Welcome 2012

You can tell it's been a while since my last post when I go from "Welcome November" to "Welcome 2012."  Looking out my window, not much has changed since that last post.  Unlike last year, we've had very little snow so far this winter, so the ground is still bare, the leaves are still blowing around, and the birds and squirrels are still scrounging around the yard and garden for the last of the seeds left on frozen plants.

In reality, during those few weeks, almost everything has changed, and the routine of life---that I'll admit I'm known to grumble about from time to time---has become very different due to a recent diagnosis of cancer.  The big "C."  I got the news just a few days before Thanksgiving, and so I've been getting used to this life change while lots of other things are going on a the same time.  As you can imagine, writing blog entries sort of went to the bottom of the list.

Besides, I had to ask myself, how much do I really share?  I'm a pretty private person and news like this exposes an awful lot more to people around you than is comfortable.  I wasn't ready to write about it here.  But I have thought about it, and now this is a part of my life.  So now, I garden, I cook, I knit, I travel, I keep house, I play piano, I volunteer, I do all the same things, and I have cancer.  Some of those things I do less while I'm trying to get rid of that cancer, but I'm still the same person.

Last year at the end of December, I made some resolutions.  I just read over them.  Some I kept.  Some not.  (Not too surprising.)  I think that during the coming year the plan is not to make a plan.  Or maybe the better plan is to improvise, to do what needs to be done during 2012 to keep enjoying all the things that I enjoy and continue to see uncommon beauty in this common life.

Welcome, November

What turns gold, must come down.

Fall clean up in the yard and garden is under way, and we've had a beautiful fall to get things done.  It's incredible the piles of leaves that accumulate week after week.  Just about the time you think you've made a dent, the wind comes and sets you straight.  I guess our motto is, "Rake until you shovel"--snow, that is.  No rush, by the way.

While there is a never-ending abundance of leaves, there seems to be a light crop of acorns this year.  I'm sure that must mean something.  Is it that the squirrels know it's going to be a tough winter and they've already "squirreled" them away, so to speak?  Or is it because there were so many last year, which by the way there were, that the trees are taking it easy this time around?

Regardless, here's to a warm welcome to November, one of my favorite months of the year.  A month for putting things in order and  planning for feasts and celebrations ahead.  A month of long and cool evenings for reading or knitting by a fire with a glass of something strong and smooth.  A month of soup and stew, squash and pumpkin, breads and pie.  A month for settling in.

Summer? Fall!

Feels like summer, looks like fall.  What more could you ask for?  The squirrels know as well as we do that this won't last much longer, but let's enjoy it while we can.

Last weekend we had a "function" that brought us to Duluth and the North Shore.  Lucky us.  In past years, we haven't had the best timing for our fall trips North.  It's either been too early, too late, cold, rainy, grey.  Sort of nice, but not great.  This year I think we hit it just right.

The sky was intensely blue, the leaves gorgeous, and it was close to balmy.  Short sleeve weather.  And you know what I love?  That fragrant, musky scent that hangs in the air while your trekking along a trail.  I know it's the scent of decay, which isn't terribly poetic, but is there anything better?  Bottle that and you've got something!

Besides the scenery, we always look forward to visiting some of our favorite restaurants in the area.  Duluth has some of the best dining spots in Minnesota, and we always look forward to a dinner of fresh fish at the Angry Trout in Grand Marais.  And of course, breakfast has to include a World's Greatest Donut--or two.  (That name may seem presumptuous, but they do not exaggerate.)

Just a week later, the show of fall colors have come to us.  Maybe this weekend we'll take a drive closer to home to admire some scenery. 

A Bushel of Roma Tomatoes...with My Name On It

So, we're walking around the Minneapolis Farmer's Market last Saturday picking up the usual stuff--corn on the cob, green beans, squash, etc.--and I see these bushels of Roma tomatoes.  Right away I'm thinking about big pots of tomato sauce bubbling on the stove and how it will be so great to have this fresh sauce at the ready for the winter months.  But I walk away.  Are you crazy?  You've got too much to do.  You don't have time for that right now.  Keep moving.

