applesauce
Add applesauce and dry ingredients to butter and sugar, alternating, beginning and ending with dry
Stir in nuts and raisins if desired

Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes

Notice there are no eggs in this recipe? You won't miss them. I will make this moist cake again. It was a hit with the crew at today's winery party.
Hi Emily!

The Dress Drama Continues

2009-08-02T19:39:00.000-07:00

Ok, for those of you following this, neither of the dresses worked out. The first, an adorable chiffon number in chocolate brown that was very Fred and Ginger, was a skosh too tight in the ribcage. Nothing that couldn't have been dealt with, but I'm going to be dancing, for lord's sake, and I need my AIR. (What do you think about this one?)

The second was just laughable. On the surface, it had everything going for it: gunmetal stretch satin, ruching at the bust, three-quarter sleeves. Great color, comfortable, form-fitting. But then, it lost it. The seemingly forgiving ruching at the waist turned out to look like a handy pocket for...something...right at belly level. Not sure what. Ammunition, maybe, or extra Kleenexes. I couldn't get it to lay casually "ruched", so I looked like a very well-dressed kangaroo.

And you know something's wrong when you turn around to show your husband the rear view and he says, "oh, no, honey, no, you can't wear that dress." Who on earth would put a seam down the center of a woman's butt, and then add more drapes of fabric emanating out from that seam? How, and on what planet, would it be more attractive to look like a parade grandstand from the back? My rear looked like the valance in a very fancy boudoir. A noir boudoir, even. So no go. Both dresses will have to go back, and I will have to proceed with Plan D. (Plan A being the first dress, Plan B being shopping, Plan C being ordering on line and hoping for the best.)

The funny thing is, since I began the quest for THE dress, I have worn some outfits that my friends (especially my gay friends, champions of swell dressing) have thought were pretty good. They practically swooned when I pulled out my knee-length lace skirt, slingbacks, charcoal hemp fitted t-shirt and chignon for martinis the other night. I considered wearing that, but I made the mistake of trying to go understated five years ago and felt underdressed. The horror.

Plan D is what I did yesterday: calling up Nordstrom's and asking them to have someone ready to pull as many cocktail dresses in my size and general style as they can and have them ready for me when I get there on Tuesday. This used to be a common service, but with the economy, I don't know if they can still pull it off. Otherwise, I'm on my own. It may work, or I may just have to slog through the confusing arrangement of boutiques until I find or don't find something. I'm taking the lace skirt and the slingbacks in case I have to fall back on Plan E, but let's hope I don't have to go there.

Where Are Clinton and Stacy When You Need Them?

2009-07-28T19:38:00.000-07:00

Today, people, I went shopping. Today was my designated shopping day. I donned an easy to doff dress and slip-on shoes, and went forth into buying battle, prepared to try on as many dresses as it took to find THE dress.

I may not have mentioned this, but I have an upcoming high school reunion, and as you may or may not know, it is all about the dress. Or it becomes all about the dress.

At first, it is about the excitement. Who will I see? How will they look? What have they been up to? And then YIKES! the realization hits: Who will see me? How will I look? And most importantly, how can I find a dress that makes me look like I have not been doing what I have been doing for the last 25 years, i.e., slowly losing the battle with my genetic material.

A month ago, I thought I'd found the perfect dress, and I felt so smug. I was relaxed. I wouldn't have to go through that last-minute dress panic. And then I read the invitation: "Semi-formal." Hmmm. Well, semi-formal means cocktail dress or dressy separates, but just how dressy? A semi-formal affair, in Oakdale, at a place called the "Almond Pavilion" ...anything could happen. My dress, while flattering, is jersey, which is definitely a non-semi-formal material.

There is a fine balance between looking fabulous and trying too hard. There is also a fine balance, especially at my age, between semi-formal and Mother of the Bride. The choices available in the stores are either strapless or dowdy. Anything cute is too small or too revealing. Anything with upper arm coverage is the dress equivalent of a bathing suit with a skirt.

Velvet and sequins are obviously out. Velvet is out of season and sequins are trying too hard. Of course, someone who still has the body they had in high school (which was great to start with) by means natural or otherwise, will wear sequins, and everyone who rejected the sequins will curse her choice. Someone is going to wear the perfect thing, and then no matter what I choose, I'll smack myself in the head wishing I'd found it first.

Silk charmeuse is beautiful, eternally sexy, and shows every curve. Especially the ones you don't want to show. It's as comfy as a nightgown and looks like one. It is also one of those unfortunate fabrics, like linen and rayon, that reverberates when you walk. (Take note.) Powerful undergarments must be worn. Or no undergarments at all over a drum-tight body. I have neither powerful undergarments (nor the desire to wear them), nor do I have the flat stomach and stairmaster butt that I once (so briefly) had. But the dress of my dreams is made of gunmetal gray, heavy silk and feels like pajamas. It's ruched here and boosted there; part siren, part bombshell. (Sigh.) *I realized later while re-reading this that it sounds like more an air-raid than a reunion dress!

It also comes with its own theme song, confetti and a banner overhead: "CONGRATULATIONS! YOU LOOK FABULOUS!".

You can see the potential pit-falls of shopping for such a magic dress. But today, today was worse than merely full of pits to fall in. It was the pits. July is a great time for bargain shopping-- if you're looking for mis-matched bathing suits or cheap cotton separates in the reject colors from Spring. But it is the WORST time to shop for THE dress.

Today was also my first trip out into a mall since this whole economic slowdown. Let me tell you, it was bleak out there. The rubber has met the road. I could have driven a car between the racks in some of those stores, they were so sparsely stocked. The teenage salespeople were so bored out of their minds they'd actually keep talking as the few shoppers slipped in like ant scouts looking for sugar. A few, god bless them, actually made eye contact and welcomed us to the store.

With the closing of the Mervyn's chain, there were dark corners in the mall that didn't exist before. Some mall official had tried to stuff a few benches and fake potted plants in the corners, but there was no lighting yet, so it just looked sad and dark. I mentioned how quiet it seemed to a girl at one of the counters, and she said, "Oh, I think everyone's at the fair." Meaning the county fair. If the people who go to the county fair are the only mall customers left, we are really in trouble.

But back to my problem. So I tried one mall (the closest one, 45 minutes away) but they had no dresses. I went to the other mall in the same town, which I described above. In desperation, I came home, fortified myself with a tomato sandwich and went forth again, to the local outlet mall. I tried on three dresses, all casual, just to try on something. I went through every shop, even though I knew some of them wouldn't have a thing.

This is not fun shopping, this is work shopping. This is goal-oriented, thankless, pavement-pounding shopping. This is the search for the wearable holy grail. And it's taking place all over the country as women attempt to dress for the summer's remaining reunions and weddings.

All I can say is, good luck girls! And if one of you finds my dress, you know where to find me. I'll be waiting here under the banner.

Peachy Keen

2009-07-23T11:07:00.000-07:00

Summer is glorious, isn't it? I know we're finally there when I can have these luscious peaches for breakfast, and fat, juicy slices of heirloom tomatoes on my sandwich at lunch.

Pupsicles

2009-07-23T11:04:00.000-07:00

Last week when it was so hot, I froze some cut up vegetables in a bowl of ice. The next day, I put them out for the dogs to try out. At first they were a little hesitant, but as soon as Tugboat figured out there was food involved, he pretty much monopolized the snow-cone.

