When art just speaks to ou.

This came in the other day and it just spoke to me. 

I'm staying at my friend's house while they're gone so I feed the birds. They have a really big backyard that gets a lot of wild life attention. The crows are my favorite. It started when I would trap gophers and rats. The crows would carry everything I caught away. Once you get an established pair of crows, they will wait for you every morning. Once a family of crows claims your house the other crows will stay away, it's a territorial thing.  Haven't had any luck trapping any rodents so I feed them dried meal worms and toasted bread.

I thought this ceramic piece would make a great thank you gift for my friends as they also like the crows. What do you think?

Crafting Space

A few months ago I sent off 75 cards (mostly Iris folding cards) to an online friend for her church support group. They set up a card shop in memory of a member who had passed away. The money raised helps keeps the support group going. 

I know she really wanted birthday and get well cards but I sent what I had a lot of. Crazy that I had that many iris folding cards made and still didn't make a dent in my back stock. I even sold 21 of those cards last week (at a big discount) to a teacher for her graduating class of teachers and my rack is still full. 

Every place I've gone to over the past few years, I take card making supplies with me. Most of the time I only get parts done (and I have a lot of parts) and rarely finished a full card. While staying at a friend's house this month, I now have the space to spread out. I'm really trying to focus on the theme she wants. It's so nice to have the space that I can just walk into and be creative for a few minutes or hours when the mood strikes me. I'm working with what I have easy access to as all of my craft supplies are packed away in different boxes. 

Why We Cook by Lindsay Gardner - Who is your mentor or hero?

 Who is your mentor or hero?

Of course my mom. She was a super good cook and set the example food doesn't have to be fancy to be good. How to cook fast with what you have was a must. Of course living on a vegetable farm, we had all the building blocks.  I'm still a big fan of salad and raw vegetables. 

When I was a child I loved to watch Julia Child on PBS. It was the only time I was quiet let alone inside the house. I spent most of childhood running around outside and only came into to eat or sleep.  I loved the show!  The best parts of  Julia's  show was when she made a mistake or dropped food on the floor and said no one will know. :) 

 I collect The Art of French Cooking first editions just because I can. :) 

Why We Cook by Lindsay Gardner - How do conversations about food inspire you?

How do conversations about food inspire you? 

I don't have many friends who are foodies. Cooking isn't something they like to do. Most of my food conversations are about restaurants or bakeries they've been to. I don't go out to eat very often because it's just to $$$ now days. I understand costs have gone up for everyone but I just can't justify spending $$$ on a meal that I know I can cook for far less. When I do go out to eat my gluten issue comes into play as well. What inspires me is can I make the same dish at home. The last place I went to was a Mexican restaurant in Los Gatos called Andale. The Monday group of volunteers go out once a month to someplace close to the store. I had grilled steak tacos - $18.00 for two. It was very good but it was the conversation that made it worth it. Our waiter lost his voice so it was more sign language when we had to order.  

Baking up a storm while I can.

I finally used up the last of the Costco size brownie mix I got when the kids came to visit.  Since I have access to a nice big kitchen and electric oven, I went for it. At my small place I have a gas stove with no ventilation to the outside. I didn't know that was legal! 

I also made some banana bread since I had the oven on and tons of bananas sitting on the counter. I use to make banana bread all the time for Mees when he was little. I couldn't find my original recipes (it's packed away somewhere) so I'm experimenting with some new ones. This recipe was a fail but a big part was I didn't melt the butter before hand. For some reason it never blended/creamed in with the sugar and eggs. 

Estate Sale

I don't go to many estate sales by the local auction company called Silver Leaf. The prices are just way too high for a reseller. They do a very good job on setting up the house for the sale which I know takes a lot of time and staff to do.

This person was an artist (painting and jewelry) so I decided to stop by since I was in the area. It was the second day of the sale which means all the good stuff would be gone. The first day is the best time if you really want something. The third day of the sale is when they are willing to discount what is left but even knowing that there wasn't anything I was interested in. 

I saw in the pictures the auction sent out before the sale this metal thingy in the center. I know it's use in jewelry making  and thought it might be helpful in a class I'm working on. If it was still there on the second day I would pick it up. Of course it wasn't but I still looked through everything just to make sure. They had some lovely paintings but with everything I have in all boxed up, didn't think I should pick up anything new. 
 

Why We Cook by Lindsay Gardner - What do you think of as comforting or healing food?

 

Question of the day. What do you think of as comforting or healing food? 