We bring a couple of bags back to the car and decide to head back to share a cinnamon roll and a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice.  We still have time on our parking spot, and the rolls did look really good.  Okay.  But I'm not saying anything out loud about those Roma tomatoes.

We're trying to get the sticky frosting off of our hands and walking through a few more rows of booths just to make sure we didn't miss anything, and I say, "Look at those bushels of Roma tomatoes.  Do you think I should get one a make tomato sauce." 
Now it's out there, and my husband looks very interested. 
"Would you make some of your Putanesca sauce?", he asks.
"I could."
"It's totally up to you.", he adds.  This is code for, "If you do get a whole bushel of tomatoes, don't expect me to get involved in your hair-brained scheme.  Just call me when it's ready to eat."

Now we're lugging about twenty-five pounds of Roma tomatoes back to the car, and I'm trying to figure out how many onions and heads of garlic I need and whether or not I still have enough fresh basil and Italian parsley in the garden to season the sauce.

In case you succumb to the temptation of a bushel of tomatoes, here's what I've learned over the years to make the process easier and, I don't mind saying, the final product darn tasty.
1) Don't bother peeling and seeding the tomatoes.  Cut them into chunks, eliminating the spot where the stem was attached, and toss them in the blender in batches to puree.  You can put them through the food mill to get rid of the larger bits of seeds and skin if you want.  I used to, but don't bother anymore.  We don't mind it.
2) If you add good stuff to a sauce--good stuff that you like--the sauce will be good.  I don't use a recipe.  If you like onion, add onion.  If you like lots of garlic, add lots of garlic.  You get the idea.  I  put in onion, garlic, olive oil, basil, oregano, parsley, and tomato paste.  Later I might add olives, Italian sausage, peppers--whatever I want--to this basic sauce before I toss it with pasta.
3) Freeze it.  I used to can my sauce; I don't anymore.  It doesn't taste any different to me, and it saves me that extra step.

Twelve Quarts of Tomato-y Goodness

Pickled Peppers

Pounds of peppers.  At least that's what seems has been coming out of the garden this summer.  Last Saturday I noticed that the Farmer's Market booths were plenty lousy with them too, so I'm not the only one experiencing a pepper boon.

I'll even admit that when I picked this last batch of jalapenos, they almost ended up getting tossed in the compost heap when no one was looking, but I couldn't do it.  I just couldn't waste them.

So, as long as I was doing a marathon kitchen session anyway, I decided to add some more Pickled Peppers to the pantry.  The last batch were Sweet Banana Peppers; this time it's straight up Pickled Jalapenos.

This was no fuss.  Vinegar, water, olive oil, salt, pepper, and a few pickling spices.  Quick chop of the peppers, pack them into clean jars, process, and done.  Toppings for enough Nachos for the entire neighborhood.

Tonight I have a clean refrigerator, fresh Cucumber Soup chilling in that clean refrigerator, a bowl full of Marinating Vegetables for dinner, and couple of jars of pesto.  It's definitely harvest time.

Summer's Over; Time for a List

Last night was our final concert of our summer of concerts---Steely Dan at the State Fair. We just can't seem to stay dry at anything with an outdoor venue this year. The chilly, steady, misty drizzle that we had last night didn't compare with the deluge at the U2 concert, but it counts.

They sounded great and played a good mix of old and older. And how 70's can you get than to get a whiff of pot in the air while listening to Reelin' In the Years? This wasn't the greatest venue for the band, but we missed them the last time they were in town and we weren't going to make that mistake again.

So now with Labor Day only a few days away, Summer 2011 fast becomes the summer that was and it's time to think about getting back to business. Since our son started school a couple of weeks earlier than usual, I feel like I've already gotten a head start. I have a list. That's something.