This week I let them bob for fruits and veggies in the kiddie pool.

At the Risk of Spoiling the Surprise...

2009-07-23T11:01:00.000-07:00

I thought these fly-fishing flies were so lovely that I wanted to show them to you. I bought them as a his and hers set for a recently married couple I know. Shhhhh. Don't tell. I'm giving them their present tomorrow.

I Have Issues

2009-07-23T10:25:00.000-07:00

I have issues. Oh, yes I do. And while I've curbed my catalog habit and have cut my magazine subscriptions down to one or two (currently Family Fun, which I'm going to cancel, and Photoshopuser, which comes with my NAPP membership), I still have magazines. I like to buy the latest Bust, and ReadyMade if I see something that interests me. And I like to refer to them often for inspiration and amusement.

BEFORE:

So, following the Assess, De-junk, Renew philosophy of organization

(Jeezus Mary and Josephine, is that guy outside done weed-whacking YET?!)

...following the methodology of Assess, De-junk, Renew, I took stock of my stacks, measured my mags and decided a trip to IKEA was in order, for a narrow shelf that would fit in the space between my window seat and my existing bookshelf. I've tried to purchase matching bookshelves each time so that when we move, they can be reconfigured to fit the necessary space. Billy and I go way back. Billy Birch, to be more precise. I was a little dismayed to find that the new birch shelf did not match the old birch shelves when I got it home, but I am hoping they will all darken to the same tone over time.

A little bit of assembly, another trip to Cost Plus for the cute folding magazine holders (made of 100% recycled paper) and voila, an organized magazine space and a cozy, well-lit reading nook. Next step is to get up there and attach the reading light and fasten all of these shelves to the wall so that they don't crush me if there is ever an earthquake.

AFTER:

The folders that you see on the second shelf up from the bottom are where I keep clippings from magazines. It keeps me from saving a whole magazine for one article. When I'm feeling like I need some clothes, or something for the house, I flip through the clippings and reacquaint myself with the things I like. If I can't figure out what it was I liked in the first place, I throw the page away. It's a rotating scrapbook of style and ideas.

I was also casually looking for a cheap wine rack to hold all of my rolled paper goods (wrapping paper, posters, paper samples, etc.) but I didn't find what I was looking for, so I made this one out of the box that the shelves came in. Bonus! It's not pretty, but it's in a hidden spot and it keeps things from falling on the fax machine.

(I collect vintage train cases, btw, so if anyone has one or finds one at a yard sale that looks like the ones you see here, send me a picture and I'll pay postage to get it here. I like squarish cases, leather and funky, 60s florals a big plus. Beach colors are good, but I like 'em all.)

Oops, I Did It Again

2009-07-14T13:16:00.000-07:00

After languishing (on vacation and otherwise) for two months, having finished my first, triumphant though slightly surreal sprint triathlon, I finally decided that the best way to get my motivation back was to sign up for another one.

In retrospect, I was somehow able to minimize the sleeplessness, race day jitters, and the overwhelming feeling that I did not know what the heck I was doing, and maximize the memories of that great big grin I wore from the time I got out of the water to the time I finished the run. So yes, I'm doing it again, determined this time to do it just a little bit better and faster than before. Please, please make the water just a tad warmer. Just a tad.

(And if anyone in California or Seattle knows of someone who has a 54cm (cm? mm?) women's road bike for sale that won't break my bank, you can find me on facebook!)

Just Visiting

2009-07-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

Way down at the bottom of my blogroll, there was a link called "Tiny Baby". Trevor James Millimaci was a baby whose site I came across one day while bloghopping through random sites. He was very, very tiny when he was born, with many complications. I think his mom started the blog because it was all she could think of to do with her time, since he was stuck there in the hospital, connected to feeders and machines and tubes, and she was home, without him.

I was once a premature baby too, so I took interest in this little guy.

Week after week, I'd tentatively pop in, hoping things were looking up, and that he'd eventually go home. And he did. I rooted for him each time he'd gain a pound. His mom posted pictures of him with his big sisters as he grew and grew, and started to look more like a little guy and less like a very, very premature baby.

He had big round eyes and a surprised o of a mouth. He wore fuzzy blue outfits and a cow Halloween costume. He had a Christmas. He smiled. A lot. And he started to talk. And then, some time in late June, when I'd let my visits to the site lapse for many months, Trevor James Millimaci died.

It seemed like he was home free. He was so much bigger and stronger, and he had people that loved him, and I'm sure they hoped and hoped he was out of the woods. But parts of him weren't strong enough.

I was just going to delete the link and not say anything. I didn't know him, didn't know them, at all. But as I scrolled through the pictures that preceded the image of the flowers in the cemetery, I saw his smile, just like any other little baby's, and the hopeful posts of childhood milestones finally, heroically reached, and I couldn't let him just disappear without saying something. In this peculiar internet world, we can't help but make human connections. I cared about what happened to him.

Rest in Peace, beautiful Trevor James Millimaci. If there is a heaven, you are in it, and all the things that little boys love are there.

Almost Forgot

2009-06-30T07:46:00.000-07:00

Of course, this was the thing I sat down to write about yesterday and I left it out completely. I made up this dip one day for cold veggies and the little ones scarfed it down. If you prefer, reduce the ratio of sour cream to silken tofu, or use fat-free sour cream.

Tamara's Blue Cheese Dip for Veggies
1/2 c sour cream, regular or fat free
1/2 c silken tofu
+/- 2 oz crumbled blue cheese (I like Buttermilk Blue)

The best way to blend this is with a stick blender, right in the bowl, but you can also do it in a food processor or blender. Blend just until smooth. If you have neither, use a fork and do the best you can. You can either blend everything together until smooth, or blend the tofu and sour cream until creamy and crumble in the blue cheese if you want to leave it chunky.

Cut an orange, yellow, or red bell pepper in half lengthwise, remove the stem and seeds and any extra white pith. Cut crosswise and then into one-inch sections. The curved ends of the pepper make nice little scoops. White Belgian endive also makes a nice little scoop (sometimes I use it with tuna salad made with grapes for lunch, yum), and also carrot and cucumber sticks.

This was my favorite suggestion from "Feeding the Kids": putting cut vegetables out with something to dip them in as an afternoon snack. Hungry people will munch on veggies!

Cold Suppers for Hot Nights

2009-06-28T19:21:00.000-07:00

Why am I reading "Feeding the Kids"? I picked it up on impulse at the grocery store, because it promised a no-hassle, simple, flexible way to eat healthier. I thought, if it is simple enough for busy parents, and friendly enough for kids, then maybe Mike and I can manage it. So far, it's been pretty smart. I read the first two chapters and skimmed the rest before I loaned it to a friend (who DOES have a kid).

The first chapter, among other things, simply asks you to try to eat fruit three times a day. The second adds vegetables, three times a day, whenever it works for you, to try to make a habit of it. This alone is going to make you feel healthier and more energetic, and whether you buy the book or not, it's worth trying. It's easy. Especially now that it's summer and there are beautiful fruits and vegetables everywhere. The book also contains easy to incorporate strategies for decoding labels and categorizing the foods you eat.

