Nectarine Galette

Whew, bit of an extra-long blog vacation there...

I had some soon to be over-ripe nectarines in my fruit bowl, and finally took the plunge into tart making. I had a vague memory floating about that somewhere online in the indeterminate past there was a recipe for a Blueberry Nectarine Galette, so I searched from there and came across two recipes from the Smitten Kitchen that I mashed-up in true Hana fashion. And it was definitely a winner.

I followed the recipe in the second link, but using the first as inspiration, I made the following substitutions: In the filling, replace the 1 Tbsp. gound almonds with 1 Tbsp. unsweetened shredded coconut, and the 1 Tbsp. amaretti/ground almonds with 1 Tbsp. chopped candied ginger. Oh yes please. Delicious warm, with vanilla ice cream.

Bagels!

Yes, you too can make delicious homemade bagels to share at your daughter's 4th birthday picnic!  Here is how (okay, assuming you are somewhat familiar with bread making):

Whole Wheat Bagels:

In your bread bowl dissolve 2tsp. yeast in 1/4C warm water.  Wait 5 min.
Dump in 2C white/AP/bread flour and 1C whole wheat flour and a pinch of salt.  Stir to combine.
In a Pyrex measuring cup (2C or larger) mix 1-1/2C warm water, 2Tbsp. molasses, and 2Tbsp. brown sugar.  Pour into your flour and yeast mixture and stir vigorously for a few minutes, then add the final 1-1/2C whole wheat flour, 1/2C at a time, mixing well between additions.  You should have a fairly soft and not-too-sticky dough.  Knead for ~6 min.

Lightly coat your kneaded dough in olive oil, cover, and let rise for ~2 hrs.  Punch down, divide into 12 balls, and let rest for 20 min.  Grease a pair of baking sheets while you are waiting.  Poke a hole through each ball, shape into bagel, place 2" apart on the baking sheets, and let rest for another 20 min.  While you're waiting this time, preheat the oven to 450' and bring a large pot of water to boil on the stove top.

Drop the bagels one at a time into the boiling water, cook for 30 sec. on each side, replace on baking sheets, and top with sesame/poppy seeds, finely grated hard cheese, etc. if desired.  Bake 5 min., reduce heat to 350', and bake 25-30 min. more.  Cool on a wire rack.  And enjoy.

Acorn Squash and Honey Pie

I've made this a few times in the past month, and we've all been pleasantly surprised by the unusual deliciousness of this pie.  So, if you have some acorn squash floating around your pantry, give this a whirl.  Mmmm.

Adapted from Martha Stewart Recipes:

1 acorn squash, halved, seeds/strings removed, and baked, cut sides down, for about an hour at 375' in a pan filled with 1" of water, till cooked soft.  Let cool, scoop flesh from skin, and mash.
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
3 eggs
1/3 C milk
1/3-1/2 C honey, brown sugar, or a combination of the two (remember brown sugar is sweeter than honey, adjust accordingly!)  (And you should definitely try the honey at least once!)

Pour into a pie crust, bake 10 min. at 425', then lower oven temp to 350' and bake a further 40-45 min., till a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Around the House

It's been a busy few weeks here. The garden is (finally!) beginning to come alive, Todd's assembled a set of chairs and a bookshelf, and installed a few more spotlights downstairs, and Roo and Moo are still keeping us on our toes. So here are a few pictures from around the house these days.

I can't leave this thing alone.  Too many colors and patterns to explore!

Some shoes we found at Little Folks for Roo to grow into.  She slips into them to wear out onto the deck for now.  Deer!

I like the way the freshly washed flatware shines in the rinse water. 

Taking pictures of it almost makes washing the dishes, er, fun!

I managed to take pictures of some of the dinners I've been cooking lately, so those are coming soon.  Also, I just discovered adding wheat germ and ground flaxseed to our homemade bread, and they definitely add to the YUM.  Also, substituting 1/4C of rice flour in your pancake batter makes them lighter, fluffier, and altogether more delectable.  Saturday morning pancakes keep getting better!

Hoppy Easter, if I'm not back before the week is out!

Busy Days

So, one awesome and unexpected/unintended benefit of having my art auction is that I got several Quake Aid commissions as well, and so I am drawing again!!!  I do, however, find it very hard and frustrating to try to do any work while the wee smalls are up and about and climbing all over me and my drawing table.  And so I have been drawing after dark, when the smalls are in bed.  And so I am not getting quite as much sleep, and so in the afternoon this is where I want to be:

A little Silmarillion, a little sun, a little snooze...

Just now, though, life is too busy to lay-a-bed.  Dream on.

And now I'm off to rustle up some dinner.

Quake Aid Project Update #4

My little art auction came to a close today at noon.

Thank you for all your generosity and support for my Japan Quake Aid project! We'll be able to make a $400 donation to the Red Cross with your help! I'm truly grateful to have such wonderful friends.

Again, here's a link to various aid organizations complied by the folks at NPR:
Crisis In Japan: Here's How To Help

Thanks everyone!

Quake Aid Project Update #3

Sooo... any counter bids out there?  I also have this yummy satsuma print that is looking for a loving home!  Please remember that I am closing the art auction at noon tomorrow.

Todd alerted me to the fact that his company is matching employee donations to the Red Cross through mid-April, so we're going to follow through with that and double our contribution.  They have already made a substantial initial donation to the Red Cross, so hooray for John Deere!

Thanks for reading.

More Info on Japan Quake Aid Project

Thanks to all of you who have read my last post and offered your encouragement!  I have opening bids on both my pieces, plus a commission for a new piece.  Thank you!

I think I will close the bidding on Friday at noon.  I will then contact the winning bidders, and we'll sort out payment and delivery logistics.