Harvest

Cool mornings and earlier sunsets are here to remind us that our summer days are numbered. It's always a bittersweet time of year; sad to see summer come to a close, but we look forward to what's ahead.

It's harvest time.

This has been a strange year in the garden. After a very cool spring, our summer has been HOT and WET. Since I usually struggle with cool and dry, all the plants that tend to be my old reliables suffered while the ones I plant on a whim have flourished.

Except for the tiny tomatoes, which have been prolific as usual, nearly every one of my tomato plants succumbed to some kind of a blight or disease. The Romas gave me enough for a few good pasta meals, but the rest of them barely eeked out a handful of baseball-sized fruits. The bean plants that positively withered in the extreme heat are finally recovering, so instead of getting our fill in July, we've been enjoying our glut of green beans in August.

On the positive side, there's been dozens of peppers. I've stuffed them, pickled them, wrapped them in bacon, and they keep coming. And I've got eggplant! MN weather is not terribly conducive to growing these little beauties, but a miniature variety in this heat has given me a good crop. Caponata by next week, I'm thinking.

Tons of cucumbers. And basil! Holy pesto, have I harvested the basil. So far, I've been using it all fresh, but I need to spend some time making some pesto sauce to freeze for the winter.

The cooler weather has me thinking about sweater days, too. After setting aside the Fyingdales cardigan for a few weeks, I got back to it and now it's ready for fall.

I think this could become a good workhorse sweater in my closet providing it stops with the shedding. It seems to have slowed down after giving it a soak for blocking. A white t-shirt underneath is still not the best idea--unless I would have no intention of taking my sweater off at any point through the day.

The pattern was well written--one minor spot of confusion that I noted on my Ravelry post. There are knitters who have complained about sizing with the patterns in this book, but I thought this was right on. I am a fan of drop shouldered sweaters which tend to be a little on the bulky side. If you're looking for a fitted garment, this is just not your book.

I no more than got the buttons sewn on this one than I cast on another pattern out of A Fine Fleece--Two Hearts. This one I'm doing up in Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride in the color Sable. I even like the name of that color. The cable pattern is easy with great looking results.

Enough. Time to get out and enjoy our late summer day.

My Miette

I've strayed. I saw a cute little summer cardigan and dropped my wool Fylingdale like a hot potato.

It didn't last long. A week later I'm back to wool, but I have to admit, I enjoyed the break.

I first saw Miette on the Ravelry Top 10. It got high marks from the people who had already knit it up, but the pictures didn't sell it to me completely. So I decided to try it on the cheap.

Having finished, here's what I've learned:
1. Yes. I will probably knit this again.
2. I like wool. Every time I try a project with a cotton-like yarn (this one happens to be acrylic--and not a bad one at that) I'm a little disappointed. I like summer weight sweaters--just not in a gauge I am willing to take on by hand knitting. Wool is good.
3. I'm glad I added an extra repeat of length on the body of the sweater. I'm 5'2" tall. I never add an extra repeat of length to a sweater.
4. I don't really need darts. Sad.

The Best Night of the Summer

Even after having endured a long delay from the time we bought our tickets and then a driving rainstorm throughout most of the event, last night's U2 concert at TCF Stadium will surely go down as the best night of the summer. As the local headline read, "Unforgettable."

There are bands, and then there are BANDS. Right? U2 is one of those BANDS that is capable of filling large arenas anywhere in the world. The crowd on Saturday evening certainly reflected the appeal--from the very young to, I'll just say, more mature, and yet here we were, all cheering and singing together.

The downpours, occasional lightning bolts, and Aquatennial fireworks off in the distance only made the evening more memorable. I'm sure that years from now, we'll still be talking about the best concert we ever saw on a wet summer night in July of 2011.

Summer Flies

I guess the summer months are more about doing than they are about documenting what we're doing. Given the choice of getting outside or sitting down at the laptop---getting outside wins almost every time. Today with heat indexes into the 100 degree range, I figured it might be a good time to catch up.

