This week some of the loss leaders at Kroger were Corn, 10 ears for $2, Green beans, $1 a pound, and Pork Roasts, $1.77 a pound. The corn and beans were from Florida. Usually I try to buy locally to can and freeze but last year, because of the drought, I did almost no canning. There was no produce to buy! When I got to the store I observed that the corn and green beans looked fresh and unblemished so I bought a lot! Likewise the pork roasts were the large ones with little fat. I bought lots of that too. Then I took them home and began processing them for storage. I cut the pork roasts into tenderloins, enough for 17 meals. I parboiled the corn, froze it on cookie sheets and made about 30 meals worth of corn on the cob. Then I broke and canned the green beans in a pressure canner. Now breaking 7 pounds of beans is a fairly long job but in my childhood this job was done on the cool front porch, sitting in a rocking chair if possible and chatting with a handy child or neighbor. This time I did it watching Dr Phil and other shows and it passed as effortlessly. The beans were so young and tender that I didn't tail them, just took the stems off and broke them in half. It's only long tough runner beans that one tails in order to get the last string off. I canned them in two batches for an hour each at 10 pounds pressure. Two jars didn't seal, I used one piece lids on those and it was the second use so no surprise there and we've eaten one already and will eat the other before the end of the week. No harm done!
There was only one thing I didn't plan for. Remember all those chicken breasts I froze? And there were about 6 loaves of bread, extra ice cream bought on sale. My freezer is very small. I could only just cram all my frozen goods in by starting on the ice cream early. And taking out a half-gallon of milk a few days early, also some bread. The little freezer is full to the very top! But that's the way I like it!
I would like to report that the miniature rose bush my daughter gave me last Mother's day has outdone itself this year!
And now a word from my colleague Elyah
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Here's a picture of me and my classmates presenting an afghan to our teachers. We made the whole thing. The purple square next to the left was made by Ana and me. Ana and Bill and Steve came to see me graduate and eat cookies in the gym. After it was over my Mom and I went home and watched the new Star Trek movie. It was very good.
I decided to have a happy Mother's day by making a big deal over the things that Mothers do. Like cooking, cleaning up the kitchen and straightening up. Accordingly I asked my Husband to take me out to dinner on Saturday evening, which he did. We went to Outback and ordered the small sirloin. It was delicious! It was only when the check came that we realized that we had been eating the Filet Mignon! They admitted they had made a mistake and only charged us for the little sirloins which was very satisfactory to us! So on Mother's day I made a lovely breakfast, omelettes full of cream cheese and mushrooms and the wicked and forbidden buttermilk biscuits. Note my lovely Mother's Day flowers on the table!
Then I made a cream sponge cake. I had saved up extra eggs. The recipe was in one of my favorite cookbooks. I carefully followed all the directions (not something I always do).
It is a cream sponge, one whips up the eggs, adds the flour and sugar, but just half as much as the other recipes. It ends with boiling water and is then so done that it only requires 15 minutes in the oven and consequently is not dry like most sponge cakes. The flavorings were ground nutmeg and lemon peel!
I had never used ungreased waxed paper before in the pan but I suppose that since it was only in the oven 15 minutes not too much wax ended up on our stomachs.
The paper peeled right off.
It was presented on a pretty little tray perfectly plain. At the table I spooned the vanilla flavored custard over each piece. It was absolutely delicious.
The supper was Martha Stewart's Mother's Day luncheon, Shrimp Stew with flower bedecked salad on the side and wine to drink. I am afraid however that after all that glorification of Mother's work, I left the dishes in the sink until Monday!
All day I chatted on the phone with my children and friends, received gifts of flowers, gift certificates, a lovely bowl for Mary Lincoln's what-not, Oh just a host of lovely things, Thank you all, It was a pleasure!
A beautiful horn bowl sits on top of Mary's what-not. Note that the plate is in a rack for better display.
Today I made a table-topper out of a sample I got in one of my gift boxes and picked the finally blooming iris in my yard. The Mother's Day flowers lasted a week and a half!
