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Yes, I can still get in! Watch this place for more in the future.
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Yes, I can still get in! Watch this place for more in the future.
Thank you, Nae, for reconnecting me. More later.
Or Moderation Isn’t All It’s Cracked Up to Be
I used to drink a lot of tea, maybe eight cups in a day. And I often shared a cup with a child or two, or made a pot. And we used to drink iced tea with dinner, sometimes lunch and often in between. Friends came and went, but all drank tea, either hot or iced. It was not unusual for us to go through two gallons of iced tea in a day. So to go through 100 teabags in a week was normal.
I’m sure you all remember the little porcelain animals in the Red Rose tea? (Okay, Nae, this is where I get to say it: I was a bad mother! Yes, for the record and all to see, I admit it. I was a bad mother.) When you were growing up and there was general chaos, dealing with those little guys was more than I could cope with. The kids wanted them, wanted the same ones, fought over who got which one, etc. Instead of a creative response, I just said, ‘No one can have any of them’, thinking I would deal with things later. I’m not quite sure what I meant (even to myself) by ‘deal with things’, but that’s what I did. Then I got rid of the almost one hundred of the little guys that I had saved. (I’m sorry, Nae.)
After life calmed down somewhat for me, I started to save the little figurines with the goal of completing a set. I think each series lasts about three years. I know I completed one series; I think it is the endangered species series. I may have the whole circus series too, I can’t remember.
The latest is Noah’s Ark. When I was a child, one of my favorite toys was a little wooden Noah’s Ark, complete with Noah and his wife, and about eight sets of animals. I used to spend hours sitting on the hard wood floor of 26 Narbrook Park, marching those animals up and down the ramp. (Okay, I was easily amused!) So I was eager to collect this newest series. I got off to a good start, but noticed that it was harder to complete than the last set.
This is where the moderation comes in. I have cut down to four cups of tea a day. Daddy and I have both switched to water with meals. Mendon is often not home when I am making a cup of tea or if we do share, we make a pot of non-Red Rose tea, which is okay. Daddy makes iced tea about twice a week instead of daily. A box of Red Rose tea lasts us about a month. The result? We aren’t unwrapping the little porcelain animals quickly enough. I have been working on this set for a year to eighteen months now and have not completed it.
The good news and the reason I am writing this blog is that I finally got my first zebra today! I still need another sheep, another rhino and the other zebra, but it was with great joy that I unwrapped the zebra this morning. Celebrate with me.
Or The Hazards of Gardening in Bi-Focals
Remember last week when I was going out to perform surgery on the zucchini plants?
Well, it was challenging. First of all, zucchini plants are slightly hairy. Not as prickly as say, raspberries, but more so than green beans. So here I am squatting among the zucchinis, sharp knife in hand, trying to maneuver around the large, hairy leaves of the plant, when all of a sudden the hairs on the leaves and stems come into alarmingly close focus, like eye of the needle close. Once I got over the shock of seeing the personality of the zucchini plant up close, I still had to perform the surgery. I lunged, knife poised! Slice! Gash! Okay, where is the culprit? Oh, you mean this quarter inch long thingie? That looks just like the pulp inside the plant? That is barely moving? Yep, that is what was eating my plants.
Next move is to mound dirt up around the cut and hope the plant grows some new roots. On some of the plants, I had to make serious gashes, basically separating the plant from the roots almost totally. Others I was able to cleanly cut the stem in half. I mounded the dirt up around the stem and watered well. And said a little prayer.
The next day at work, I discovered another vicissitude of gardening in bifocals. Merry said, “Have you been out in the sun? What is this white line on the back of your neck?” The chain that hangs my glasses around my neck left a white line in my farmer’s tan.
Well, you can guess the outcome. The seriously gashed plants were the ones that didn’t quite make it. The good news is that it has rained every day at least some since last Sunday when I performed the wormectomy, giving the plants lots of opportunity to establish roots. Several have survived well and a few others are still on the Guarded Condition list, but oveall the zucchinis have been saved.
Okay, Guys,
What's up? I know something is going on and I want to know what it is!
I know where it is and who is involved, but I don't know what it is. How do I know? Because of the silence. Homeland security listens to chatter, but I am alarmed by its absence. Mara dropped a hint at 'something' that couldn't be mentioned until Friday. Today is Sunday. Still nothing. And Violetta? the prolific Violetta? Nothing, not one entry, since July 10th. That's over a week! Unheard of!
I haven't heard from Nathan, but that is all too normal. Rae and I talked last night. She and Eric are settling into their new townhouse in old Alexandria. It is more like a house than an apartment, so they are becoming acquainted with some of the pitfalls of houses (damp basements, etc.), but over all seem to be doing well.
Mensch and Kristen are here and well. We spent yesterday cooking for each other.
Well, I'm on to a new entry. Yes, more than one in one day. What kind of monster have you created, Nae?
One of the most maligned vegetables in the world. And one of the finest.
What is there not to love about zucchini? Sure,Dave Barry can write funny columns about it, as have many other humorists, but they are just going for the cheap shot. Slow news day, nothing else to write about so go for the cliche.
Nothing rivals zucchini sauted with onions in olive oil or butter or a bit of both, seasoned with salt, pepper and tarragon. It is essential that you never put a lid on it and that you cook it at a relatively high temperature so that it browns, the juices caramelizing rather than just weeping into the pan and making a soggy mess. For the same reason I prefer a cast iron skillet over either aluminim or non-stick coated pans.
And one of the beauties of the zucchini plant is that it keeps producing. And producing, and producing. . . But that is okay because I love zuchinni. When I don't have it in the garden. I go and buy it.