I see it's been a month since I last wrote. That hardly seems possible, but we've managed to squeeze a lot into that time. Mostly family events around the 4th and golf trips, another round of window replacement at home, movies, concerts, and the daily good fun of working out in the yard and garden.

It's been an interesting summer in the garden. Some plants have flourished. I don't think I've ever harvested so much lettuce from such a small plot. What a treat to bring in a fresh basket of greens every night for dinner! Other plants have been a disappointment---not seeming to like the swings in temperature and all the rain. I'm still looking for my first taste of green beans (maybe later this week) and several tomato buds have fallen off without setting fruit. That certainly isn't from a lack of bees. They seem to be in abundance this year, as well as toads. Everywhere! I'm afraid I take out several every time I mow the grass.

There's so much basil I'm thinking we should have some pesto soon. I have enough Italian parsley for the neighborhood. But I continue to struggle to grow cilantro. What's the secret?

Of course, that's the fun of gardening. Never quite knowing how things are going to turn out every year. It's just when you think you have it all figured out, that Mother Nature throws you a curve, and you realize you're not as smart as you thought you were.

Thank goodness for the old reliables--like purple coneflower.

RIP

That's it. That's the last picture I took with my camera before I killed it.

As the guys were putting in on the back nine at Superior National in Lutsen, I decided to snap a few shots of the lupines blooming on a nearby hill. When they had finished up, I threw the camera in my pocket, hopped into the cart, and picked them up to head on to the next hole. Bad choice.

Now any golf course is what, 98% turf/2% cart path, right? Shouldn't the odds be in my favor that when that camera flies out of my pocket as I'm driving to the next shot that it would land on a soft carpet of green instead of unforgiving asphalt? I think so, but that was not the case. Ah, cruel fate. And now it's gone.

It had a good life. It's been all over the US and Europe. It's been to weddings, graduations, baptisms, holidays, and family gatherings. It served me well and died on a beautiful hill overlooking Lake Superior.

That was the only downside of a wonderful week on the North Shore. The weather was perfect, the cabin we rented was great, and there was lots of (too much) terrific food and drink.

At home our non-summer summer continues. Rain, clouds, cool weather. The garden is getting plenty of moisture, but could sure use some sun and heat to get things going. Lettuce is happy; tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and cukes are still waiting for the temperature to move up. I'd take a picture, but...

...AND later that day. The destruction continues. In case you're wondering, you cannot put an iPod shuffle in the washing machine. Ear buds, yes; shuffle, no. I'm going to cry now.

Get Outside While You Can

Finally, gardening weather. Well, sort of. We are having a remarkably unremarkable spring this year. Okay, in all honesty, the weather blows. Cool and wet. A non-spring spring. In between the showers I have managed to get most of the garden in, but the poor seeds and sprouts aren't getting much enticement to grow. We just can't seem to string together two or three warm and sunny days in a row.

I'm hoping June will improve our lot--and my odds of eating some homegrown lettuce.

Despite the weather, the perennial beds are filling in nicely. Apparently, the heavy snow cover did a good job of protecting the plants underground. Never content, however, I have shuffled a few things around, and I can tell you, transplanting gives you a whole new appreciation for what's going on under the garden.

In an attempt to make some more room in the vegetable bed, I wanted to move an old rhubarb plant. Those roots were like tree branches! No wonder you can't kill that stuff. I thought that was a battle I might lose in the end. The phlox needed dividing and that was the same story. Those are the plants for me!

Another vigorous "weed" that I love is the Lily of the Valley. They're blooming like crazy right now and a handful of them in a vase perfume the whole house.

Trying to keep up with my regular chores along with the yard work doesn't leave much time for anything else, but I did manage to cast on a new sweater project. As tired as I've been, I couldn't resist that Webs box. I dug out the Berroco Blackstone Tweed and settled on Fylingdales from A Fine Fleece. It isn't a terribly complicated pattern, so I thought it would be a good one for an unpredictable summer.

