Leleth's Journal

5:37am: idea for food from a dream
I dreamt about a garb/sewing night that lostvirtue hosted with an amazing spread of food. The showstopper was the bread shaped like a turtle. Conveniently she explained to me in the dream how she made it. The shell was a series of stuffed rolls: the filling was either cream cheese (or better than cream cheese for a vegan version) that was spread on wax paper or saran wrap and then chilled; the cream cheese was then spread with a layer of tomato paste and rolled up; the roll was either chilled or frozen and then sliced into appropriately sized filling pieces. She prepared a wholewheat bread dough and rolled it out. a circle slightly larger than the filling was cut out for the bottom of each roll. a rectangle was cut out to wrap around the sides, a small amount of water used to help the edges seal together at the sides and bottom. a thin tube was rolled out and coiled to make the top. All this was repeated for each roll that composed the back of the turtle shell. the legs, head and tail were composed and shaped from dough that did not have a filling, but were shaped skillfully--not just blobs of dough in each appropriate location. It was really amazing. I wonder if it would work out as prepared in the dream?

7:04am: Eggs!
A few weeks ago, I did color and glitter some eggs with a good friend. We accidentally used the brown eggs, but the results were fantastic. I find I actually prefer the colors over the brown; they're richer, not so neon/pastel. We also did two green eggs (the octopus and the floral with shades of purple). The prize of the collection: the Egg of Sauron (see pictures). Some of the color bled through the peel and I got to eat colorful eggs, too. I just liked the last photo I posted; it wasn't the intentional picture, but I was pleased with the imagery. The white-on-white effect was surprising when there was color on the eggs.


( pics of egg coloring )

1:55pm: Nothing of importance
Tuesday was a mostly good day. I took off from work, slept in (more than I'd meant to), did some changes to the hair (finally!!! It's been normal for...too long.), took a sparkly bath (woot for Lush) and then enjoyed lunch with a friend. After that there was a not-relaxing, but effective massage. Then pool. Aaron took me out for dinner and we checked out a new place for us. It's called Eco Vino. We love their bruchetta. It comes with 6 options and you get to pick 4 of them for $12. The eggplant one tasted just like something my mom makes. The traditional tomato, etc was lovely and we also enjoyed the brie, apple and fig compote variety. The rest could not be prepared to meet our vegetarian standards. Their tomato soup was fantastic (roasted tomato with truffle oil, pine nuts and fresh sprouts, served with a mini grilled cheese sandwich) and their salad was generous and tasty. Yeay for good food!

Sadly, we came home to a leaking roof. Gar.


I am watching close to see if the melting snow will resume any leaks today. I was so pleased about all the little signs of spring and the surprise bulbs we had emerging from 2 years of dormancy. I hope the snow will not take them out now. One was about to bloom in blue.

The snow did bring a moment of delight last night. We decided we did need to go out after all and pick up an item on its last day of sale to save a whole $3. On our way out the door, I noticed the snow was moving. In a very small path. I think it was a mouse. We stood in the falling sky and watched the miniature tunnel builder search in blindness and cold. It was breathtaking, calm, peaceful and wonderful to watch a bit of nature make its way through the seemingly white endlessness. When we returned home, we found that it had traveled far and wide, but we think it made its way to shelter in the end and was not eternally lost in the great white.

7:14pm: Amish Friendship Bread
I am again in possession of Amish Friendship Bread starter. Anyone want a starter? I have worked out how to reduce the production of the starter, so it isn't as overwhelming as the basic recipe.

9:37pm: Metacognition
Random thought of the day: I'd been (trying not to?) ponder why I've been adverse to active thinking exercises recently (within the last couple years). It occurred to me today that it isn't so much that I avoid them, as that I do them so much at work, I try to use the other parts of my brain when I'm out of work. I seek creative outlets: reading, sewing, arts, crafts, music, social, relaxation, cooking... I'm using the other half of my brain, which rarely gets use at work. My school work used to be more balanced in brain use, so my time out of school was also invested in mixed brain use. Now with 8+ hours a day invested in analytical brain use, the other bits are desperate for a chance to go and the analytical bit just needs some down time. It all makes sense now!

2:35pm: V-day food
This weekend was all about the food love. We started Saturday morning with bannana, walnut and cinnamon pancakes, heart-shaped, of course. I failed to take a photo.

Dinner was asparagus to the side of carmelized garlic and artichoke puff pastry pockets. For desert there was orange-cinnamon-chocolate fondue with all the dippings. And all the appropriately associated fire. :)

For breakfast Sunday morning, we made beignets and had the leftover fruit from the fondue. We have absurd quantities of leftovers from the fondue fixings. We ought to have invited several couples over to help with it, but now we know for the next time! I was surprised at how easy the chocolate fondue is to prepare.