Last night and tonight, it was just too hot to cook, so the sliced and pre-prepped vegetables and fruits hit the spot. Although the air-conditioner was on inside, it still felt withering every time we walked out the door. It's nice to have some cold vegetables, something to dip them in, and a few cold salads alongside. If I had some sliced meats, like prosciutto or salami, that would have been tasty too. Last night, it was big marinated beans (see Italian Antipasto, below, and if you can find Corona beans, buy them), hummus with raw peppers to dip, blanched green beans and endive and some leftover ribs. Tonight, we had a grilled skirt steak with a big cold crunchy romaine salad, with tomatoes, more green beans, egg and a little grated cheese.

It is also too hot to sit in front of the computer, so I'm going to keep it brief. Here are some past summer favorites from the blog to inspire your hot-weather antipasto cooking (or not cooking, as the case may be): Blue Cheese Dip with Vegetables, Two Bean Salad, Italian Antipasto, Basic Gazpacho, Three Good Cold Salads, Hummus and Return of the Hummus (great to serve pre-meal to kids or grown-ups with carrot and cucumber sticks, sliced sweet bell peppers, endive and anything else you can think of). Try Turkish White Bean Dip, too. Pretty soon, it's going to be time for Ratatouille as well. In case you think of that as something hot that can only be served with pasta, don't forget how delicious it is cold or ambient, spread on flatbread with a sprinkling of feta cheese, or cold on a sandwich or in a quesadilla...that should be enough to get you started.

On the way home, I also picked up two dozen beautiful, fragrant purple plums (I promise to always stop for handmade cardboard signs advertising fruit for sale from now on). These are soon going to be transformed into Plum Upside-Down Cake. If you have an abundance of fruit, you could also try this terrific cobbler dough. Lou Lane, if you're out there: zip THIS!

Happy Summer!

Pointless Drama

2009-06-23T07:05:00.000-07:00

Summer Evening

2009-06-21T08:28:00.000-07:00

Pickled Shrimp for Fathers Day

2009-06-21T07:33:00.000-07:00

The first time I saw this dish pictured in Frank Stitt's Southern Table, I knew I had to make it. I don't eat shrimp at all these days, because of the dangers to the ocean from farming and drag-netting, but as Jane Smiley so sagely put it, I still "harbor a fondness for the sins of my ignorant past": I LOVE shrimp. (You can use Kauai shrimp if you can get them, but no shrimp farming or fishing is without environmental impact.) Once a year, I suppose I can justify it.

They made a delicious appetizer, but also a very nice cold dinner on a hot night, with a variety of crunchy fresh vegetables on the side. I made enough to take a Mason jar full to my dad and grandfather today. (Shhhhh, don't tell!) Not too much that they can't polish them off before they head home in a couple of days. The pickled onions in the jar are delicious too.

Here's the recipe. By the way, if you get a chance to look at this cookbook, it is beautifully photographed, well and thoughtfully written, and full of inspiring, imaginative recipes. I hear from a very talented chef friend that the recipes all work, too.

Pickled Shrimp
Another Lowcountry classic, pickled shrimp is a favorite hors d'oeuvre for entertaining. and it gets even better after a couple of days' marinating. A nonreactive container, such as a glass canning jar, is best for holding the shrimp in the refrigerator. If you plan on keeping the shrimp more than a few days, however, it's best to sterilize your (heatproof) container first by boiling it in water for five minutes.
Serves 15 to 20 as an hors d'oeuvre

3 pounds Boiled Shrimp
2 medium onions, quartered and very thinly sliced
1 teaspoon celery seeds
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
14 bay leaves
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
4 dried hot chile peppers
1 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1/4 cup white-wine vinegar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and toss thoroughly. Pack everything into a large glass jar, cover, and refrigerate overnight to allow the flavors to come together. Serve with toothpicks and napkins.

Note: To cook shrimp, fill a large pot with water and add 1 onion, quartered, 1 celery stalk, cut into pieces, 1 lemon, sliced, and 4 flat-leaf parsley sprigs. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat, and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

Add a tablespooon of salt and the shrimp. As soon as the water returns to a simmer, remove from the heat. The shrimp will have just begun to curl and have turned a bright pink. Do NOT allow the water to boil, or the shrimp will be tough. Drain, but do not rinse the shrimp, or the flavor will go right down the drain. Reserve the broth, if desired. Allow the shrimp to cool and proceed with the recipe as directed above.

I'll post a picture of my jars of shrimp too if I get a chance.
HAPPY FATHERS DAY, DADS AND GRANDPAS.

2009-06-04T12:32:00.000-07:00

I was browsing for June birthday cards when I this one caught my eye. I was so moved by the text that I cried in the store. It still makes me cry, and yet, it is so beautiful. I hope that it is so. And in the case of my Grandma, it feels true. I miss her so much.

(From The Gentle Path, card photo by Rick Fuller)

It Must Be Summer

2009-05-26T13:57:00.000-07:00

'Cause the kids are in the pool...

More Notes for New Moms

2009-05-26T13:31:00.000-07:00

Here's more from the moms:

Jen R: Not advice but something I loved. Buy a really good quality stroller, if a double stroller, get a side-by-side with a front swivel wheel. Go out and enjoy the neighborhood. Just to get away from the TV and go outside and breath. Spring/summer babies are born at the perfect time to start a good relationship with the outdoors!

Coleen: I wish I'd had this thread before I had Sean. :)
My best advice is not to be too hard on yourself. There is no such thing as a perfect mother, and trying for perfection is self defeating.

I read Anne Lamott's "Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year of Life" before having Sean and at first I thought she was crazy to think (or actually admit) the things she did, but later I was grateful to know that at least one other mother felt the way I did when the baby cried and cried and I was totally sleep deprived and wishing I could put him back in the womb just for another week or so. ;)

Tamara: Thanks, Coleen! That's great advice.

I read Operating Instructions, too. That was a great book. (I'm just re-reading Bird by Bird right now.) You've got to love that honesty in Anne Lamott. She lays it out there, and the rest of us breathe a sigh of relief that we're not the only one hiding jealousy or frustration or feelings of hopelessness. And she has the guts and the wry humor to put it in a way that we can laugh with her and take ourselves just a little bit less seriously.

What's been neat about all of this is that all of the mothers sincerely want to help. There is so much comparing among other women-- who had the shortest (or longest) labor, who did or didn't get their figure back, who couldn't (horror!) breastfeed. It's so nice to feel such support from people for someone who is doing it for the first time. If I'd known this was out there, I might have thought more about having kids! I'm so excited about this little grandnephew. Since my sister and I aren't close, and my niece and I are, it's going to be fun to have a baby that I can spoil.

Jen P. Anne Lamott is one of my very favorite authors too. Operating instructions is a gift I usually give to new moms.

Tyla: There has been such an intense response to this thread that I've been thinking hard about what to add.

I guess, when it comes down to it, my best advice is to be very gentle with yourself when you're learning something new. It's really easy to look at the long days of feeling inadequate and miss the big picture...that this little thing, that demands so much, has been created out of what?... something bigger than I know how to comprehend.

The days are long, but the years are short. Appreciate the little things and know that each impossible moment will pass and things even out and you will catch your stride.
Ok. Enough with that...breast feeding a new born is NOT EASY for most! If it is easy for you...go with it. If it is HARD, then get help! Call a lactation specialist and get a nipple shield! Please, get a nipple shield. I used it with both of my children and they both "went natural" around 5 months. Smooth sailing after that. They got what they needed and I didn't have bleeding nipples. We both win!