The yarn is a soft blend of wool, mohair, and angora and is a beautiful dark blue. I'm not such a big fan of these 50 gram balls that roll around and pop out of my knitting basket though.

Before I got started, I read through the notes from other knitters over at Ravelry, and I have to agree, the directions for the set-up row of the cabled pattern are lacking clarity. The directions aren't wrong, but they sure could use some improvement. It helped to know that I had to be on my toes ahead of time.

See all that knitting? That's the result of a frustrated gardener who would rather be outside!

Webs Delivery

My box o' yarn from Webs was waiting for me when I got home yesterday afternoon. How great is that? Three sweaters-to-be. Hours and hours of fun in a little cardboard box.

Let the swatching begin!

I'm leaning toward starting with the blue Berroco Blackstone tweed and the "Fylingdales" pattern in A Fine Fleece. Since the yarn is a darker blue, I think a simple pattern is the best. No point in doing a bunch of complex cables on such a dark field. Mmmm, but the Lamb's Pride is such a pretty brown. I sound like an addict.

By the way, as much as I love this book---and I do love this book, the one major downside is the photography. It's not that the pictures aren't beautiful; they are. It's just that they don't give a knitter much information. Go ahead and do all the artsy shots you want, but throw me one picture where I can actually see most of the sweater. Ravelry pictures have been more useful than the book itself.

In the category of ta-da, I finally finished a little Cabled Baby Blanket that I started ages ago. I needed a break from Prayer Shawls as my movie watching project, so several months ago I grabbed a cone of acrylic sport weight yarn that I've had forever and cast on a blanket for Birthright.

It's true. No sheep were robbed to make this blanket, but it's just not practical to think that a young mother is going to hand wash spit-up off a blanket, so it's a good fit.

The pattern is simple to memorize. The sport weight gauge did mean slow progress--just right during our long winter. Now I think that there's enough yarn left on the cone to cast on a sweater to go with it. Maybe even booties. A baby ensemble.

Mitred Crosses Blanket

Sometimes fun projects land right in your lap. That was the case with the Knitted Quilt I finished up over the weekend.

In March I saw Kay Gardiner's post about the pattern she had developed to sell to raise funds for the victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Like many of the other Mason-Dixon patterns, this is a simple and beautiful interpretation of a practical household item--and for a good cause to boot.
Before I knew it, I was hooked. The technique keeps you interested and the color changes in the yarn lure you in to see what's around the next corner of the block. I also like that it's a portable project. In fact, I'm going to start another one to keep in a basket as a take-along project for this summer.

There is one change I will make in the next one. Rather than join the squares by using a three-needle technique, I think I'll take the time to sew the squares together by hand. If I do it as I go along, I don't think it will be too overwhelming, and I think the end result will be worth it. I'm very happy with the first one.

My next project is coming out of a book of patterns that were suggested to me by a friend. (Thanks, Deb.) That book is A Fine Fleece by Lisa Lloyd.

Usually, I won't buy a book unless there are at least a couple of patterns that I know I will use---although that rule has been broken on more than one occasion for a must-knit item. This book should keep me going for a couple of years of fun cable knitting. Honestly, I couldn't decide which pattern to knit first! So far, I've narrowed it down to three or four.

I've got a box of yarn on order and will be waiting for the UPS man to deliver the goods.

In the meantime, I'm hoping that spring weather will finally come to MN and that I'll be kept busy in the garden. Last week I went from sitting at a Twins game in a snowstorm to a warm beautiful day of cleaning out my flower bed and back to snowflakes again. I guess we shouldn't complain about a little chilly weather with the terrible storms down south. I'm anxious to get digging!

Hope Springs Eternal

This is what hope looks like.