I'd like to list one more piece, a smaller print of a satsuma tangerine that some of you may recognize from my Christmas cards from a few years ago.  I'd like to start the bidding for this one at $15.

Satsuma, red ink on tan stock, black matted to 8"x10"

I found a fairly comprehensive list of aid organizations via NPR, so here is a link to that:
Crisis In Japan: Here's How To Help
My current plan is to donate to the Red Cross, but if the winning bidders have a different preference, I will certainly take that into consideration.

Once again, thanks for reading.

Japan Quake Aid

I've been mulling this idea over in my head for a few days now, and though I've never tried anything like this before, I hope it will help encourage everyone to give what aid they can.

So here's my little plan.  I'm a stay-at-home mama, and I'd like to donate funds that I have 'earned' myself, so I would like to auction off a few pieces of my original artwork.  You receive something lovely for your walls, and we both feel like we are making a small difference in a big disaster recovery effort.

I'd like to begin by asking $50 for each of these pieces.  They are matted and are standard size for easy framing.  (They're both hanging in my home now, in simple black wooden frames.)

Apple Blossoms, colored pencil on red stock, white matted to 11"x14"

Poppies, ink and colored pencil on red vellum, white matted to 11"x14"

I'm not sure what kind of a reponse I'll get, (anyone???), so I'll leave this post open for a few days, and try to keep everyone updated on the status of each piece.

If you are not in a position to make such a generous donation, but are still interested in helping the quake and tsunami victims, (and in owning some of my art!), I could try making some smaller pieces, too.  Let's talk.  And if you want to donate to the Red Cross or another relief organization on your own, let me know and I will send you a small token of appreciation.

Thanks for reading.

Kheer

Do you have basmati rice in your pantry?  Whole cardamom pods in your spice cabinet?  Sliced almonds, and shredded, unsweetened coconut?  Good!  Let's make some Indian rice pudding!

Adapted from The Food of India:

1/2 C uncooked basmati rice, rinsed well (yes, you can use whatever rice you have on hand, not just basmati)
10 cadamom pods, split and seeds removed
5 C milk, 2%-ish
1/4-1/2 C sugar (I usually make my pudding 1:1 rice to sugar, but somehow 1/2 C seems like a lot for this amount of milk)
1/4 C sliced almonds
1/4 C shredded, unsweetened coconut (or to be more authentic, nix the coconut and add 1/4 C golden raisins)

Bring milk to a simmer in a heavy saucepan and add the rice and cardamom seeds.  Cook, covered for about 2 hours, until the rice is creamy, stirring occasionally.  Stir in the sugar, sliced almonds, and coconut.  Serve warm or cold.  Kheer makes a great breakfast.  Yum.

I would leave you with a pretty picture, but we ate all our kheer already.

Home-y Things

I finally got a chance to play with my Christmas gift to the family, a tile set similar to one I had as a child that I loved.  This one is bigger and has both trapezoidal and triangular pieces for more design flexibility and is made from bamboo with lovely non-toxic stains, and it is pretty much as awesome as it gets.  Todd made the patterns to the right.  I think he is hoping I will vacate the frame soon, so he and Roo can have another turn at creating a design.

 It is currently on display on top of Moo's new dresser, next to his valentine from Roo, and his Hawaiian doggy and elephant baby book from G'ma Carrell.

Here's the side of the room with his bed:

We also got him a new bookshelf, which is turning out to be a super addition to his room - broad and low so that he can access all his books and toys.  Here are the results of several happy minutes playing by himself in his room while I was getting Roo up and breakfast going:

While he naps, Roo and I have been folding window stars to replace last month's snowflakes and hearts.  Today is a grey day, but these still look lovely with the light shining through.
 

Off to check my simmering chickpeas, make hummus, a batch of granola, and start broiling some salmon and steaming some asparagus for dinner.

Friday Afternoon

It's so nice to see the sun!

And it's even nicer to see the sun after 5pm.  Did you know Daylight Savings Time starts up again in just two weeks?  And the Spring Equinox is only a week after that...

We made construction paper snowflakes and hearts earlier in the month and glued them to the window with tiny drops of white glue.  The shadows on the curtains are a nice bonus.

I think one of my favorite ways to relax nowadays is to sit in the warm sunshine and knit.  Here's a glimpse of one of my new projects in the works.  I'm trying out some undyed wool yarn, Cascade's Ecological Wool.  So far, so good.

Happy weekend!

Spice Muffins

I think I might have posted this recipe before, but these are Todd's favorite muffins and they do bear repeating. Especially since I've added one more super ingredient for added yum. Oats make everything better chewier, right?

Spice Muffins, take 2:

Oven 375'

Cream:
1/2 C (1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 C sugar
1/2 C brown sugar
Add:
1 egg, mix.
Add:
1 C applesauce (also works great with cooked, mashed squash or pumpkin or any kind of cooked, mashed fruit)
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1 tsp. allspice, 1/2 tsp. cloves, mix.
Sift together:
2 C flour (I do half bead flour and half whole-wheat flour)
1 tsp. baking soda
Add to wet and stir till just combined.
Optionally add: 1 C rolled oats
and/or: 1/2 C chopped nuts (optional, but I bet pumpkin and pecans would be good!)

Fill 12 regular or 6 jumbo greased muffin cups.
Bake 15 min. for regular muffins or 25-30 min. for jumbo muffins (keep an eye on them, I've sometimes had the outsides get pretty toasty while the insides aren't finished baking yet)

Mmmm.

Six Years

It is hard to believe that it has been six years already since my wonderful, beloved Dad passed away. His kindness, patience, humor, and serendipity inspire me every day.