Heeeere’s…..BoB! August 8, 2008
Posted by Laura in : Gardening , add a commentSo here is our assistant gardener, Bob:
Bob lives in our Parsley. He is a horned lizard, also known as a horny toad, although he is not a toad. It’s like the tropical rain forest for him, especially when I’m watering. He’s usually camera shy, but came out for this photo op. He likes to eat ants and grasshoppers (which is probably why our garden hasn’t been totally destroyed by now), and drinks from the little streams left after watering (made by the hoe).
Dog Days of Summer
Posted by Laura in : Recipes, Cooking, Gardening , add a commentIt’s hot. And muggy. Like Florida hot & muggy - at least that’s what it feels like at 30% humidity in the desert. The garden is winding down - the lettuce is bolting and we need to use it up; however our cukes & eggplants are just getting started. Our spinach was decimated by aphids and we are having one of the worst grasshopper seasons in a long time. Even the organic nurseries have had to resort to using some sort of pesticide lest they lose the entire inventory. Something to do with the climate affecting the migration of the birds so they are not in synch with the cycles of the grasshoppers. Scary stuff.
This is one variety of eggplant; it has a wonderful dark purple flower - a true aubergine.
This is the other variety - it has a lavender flower and has not started to bear fruit yet, but is looking very strong & hardy and should any minute.
Cucumbers, melons & zucchini have the most sublime mango colored flowers. They are very large and my favorite site in the garden. This is our cucumber plant already home to baby cukes.
Now, I don’t know if you have ever experienced Parsley until it grows abundantly in your garden. Parsley is my testimony to tenaciousness. I almost gave up on it. Every time I’ve planted it before, the stalks would go white and it would die. What I didn’t know is that it was burning, just to give it a bit of shade and let it die back, and regrow. The result is the bunch of green stuff you see on the top here:
It is more beautiful and delicious that I could have ever imaged. Plus, I may even have enough to make tabouli and have some leftover.
The green on the bottom of that shot is our pumpkin, also a beautiful flowering veggie and already bearing it’s first pumpkin baby somewhere under that foliage.
We have a new friend helping us with the grasshopper & ant problem. He’s a little horned lizard (horny toad) we’re naming “Bob.” He’s a bit camera shy and is shaped like a turtle without the shell, a small tail and - well, he looks like a turtle. We are very honored he has taken up residence in our garden.
Finally, in spite of the hostile takeover of hoppers, it appears our brussel sprout plant may endure:
If you look very hard, you can see the sprouts on the interior stalk?
So what did we do with all this bounty? Made a cucumber/tomato/onion salad, and Sole Picatta in lemon/wine/butter sauce with parsley:
Recipes:
Cuke Salad:
1/2 peel cuke - slice lengthwise and scoop out seeds with spoon. Chop into cubes.
1/2 tomatoes - in cubes
1/2 chopped red onion.
Mix ingredients and then sprinkle salt and toss with 1/2 cup white vinegar. Chill for 1/2 hour.
Sole Picatta:
4 filets of Sole
1-2 lemons
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp butter (unsalted)
1/4 cup wine
1/2 shallot
flour
Italian Flat Leaf Parsley, chopped - 3 tbsps.
Salt & pepper filets, dredge through flour. In nonstick pan, heat olive oil and cook sole until just opaque in the center. Remove filets. Add butter, the juice of 1-2 lemons and wine. Stir until thicker. If needed add a touch of flour. Cook shallots for 3-5 mintues.
Pour sauce over filets; add parsley.
Oh- the Parsley is from the garden~
Eating off the Land July 16, 2008
Posted by Laura in : Recipes, Cooking, Gardening , 2 commentsFirst off, I have been AWOL from the blog so apologies to all who have commented.
We harvested some bounty from the garden today - some spinach (a spinach egg white omelette is in the works), a head of leaf lettuce (we tend to eat a lot of salads in the warm weather), and my first beets, ever.