For the last year, Eliyah and I have been reading aloud the series "The Dragons of Pern" by Anne McCaffrey. I've made the popular hot drink described in the first book and referred to throughout the series as Klah by infusing decaffeinated tea bags with oil of cinnamon, then making the tea in a drip coffee maker.. Eliyah liked it. I love it and may become addicted to it Then he found a recipe on Facebook that he wanted us to try using biscuit dough stuffed with red sauce, Italian cheese and Peperoni. We had made other meatrolls but these were the best by far. Eliyah and Bill disappeared a whole pile of them in record time. Recipe follows:
Dough:
2 cups Self-rising flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 cup red sauce, any brand
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup olive oil
Preheat the oven to 425.
Mix the soda with the flour in a bowl and the butter milk with the olive oil in a cup. Pour the liquid into the flour and stir just until it forms a ball in the bowl. Flour a dough board or the counter and set the dough in the midst of the flour (use plenty) and gently pat out into a circle about 10 inches across. Fold into thirds and pat out again. Repeat a time or two, just until the dough seems smooth. If it begins to shrink back, stop immediately, it's getting tough. Now roll the dough out into a big circle, 12 or 14 inches across and cut into rounds with a jar lid, about 3 inches across. Flatten each round. Place a slice of peperoni in the center of each, a teaspoon of red sauce, a cube of mozzarella cheese and another slice of peperoni. Gather the edges together and pinch into a ball. Bake at 425 degrees for about 12 minutes, or just until tanning and brown on the bottom. Serve hot or cold.
We served a salad and hot klah with ours. Lovely!
In the past, my daughter Rose and her husband, Matt made laundry soap for me and gave it to me as a gift, in a fancy jar with a ribbon and label and scoop. I enjoyed using it for that reason alone. But in time I found it does a better job than detergents, smells better, and I know it is better for the septic system.
The people across the street seem to have had a disaster in their house involving water or worse and have gone to stay somewhere else while the Fire and Water Restoration people work daily at drying out the house. It's been more than a week and still the house is deserted. It's true that I don't actually know that their septic system is at fault but seeing a workman wandering around their yard looking down was maybe a clue . . .
I have always been an advocate of septic systems because back in the 50's when the idea was new, my architect Dad touted them as a low-cost, efficient and permanent solution to household waste.
He went on to be a designer of malls, schools and nursing homes all over the Eastern half of the United States. And back then, no one thought of pumping septic systems out. The worst thing we put in them was a little chlorine bleach for the wash.
Now we pour noxious chemicals down our drains routinely, as well as sanitizers to kill bacteria, and bacteria is what makes a septic system work. Not to mention ultra soft toilet paper! I'm dedicated to keeping ours going as long as possible!
I use 1 cup borax, 1 cup washing soda and 1/3 of a bar of Fels Naptha soap, finely grated and some drops of a scented oil like lavender. I made a big batch so now it lives in a big plastic container with a lid. In a few days it will be time to hang the laundry outside, for the benefits of the sunlight (the best bleach you could want and a bactericide as well).
I forsee some clear-starching in my future too!
Tim Puro invited us over to see a beautiful secretary he's been working on, the one Bill worked on the locks for. I say Birthday because someone gave "birth" to it nearly 200 years ago and Tim restored it for another long segment of time. A rebirth, if you will. I had seen it before but never in so polished and beautified condition. While I was there he showed me a chair wholly decorated with faux graining to look like rosewood. A comb was used on the legs but the back was done with brushes by hand and a lovely job they did too!
I can't wait to try this out on something, as soon as it gets warm enough to work in the garage.
While we were out running errands Thursdays we accidentally stopped at Blue Moon Consignment Shop. There I found a quarter size dresser just right for Ma in the long winter. We brought it home and found that the backsplash was loose. So great was my enthusiasm that we commenced to fix it right on the breakfast table, even in the kitchen amongst the dirty dishes. A few tense moments when the tiny clamps slipped and we resorted to giant rubber bands. Whew! There's never a dull moment around here!
It's just the right size for Ma and I am already thinking of the things I need to make to put in the drawers. Red flannel long underwear, bloomers, stockings, night gowns and bed caps, for starters.