Save your back and get an Ergo Carrier. Much better than a Bjorn.
I used cloth diapers. Use BioKleen detergent from Whole Foods or Charlie's on-line.

Also, expect your world to be turned upside down and get a good therapist!

Always ask questions! You will learn a lot when you start asking and stop complaining. I have learned from experience.

Join a Co-op nursery school when your child is old enough (3 years). The added work is worth it.
xxoo

Tamara: You are awesome, too, Ty! Thank you.

I have been so touched by all of your responses. Thank you so much.

Viva la Mama.

Another One from the Vault

2009-05-26T13:23:00.000-07:00

Gold Medal "Kitchen-tested"
FUDGE CAKE
(A Prize Chocolate Cake)
4 tbsp. butter
2 cups sugar
2 eggs

2 cups Softasilk cake flour OR
1 3/4 cups GOLD MEDAL "Kitchen-tested" Flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups milk
4 oz chocolate, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts

Method
(Oven 350)
1. Cream butter, add sugar gradually, and cream thoroughly
2. (By the way, separate the eggs, set aside whites.) Blend in the well-beaten egg yolks.
3. Sift flour before measuring
4. Sift flour, baking powder and salt together and add to creamed mixture alternately with milk.
Beat just enough to make the batter smooth (about 5 seconds).
5. Blend in the melted chocolate, vanilla and nuts
6. Fold in the egg whites, beaten until stiff but not dry
7. Pour into well greased and floured layer pans or large loaf pan and bake

Bake 45 minutes for layers, 50 to 55 minutes for loaf
Two 9 inch layer pans or one 8 x 12 inch loaf

Note: This cake has a delicious fudge-like flavor and consistency, and is complete without icing. If you prefer it iced, however, use a cooked fudge icing, a chocolate butter icing, a cooked white icing or any type desired.

I desired the Simple Chocolate Icing from Ghirardelli, which is also from "the vault" and happens to be a cooked fudge icing. I like these cooked fudge icings, especially over a rich cake, because I can just pool it in the center of each layer and encourage it to drizzle attractively down the sides without fretting over crumbs. A sprinkle of nuts and you're done. Looks fancy, not that hard. I'm proud to say that I'm a person who can now make a birthday cake or pie without sweating over it. It most definitely won't be perfect, but it will be delicious!

I didn't have walnuts when I made the cake layers at home, but Grandpa (who by the way, spotted the clue and knew that there was a cake surprise in store for him) happened to have walnuts on hand in the freezer, so he suggested we sprinkle the chopped walnuts on top of the icing on each layer. Delicious! We served it with fresh sliced strawberries and cold glasses of milk. Happy Birthday!

PS- That little whisk-broom thing is a cake tester I received as a gift. Just a bundle of little tiny skewers for sticking into cakes. At the rate I'm going, it will last a lifetime.

Notes for New Moms

2009-05-23T20:35:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know, my niece is about to have a baby. A boy. As the sole great-aunt, I can't wait! Over in facebookland, I asked my mom friends if they had anything they wished someone had told them, or any advice for new moms. I was so touched by their enthusiasm, tenderness and willingness to share that I thought I'd share their comments with everyone, just in case there are new moms or moms-to-be searching the internet late at night for some words of wisdom. Those of you not in facebookland (and you know who you are) feel free to comment, too. I'm printing all of these out in a consolidated format and sharing them with my niece. She's due any day.

Thank you moms!

MOMNOTES

Jen R: 2 things, Don't bother with the diaper genieb, it's a rip off and unneeded & Buy high quality nursing bras, so worth the money!

Sue: The wipe-warmer is a toss, too... And everyone will love the lavender baby wash- The target brand is just as good as Johnson & Johnson.

Karen: Large flannel "blanket" (about 45x45) was the best swaddling thing for us. Better than those fancy-shmancy velcro crazy things. Plus the flannel fabric folds up pretty small. I got it at the fabric store. Flannel generally comes 45 inches wide so I just bought enough for a square. My mommy hemmed mine for me. (PS Kayleigh, this is on its way.)

Jen P. I loved the wiper warmer. Get some cloth diapers as burp cloths they are cheap. Sleep when the baby sleeps. Get the baby out of your bed and sleeping thru the night asap. Its harder to do the older they get. Diaper genie sucks, cloth diapers suck too. Those nursing tanks are $50 but worth every penny.

If she hasn't had him yet, the drugs are good. Stay in the hospital as long as insurance will let you. That day I opted for no circumcision. Best choice I made. Their willies are perfect the way nature intended and 50% of the kids we know aren't. Nipple cream is awesome stuff. Lactation classes and consultants are wonderful things. Oh after three I have a book of advice.

Jen R: Damn, I wish I had known about Breast milk banking and donation. I moved when my daughter was less than a year and dumped a freezer full. Have your niece look into cord blood donation. I donated from both pregnancies.

Sue: Do not fear The Pacifier... and remind her to cover him during diaper changes or he WILL spray her.. the infant gowns with the drawstring at the bottom .. triple snap onesies for warmer weather... the vibrating infant seat (although they don;t SIT, they RECLINE..) I went through three of them. more to come, I'm sure...

Actually, for the first couple of weeks those little t-shirts are the best.. at least until the cord nubbin falls off. Not to worry if he goes through that flaky, peely phase about 2-3 weeks out- TOTALLY NORMAL. Remember, he's been soaking in water for 40 weeks or so.. :-) the same goes for little bumps on his cheeks (the cheeks on his face..)

Jen R: Here's one thing that a Mom passed on to me (and is a little more delicate) when I had my first child, right after birth, request a stool softner. You will not be released from the hospital until you have a bowel movement, and if you tear....I was so glad to make it easier on myself...Now, how was that for glamorous?

Catherine: The best advice I ever got was from a pediatric nurse who started a service here in Atlanta to help new moms. She now has published a book and started a website so she's available everywhere. Go to momsoncall.com. That book was my freakin' bible - I never would have survived without it. They have a video too that comes with the book that teaches you everything from swaddling to clipping baby's nails. If she follows all the instructions in the book to the letter, her baby will sleep through the night anywhere starting from 6 - 8 weeks. When you're a new mom, sleeping through the night is heaven. You will be her hero if you get her this book. (I bought this and sent it.)

Danine: I might be penning brief bits of advice - that seems to be how my brain is working lately...Thanks Tam for putting me on this advice list...
For the birthing mother - take the drugs...don't try to be a hero...I missed my opportunity with both kids and if anything - take the drugs for ME!
Desitin - the best stuff in a white tube...use it for rash or no rash...it's all purpose and has been around for ages!
Baby Bjorn - the most comfortable child carrier on the market...I had one with Annie (learned the hard way with William) and used it for hikes, shopping, housework...Bruce used it too - very versitile and machine washable!
Don't waste money on items to be used only once or twice...save the money for good diapers - Huggies were my brand of choice...
A good diaper bag is a must... Lands End and LL Bean have a good line...I had a few in varying sizes and later used them as over-night bags...
See if friends/family will organize meals for the new parents...I had a week worth the meals prepared and delivered by friends...I managed the day/time and menu...I didn't have to worry about food preparation - and this offered a chance for my friends to sneak a peek at the newborn!
Cloth diapers make the best burp rags and all purpose...I dyed an entire lot pink for Annie (but remember to wash separately as the dye will leach until final fading)...and on that note - Dreft - I used it religiously with my infant/toddler washings...
A port-a-crib is a nice gift...Doesn't need to be fancy...the less attachments the better...We used ours on vacations, sleep-overs, nap time...etc.
Join a "mothers club"...great for support and hanging out with women/men in the same adventure in life...Hmmm...I will be adding more for sure...my brain has ceased for the moment...cheers!