My go to comforting food is Japanese fried rice. I don't make it too often anymore since it's only me. It's something we have almost every morning when my family gets together at the beach house. Great way to use up all the leftovers (if there are any) from the dinner the night before. Everyone likes it no matter who makes it or what's in it. 

My healing food has to be honey and lemon. Lemons pretty much grow year round here in California so access is easy. The honey is local too as a good friend is a bee keeper. She has a lovely garden with chickens and bee hives. When I'm really sick I ask for the dark fall honey. It has more of the good stuff as the bees had more access to a big variety of plants. It has a stronger taste so not for everyone. 

The Evil Eye Protection

I've seen this symbol/design many times especially from people who travel a lot. I knew it was called an evil eye, which doesn't sound like that would be a good thing. :)

The Evil Eye

Last year while dog sitting, the owner had one so I decided to look up the true meaning behind it - yes I was very bored. The symbol is to help protect or ward off an evil eye curse.  So when one came into the store I added it to my vest. I feel like there's a black cloud hanging over me with a whole lot of negative energy. I usually would go spend time at the beach but the house isn't available this month. :(  Let's see if this charm works 

Why We Cook by Lindsay Gardner - What is your favorite part of the cooking process?

 

Another question that I had to narrow down to just one thing. I think it's the process of prepping for dinner. I like to have everything ready before cooking. Chopping up the onions, mushrooms, smash the garlic etc... If it's a new recipes, I'll put all the spices I will need in little dishes. :)

OK so why the all the banana peels? I like to make a fruit smoothie every morning. It's like how other people carry around their coffee all day, I carry around my smoothie. An elder customer brings in almost expired food from Safeway. Not sure how that is legal or how safe it is but I go with it. ]  I always shout, "the banana dealer is here" and all the other volunteers run out to the parking lot to see what she has. I never know when the bananas will come in so when they do I stock up and freeze them. :)

Tim Holtz Stamp Platform

Several years ago there was a lot of drama over stamp positioners.  The company that makes the MISTI sued everyone under the sun (even DYI crafters who posted homemade ones) when they got a patient for their stamping platform. Even before the lawsuits happened, I borrowed one from a friend and didn't really like it. The price point is extremely high which was another negative in my book. When I heard that Tonics (Tim) lost the lawsuit and it could no long be sold in the US, I went out and brought three. Buying three cost the same as one of the MISTI. I'm soooo happy that I did! I find Tim's platforms are better made, much easier to use and far more versatile. I do have a MISTI (must have been given to me) but I rarely use it. 

Why We CooK by Lindsay Gardner - What Season Makes You Most Excited to Cook?

 

What Season Makes Most Excited to Cook ?  

Living in California we don't really have "seasons" so I'm going with early summer. Produce is grown almost year round here so early summer is when it really hits the stores. Barbecuing has always been my favorite cooking method since it's all done outside. Making  fresh green salads (I'm a big salad fan) with all the toppings as a side. Growing up on a farm (we grew vegetables, not cows) I really only knew fresh vegetables. I really don't think I ever ate anything from a can growing up. Coming from a big family canned anything would have been to expensive. 

Why We Cook by Lindsay Gardner - What is your favorite ingredient?

 

What is your favorite ingredient?  

If that means what one ingredient do I use all the time it would have to be black pepper. I love it on everything and it goes into every dish I make. I do like the mushroom umami from Trader Joe's and red pepper flakes so I guess they could be a runner ups. 

Fresh lemons and honey is my go to pick me up but I guess that would fall into beverages. :)

Why We Cook by Lindsay Gardner - Question #3

What is your most treasured kitchen object? 

Sorry no pictures as everything is packed up waiting for my move. 

I had to think about this. Picking something I treasure because I know I can never replace it? Something that invokes a strong emotion or memory?  I can only pick one thing so here's my list of candidates. 

My vintage (well it's vintage now) green Tupperware stacking measuring cups. I cried when I found them, thinking they got sold off  during the big purge when I got divorced. They're avocado green, so you know how old they are. 

Another vintage item, my little rice cooker. It's over 40 years old and it's a no frilly. Cooks Japanese rice super fast. Really makes me feel at home when I use it. I just love the load click when it's done. If you have one you know what I mean. :)

My Grandmother gave me a dinner set over 45 years ago. Always reminds me of her. I've never seen another set in all my years of thrifting. I only have the dinner plates now and have no idea where the other pieces went. 

I think I will go with the measuring cups. My mom was all in with the avocado green when we moved into the suburbs from the farm. Always makes me think of her kitchen and what a good cook she was. 