( pics of food )

6:36pm: It's about to be a new year. My heart goes out to everyone I know who's struggling right now, whether it be with health, finances or anything else. There seem to be too many in that category right now. May the New Year bring you something better than the old.

I'm thinking of actually making a New Year's resolution this year: try to take less for granted. As a follow-through, I'm going to evaluate re-financing the mortgage and probably hold off on the house selling/buying risk at this point. We can always re-evaluate that later if it seems to be a safer choice then. But with some recent eye-openers in how quickly things can change for others, it doesn't seem wise to push finances.

Random thought from the (yester)day:

There's something kind-of neat about eating a natural fractal. You get to combine math, beauty and philosophy into a culinary pleasure. Could you possible ask for more from your food?

7:29pm: steampunk
Freaking awesome:

http://datamancer.net/

http://steampunkworkshop.com/

I'd say that I wish I had talent like that, but if I really wanted to, I could probably do some of those myself, given enough patience and time. However, I lack the time, dedication and motivation, in combination. Hmmm... Maybe I will do some project time this evening instead of book/comic reading. I've been wishing for some more interesting things in my wardrobe (that fit); maybe I can get a skirt made yet tonight.

Edit: Skirt not finished, but a good way through. Planning and cutting are complete and the sewing started. I haven't quite narrowed down how I'm going to do the fastening, but I'm thinking about a privacy panel for the "overlap" bit and ribbon for fastening. I have a little bit of sewing to do before I need to finalize that bit, anyhow, since I've decided to pleat the skirt. I'm really looking forward to having a good heavyweight long skirt again. And it'll be stripy with fun trimmed corduroy pockets! *excited*

2:46pm: rambles, nothing important
Ouch. I wasn't expecting nearly $100 in parts from that plumbing visit. Maybe I'll try a little harder to solve the problems myself next time... Or at least predict what parts might be needed first and supply them myself. Labor & trip were exactly as expected, though. I might make a trip to a hardware store and see what parts would have run if I'd purchased them myself, before paying the bill. It'll be interesting to see if they're more or less than on the bill. I'll be calling them if it would have been significantly less.

This does not make me want to start looking into why our vent is dripping.

Otherwise, the last few days have been good. There was a crazy busy time of buying and making to get ready for family visits and then the family stuff was fun. We were with Aaron's dad's side X-mas eve. There was the cutest baby that wasn't shy at all and we played pass the baby. Whenever someone else walked by, she'd reach out for them and you'd pass the baby. The new person would get a hug and maybe a kiss, followed by and "awwww" from the baby. It was adorable! There were tons of food and the rice pudding went over well. I'll have to make that a tradition, since now I know something I can make that his family will like.

It's a little surprising that some of Aaron's family members still don't recognize me as his girlfriend. Most of them know me and my name, but some of them (on both sides) either mistake me for one of his sisters or his sister's housemate (and ex). *sigh* After 2 1/2 years, you'd think they'd at least know a little better. Or at least know I'm not his sister! They've known his sisters for over 20 years! I find it more funny than anything else. But, still... When I'm at your daughter's wedding, your mother's wake and funeral, the meeting at her house for sorting out who wants what and a few other family events, you'd think there would be some idea? Some recognition at all?

To give her some credit, she was thoughtful and made a veggie dish that was very tasty for us vegetarians. That was spiffy. She made an effort to be friendly for X-mas and I can appreciate that. One of Aaron's uncles gave me a memory card for my camera, as I was talking about how we couldn't find the one we'd just purchased. Of course when I got cleaning at home that evening (I'd been searching for a couple days now), then I found it. Go figure.

I gave my car shovel to someone who was stuck in the snow without a shovel the other day. I still haven't replaced it, but I'll have to remember to do so soon, before I find myself needing it!

I woke up this morning around 8:30 thinking it was Monday and that I'd been allowed to sleep instead of getting up for work. It took a little before I figured out it was Friday and I have the day off. Slept until 10:00 after that. I probably should have gotten up. I need to get used to waking at 5:00 again.

Now I'm procrastinating the dish buildup of the last few days of cooking without time for cleaning. I'd stick to a lazy day, maybe with sewing or stitching, but there are people coming over this evening for game and I'd prefer to have a clean downstairs to present. I know they'd understand if there was a post-holiday mess, but I'd be agitated and then I wouldn't be having fun. So I get to spend my day off cleaning. Yeay.