Kristin: Always remember that you know your baby better than anyone else or any book. Your baby may sleep through the night at 6-8 weeks, or not until 2 years old, and if the advice doesn't feel right, don't take it. NEVER, and I mean NEVER say, "my baby/child would NEVER do that!" while judging another--there is no faster way to get your baby to do such ... I give my vote for the wipe warmer and I still use the Ergo carrier even at almost 4yrs old. It was much more comfortable and easier on my back.

Karen: My other piece of advice: Compliment her on her parenting skills. When I first overheard my mom telling someone what a great and natural mom I am it absolutely made me swell with pride. She will get all kinds of parenting advice from all kinds of people. The most powerful thing you can do is to help her trust her parenting instincts - she will know Milo better than anyone else.

Sue: and THAT is the BEST advice yet...;-)

Danine: Oh yes - the experts will gather...Some have "suggestions" and some have "do-tions"...I remember my mo-in-law reciting passages from her ancient doctor spock book and it was law...My mom is the best...never criticizes, never compares...cheers!

Tamara: Thank you! You guys rock! That is why you are all great moms.

Jen R: Not advice but something I loved. Buy a really good quality stroller, if a double stroller, get a side-by-side with a front swivel wheel. Go out and enjoy the neighborhood. Just to get away from the TV and go outside and breath. Spring/summer babies are born at the perfect time to start a good relationship with the outdoors!

Coleen: I wish I'd had this thread before I had Sean. :)
My best advice is not to be too hard on yourself. There is no such thing as a perfect mother, and trying for perfection is self defeating.

I read Anne Lamott's "Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son's First Year of Life" before having Sean and at first I thought she was crazy to think (or actually admit) the things she did, but later I was grateful to know that at least one other mother felt the way I did when the baby cried and cried and I was totally sleep deprived and wishing I could put him back in the womb just for another week or so. ;)

Tamara: Thanks, Coleen! That's great advice. I read Operating Instructions, too. That was a great book. (I'm just re-reading Bird by Bird right now.) You've got to love that honesty in Anne Lamott. She lays it out there, and the rest of us breathe a sigh of relief that we're not the only one hiding jealousy or frustration or feelings of hopelessness. And she has the guts and the wry humor to put it in a way that we can laugh with her and take ourselves just a little bit less seriously.

Jen P: Anne Lamott is one of my very favorite authors too. Operating instructions is a gift I usually give to new moms.

Tyla: There has been such an intense response to this thread that I've been thinking hard about what to add.

I guess, when it comes down to it, my best advice is to be very gentle with yourself when you're learning something new. It's really easy to look at the long days of feeling inadequate and miss the big picture...that this little thing, that demands so much, has been created out of what?... something bigger than I know how to comprehend.

The days are long, but the years are short. Appreciate the little things and know that each impossible moment will pass and things even out and you will catch your stride.

Ok. Enough with that...breast feeding a new born is NOT EASY for most! If it is easy for you...go with it. If it is HARD, then get help! Call a lactation specialist and get a nipple shield! Please, get a nipple shield. I used it with both of my children and they both "went natural" around 5 months. Smooth sailing after that. They got what they needed and I didn't have bleeding nipples. We both win!

Save your back and get an Ergo Carrier. Much better than a Bjorn.

I used cloth diapers. Use BioKleen detergent from Whole Foods or Charlie's on-line.

Also, expect your world to be turned upside down and get a good therapist!

Always ask questions! You will learn a lot when you start asking and stop complaining. I have learned from experience.

Join a Co-op nursery school when your child is old enough (3 years). The added work is worth it.
xxoo

Tamara: I have been so touched by all of your responses. Thank you so much. This means a lot to me to know that you are here for my niece, with all of your tenderness, experience and good advice.
Viva la Mama.
Love,
Tam

Packing List Notes

2009-05-21T14:05:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note on the packing list:

Because Maui is warmer, I could have left behind the 2 t-shirts, rain jacket, and I barely wore 2 of the 3 long-sleeve cover-ups.

I bought 1 strappy cotton dress

Also totally blew off running, so ditch the running shorts, running shoes and socks, and running bra! Never wore the 1 piece bathing suit, but I still swam a little.

I wore most of everything else once, but I think I can still shave down the list.

If you are a contact lens wearer like I am, and you have extra cases around, you can use them for things that you need small supplies of for a short vacation, like styling cream or foundation.

Also, if you are trying to pack for carry-on only, don't forget to put all liquids (and only the liquids) in a quart-size ziplock bag. Liquids are limited to as many three ounce containers as you can fit in the bag. The inspectors go by the ounces printed on the container, so don't do what I did and think that a half-empty six ounce tube of sunscreen will make it through.

(Bummer, because I can't get the same sunscreen here, and it's the only one that smells like a Hawaiian vacation.)

Shameless Plug

2009-05-21T13:52:00.000-07:00

Hi there,
I'm going tonight to see my friend Tani's daughter, Rosie Vaughn, perform in The Children's Hour at the Stockton Civic Theatre. Rosie happens to be the surly-looking little girl in the picture above. She has a (the?) starring role. If you've seen her youtube videos, you know that she is not always so surly looking and is a very good singer as well as an actress. I'm looking forward to the production. If you live nearby and get a chance, it runs through this Sunday. Mature themes, apparently, as well.

Timer just went off for the Chocolate Fudge Cake I am baking for someone's birthday this weekend. I'll let you know how that turns out in the next post.

Aloha A Hui Hou

2009-05-21T13:24:00.000-07:00

For My Friend Randy Who Sends Me Random Ideas

2009-05-21T13:23:00.000-07:00

What Are You Standing On?

I. What I am standing on
is an island
an island
so small
I can feel
each particle of earth
slip away
under the ridges
on the prints
of my toes.

II. What I am exploring
with my arms and legs
is warm
and large as a mountain
with head-high stalks
impeding every step.
I throw out a line
to steady myself.
The wind catches it
and I drift away.

What It Was Like

2009-05-07T19:17:00.000-07:00

Pre-race: I couldn't sleep past five a.m. for the four days before the race, so on race day, I got up at quarter to five and took a shower. Wasn't planning on taking one, but though I was up, I wasn't awake, and I needed the hot water. Fed the dogs. Made a smoothie, drank it, even though my stomach was jumping with nerves. Took my vitamins. Contemplated coffee. Made some, but didn't drink it. Thought through my race gear. Finally woke up Mike and Grandpa at 5:30 and we were out the door by 5:50.

Grandpa and I made it to the gates by 6:36, and the parking lot was already 3/4 full. As we drove in slowly past the "LOT FULL" signs, racers pushed their bikes like pilgrims through the rain to the check-in, lining both sides of the road. No smiles yet. I had to leave him at the car to wait for Mike while I made the long, long walk with my bike and gear to the transition set-up area. On the way, I heard someone say, "Are we crazy? Yes, we are."