Here is an item from my able assistant:
"Today me and Ana went to Spring Mill Park and walked in the woods. It was a very lovely day and the birds were out and we walked all the way to the road on trail number three which was a long way for Ana to walk. Then we walked back to the car to have a little snack before heading into the village. We noticed a cave that was not mentioned in the map so we thought maybe it had not been discovered yet. Or it might have been a small crack, (sigh). This is my report, Eliyah"
Last thing, I want to show you the orchid, which has four flowers open now and three more to go!
This has cheered me up no end!
It turns out that I am allergic to carpet beetles. Nobody else here is, just me. And how allergic! Big red welts and how it itches! But we have learned that a thorough cleaning and vacuuming reduces the chances of my having a new crop of welts considerably. So once a month now, I deep clean. Move all the furniture, vacuum all the carpet, mop all the floors. Fresh sheets every few days. The Victorians would consider that the bare minimum of house cleaning, I'm sure. Last week I did all that. I was a cleaning fiend. And afterward, I got my self a prize. Some "Nick and Nora" Pajamas. Extra Large, but of course they lied. They almost fit but were too tight in places. I was undismayed. I added large white gussets where space was needed and now they fit perfectly. These are really Spring time pajamas. Notice that some of the birds are reading books, truely these are Ana Pjs.
At Christmas, the people who supply me with eggs gave me a sweet squash, which I kept on the counter as a decorative element. Then I decided to use it. I baked it whole, cut it in half, cleared out the seeds and mashed up the pulp. I was surprised how sweet it was. Some I ate on the spot. The rest was made into a curried soup with some chicken and broth and served with chicken salad with grapes and pecans. What a lovely lunch to have in winter with a friend. Afterward we went to Spring Mill Park for an early look around. Luckily it was almost warm that day.
Bill and I often talk about Little House subjects, especially when we are working on a project or reading a related book. Right now I'm reading Little House, Long Shadow by Anita Clair Fellman. Such analytical books often bring out my most argumentative side, believe me! I am loath that any criticism be leveled at my heroine Laura. So it is not surprising perhaps, that Bill has dreamed about the Ingalls. He woke up this morning talking about a restaurant dedicated to the Little House Books. So I got busy and made up a menu. It was a good excuse to make biscuits for breakfast too!
Now all I have to do is win the lottery to open a half dozen or so Restaurants!
The last bright thing is this, after all these weeks, the orchid is finally beginning to bloom! One wouldn't have thought it would stay in the bud so long! The last picture I took for you was a month ago!
I am so happy it's March and almost not Winter any more!
I always hate February, it seems the dreariest month of the year. And I've had my share of dreary events in February. This is not the first death. For Eliyah's Father has died mysteriously at the age of 60. I felt helpless watching the family grieve. Of course, everything is the same here on the days he comes and I think that is what I can do. Just be the same.
Even my new teapot candle-holder seems sad! Of course that's only from one point of view!
A couple of weeks ago some juicy oranges arrived by UPS, a total surprise to me. With them came two large plastic bibs! And believe me you need them when you eat these oranges!
I have finally put away almost all things Christmas and made a matching brown tablecloth for the dining table.
I like to put spring flowers out in the midst of winter! But I'm sorry to say that the tablecloth is now obliterated by the work on the "Long Winter" scene.
First I tried to corral everything in the new orange box.
But that soon proved inadequate.
These chairs have been rejected on the basis of style and also being a little bit too large. We are using 1/4 scale.
If you look carefully in the large basket you will see the knitting needles Bill has made for Ma to knit with. I am looking for very fine yarn to start the knitting with.
My daughter Jude has offered to make the heads for each of the characters. Samples and photos and measurements are being gathered to mail to her. Looks like I might need that Zen book too!
I am anxiously watching to see if my orchid, which my daughter-in-law gave me two years ago is going to bloom by Valentine's Day. It didn't bloom at all last year. Then when we went to May's Green house the clerk there advised me to use more water. And not ice cubes at all. Three cubes melted down to 1/3 cup so I increased to 1/2 cup once a week,(on Sundays) and now it has some 7 or 8 buds. I am ridiculously excited. I don't have a green thumb and having something bloom seems like an unexpected gift!
