Uncategorized – Page 2 – Making it in Toledo

Getting to know Lavern…

It must be a new season, because this morning my sourdough starter whispered to me. I dutifully fed it, setting aside the discard for a batch of homemade crackers. Although my starter isn’t new, it’s still without a name.

Perhaps it’s time to address that gap. OOH !!! I just discovered a sourdough name generator. Lavern Surely Doughry will certainly help my bread production through the winter, and I look forward to getting to know her.

This is amazing! And scary. I was simultaneously making bread and texting with Liv and Bobby about AI. I know that my computer is listening to me, but is it also picking up on the yeasty tang in the air?

Today’s bake is not sourdough, but is no-knead, which, given the effect arthritis has on my hands, is welcome.

After a couple of hours at room temperature, the dough has risen a lot.

I’m hoping for a bread as gorgeous as this one I made last year.

No-knead bread can be perfect. Lavern and I will not be chasing perfection, but I predict we will have a lot of fun over the next few months.

Go with the slow

On Tuesday I picked up a bushel of gorgeous bi-color corn raised by Dave Bench and available to me through my CSA, Shared Legacy. I shared 3 dozen ears with friends, which was a good thing because a bushel is a LOT of corn. We’ve had corn soup and corn salad (no particular recipe, but I dressed it with the salsa from Tuesday’s soup). I’ve put 8 bags of corn in the freezer. Makes me feel very wealthy.

Fresh, but not up to the standard of my childhood, when the practice was to pick the corn AFTER the water came to a boil…

John is away from home this week, attending a public health conference in Tacoma and visiting his brother on a small island in the San Juans. Aloisa’s food tastes are within a narrow and fairly boring range, and Johanna seems happy with a few old favorites. I don’t intend to do a whole lot of cooking, since I miss John’s enthusiasm. It’s amazing how much time opens up when I’m not cooking. I read the first (and only, so far) book in a series I hope to follow for a long time. Featuring a male clothes-obsessed detective is a nice twist.

In contrast to the quiet all around me, the tiny pond ecosystem is bustling and bursting with goldfish, mosquito-fish, and tadpoles, all nibbling on the duck weed. I love to sit and watch, especially since the water lily has bloomed.

busy, but tranquil…

“…to be slow means that you govern the rhythms of your life. You are in control of deciding how fast you have to go.” Carlo Petrini

No rush….spring break

We needed a break and decided to do a timeshare trade that will also allow us to see Olivia. After a brief time in Oakland we arrived in Calaveras County, nineteenth-century Gold Rush country. Our first couple of days were hot (pool weather), but we’ve settled into more typical temps.

Our first adventure was to the Calaveras Big Trees park, and it lived up to its promise with trees that are the most massive on earth:

Definitely a BIG tree

This park had to close for a bit in the winter because the trails couldn’t be cleared: they ran out of places to pile snow! In the midst of the trees there is a wet meadow, now holding much of the snow melt.

I loved this part of the park

Angel’s Camp, California, is our home base and a perfect place to zone out, catch up on reading, and explore a few wineries. We bought a couple of bottles from Twisted Oak and then enjoyed the view of their vines:

Twisted Oak has a focus on bold red wines.

and then we got lost:

A refuge is always welcome…

Pretty sure we were trespassing, and we didn’t see any gypsies, but this was a lovely and mysterious detour and we eventually made it back to the road.

The best food we’ve found in town reminded us that the Gold Rush attracted people from all over, especially Mexican miners whose heritage probably explains the menu we enjoyed at lunch -Chile rellenos and agua fresca.

More adventures await!

Nothing but blue skies…

A new (ad)venture! We’re installing a bluebird nesting box in our backyard. Having spotted a frequent visitor at our feeder (a hungry female) we have reason for hope. Having bought a pole, a raccoon baffle, and a nesting box this morning, we are ready to welcome a crowd. Because I am not eager to deal with live mealworms, I bought a package of dried ones. We already had the nearby shelter, the splashing water, and the birdbath. Here’s the goal:

If this works, I”ll share results here.

Begin again?

Oh, dear. I’ve neglected my blog for weeks, and all my pictures have disappeared! But thank goodness I have a place in my new kitchen to start over:

I’m relatively comfortable with tech, but certainly inexpert in wordpress. So, reluctantly, I think I’ll focus on new posts and not worry too much about what I have lost. This is a start.

It’s Coming Together…

A lot happened in the kitchen while I was eating my way through NOLA.

Now that I can see things coming together, I’m ready to choose backsplash tiles and wall color. There is a lot left to do, and it will be a few weeks yet, so it’s a good thing I like my contractor, John Schmalzried and his Kolina Construction team.

I can’t wait to use and share this space!!

It’s a blank slate…

There’s been a bit of creative destruction happening…

Making a new kitchen

It’s time for a change. And I think I’m ready. This kitchen, which has always been everything I could have asked for, deserves an update.

I’ve spent more time here than anywhere else over the last forty years. I’ve cooked for my family and my friends, for visitors from close to home and around the world. I’ve cooked with and for my friends, my mother, my children, and my grand-daughter. I’ve cooked for family meals, casual get-togethers, fancy dinner parties, and countless fundraisers. I’ve cooked for birthdays, weddings, celebrations and sadnesses.

Before the pandemic halted all my planning, I began to explore new kitchen ideas. We were reaching the limits of patching and repairing, We had replaced the fancy German hinges, we had re-glued the terra cotta-look vinyl tiles. We had, over and over, re-hung the overworked cabinet doors. New lights, new appliances, new colors, each better than the last. Or at least different.

Once one gets started, it’s amazing how quickly a room can be emptied of the ingredients, the utensils, the cookware, the art, all the stuff both cherished and forgotten collected over forty years.

Today, the kitchen is a shell. Over the next several weeks, we’ll make a new kitchen. While that is happening, I want to remember some of the meals that have been prepared here. Some of the food, some of the events, some of the people. If you’re interested, watch this space.

Missing Martha

Tomorrow, March 27th, my sister Martha would have turned 65 if she had not died in 2001, suddenly and unexpectedly and too soon. I miss her every day.

Martha did a lot of living before she died. She learned, she loved, she traveled, and she left us with her daughter, Gina, and a lot of memories.

Martha was a big fan of bubbles, and tomorrow we’ll drink one of her favorites, Freixenet Brut in the black bottle. We will remember her bold and adventurous nature and be glad that we knew her. She helped teach Olivia to ride a bike, she helped Johanna get a tattoo before we were ready to do that, and she was here with me to welcome Sam when he was born.

Enjoy every day.

Occupying Winter…

I have absolutely no desire to spend extended time in Florida. But this cold spell has been a little longer than the ideal, and today’s sunshine is especially welcome. I’ve been hibernating for almost a week, but warmer days are sure to come.

“Winter is not a season, it’s an occupation”

Sinclair Lewis