Now, if I had bothered to look up this lovely little site a bit earlier, I would have known that beets need to be thinned to get bigger root bulbs. C’est la vie, so I replanted the teensy ones and we have a few that will be just delicious roasted. I also found a very nice Roasted beets and Sauteed Beet Greens recipe that will ensure I never again throw away those nutritious tops.
The best thing I like to make with my beets is my famous Beet, Orange & Goat Cheese Risotto. No link, because it’s not on the internet! Bascially, you make a standard risotto with vegetable broth, shallots (or onions) using olive oil. After you ladle in the last of the veggie broth, you add 1 cup of fresh OJ and 2-3 large or 4-5 small peeled, grated beets (a box grater works well). Prior to squeezing your OJ (okay - you can use Tropicana in a pinch), you get a 2-3 tablespoon of orange peel.
After cooking for a few minutes with the beets & orange juice, you garnish with orange peel, fresh clipped chives (scallions will do in a pinch), and sprinkle liberally with goat cheese. Gourmand heaven!
This puppy is going into a Greek Salad later. Basically - Lettuce, tomatoes (heirloom if available), cucumbers (peel, cut in half lengthwise, scoop out seeds with spoon, and then cube), diced red onion, diced green pepper (when dicing, do not make pieces too small, but about 1/2 squares), some canned artichoke hearts, and diced avocado. Add stuffed grape leaves & feta cheese at will - sprinkle dried or fresh oregano. There are some lovely healthy croutons available that add a nice touch. I dress with either olive oil & red wine vinegar, or I happen to love Newman’s Own Caesar Dressing or his Olive & oil & red Wine Vinegar Dressing.
I’ll get pics of the flourishing garden later. Of all things that have failed this year - I had 2 zucchini plants die on me. I didn’t think it was possible to kill a zucchini plant, yet I have mastered the art of zucchini destruction.
Again, another little tidbit at the Univ. of Illinois site, is that the transplants should be introduced to the stronger sunlight over a week or two. Who knew? No wonder they fried.
I’ll probably do a second planting of carrots, turnips and broccoli and maybe more risotto beets.
Didi’s Home~ June 29, 2008
Posted by Laura in : Dogs , 2 commentsWell, after 2 nights in the doggy hospital, Didi is home. Dr. Ted had to inject steroids 
directly into her third eyelid in her right eye which seemed to do the trick. She’s about 90% physically, but she’s still not quite herself.
She self-kennels under the table all day and seems very unsure of herself. I’m hoping that this will fade away as she keeps getting better.
She’s not playing with Rio & Columbo, which is just fine as we don’t want anything to aggravate her eye. It’s just good to have her home.
Even when she’s not herself, she’s still a camera diva~
Didi’s in the Hospital June 27, 2008
Posted by Laura in : Dogs , add a commentI haven’t done much knitting in the last couple of days. Didi came down with a strange eye malady a couple of days ago. It looked like cherry eye, but was not. Her third eyelid was inflamed and protruding, covering her right eye She was prescribed steroid drops and prednisone. It started getting worse, as she became listless. Yesterday, she screamed if we tried to touch her jaw to open her mouth to dispense her meds.
She has a low fever and is even more listless. Paul is stopping by the clinic on his way into work to see how she is doing, but I have a strange feeling about this. She’s only 12 months old and it breaks my heart to see her in such distress.
Even though we have Rio & Columbo here, the house feels so empty.
The Shopping Mecca June 21, 2008
Posted by Laura in : Life , add a commentI challenge anyone who thinks they live near the most over-the-top mall in America. This mall is made in the image of Venice, Italy and has a canal in it.
A canal.
Where is this shopping Mecca?
Where else? In Qatar.
Sara’s Story - A Dog Rescue June 18, 2008
Posted by Laura in : Dogs , 2 commentsSara’s mom came into the vet. She was frail, 93 years old and said she could not care for her any longer. She asked for Sara to be put down.