Warm days have been few and far between so far this spring, but I guess the word hasn't gotten out to the crocus. They're going to bloom regardless of the weather, and what a welcome sight. I like that attitude--if in fact crocus can have an attitude--because quite frankly, the only thing that's been worse than the tough winter we've had this year is all the complaining people have done about it. It is Minnesota. It's going to be cold and snowy once in a while, right? Toughen up and look to the crocus!

The rest of the garden is starting to show some activity too. Sprouts and buds are popping up everywhere. I even saw a few stalks of asparagus and could harvest some chives for the kitchen. It's tempting to get out and get some things done, but honestly, there isn't much that I can do at this point other than watching and waiting. I did throw some lettuce and grass seed in the ground the other day. I'll keep an eye on its progress.

I've been having fun piling up finished squares for my Mitered Crosses Blanket. In fact, I've gotten all the blocks completed and am starting to put them together. It took me a while to figure out the best way to seam the finished blocks. The original pattern recommends using a three-needle join which sounds good to me. Who wants to hand sew all those seams?

My first attempt didn't turn out so great. The divot between the garter stitch rows seemed too pronounced. Frog, frog. So then I thought, why not work with that and join them wrong sides together for a ridge that could be part of the design. Nope. Frog, frog.

I ended up going back to the suggested method, but this time I used a size 8 needle--the blocks were knit with a size 6--both for picking up the stitches and working the bind off. The more relaxed seam and some good blocking when I'm finished should do the trick.

Blocking should be exciting. I'm having flashbacks to some past laundry incidents with red and lighter colors in the same garment. Keep your fingers crossed that this yarn doesn't bleed and I end up with a pink throw. Maybe the first step will be to give the whole thing a soak in a light vinegar and water solution just to be sure that the colors are set.

Guess I won't worry about that just yet. I've got more blocks to join and lots of i-cord to go.

Flu, Flowers, and Finishing Up

Yep. Lost a whole week to the flu. It's too bad that you have to wait until you feel like total crap to have a week like I did last week. Sometime I should just fake the whole thing and spend several days in a row in my pajamas, reading books, taking naps, watching old movies, and not doing one lick of anything at all resembling productive work. That sounds so good, except I was too darn sick to appreciate how great I had it.

With an energy level that is still mostly low, even I know that I can only be a slug for so long. A guilty conscience kicks back in again when a fever breaks. So, today was simply about getting up, getting dressed, and getting out to see something besides these four walls.

What could be a better way to snap out of a funk than a visit to Macy's Spring Flower Show? Not surprisingly, we weren't the only ones who thought this was the place to be on a cold day in late March. The crowds, however, were totally worth the show. This might be one of the best I've ever seen.

Gorgeous displays and color combinations, and all the flowers haven't even come to full bloom yet. We've even thinking about going back next week to see it again. I'm sure it must smell as great as it looks. (Not sure about that one yet.)

After we got our fill of the flowers and had a bite, we decided to swing by the Conservatory on our way home and see what they were showing for their spring display.

Como was nearly as popular--looks like every Minnesotan is craving some signs of spring. Another beautiful display, and even my stuffed up sinuses could pick up the fragrance of all the hyacinths in bloom.

It was tough to walk past the mountains of dirty melting snow to get back to the car. We could feel the orneriness build. Come on! Enough! Lucky I remembered the camera so I can remind myself that there are better times ahead, and soon, I hope.

Now that I think about it, I was somewhat productive over the weekend. Fun productive. I cast-on a new knitting project. Last week I had purchased and downloaded Kay Gardiner's (Mason-Dixon Knitting) Mitered Crosses Blanket Pattern.

The proceeds from the cost of the pattern will be donated to aid people in Japan who have been affected by the earthquake and tsunami, so go buy it. Besides contributing to a great cause, it's such fun to knit and so pretty!

Warning: This pattern is addicting. The "one more row" syndrome is compounded by the "one more square", by the "one more border." Yikes.