Why We Cook - Overcoming Creative Rut in Cooking

Second question from "Why We Cook" How do you overcome creative ruts? 

For me it's trying something new. When I go grocery shopping I always try and pick up something I haven't tried before. I usually do this at Costco because I've tried almost everything at Trader Joe's. :)

I don't have the taste buds of alcohol but I do like the fancy glasses that are sometimes used. I do have two huge bottles of vodka I picked at an estate sale. They legally can't sell any food products, so they just give it away. I have plans to make vanilla extract again so this was the only reason I picked up the bottles. I looked up what to do with vodka other than making extract. I came across Moscow Mule, vodka, ginger beer & lime. I know you're suppose to serve it in copper mugs but I never knew why, another rabbit hole. The copper is suppose to enhance the drink while keeping it cold but I still think it's marketing thing.  Ginger beer isn't a "beer" which lead me down yet another rabbit hole to find out what is was. All of its ingredients are things I like so I picked up a box at Costco. I'm currently staying at a friend's house that has a very nice lime tree and copper mugs. The cooking stars were all in line! I have all the parts to make a MM. Then I thought since I don't like alcohol, I would leave that part out and make it a mocktail. The word is still out if the copper mug makes any difference.  

So how do you overcome a creative rut?

What do you cook when you're exhausted? What do you when your enegized?

Alton Brown Grilled Pork Tenderloin

My go to "I'm too tired to cook" is gluten free fusilli pasta with bacon, garlic, onions, mushrooms and cheese. While the pasta is cooking (gluten free pasta takes longer) I sauté up everything and top with freshly grated cheese. 

When I have a lot of energy I'll tackle one of the many recipes I have flagged in my cookbooks. I'll also make a dessert.  :)

Tonight I'm making Alton Brown's marinated grilled pork tenderloin. It takes 24 hours to marinate so it's something that has to be planned ahead. Another one of my go to dishes is lasagna. I freeze most of it for a quick meal when I'm not up cooking. 

Why We Cook by Lindsay Gardner & Tasting History by Max Miller

If you follow my blog you know I like to read cookbooks. I watched a few Youtube videos by Max Miller which are interesting. I thought I would check out his cookbook, Tasting History at the library. 

On the same shelf was the book by Lindsay Gardner, "Why We Cook Women On Food, Identity & Connection".  What caught my eye was the homey for lack of a better term watercolor illustrations. Since it was raining and not wanting to lug a ton of books out to the car, I went to the quiet room to see if any of the books were worth the effort. 

Tasting History was just OK, rather boring. His videos are much better.  Why We Cook on the other hand was written in a style I really like. It flows easily and a book you could open to any page and find something interesting to read. It's has questions they asked the chefs and it makes you wonder how you would answer those questions. I think while I have a wifi connection for the next few weeks, I'll post my answer to one of those questions everyday. 

What kitchen tools do you love most? A good knife and my cast iron pan are my essentials.  I use my Nutribullet blender everyday and my pour over coffee set up but it's more a "like" than a must have. What's yours? 

 

Truck load of fabric

The store doesn't get a lot of crafting stuff in but when we do, it's always a truck load. This donation was from a quilter who can no longer quilt. She donated all and I mean all of her fabric. Most are fat quarters and done quilt tops. She was very organized and had all the boxes label by theme and color. There are more boxes on the floor that aren't in the picture. I took the picture so the volunteer who is in charge of fabric could decide when and how  she was going to process it all. She came in and took everything home to price while watching the Super Bowl game. 

Ripple water feature

Now that I don't have wifi at home, I can't post as often. I'm at the store a lot but usually too busy to sit down with my laptop. 

While I was down in Carmel I just love to walk the beach during low tide. I especially like when the ocean does this around the rocks. I my fantasy garden I would love to have a water feature that makes this ripple effect. It's it too cool?

 

Raspberry Muffin - Sweet Rhea

When I was at the Carmel house I stopped by Sweet Rhea cookie shop. I found out they only do gluten free cookies on Friday. :( So I went for a raspberry muffin, which was really good. $3.50. I also tried the Mexican chocolate cookie which was also very good. It had a hint of cinnamon which was a nice touch. On another day they had coconut, macadamia and pineapple muffin but I'm not a fan of coconut flakes so I passed. :(   One thing I like about the shop is they change up their specialty cookies / muffins everyday. Their muffin base is very good so no matter what they add it will be good.  I just don't like the texture of coconut flakes.