Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Almost Time


Tomato seedlings getting bigger every day. Won't be long 'til we get to transplant them into the garden...visions of sugar plums indeed!

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Beauty Abounds

Here is a quick review of our trip to ol' Kentuck to visit Cara, Tom, Will and soon-to-be-here baby. (I know his name but I'm no bean spiller).

Our time with the fam (as Bill Murray would put it) was spent eating Cara's wonderful cooking, traveling through Kentucky,Tennessee and North Carolina, sight seeing, hiking, picnicking and listening to radio station W. I. L. L. Non-stop talk 24/7 (except for a pause to take a bite of his ever present apple)! Very intellectual and non-stop laughter!
Tom, Will and I had the pleasure of spending our time in the Smokey Mountains with three beautiful women. Brenda (my wife for 30 years as of March 17th), Cara and Amy blended in perfectly with the flowering trees,majestic,towering bluffs and sparkling mountain streams. If there is a law against being amidst too much beauty, I am public enemy #1. Look for my mug-shot next time you're passing through Asheville N.C. !

Once we got back to Berea we had time to relax before our return trip to Okie-land. Tom, Will, Amy and I went for a hike to a nicely secluded waterfall while Brenda and Cara took in a few shops in town. Amy climbed the steep cliff to venture behind the waterfall, then sat quietly next to a shimmering pool of water. She seemed to vanish into the peaceful low rumble of the falling water, the glittering stones, and the tall evergreens. Amy has always been one with nature. It brings joy to my heart every time I see the connection.
Thanks Tom for being a great tour guide. I'd be wandering aimlessly(probably lost) if I were to attempt to find some of the fantastic places you took us to.
The evening was spent sitting around reading, knitting and talking. With a new baby coming, a probable move for C,T,W and baby,graduation for Amy, and retirement options for old man Pete, (all coming in the not-so-distant future), there was plenty to talk about.
I'm not sure anything was resolved,but for me it was nice to be able to share ideas and feelings with a great little family.
The next morning came all too quickly. After some of Cara's fantastic cinnamon rolls, fruit and coffee, it was time to go. Will was off to school and we were on our way westward.
Spring break flew by almost as fast as Brenda , Amy and I flew back from our visit to Kentucky. As driver, I set a new land speed record for a 2008 Honda Civic. 750 miles in 11 hours!
We're all a bit tired,but thinking of our little tribe back in Kentucky makes it a happy tired. It was a great Spring Break! Thanks Cara, Tom and Will for everything.
Now it's back to the old grind.
A grind that's a lot easier to handle because of the beauty that abounds in my life.

Friday, March 11, 2011

As The World(s) Turn

Click title.
Make sure to explore...click, click, click

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Eggstra! Eggstra!

After a few weeks of ultra cold, subzero temperatures, the weather warmed up and the hens got cracking!

20 eggs collected on March 5.

March 6 and the mission was to cook 'em and eat 'em.

After an internet search for recipes, I decided to make Alton Brown's Lemon Curd and Meringue Kisses from the incredible edible egg website by the American Egg Board first.  The Lemon Curd called for 5 egg yokes (I used 6) and the Meringues called for 4 egg whites (I used 6).  You can find the recipes at these links:

 Alton Brown's Lemon Curd and Incredibleegg.org Meringue Kisses .


Once the lemon curd was in the jelly jars, we needed scones.  I had a mix and used one more egg.

The girls taste tested and loved the lemon curd and the meringues.  Scones were ok, guess I should have made them from scratch.

While the Meringues were baking, Ivy and Alaina had groomed and saddled Pico, Diez, and Splash.  So, I took a break for a little equine therapy and then back to the kitchen.

We had 3 over-ripe bananas.  Four eggs later and we have 12 banana-cranberry muffins.

Cheese souffle with dinner?  Sounds like a plan.  Need another recipe and zencancook.com is the place.

Zencancook Cheese Souffle  The recipe called for three eggs but I used 5 yokes and 4 whites. I planned on using 4 eggs total but contaminated a white with cream so went ahead and cracked one more. Also, I used only 8 oz of cheese (4 oz Swiss and 4 oz Fontina) and used 1/2 and 1/2 instead of milk.  The souffle was yummy with sauteed mushrooms on top.



Final egg tally for the day? Sixteen. Four left over to add to the stash in the fridge and the 14 more collected today. Bring egg cartons soon and we will fix you up.  Please.