Monday, July 18, 2011
Monday, July 11, 2011
Another Shawlette
I did finished the latest Mezquita Shawlette, using yarn from Ellen's half pint farm. The yarn has been living in my stash for too long and I'm glad I found a project that worked well with the yarn.
So the mods for this are similar to the last one. Made wider by having fewer stitches after each decreases (3 instead of 4) and 6 rows of garter at the end just before binding off. I also slipped the first stitch after each turn.
Very straightforward pattern and I think it looks very nice. I made this in 2 weeks. Now to get it off in the mail.
Peas
Ok--more food, but really just an excuse to post some pictures.
These peas were picked, shelled, cooked for 3 minutes and eaten within 15 minutes. I can barely describe how delicious they were. Even my 7 yr old who is not fond of peas admitted that they were good--though he would have preferred broccoli.
Yum
Monday, July 4, 2011
Escarole in Fish Packets
More cooking.
I love escarole--but there is only so much bean and escarole soup my family will eat, though I could eat it every week. We like to make fish packets, especially in the summer when we can grill them, and keep the fishy smell out of the house. I added some escarole to my packets last week and it was great.
I usually buy approx. 1.5 pounds (for two adults, one 7 year old and one 1 year old) of firm white fish (often haddock). This is usually 2 pieces of fish, that I get with no skin on. I often make it two ways. One packet is Asian inspired, the other Mediterranean inspired.
First I mix up my flavorings in little prep cups. For the Asian fish I use minced garlic, fresh ginger, soy, sesame oil, and canola oil. I would add sesame seeds, but the 7 yr old doesn't like them. For the Mediterranean fish I use minced garlic, parsley, oregano, olive oil, and the juice of one lemon or lime. I am often told by the 7 year old that this is too lemony for him--but he eats it, and I like it that way.
For each packet: I wash and chop the escarole. On the heavy duty foil I drizzle oil (olive or canola depending on the packet), and mound up the chopped escarole. On top of that goes the fish, then I pour the sauce over everything. Seal tight and bake for 15 min in a 500 degree oven, or on the grill. I serve it with rice.
I love escarole--but there is only so much bean and escarole soup my family will eat, though I could eat it every week. We like to make fish packets, especially in the summer when we can grill them, and keep the fishy smell out of the house. I added some escarole to my packets last week and it was great.
I usually buy approx. 1.5 pounds (for two adults, one 7 year old and one 1 year old) of firm white fish (often haddock). This is usually 2 pieces of fish, that I get with no skin on. I often make it two ways. One packet is Asian inspired, the other Mediterranean inspired.
First I mix up my flavorings in little prep cups. For the Asian fish I use minced garlic, fresh ginger, soy, sesame oil, and canola oil. I would add sesame seeds, but the 7 yr old doesn't like them. For the Mediterranean fish I use minced garlic, parsley, oregano, olive oil, and the juice of one lemon or lime. I am often told by the 7 year old that this is too lemony for him--but he eats it, and I like it that way.
For each packet: I wash and chop the escarole. On the heavy duty foil I drizzle oil (olive or canola depending on the packet), and mound up the chopped escarole. On top of that goes the fish, then I pour the sauce over everything. Seal tight and bake for 15 min in a 500 degree oven, or on the grill. I serve it with rice.
Summer CSA
And now for some non-knitting content.
For years I have been intrigued by the idea of joining a CSA, but just never got my act together. Well, I can't say that I got my act together this year, but I did get a chance to join. My son's first grade class had a field trip to the local organic farm and I tagged along. While there I inquired about the availability of the CSA, and I left a message. Someone called back and let me know they had some unofficial openings, and that I could join. So we did.
The trick now is using everything that we pick up. We don't have to take everything and items can be donated to a local food pantry. It has been a good way to get out of my cooking rut and the veggies have been yummy. So occasionally I will post what I've cooked to remember all the yumminess--though I can't guarantee pictures, since these items don't stick around very long :)
Today we made Kale Chips. The recipe was on a hand out at the farm. Normally I saute kale with minced garlic, olive oil and a splash of balsamic vinegar--but this was a big hit. Kale chips look a little weird. Surprisingly they do not stick to the cookie sheet. I think I oversalted mine, but they were yummy and they reminded me of toasted nori. The 7 year old loved them--while cooking the smell reminded him of spinach, which he likes a lot. Even the 1 year old ate them! They do not hold well, especially if it is humid. We were imagining using this as a crunchy component is an otherwise softish plate of food. Maybe on top of some mashed potatoes.