I do have one problem with zucchini and that is the worm that gets into the stem -- stem borers. So while everyone else is having a bountiful harvest, I am watching my vines wilt and fade. It makes me so sad. And there is the issue of the fruit growing so fast that it is easy to miss one and let it grow into a canoe size veggie. Then it is no longer my favorite, I confess. The trick (other than a hot pan) is to pick them while they are young and tender. Too many gardeners wait too long to pick them.
I also love them raw, either in salad or just plain, sort of like cucumber. They don't even need salt.
Wow! This sounds so good I think I'll go out into the garden right now and see if there are any for me to pick. And I will take my sharpest knife and see if there are any stem borers that I can kill. (I know there are, as I was gardening yesterday and saw their telltale sawdust leavings.)
I even prefer zucchini to the yellow crooked neck squash. The skin stays tenderer and the seeds don't get as big and tough. Did I mention that I now have a tarragon plant in my herb garden? What a treat.
I called Mina today. Actually, she called me yesterday and the day before, and I called her back today.
She was telling me about pilgrimage and how amazing it was. And she told me that you sent a jar of marmalade, hand made from the oranges of the Ridvan garden? Wow! I told Daddy and he can't wait to taste it. I sort of feel like it should be only opened for a really special occasion, like Ayyam'i-Ha, and shared, one bite at a time with everyone I love.
Now we get to the wierd spot of blogs. I want to say more, but I don't know who is reading this, or who might read this. So if there is anyone I don't want to read something, basically I shouldn't be saying it, right? So, what do I put into blogs? And where is Mark's blog? I haven't heard from him in too long. So I guess I will just write you an email. You, too, Nae, and Rae too, even though I know you won't be reading it for a few days.
Love to all of you (including you, Mensch. I just am not going to email you.) This has been a fabulous year for Cindy's black raspberries and she is sick of picking, so I have been reaping the bounty. Our red raspberries are just starting to ripen, but the golden ones won't really be ready to pick until next year. The bushes need to strengthen. Or at least that is what the garden book says.
I wrote a long (and I thought, wonderful) blog on cooking or Ruhi in the Woods, and it is gone! It didn't seem to post and I don't know where to look for it to make it appear. I know I saved it as a draft, but where are the drafts?
Well, I'm back from my competative cooking experience. Yes, that is what it really was.
Or, that is how it felt to me. The first night we just reheated leftover Persian food cooked by Nassim (yes, the same Nassim who came to Mid Winter a few years ago). The next night we made chili. I already commented on the chili on Mara's blog.
Now let me tell you the rest of the story. Vicky was my co-cook. We have many similarities. Four kids, almost the same ages. We are the same age, were married within months of each other, each have a child serving in the Holy Lands. But our cooking styles are not the same. (I must say, though, she was very willing to go along with things that were strange to her.)
Anyway, she suggested chili and said something about 5 pounds of ground beef, but what to do with the vegatarians in our midst? So I offered to make the vegatarian chili (see comments in Mara's blog for the recipe. It is one of my better ones.) I had so much fun. Chopping, sauteing, stirring, baking, and some more chopping. Vicky had never seen chili served with toppings, at least not that many toppings. Sour cream and cheddar, but none of the other stuff. Well, we put the chili pots on the table and sat back to watch. Who took which chili? And who came back for which?
There really was an iron chef feel to the whole experience, with the commentary of the judges. As I was cooking, I could almost hear the color commentary, "And she is rummaging through the fridge looking for things to throw in. Look, she found some red peppers chopped, but there are carrots chopped with the peppers. What is she going to do? Look! she is adding the carrots to the pot, with the chili!" Some of the comments of the 'judges' were, "May I have your recipe? I think my family would like this." "I wish I were a vegatarian." "It's not often the vegatarian offering looks better than the regular meal."
Well, this just spurred me on. We had the next night off because Robert Rhines made the paellea (okay, so I don't know how to spell it . . .) The next night was a potato bar night. I made a cheese sauce, as well as bacon, reheating the chili, whatever. I also made fresh zucchini and I was looking for tarragon to season it with. There was none in the kitchen! I think Vicky was as surprised that I expected to find it as I was surprised to find that she didn't have any in her kitchen.
That wasn't the exciting part. We were to make brunch the next morning. So I'm thinking Brunch, but Vicky is thinking brunch, but she doesn't tell me till later. She just lets me run with it. So I made a Basque omelet. (I went to the library and researched recipes for Basque omelets. There are almost as many as there are recipes for gauzpacho or spaghetti sauce.) Since there are so many, I get the gist and create my own. I have a recipe for it at home, but I didn't feel confident that I could remember it.
I also made oven roasted rosemary potatos and a Mexican bread pudding. It is actually a Lent dish, created to use up leftover as you are cleaning out for Easter. And I was cleaning out. Someone had gotten tons of bread, mostly buns, which were just taking up room in the freezer. I dried the bread for several days. And there were some tired looking apples that no one was eating. And some craisins, and the rest of the cashews from the chili, and some almonds. You get the picture. Anyway, it was pretty good. Again, I didn't have the actual recipe, so I used a basic bread pudding recipe and the concept and put it together myself. To round this out, Vicky made some muffins for the kids on real restricted diets and cut up some fresh fruit. It was quite a layout. She had a camera with her. We should have taken pictures.
Anyway, the punch line is that after I put all this out, she say, "I had been thinking brunch, like late breakfast. You know something like pancakes and scrambled eggs." Now she tells me. Did I mention she is from Iowa?