You complete me---no, you corrupt me.

After meeting my friend Deb for coffee this morning, one thought kept creeping into my consciousness--Wacky Cake. Wacky Cake and raspberries. (That's right. I'm a deep thinker.) Deb, you must have terrific descriptive skills, because you had me digging through my old recipes until I found what I needed to enjoy what sounded so delicious. Fortunately, I had everything in my pantry to make it for a treat for the weekend. I did have to substitute champagne vinegar for the good old common white variety, but thought that wouldn't be a problem. High brow Wacky Cake.

By the way this was a successful foray into the cocoa powder world. (See below.)

Knitting Again

Now that I'm a little more caught up, I've finally been able to find some knittin' time. I'm still working on my Double-Knit Mittens, and as much as I like the way they are turning out, I can't seem to master the technique of knitting two strands of yarn alternately to the point that would make this an enjoyable project to pick up in the evening. It's strictly for the nights that I'm ready for a challenge

For a something simpler, I thought I would quickly knit up a couple of the BYOB shopping bags to give to my sister for her birthday. It is an easy and quick knit, but kind of a dumb finished project. The bag is too bulky to carry around and gets all stretched out if you try and carry anything of weight. I made one, and then went shopping for something else to give to my sister. It turned out not be a total waste of time, because I found a great summer weight yarn in Lion's Brand Cotton-Ease. In fact, while I was out shopping for my sister's new gift, I picked up enough of the it for my next project.

Last night I cast on Currer from Berroco's Second Volume of Norah Gaughan's Collection in the Cotton-Ease. The only color that I thought I could live with and that had enough skeins in one dye lot was Stone, and while I wasn't thrilled about the color when I bought it, I think it will be perfect. I like this yarn so much. It knits up without plying, it has good body to it, and when I machine washed and dried the swatch, it looked great without any blocking at all. I have heard some grumblings about this pattern, though. Guess I'll find out.

Finally, under the category of didn't-really-want-but-don't-have-the-heart-to-pitch, my Mom gave me some dishtowels that she found that had been embroidered by my Grandma. This must have been her idea of fun for quite a long time, because I already had a lot of these from when we closed out her house. Since they aren't much good for drying dishes, I was thinking that I might turn a bunch of them into a valance for our big window in the sunroom off the kitchen. Put it on the list.

Dark Chocolate Cookies with Sour Cherries

Generally speaking, if a recipe has cocoa powder in it, I pass it by. Let's face it, this stuff is bad news. No matter how careful I am, it tends to get everywhere. So, when my son requested the Dark Chocolate Cookies with Sour Cherries after I bought Martha Stewart's new Cookies recipe book, I wasn't so sure. They did have all the right ingredients though: bittersweet chocolate and tart dried cherries mixed into butter and sugar. How can you go wrong?

Since the kid has been putting in so many hours this week, I decided to give them a go this afternoon. A little surprise at the end of his shift.

Dark Dutch-process cocoa power! Not just regular, but dark!!! Careful, careful. The measuring went well. Nothing spilled yet. Butter and sugars blended. Eggs, vanilla. All right. Time for the flour and cocoa powder mixture. Gently into the mixer. Great. And then...

As my hand accidentally bumps the switch on the side of the mixer, the machine flies into speeds reserved only for egg whites and heavy cream, a mushroom cloud of flour and dark cocoa powder explodes from the bowl onto everything in its path. The horror!! Damn you Martha.

In the spirit of full disclosure, the clean up took almost as long as it took to bake off the whole batch of cookies, but they are delicious, and I've had two. Does Martha have a recipe for shortbread?

Happy Anniversary!

Cheers to twenty-four years of marriage. We've already talked about how we might celebrate the next one, but let's not overlook this one just because it isn't divisible by five. True, we are starting out the day in a mundane way by finishing hauling out some brush that we cut down over the weekend, but that's what it's all about. Life is not full of mountain-top experiences. It's really about hauling brush in the morning to earn a glass of champagne and a nice dinner in the evening. How philosophical.

French Garden Ideas

On the trip, I took some pictures that I hoped would inspire me in my own gardening at home. Of course, there are some things that just won't translate. I know I will never be able to grow hydrangeas like I saw in Biarritz--hillsides of them with blooms the size of basketballs. Sure, there are some that are hardy here in MN, but I see my neighbors pampering them they never look like these. This does reinforce my thinking that you should grow what wants to grow in your yard. Sure the French have hydrangeas and lavender (I've tried to grow that unsuccessfully as well), but I have lilacs.

This wisteria vine was taking over a structure on the site of the Chateau de Chenonceau. When I saw it, I couldn't wait to get home and see how much the one I planted this spring had grown. Mine isn't up to castle standards yet, but it's alive and sending out new shoots. This plant was my splurge when I purchased plants this season, and I'm interested to see how it does. I've heard it's a rapid grower, though not so easy to coax into a bloom. This one was beautiful and gives me something to shoot for in the coming seasons.

I was a little sad that I will not be able to duplicate some of the lovely window boxes I saw in the urban areas of France. Our house just isn't a window-box kind of house. It does show that you can garden anywhere.

In the category of "maybe someday" are the espaliered apple trees that made a 18-20" high fence around the potager garden at the same said castle. It was a cloudy day, so the picture isn't the greatest, but these apple trees were the perfect border around the prettiest herb and vegetable garden I've ever seen. This is gardening devotion.

Finally, for overall "ooh-ahh" I had to take a few pictures of the formal gardens around the castle. For the most part, there wasn't anything fussy or fancy growing in these gorgeous gardens, but what was there was well cared for and planted in the right combinations. A secret that works even my little suburban plot.

Home!

And it is good to be home. We had a great time in France, but Dorothy knew what she was talking about. There's nothing like sleeping in your own bed, using your own personal bathroom, and driving your own car.

Not one more thing could have been jammed into the two weeks we spent in beautiful France. Castles, cathedrals, museums, countryside, beaches--you name, we saw it. My only regret is that I didn't bring my pedometer to log the miles we trekked everyday. Thank goodness for sensible shoes!

In the end, we decided that we Americans could learn a thing or two from the French. They know how to slow down and enjoy life a little better than we do. Maybe it's all the great French wine!