They're clearing the snow off the roofs today. This is good. Hopefully they'll get to all the units before water starts coming in this year like it did last year.

I'm rambling and not posting much of substance, so I'll go get (some) things done.

7:08am: good dining: a contrast
We've recently had two very contrasting, but both good dining experiences.

( L'Etoile in detail )

( Saffron - in Milwaukee )

12:02pm: plumbing
Plumbers are awesome. I got to fill the tub for my bath with a not-leaking faucet! The faucet!!! Yeay. It's way faster than the shower head. And our sink drains. All for the low low price of probably something in the neighborhood of $150. But it only took him around an hour to do all the stuff that would have taken us days. Literally, as we went back and forth to hardware stores because the things were put together with so many damn shortcuts. You should have seen his face as he took things apart! But he had what he needed to make it all better. Except the little chrome plates that hide the crappy job the last person did on our tile... We'll have to put in some legwork to find something that will work and he told me the info I need to get that legwork done and how to put them on myself. Yeay. We might be able to make it pretty with the shiny chrome!

10:33am: recipe remakes
It's been a weekend for remaking food. There was a cranberry wild rice from T-giving weekend that we turned into veggie burgers. Some herbs, nuts, seeds, mozzarella cheese, garlic, cayenne and egg helped to counter the sweetness of the original flavor, while still complimenting it. I haven't perfected the balance, but it's still a good veggie burger!

I had tried to make a terrine in the slow cooker Wednesday, but the sauce ended up gray and awful smelling. When I got up the courage, I rinsed off all the sauce and turned the vegetables into a soup (based on the Gypsy Soup in the Moosewood Cookbook). It worked out mostly because I choose a recipe with a completely different flavor base, so that it was nothing like the original set of flavors (white bean and pesto).

I'm sad that my experiments with slow cooking haven't worked out so well, in general. The mulled cider was good, but the oatmeal burned and the terrine was gross. I'm not ready to give up yet, though. Maybe I should try out some of the more traditional slow cooked things like soup. Aaron's split pea soup worked...

7:45am: just like in Italy
Brutta Pizza really does make pizza like in Naples. There are pictures on the wall of a place we ate pizza on our first night in Naples. There is also a picture of the owner with the pizza chef at said location. Awesome. That was the best possible way to help me kick the irrational blues last night.

I might skip yoga to have some time to work on Italy pics today. Tomorrow I go to buy skis! I hope I can get what I want used at the Hoofer sale. I would really like a pair of the hybrid skis like I used in high school. If there is sufficient snow Fri night/Sat am, I might even get to use them this weekend!

7:21pm: 1st Italy 2008 trip picture post
There are a number of pics, so I put them behind a cut. This is only a small sampling of the 750 or so pics I have that aren't all blurry... ( click here for pictures! )

6:56pm: doctors and united way
I had a pretty good week. In particular, the doc I saw to discuss what to do about my asthma was 1) reasonable, 2) listened, 3) had answers and a back-up plan and 4) didn't request unnecessary work. Awesome! I wish I could make him my regular doctor, but at least I know I have a good doc for my asthma care, now. Conveniently (?) that seems to have been the bulk of my doc visits in the last couple years, so, I'll probably be working with him again. It's just so refreshing to leave the doctor's with an answer and feeling like someone actually listened and registered what you were saying.

The United Way awards lunch was last week, too and I'm simply astounded at the generosity of some people. I can't even fathom how some groups could raise so much money to help those in need. It's a really fantastic thing to see, particularly as more people are going to be in need with the current economy. It's good to know that others are willing to help fund those that do have the time to help.

1:03am: data retrieval
It seems there may be some corruption with the memory card I used on the trip. I have one more thing to try and then the back-up plan is to go try some data retrieval. My first inclination is to go to Best Buy to see if they offer this service. What do you people know about such things: Where would you go? Where would you avoid going?

11:10pm: we're back
We're back from Europe. When I get them typed up, there will be a journal post. There will also be a link to pictures when I get them uploaded.

As a summary: The trip was wonderful. The relatives were amazing to meet and astounding in their generosity. We had some experiences that will stick with me for a long time and saw some wonderful sights: Herculaneum, Trulli houses, Paestum, Amalfi Coast... We may have to learn Italian for real.

2:58pm: Market dinner
We had a fantastic dinner last night:




Corn on the cob
Baby artichoke with clarified butter
Twig farm cheese (new at Fromagination)
Apples, cranberries, walnuts, and whole wheat bread
Unpasteurized apple cider

The majority was from the market or close by and purchased that morning. It's really hard to beat a freshly picked and prepared meal.