I asked her if Sara was in poor health. She said no, but she was 13 years old and didn’t want
to leave her in the wrong hands. I tried to give her directions to the animal shelter, but it seemed too confusing for her. I told her I would take Sara to the shelter myself.
Three days later I took Sara to Stray Hearts animal shelter. She was more than happy to take a ride in my truck and didn’t seem to care that another dog was riding with her (Didi was along for the ride). Sara seemed very sweet, gentle and obedient.
Three days later, a family visiting from Utah found themselves at the animal shelter to pick up their dog that got loose and was brought there. While they were there, they saw Sara, who was hanging out in the front office with the staff. It was love.
Sara is now at her new home in Utah. She will get to live out her remaining days with her new loving family.
Happy endings are still possible…
Lithium Batteries June 15, 2008
Posted by Laura in : Socks, Knitting , add a commentWith a fresh new set of lithium batteries in my camera, I am ready to resume life.
Unfortunately, they arrive too late to document Worldwide Knit In Public day, but I can at least continue with my sock progress:
Although I don’t usually like working with Kuryeon, I must say that I love how this yarn knits up. Colors aside, the fabric feels firm (why, yes, I am using Size 1 needles), and the sock feels like it will be very warm & cozy on cold, damp days (why, yes, it is 87 degrees right now).
My Lady E looks much like it did in the previous post, only longer. Not a lot to report, although I’m almost halfway through.
The person who said ceiling fans make a difference must have worked in that department in Home Depot. I miss my air conditioner.
World Wide Knit in Public Day & A Video June 14, 2008
Posted by Laura in : video, Knitting , 1 comment so farOkay -my camera died, so you can’t see that Susan, Meredith , Tara (and her friend), Lori, and Jancie (Janet?) and I all had a wonderful time this afternoon at the John Dunn Shops knitting. Thanks to The Yarn Shop & Granny G for letting us clog up her sidewalk, and to Lori for some kick-ass homemade Raspberry Lemonade.
So instead of a photo, I did find this:
Love is Fickle June 12, 2008
Posted by Laura in : Entrelac, Socks, Yarn, Knitting , 2 comments…and so am I.
After professing my love for Clapotis, only Clapotis, I have fallen in love anew.
Lady Eleanor. That is a Noro Silk Garden (lite) Lady Eleanor. I got this lot of SGL from a disenchanted E-bayer at a real bargain. I had one traumatic entrelac experience, which was entirely the fault of the yarn (note to self: never do entrelace with very fuzzy yarn) and never thought I’d do it again. However, the siren song of Lady E kept calling and with my Ebay booty I was up for it.
I had no idea how easy this pattern would be. Usually Scarf Style patterns can be challenging, but this is a breeze. I’m on my second skein and cannot wait. A Raverly person has a tutorial to bead the fringed finishing which I will probably do.
Now the pattern normally calls for wool from La Lana Wools; coincidentally, a local yarn store here in Taos that makes its own yarns. However, it is quite cost prohibitive (about $300 for the yarn so I’ve heard), so many make this pattern with Noro Silk Garden.
The colorways of Noro is what make them so appealing. I have yet to find a yarn that even comes close. They have a palette of about 5-7 colors and the silk/wool blend (along with random bits of vegetable matter), makes it truly unique.
Not only is this a pleasing project, but it is easy to memorize and as the advantage of being one of those projects that you can do anywhere, without too much thought, but is entertaining enough to not be boring.
I tried the backward knitting technique, but find that turning the work is really not a big deal, and being a Continental knitter, I detest throwing if I can at all help it.
Just to keep life interesting, I’m also doing a pair of Noro socks:
The yarn is very stiff to work with, my usual complaint with Kuryeon, however I am told it softens up nicely when washed. I love the color way and secretly hoped it would only be the olives & purples, but alas, I see a ton of new colors further down the color way.
It is official. I am never using DPNs for socks again. I’m doing 1 @ a time here, but regardless, the ease of ML (Magic Loop for the great unwashed), has won me over.