Instead of using the prescribed Noro, for my Knitted Quilt I went with the more cost conscious Lion Brand yarns--Fisherman's Wool and Amazing. So far, it looks fabulous. (In my humble opinion.) Trust me, no need to look down your knitting nose at either of these yarns. They are perfect substitutions.

I also put the finishing touches on my EZ EPS Henley this weekend. Good old Elizabeth comes through again. Don't you just love her practical advice? She's a very liberating instructor. I only wish I would have gotten her books years ago when I was first learning to knit.

Color work is still not my favorite knitting technique, but it's definitely more doable when knit in the round.

A Brief Respite

Since Spring doesn't seem to be coming to us any time soon, we decided to go and find some on our own. The Como Park Conservatory seemed like the perfect place to take in the sights and smells that we miss so much during our long winters.

The minute you step in the door, you can feel the change in humidity. The coat comes off, and you just inhale. It's warm, it's tropical, it's green. I could stay here awhile.


The Winter Flower Show is full of fragrant lilies, cyclamen, and camellias. There are also many colors of amaryllis blooms and azaleas. This particular show lasts until March 20. It's hard to imagine that they can top this for the Easter display. Trust me, they will.


The 'La Mancha' Lily is the one that caught my eye. The blossoms are huge, and the colors are just gorgeous. It's a Zone 5 lily, so it would take some pampering if we had a tough winter, but I think I'll have to give it a try. My other lilies seem to be a favorite rabbit food. I'd have to work hard to protect this one.




Last, but not least there were all kinds of one of my all time favorites--the foxgloves. I've had mixed luck with these in my garden. Last year was the first time that I was really happy with the results. Apparently, there are some varieties now that will bloom in their first year. You just plant them like annuals. I'll have to put those on the list as well.


We finished off the afternoon with lunch at Brasa on Grand. Also a place that smells very, very good.

Spring was nice while it lasted; more snow is on the way tomorrow.

Quino-a and Granol-a

Quinoa, quinoa, quinoa. I keep reading about quinoa everywhere. These super-seeds pack a nutritional punch and can take the place--supposedly--of rice and other grains. Quinoa is a good source of protein, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and is gluten free. In other words, after one bowl you're set for life.

I know I've eaten this stuff once before. I seem to remember ordering an entree with it somewhere a long time ago, but I've never made anything with it myself. So, today when I saw a bag on the "hippie shelf" in the grocery store--you know what I'm talking about--I threw it in the cart. (It was even organic.)

This afternoon I made a batch in the rice cooker with some chicken broth for the liquid and whipped up a bowl of tabbouleh. So? It's actually pretty good. It isn't much different than the traditional bulgar. There is a texture thing going on though that might stop me from being a big quinoa fan. It's similar to tapioca or itty bitty fish eggs. Enough said. The rice industry is safe.

So what was I doing digging around on the hippie shelf in the store? I needed the ingredients for granola. My favorite granola has been discontinued. Sad. And most other pre-made granola is too sweet for my taste. I had Stumble-d Upon a recipe that got some good reviews and decided to make my own.

Megan's Granola is very dangerous. The reviews were right. This is a very good granola recipe that's packed with lots of good ingredients. I cut back a little on the sweetness, but not much and it's just about right. I have learned from past experience to store granola without any dried fruit---add it when you're ready to eat. Who knew raisins could get so hard? Plus, you can go with what sounds good that morning: diced apricots, dried cherries or cranberries.

As long as I'm talking kitchen duty...the homemade sauerkraut was excellent! We tried it first in Reubens to get the full on taste and then braised some sausages in it the second time around and both were terrific. The next jar is fermenting on the counter as we speak. I suppose once it warms up, I'll have to find a cooler spot to store the work in progress. Think how good it will be with grilled brats.

Finally, I just have to share my pimped out Kindle. Isn't it cool? My son gave me the Packer skin for my birthday. I suppose I should download a Vince Lombardi biography some day.