Set up as best I could in the transition area, considering it was raining and nothing could be laid out neatly as planned. Checked in. Shared my extra safety pins and with a fellow racer. Chatted with the nice competitors next to me, male and female. Everyone was in a good mood in spite of the weather. Everyone except for the late arrival who shouted, "This SUCKS!" and ran, presumably, the two miles back to his car for the cursed missing piece of gear. And the woman who was sure that she could hang just one more bike on the teetering rack next to us and it would be just fine. (It wasn't.)

Wetsuit went on fairly easy. Wearing socks helps it over the feet, and having shorts and a rash guard on underneath allowed it to slide up much easier than that first naked, sweaty try-on at home when I was sure it was too tight and the wrong size. Cap, goggles, chip. Ready!

The Swim: 58 degrees. I still feel just a tiny bit sick to my stomach when I think about the start of the swim. Gray sky, drizzling rain, hundreds of yellow-capped penguins all standing barefoot on cold, squishy mud, hopping from foot to freezing foot. Thinking about stretching but shivering instead, chanting, Start, Start, Start inside our heads. Then, according to the rules at this particular race, we ambled forward in rigid and reluctant groups toward the shore and walked in, starting in "waves".

I was in the third wave, having waited just long enough to see which buoy to swim to first (and watch one freezing, Speedo-clad contestant back-stroking back to the shore). All I could think of for the first four minutes was "WHAT the hell am I doing? WHY did I get myself into this? This is NO FUN. This is STUPID. I am STUPID. This is f**&%%ing COLD." But I kept telling myself that it was a fifteen minute swim and no matter what, it would be over in fifteen minutes. As I neared the first buoy, I started to get out of the crowd and into a rhythm. It still felt like it was really far from one marker to the next. Time was slowed way down. It was reassuring to hear my watch go off at the first five-minute interval and realize that I was swimming the first leg of the triangle steadily and hadn't frozen or hyperventilated. I passed people, and people also passed me. I felt strong for the rest of the swim.

A tri-curious friend asked if I got "beat up" on the swim. I did not, and I don't think anyone else did either. Because of the wave starts, the more aggressive, time-driven people have a chance to go out first. Everyone in the wave gets the same start time, so everyone starts when they start, rather than feeling that they are losing time by not leaving the shore immediately. So yes, people touched each other, ran into each other a little, but it was good-natured and thinned out by about midway. It clustered up a little around each buoy and at the end, but no one got hurt as far as I know. A couple of people got too cold and had to be towed or escorted back in. Did I mention that the water temperature was 58 degrees? When I was out, I was just glad to be out and headed for the bike. My feet were so cold as I trotted up the ramp (wasn't really a run, but faster than a walk) that I didn't notice the rocks, the bruises from which a massage therapist found on the bottoms of my feet on Monday.

Later that day, I wondered if I could have gone harder or faster, but it was hard to tell exactly how hard I was working, between the water temperature, the people, and the adrenaline. My muscles told me the next day that I worked plenty hard.

Bike: In retrospect, this was the most fun part. Probably because I feared it the most, and I took it easier because of the wet pavement. Took me a little longer to get my wetsuit off and get geared up than I'd hoped. I missed the neatly laid-out towel o' gear that I had planned for, due to the still-drizzling rain, and I had to fish a couple of things out of my bag. But all went well for the most part, and off I went, loaded up with enough snacks and fluids for an ironman.

I got a tip prior to the race that I should wear a nylon swim cap under my helmet to prevent the cold wind from whistling through the holes. I popped it on as soon as I took off my yellow race cap, but forgot to readjust my ponytail from "goggle-holder" position. This is the reason I look like a total loony toon in all of the pictures of me on the bike.

I had a really good time riding, knowing that the dreaded cold-water portion of my day was over, and there was nothing but dryness and a shower in my future, so first of all, I am smiling in all of the pictures. But the black cap is creeping forward over my face, and the helmet, which never quite settled over the button of my wet ponytail, is following it. So I look a little like a kid who takes the short bus, minus the elbow pads, plus the fancy bike and neon yellow windbreaker. I was one of, I think, three people in the race in a neon yellow wind-breaker. (I love that damn windbreaker. It's light as a feather, rain-proof, and keeps cars from hitting me.) Mike photographed all of them approaching, just in case it was me.

About halfway out, I saw the leaders zooming back down the hill to race central. They all looked like lean, powerful, biking machines. I beamed encouragingly at their blurs as they passed and tried to keep my cadence up.

There were a couple of women who made little circles with me, falling back or moving ahead of each other according to our strengths. A big girl in red zoomed by me on the flats, then fell back on the hills. Another woman in a black one-piece tri-suit huffed and puffed and dropped and ascended, eventually leaving me behind. At one point, I was overtaken by a jingling, squeaking, clanking apparition of a man on a very old bike-- in a tri-suit so worn and threadbare that it could have been painted on. From the back at least. Thank goodness I didn't see the front.

Except for the helmet slowly slipping over my eyes, and the constant debate about whether or not to disobey Mike's specific request NOT to take my windbreaker sleeves off without stopping the bike, I had a great, steady ride, not falling down (goal number 2) and coming in, in the end, in just about the time I'd estimated. There were a couple of times I started thinking that I actually liked triathloning, and wondering what I'd do differently in the next one, and I had to remind myself to BE HERE NOW, doing this one.

The Run: This was my shortest transition, as it only required the removal of the helmet and windbreaker, and the change from biking to running shoes. Got a little stuck getting the windbreaker off, since in my indecisiveness I had partially unzipped it and disconnected the sleeves from the body. Note to self: do not do this in the future. Much easier to get sleeves off if attached. I was momentarily trapped in just the sleeves, which would have meant running in a fluorescent yellow shrug. Stylish, but not necessarily practical. Eventually I got it off.

I should mention that Mike had (amazingly and skillfully) successfully located and transported Grandpa to a spectating spot less than ten feet from where all this is taking place. The two of them coached me brightly through the transitions from the sidelines under their umbrellas, through rain and shine. Mike reminded me of the items in my checklist (Got your water? Gloves? Want a Coke? Did you eat something?) and Grandpa just beamed and said, "Good job, Tamara!" (About the time I came in for the run, the event winners were being announced over the loudspeakers. Such is sprinting.)

It felt good to be near the end, but time was still going slowly and fast at the same time. I had done a few bike to run transitions to practice, so I expected my quads to feel numb and stump-like. But I had taken the uphills in such low gears, with such high cadence, (and so very, very slowly) that they felt ok. It was my calves that started to complain and wimp out on the first long hill. I stopped briefly and stretched. People were conking out around me. I soon discovered that the energy gummies I had stashed in my back pocket were slapping around and annoying me, so I tried to give them to anyone who even hinted that their pace might slow. I gave a few to an older woman who seemed to have a half-walk, half-fun strategy, and finally handed them off to a nice man who told me I was a lifesaver. Each time I stretched, I could not get my calves to fully un-knot themselves. (This is not an excuse.)