One important note if you make these. Put only one layer of kale leaves on each cookie sheet. Otherwise the kale stays moist and does not crisp up. If you try it I'd love to know what you think, and pass you comments on to the original poster (see link) also.
For years I have been intrigued by the idea of joining a CSA, but just never got my act together. Well, I can't say that I got my act together this year, but I did get a chance to join. My son's first grade class had a field trip to the local organic farm and I tagged along. While there I inquired about the availability of the CSA, and I left a message. Someone called back and let me know they had some unofficial openings, and that I could join. So we did.
The trick now is using everything that we pick up. We don't have to take everything and items can be donated to a local food pantry. It has been a good way to get out of my cooking rut and the veggies have been yummy. So occasionally I will post what I've cooked to remember all the yumminess--though I can't guarantee pictures, since these items don't stick around very long :)
Today we made Kale Chips. The recipe was on a hand out at the farm. Normally I saute kale with minced garlic, olive oil and a splash of balsamic vinegar--but this was a big hit. Kale chips look a little weird. Surprisingly they do not stick to the cookie sheet. I think I oversalted mine, but they were yummy and they reminded me of toasted nori. The 7 year old loved them--while cooking the smell reminded him of spinach, which he likes a lot. Even the 1 year old ate them! They do not hold well, especially if it is humid. We were imagining using this as a crunchy component is an otherwise softish plate of food. Maybe on top of some mashed potatoes.
One important note if you make these. Put only one layer of kale leaves on each cookie sheet. Otherwise the kale stays moist and does not crisp up. If you try it I'd love to know what you think, and pass you comments on to the original poster (see link) also.
Surprise Birthday Shawlette
Two of my good friends turned 40 in June, within days of each other. In late May I received an invitation to a surprise party for one of them. Though her husband let us know that no gifts were necessary, I thought it would be nice to make her something. So with three weeks to work with, I dug into my stash and started a shawlette.
I found Brown Sheep Wildfoote in blue blood red and decided on the Mezquita Shawl. I had never made it before, but it looked pretty and straightforward, so off I went. I was able to finish the shawlette in time, and I think the recipient really liked it. Not bad, considering how little time I have to knit these days.
I enjoyed making it enough that I started another one, for my other friend. Of course that one is late, but it is coming along and should get sent out pretty soon.
For the red shawl, my only mod was to make it wider. I did this by (eventually) knitting only 3 (rather than 4) stitches after the p2tog (or ssk), and before the turn.
In the current shawl the only additional mod is to slip the first stitch after the turn. The current shawl is also made from stash yarn--I'll get up some pics once it is done.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
NH Sheep and Wool 2011
So many wooly things to write about and so little time. NH Sheep and Wool was last month, and we had a lovely time.
The plan was to take the boys on Sunday and have a nice leisurely day to see everything. Our Saturday afternoon was fully booked. But as luck would have it, the weather for the weekend was iffy, with the worst of the rain forecast for Sunday. So I got everyone up and ready as early as I could on Saturday (which was not all that early) and headed up to Contoocook NH. I raced through what I could. My goal was to avoid buying yarn and see what interesting spinning fiber I could find. My older son wanted to see the sheep dogs.
We saw some cutie sheep and alpacas, and some sheep dogs trying to herd. One additional difficulty was in my rush I forgot to bring much cash, and I didn't want to use the ATM at the fairgrounds. So I was limited in my spending. I could only buy fiber from sellers that accepted credit cards.
In the end I found Dianne from French Hill Farm in Maine. They have Coopworth sheep and she had 3 one pound balls of roving in a basket. I debated whether to buy one or two. Dianne offered all three to me at an excellent price. I came home with three pounds of Coopworth. Here is what they look like with a business size envelope for reference.
My long term goal is to spin enough to make a sweater. I did a test run and spun up about 40 yards. My 2 ply is a light worsted and knit up surprisingly soft. I hope to start plugging away at this project, but I've got a few others currently in the works that need more immediate attention. I've got a lovely superwash merino/bamboo/nylon blend from Sereknity that I have working on. About 3/4 of it is singles in a plying ball ready to become 2 ply. I'm hoping this will be a light fingering weight. We'll see how it all works out.
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