Designing in Life

A Walk on a Winter's Day

Yesterday was one of those winter days that I just wanted to be outside.  It was in the low 30's, and when the sun came out during a litlle snow squall throwing all kinds of shadows, I knew I needed to go for a walk.

The sky had massive white puffy clouds, but there was blue sky all around them.

Some critter had been walking along the north border of our property.  I wonder who it was?

Buck Mountain loomed to the north as I walked.

There were some very picturesque hay bales (do you call the round ones bales?)

After walking for a while, I decided to turn around and head home.  The western view had drastically changed and I lost the photo I had hoped to take.  The Adirondack Mountains on the horizon (which had been bathed in sunlight) were suddenly covered by  big, dark, ominous clouds.

It's always surprising how suddenly things can change around us.  Here one moment and gone the next.  And with that said, get out there and enjoy what's out your back door!

A Style Quiz

This is a fun little quiz that might just surprise you about your style.  Give it a try!

Here is what (supposedly) my style is.

Park Avenue Cocktail

An intimate home of modest proportions. A kitchen that reflects your passion… large, sweeping - authentic. A button down bedroom belies it's comfort. Your decorative canvas stretches to the property lines. A sense of rolling hills and vineyards surround this table. Relax in a contemplative way. Pre-war, upper east side attitude. Fun, yet cosmopolitan - your style abides.

Suspected "Park Avenue Cocktail"

- Marlene Dietrich
- Audrey Hepburn
- Frank Sinatra

Remember that what you choose is not necessarily what your house looks like, but more what you'd like it to be.  Just can't see the Park Avenue in me,or in what I chose.  I must say though, it's humbling to think my tastes compare to Marlene Dietrich and Audrey Hepburn.  Frank Sinatra?  I guess there is an Italian connection in my life.

 

Gluten-free Chocolate Chip Cookies

I was in "test kitchen" mode this afternoon.  I have been wanting to try making the chocolate chip cookie recipe that is in the Gluten-Free Almond Flour cookbook, by Elana Amsterdam.

As you can see, the two batches are different.  The first batch on the left spread out quite a bit, and even though the bottoms seemed perfectly cooked, the tops were still a bit too "wet."  In the second batch, I added a small amount of spelt flour, which of course, made them not gluten-free.  For us, that is fine, since the small amount of gluten in spelt doesn't bother us.

What I failed to notice in the recipe was the note below, which says that Bob's Mill almond flour affects the results – which it did, because that's what I used.  What would I do next time?  Well, I should look into some other brand of almond flour.  But I do think I could chill the dough and keep the dough in a larger ball before baking, which might help the cookies from spreading so much.

Gluten Free and Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
2 ½ cups blanched almond flour*
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup grapeseed oil (I used melted coconut oil)
1 tablespoon vanilla
½ cup agave nectar
1 cup dark chocolate chips 73% cocoa

1. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl
2. Stir together wet ingredients in a smaller bowl
3. Mix wet ingredients into dry
4. Form ½ inch balls and press onto a parchment lined baking sheet
5. Bake at 350° for 7-10 minutes
6. Cool and serve

Makes 24 cookies

* Please note: Bob's Red Mill almond flour does not yield successful results when used in this recipe. For more information regarding this matter please see my FAQs.

Oh, and my personal taste tester said both cookies were very good – at least that's what I think he said as he walked away munching.

How Cold is it??

Weather here in Vermont is always a high priority topic.  You can't go anywhere without someone saying, "It's so hot. It's so cold. It's so wet.  It's so snowy.  It's so dry"  You get the picture.  So, last night's news was all about how we are going to drop into the deep freeze.  I thought it might be a good time to take a peek at what the weather was like on Mt Washington.

As you can see it was only -9, however if you look, you'll see the wind was blowing a good 86 mph and looking further, you'll see the wind chill was -51.  So what's all the fuss about down here?

I got up this morning and looked at the thermometer around 6:30.  It was 2 degrees.  Warm by Mt Washington winter standards.  Then I looked to the west and noticed the sky was crystal clear and the waning Wolf Moon was bright as can be.

So maybe it is a bit cold out, but no amount of cold is going to blot out something as beautiful as this!

The Little Things that Make Me Happy

There are things in my every day life that make me smile.  Phone calls from children, grandchildren and sisters, an unexpected hug from Nick, having dinner with a close friend, a note from a sister-in-law, a sunbeam that has made its way to me – yes, the little things really do make me happy and make me smile.

We had more snow this morning and are about to go into the deep freeze.  If there was ever a day for finding things to help me smile, today was it.

A bit out of focus, but a geranium that is happily blooming on a window at work.

An amaryllis that is blooming for the 3rd year.  How is that possible?  I have never been able to get an amaryllis to bloom a second year at home.  I was told (by someone watching me take these pictures) that I just don't ignore it enough!

And then I found this, and laughed a good long time!!