5:35am: tea tree oil
Well, I think I've run my "control" experiment long enough. It does seem that my sinuses were less aggravated in general and for a shorter period of time when I was treating them with the tea tree oil last spring (a couple drops splashed on the shower wall so that the vapors are inhaled). I'm going to have to get some more soon to put an end to this (or at least to get it to back off somewhat).

4:29pm: productivity
Wow, I got a lot done today, even with overnight guests: tidied the kitchen/downstairs area, made popovers, prepared celery for freezing and drying the leaves (and did so) after transferring the frozen blueberries to a pan, swept and mopped the floor, cleaned the fridge (i.e. soap and water), organized the pantry, filtered a cordial that I'd been putting off for a couple years, and a few other odds and ends. And yet, there is so much more that needs to get done, both for getting the house in shape tidiness-wise, for sorting and getting rid of things that we don't need/use, wrapping up projects, actually making the "to go away pile" go away, continue getting ready for Italy, start contacting the appropriate agents for starting the ball rolling for the selling/buying process... Oye, maybe if I go work on it instead of sitting at the computor, things'll progress faster, hey? But ya gotta rest sometime or risk burn-out, and burn-out is more counterproductive; it takes much longer to recover from than a rest. After a lot of rest yesterday , I did get through half my mending pile. It's nice to have more clothes options without having to buy them!
/ramble and rest

5:38am: moving...
Whynothing was offered a transfer that comes with a promotion, raise, and significantly better hours (rarely weekends or nights). The big drawback is the location on the other side of town. However, the location is about 10-15 minutes from where I work. Since we've been thinking about maybe moving to a house anyway, we're going to up the effort and actually start working on that. The best start to me, seems to be asking for realtor recommendations. Here's what I'd like to know from you, if you've used a realtor in the Madison area:

Is there a realtor you would recommend?

Is there a realtor you would recommend avoiding?

What did you like about the realtor you recommended?

Did you use this realtor for buying, selling, or both?

What did you specifically like about each aspect in regards to the realtor?


Here's the plan: Sell the condo first. No point in looking at other houses, getting my heart set on them and not being able to buy because I still own the condo. Get an apartment while looking for a house, preferably in one of the areas we're considering living. Buy a house that we really like which meets our must-have list. One of those criteria is that one of us can walk or bike to work and the other will have a drive of no more than 15 minutes. Both driving 5-10 minutes is also going to be considered.

8:06pm: Squash with pine nut creme fraiche and crunchy sage and leeks
Good food night.
( details of recipe and picture )

6:57pm: Food meme
Since everyone's doing it...

The Omnivore's Hundred is a list of foods the gastronomic Andrew Wheeler thinks everyone should try at least once in their lives.

The rules of the meme: bold those you have tried, strike-through those you wouldn't eat on a bet.

commonly added rule: italics for those i haven't tried but definitely WANT TO.

( Read more... )

5:44am: crepe buffet
Sunday morning had a lovely start with a crepe buffet. The filling combinations were as follows:
-Farmer market heirloom apples sauteed in butter, true cinnamon, fresh grated nutmeg, and lemon zest
-Crave Brothers marscapone and Blue Skies Raspberries
-Ficocoa with bannanas
-Famer market pears with a black-currant syrup (black currants from market) and marscapone
Best of the bunch:
-Nutella with bananas and raspberries

It was all so tasty! Particularly with Iohanna's crepe recipe.

Afterward I went to some open houses. Drooled over a few houses I couldn't afford and strongly considered the fixer-upper in the neighborhood. It has been vetoed, though, between the water in the basement issue and the "it doesn't really meet our specs" issue. I just love the neighborhood, though. Honestly, the neighborhood was really all the house had going for it.

1:48pm: Educational birthday meme
I like this one 'cause you learn some history...

Instructions: Go over to Wikipedia and enter the day you were born and then pick 3 events, 2 births and 1 holiday that occurred on your birthday.

1837 - Canada gives African men the right to vote.
1882 - Robert Koch announces the discovery of the bacterium responsible for tuberculosis (mycobacterium tuberculosis).
1965 - NASA spacecraft Ranger 9, equipped to convert its signals into a form suitable for showing on domestic television, brings images of the Moon into ordinary homes before crash landing.

1874 - Harry Houdini, (Weisz Erik), Hungarian-born magician (d. 1926)
1884 - Peter Debye, Dutch chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1966)

Day of Memory for Truth and Justice in Argentina