As we approached the last hill before the turn-around, I fought the urge to stop or to walk. Until I saw everyone else (at this point, it's everyone else who is in the middle of the pack) slow down and some walk. My goals at the start were: 1) finish, 2) don't fall down, and 3) have fun, so although I had thrown some last-minute sub-goals on there, like 3a) no walking, I decided that I had a better chance of making the first three if I threw that one back out. The battle really is in the head more than in the body. So I walked, very fast, mind you, and while attempting to stretch my calves, the last ten yards to the water station, took a cup of water, drank half and dumped the rest on my head, and turned to run all the way back to the finish line. How thoughtful of the race organizers for making sure the last portion of the run was downhill.

The Finish: Rather than encouraging zooming all the way in to the weirdly off-kilter finish line via the smooth and downwardly sloping pavement, the organizers also thoughtfully eliminate potential speed-related accidents by adding in a section of up and down, twisting, soft-soiled pathways en route. So in the pictures, you can see me running picturesquely through the dusky countryside, sort of unevenly thumping and bumping. I was wishing I had the juice to finish spectacularly and sprint in with big strides eating up the distance, but it wasn't going to happen. I kept running, though. As I approached the line, I DID IT! I DID IT! started to ring in my mind, and I saw Mike behind the line, behind the camera, and I couldn't stop smiling. I was so proud of myself for doing something that I've always wanted to do, but never believed that I would, or could.

I can start belittling myself, for the short distance, or the fact that I took the hills easy or walked a little, or any number of things, but the fact is, I did it. I never thought I could, and I did. It wasn't easy, it was hard. The training up to that point took commitment, and faith that if I just did a little bit, every day, I could do it. And I did. And that is something to be proud of.

Before and After

2009-05-07T09:56:00.001-07:00

Genovese (Genoese) Minestrone

2009-05-06T08:40:00.001-07:00

This is a soup from The Gradual Vegetarian, my college go-to cookbook, that got me through many a foggy and fund-less Santa Cruz winter month. This recipe serves approximately 4. I almost always double it now.

Genovese Minestrone

1/2 cup split peas, washed and drained
2 T olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 small zucchini squash, sliced
1 cup chopped escarole or spinach, washed and drained
1/2 cup cooked or canned white or kidney beans
1 celery rib, chopped
1 tomato, quartered (optional)
1 bay leaf (totally optional)
1 tsp oregano
1 cup cooked macaroni
salt and pepper
parmesan cheese
if you have pesto on hand, which I often do, I stir a heaping teaspoon into each hot bowlful and serve with crusty bread.

Bring split peas and 1 quart water to a boil. Heat oil and saute onion and garlic. Add other vegetables and herbs and saute briefly. When the peas are falling apart, about 30 minutes after they start to boil, add the sauteed vegetables and cook another 15 minutes. Add the cooked macaroni, taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve with parmesan cheese, and/or pesto.

Packing List for a Tropical Vacation

2009-05-05T07:23:00.000-07:00

On to the next thing...

We're off on our annual anniversary trip next week. This is my complete packing list from last year's post-vacation post. What I took really worked. I used everything and it fit in one bag. Thought if anyone else was taking a trip this summer, it might come in handy for you, too.

My packing list:
flip flops (black- worn to airport, too)
tevas (for rugged terrain- black)
running shoes (not necessary if you don't run, or substitute a waterproof running shoe for both teva and running and save more space. If you plan to horseback ride or lava hike, be sure to take at least one covered shoe.)
hat- soft, packable (neutral tan color)
at least 2 swimsuits (mix and match is best- dark colors)
(I took 1 one piece suit for surfing- light blue print)
rashguard
board shorts
cotton shorts, knee length (dark brown)
2-3 cotton tissue t-shirts, short-sleeved (sea-blue, white, green)
1 loose fitting cotton t-shirt with surf logo (light blue)
1 light tissue cotton or performance t-shirt, long-sleeved (white)
cotton capri/pants (white)
knee-length comfy yoga shorts (black)
thigh-length comfy yoga shorts (black)
long-sleeved Indian-type cotton blouse (light blue)
long-sleeved sheer pretty print blouse/cover-up (green, brown, blue, tan)
sleeveless cotton yoga/athletic top (brown)
3 cotton camisoles (white, black, sea-blue)
(underwear, at least one pair for each day of the trip before wash day mid-way)
1 dark bra, 1 beige, 1 running bra
packable rain jacket (grass-green, super-light, packs to 2x4x5")
light wrap/sweater for the evening and the airplane (mine is bright blue)
1-2 pairs running socks
1 pair short black sockettes

My top five items:
-thin-strap black flip-flops with arch support (here's one source, mine are Reefs)
A little bit of arch support is crucial for day-to-day comfort. If the shoes are too spongy or thick, I also find that the rebound affects my knee injury. In Hawai'i, flip flops are appropriate for all but the most dressed-up affairs. I find thinner straps more versatile.
-knee-length, non-shiny yoga-type shorts (black)
-light-colored, long-sleeved Indian cotton blouse (light blue)
-reef-safe and UVA/UVB sunscreen
-at least two swimsuits (two-piece, mix and match)

What I wish I had:
Halter-style, good coverage beach/casual dress (maybe this one, maybe not, I wanted something soft and drapey)
Environmentally friendly mosquito repellant
Short skirt, wrinkle-proof (Prana makes this cool brown one.) It isn't really necessary with all of the other bottoms I brought, but I find I lean more towards pants and shorts, and sometimes I like to look a little more girly.
reef booties- easy to walk to rocky snorkel spots and comfy on the feet-- super dorky, though

What I brought that I didn't use:
2 pairs cotton shorts (light stone)
1 band-collar long-sleeved cotton shirt (white)
tan leather flip flops- these just weren't as comfortable as the black ones
printed cotton dress- wasn't very flattering on
nightgown

I wore a comfortable black cotton top with a light sweater (also black- travel can be dirty) and jeans for the drive to and from the airport, and I always bring a wrap of some kind because the plane gets cold. I take a structured purse/tote with a zippered middle pocket for the plane, and carry a small zippered wallet instead of a purse throughout the trip. When I don't wear shoes with socks to the airport, I bring little black sockies to slip on through security. These little sockies have also come in handy as indoor slippers and even reef booties to save my feet from fin rub blisters.

In general, the clothes I took were neutrals, with accents of light and dark blue and some green. My light long-sleeved tops were hip to fingertip length for butt coverage. Camisoles and undies or short yoga shorts double as jammies. Short yoga shorts went over suit bottoms to and from the beach.

I try to bridge temperatures by bringing light-colored, long-sleeved items and a few dark-colored, short-sleeved items, so that if it's a little chilly, the sun will warm me up, and if it's a little warm, I'll reflect the sun's rays and stay covered and cool. The temperature when we were in Hawai'i was very moderate, 70s to mid-80s, so I used the long-sleeved pieces more than I might have in hotter weather. The t-shirts I took were inexpensive tissue-tees, in colors that I think are flattering on me.

The only jewelry I took was my every day wear: silver hoops and a weighty silver choker with a white mother of pearl pendant.

On many days, I wore my swimsuit top throughout the day, so make sure yours is supportive and flattering, and take at least two so you'll always have a dry one. Big prints are more obvious than solids or narrow stripes if they show through a shirt or cover-up. I like a halter style that ties. If you're driving around the islands, you may change elevation and temperature, so I always threw the rain jacket, an extra layer and the tevas or tennies in the car just in case.