If laughter is the best medicine, I'm more than good to go!

The Projects Resume

I just finished putting a primer coat of paint in the hallway that leads from the kitchen to the living room.  As always, it ended up not being a simple job.  Inspecting the trim/molding, we both agreed that most of it really needed to be replaced.  So off it came.

When we moved into this little cape about 12-years-ago, we were surprised at some of the paint we uncovered.  One bedroom had originally been John Deere green, and one bedroom was purple.  After we pulled the trim off the hallway, I started noticing yet another strange color.

Hard to imagine the whole hallway was painted this color.  I looked through the paint that we have, but decided that I really want a little color here besides just an off-white.  I think more of a very light brownish/beige.  I'll buy that tomorrow after work.

We decided a trip to Lowe's was in order yesterday to purchase the trim.  While there, I looked at vanity tops for the downstairs bathroom, which has been torn out for a few years, but is now back on the list for finishing.  Nick will build the vanity and this is the shape/type of top we decided on in a white granite. I think the faucet and handles will be 8 inches apart, instead of 4 like in the picture.

So, it feels good to proceed into the new year trying to get some things done that have been in the works an awfully long time.

Button Calendar

Okay all of you crafty people out there.  Here is a pretty cute calendar to make.  I'm sure many of you have extra fabric and plenty of buttons around, so get started.

I found this project on Craftzine, posted by Diane Gilleand.  It doesn't look very hard to do, and it looks like it could be a fun project to make with a child or grandchild.  Because it's a perpetual calendar, you'll have it for years to come.

Baked Lake Salmon

Knowing someone who loves to fish during the winter months when the lake salmon are biting is a big plus.  A couple of times each winter, a fresh, just-caught salmon ends up in my kitchen.

Usually it shows up needing to be dressed aka gutted.  Yesterday it showed up with its insides gone (oh thank you, thank you), and ready to be de-boned.  There are a lot of bones in a salmon.  You can easily remove most of them with a very sharp knife, pressing the very sharp knife (did I mention you need a very sharp knife?) against the backbone which holds all the smaller bones.

There are many small bones  that can be removed with tweezers.  If you run your finger down the middle of the fish, you can usually feel them.  I think I did a pretty good job, because there were only about 2 that were found while we were eating.

I cut the fish into 4 filets and baked three of them.  The third one I skinned and froze.  It's going into a fish stew that I'll make this weekend.

I'm not sure how it is that I forgot to take a picture of the finished product, so you're going to have to trust me on this.  The fish was delicious.

I sprinkled an Asian seafood seasoning (from Whole Foods) that has garlic, salt, turmeric, thyme, black pepper, fennel seed, ginger, lemongrass, rosemary, sage and tarragon in it.  Whew!  Then I poured a little olive oil across the filets, some fresh snipped dill and some lemon sliced on top with capers.  I baked it at 400 degrees for 12 minutes.

Lake salmon is very mild tasting.  I think the taste is closer to trout and nothing like ocean salmon.  I look forward to the next one showing up.

Gluten-free Bread

I decided to try a recipe for gluten-free bread using almond flour.  The recipe is from "The Gluten-free almond flour cookbook", by Elana Amsterdam.

Reading the ingredients, I just couldn't quite grasp how this bread would bake because the amount of dry vs wet is so lopsided.  But it came out just fine, and I think the combination of eggs and arrow root added to the volume.

Recipe:

3/4 C creamy roasted almond butter at room temperature
4 large eggs
1/4 cup blanched almond flour
1/4 cup arrowroot powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tbl ground flax meal

Preheat oven to 350.

Grease a 7 by 3-onch loaf pan with oil and dust with almond flour.  (I used a slightly larger pan, because I didn't have one this small.)

In large bowl, mix the almond butter with a handheld mixer until smooth, then blend in eggs.  In medium bowl, combine the almond flour, arroroot powder, salt, baking soda and flax meal.  Blend the almond flour mix into the wet ingredients until thoroughly combined.  Pour the batter into the loaf pan.

Bake 40-45 minutes on the bottom rack of the oven, until a knife inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.  (I baked mine for 35 minutes on the center rack)  Let cool then serve.

To keep fresh, wrap in a paper towel then a plastic bag or wrap.

It was good and moist.  I made sandwiches with it today.  Since I'm not gluten-intolerant, but gluten-sensitive, I can actually make a better tasting bread with spelt.  But the spelt bread needs yeast, which takes time to rise, so this recipe is a good alternative when you need it in a hurry.  Also, in one of the bread recipes (which is identical in ingredients) she adds black olives and rosemary.  I'll try that next time.

Joke of the Day (Sorry, I coulnd't help it)

Three retirees, each with a hearing loss, were playing golf one fine March day.  One remarked to the other, “Windy, isn't it?”

“No,” the second man replied, “it's Thursday.”

And the third man chimed in, “So am I.  Let's have a beer.”

Sometimes, you just have to share!