Don't forget: sunglasses, sunscreen, music (airplane headphones if you have them from another trip), a good book for downtime. Waterproof bandaids and antibiotic ointment. Hand-sani.

Remember, when you are curious, compassionate and joyful, you look your best. (Thanks, Susan Sarandon for that quote.) Have a great trip, wherever you go!

I Did It!

2009-05-04T07:37:00.000-07:00

Forget what I said about the lake being totally fine. It was 58 degrees! Of course, that meant that it didn't matter that it rained on us, which it did right up through the middle of the bike. I reached all of my goals: 1) completing my first (sprint) triathlon, 2) having fun, and 3) not falling down. Hooray! More on the philosophical aspects of this whole thing later on. Thanks to everyone, on facebook and otherwise, who cheered me on from near and far! I appreciated every word. (PS- I came in 17th in my age group (right in the middle), fifth among chicas my size, and I was the only one in my age group and class.)

(I do not always look like such a dork-- I wore a nylon swim cap under my helmet, and it slid too far forward at the end. I remembered to bring my spare tire, too.)

The Lake

2009-04-30T06:51:00.000-07:00

By the way, the test swim in the lake was fine. Not as cold as I'd feared. A little green, a little eerie, but not terrible. Aside from dodging a few floating rafts of Canadian goose poop, it was pretty fresh, too. Thanks Mary and Lucy.

Logjam!

2009-04-30T06:31:00.000-07:00

Mike and I zipped over to Santa Cruz last Sunday for the annual Big Stick Surfing Association "Logjam". This is a really cool surf event-- all longboards and only longboards, 1970's or prior, minimum board weight 20 lbs, and no leashes allowed. It's held at Pleasure Point, which is a nice, steady break, so it seemed like everyone got some waves. Someday that'll be me. (Except that water is FREEZING.) I love the longboard style, not so shreddy, and more about enjoying as long a wave as possible than about carving it up into little bits. Plenty of women out, too.

I don't know if you know this, but my grandfather used to paddle a wooden paddleboard around Capitola as a boy, and my dad used to surf here at Pleasure Point and all around Santa Cruz. Hi Dad!

Raffle prizes. Tell that guy to stop touching my board! Bummer, we didn't win the Arrow!

PS- I just know with that previous post that I've jinxed myself to have an ITB relapse and an ear infection by Sunday.

How To Avoid Ear Infections

2009-04-29T08:40:00.000-07:00

I've been a swimmer since I was a senior in high school. I still swim fairly regularly, and this is what I do to prevent ear infections:

First and foremost: Always be sure to let the ears dry out completely after a swim or shower. Use a hair dryer on low to make sure there's no moisture in there. Make sure wet hair isn't covering your ears if you hop out of the pool after a swim and let your hair dry naturally.

If you feel like you might have an ear infection coming on, put a little tiny bead of neosporin in your palm and roll the head of a clean cotton swab in it, so that all of the neosporin is in the swab. There should be no blobs of ointment on the swab. Roll this around in the outer ear canal only, after ears are dry.

Also, if you feel one coming on or feel dizzy, take a decongestant for a day or two. (None of this is scientifically tested, but it works for me.)

And as a last resort, if you have trouble drying out your ears on a regular basis, try a solution of 50% vinegar and 50% rubbing alcohol. Put a few drops in each ear after swimming, then tip your head from side to side to get it back out. (I think this feels icky, so I avoid it, but it was recommended by a doctor to eliminate both moisture and bacteria, for people who are especially prone to ear infections. I suppose you could put this on the cotton swab, too. I find that the alcohol stings and sometimes dries the skin of my ears out too much.)

Note: I am not a doctor or a medical professional. If you have an ear infection and it hurts, get off the internet and go see a doctor for heavens sake. Don't try any of this (except the hair dryer) on children (with supervision). Also, the cotton swab box says not to put the darn thing in your ear canal, so don't blame me if you do it anyway.

****

The other quick note I wanted to make was about my IT band issue. I saw a terrific therapist (Jacky at Saint Helena Physical Therapy), who filmed my running gait, and found that my left knee bounced in and out a little too dramatically, causing extra stress on the ITB.

After a couple of tries, she was able to find a fairly simple solution. As it turns out, my left foot was over-supinating, so she placed a couple of thin dense foam "wedges" or strips, inside the left rear of my shoe. The next few runs, I experienced a dramatic improvement. This, in combination with a set of new stretches and exercises to strengthen the lateral muscles, has pretty much eliminated the problem.

If you are experiencing pain from running of any kind, I strongly urge you to seek out a physical therapist who has experience with runner's issues so that you can run as safely and as long as possible. My insurance has a provision for "self referral"-- maybe yours does too.

(The orthopedist I saw before the therapist had said to me flatly, "You can't run three miles a day anymore, you're 42, not 22." He gave me a printout of some stretches, which included worst-case scenarios for IT band syndrome, and that was it. The first thing Jacky said when I told her was, "I don't think that's true at all. Let's take a look and see what's happening." And here I am, comfortably continuing my running routine again.)

Tamarasicle

2009-04-29T07:47:00.000-07:00

It's 38 degrees this morning. The frost fans came on some time in the pre-dawn hours. Once you're used to them, they don't rouse you from a sound sleep, but if you're on the edge, their droning tends to supplement the alarm clock. Any other day, I'd roll over and snuggle deeper into the covers, knowing that Mike is going to be up shortly to let the dogs out and feed them when they wake up. But this morning, all I could think about was the lake.

In a little over three days, I'll be swimming in that lake. The lake temperatures "hover in the 70s," according to the triathlon web site, but I'm thinking they are going to be hovering closer to the mid-50s or 60s this weekend. So I got up and made a Dutch Baby with strawberries and blueberries, and let Mike sleep in.

*****
By the way, here is the simplest possible recipe for a Dutch Baby:

Preheat oven to 425
Melt 1/2 stick butter in cast iron pan
Vigorously whisk together 4 eggs, 1/2 c milk, 1/2 c flour
Swirl butter around pan edges
Pour in batter gently
Place in oven
Set timer for 20 minutes
Remove when golden, sprinkle with lemon juice and powdered sugar

*****
A friend, who is also doing the event, and I are going out to swim it this afternoon, in full gear: rashguard, tri-shorts, cap, goggles, wetsuits, maybe even earplugs to keep the icy water from swishing in and out of our ear canals. (Doesn't that just give you the shivers?) She's done it once and said it was cold, cold, cold. That was last week when it was 90 degrees. Why can't it be 90 degrees this week?

I'm doing something I've always want to do. I need to find a pace I can maintain and enjoy the ride. I'm doing something I've always want to do. I need to find a pace I can maintain and enjoy the ride. I'm doing something I've always want to do. I need to find a pace I can maintain and enjoy the ride. That's my mantra. Gotta suit up and go for a run now; the natives are getting restless. Wish me luck!

PS- The baby birdies hatched! They are tiny and fuzzy and so vulnerable in this cold weather. We are trying to spend minimum time in the backyard so that mama bird can stay on the nest and keep them warm as much as possible. I couldn't resist a quick peek, though. Yesterday I saw one yawn, and his little yellow mouth was no bigger than my pinkie nail when it was wide open. When they are bigger and the weather is warmer, I'll try (carefully) to get a picture.