Time, Father Dragon, Ultra sound, Zoey and Boney,

A friend recommended I listen to this piece of music. I was impressed with it. Such a powerful sound and evocative of so  many things.



A very powerful sound. The pictures are good too. This came about because Father Dragon has risen again, do you remember his blogs? These are pictures of Father Dragon's Caves

Re Matt's ultra sound etc. he is booked to see the doc next week so we will then find out, hopefully, what is wrong and whether anything can be done.

Today, Friday, Zoey is coming to see us and bringing lunch too. Clever dog. She is bringing ladydog with her as well. Zoey certainly works as a therapy dog. Matt particularly loves to see her. There is a chance we may get to see Boney in the spring which will be fun. Of course seeing his owners will be more fun.

I saw this recipe and couldn't resist. I love crèpes although I am not sure about bought ones. I bought some once before and Matt wasn't keen. Mind you they are sweet and for this recipe it wouldn't matter. Also, once again, bought lemon curd? It is pretty easy to make your own and it is so delicious. However, buying these ingredients does make it simpler to make.

Lemony Crêpe Casserole

Reminiscent of a classic bread pudding, this sweet-tart crêpe casserole has a beautiful lacy top and

tender-but-sliceable center.

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
3/4 cup store-bought lemon curd
1/4 tsp kosher salt, divided
1/4 cup unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
24 (10-inch) store-bought crêpes
1 medium Meyer lemon, very thinly sliced and seeded
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 Tbs powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat cream cheese, lemon curd, and 1/8 teaspoon salt with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes.

2. Grease a 13- x 9-inch baking dish with butter. Arrange 1 crêpe on a work surface. Using a small offset spatula, spread 1 1/2 tablespoons cream cheese mixture evenly over crêpe, leaving a 1-inch border. Fold crêpe in half, and then fold in half again. Place folded crêpe in prepared baking dish. Repeat with remaining crêpes and remaining cream cheese mixture, overlapping folded crêpes in baking dish. Bake in preheated oven until crêpes are heated through and edges are golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-low. Add lemon slices, sprinkle with remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until lemon peel is softened, about 7 minutes. Stir in maple syrup, and remove from heat. Spoon lemon sauce over casserole. Dust with powdered sugar, and serve.

Servings: 8

Source
Author: Justin Chapple
Source: Food and Wine

Have a great day

Cleaners, Father Dragon, Treadmill Silicone.

Thought we had it all sorted out, now, however, our previous cleaner turned up with our keys and because it is going to be another couple of weeks or so before the new people come in she has offered to come in on Monday with her friend. We said yes. Now Matt says he thinks she wants to come back. We really don’t know and don’t know what to do. She is excellent at the job but still very upset. If she does want to come back, we would like to have her, but….

Don’t forget tomorrow, November 24, is Father Dragon`s mystery day. Tune in to his blog to find out what it`s all about.

This morning, I figured it was time my treadmill should be lubricated again. A horrid job but it has to be done at least every 6 months, more if you use it a lot. Apart from our inability to get down on the floor to do the work, we have a big problem with the silicone bottle. You unscrew the cap and then are supposed to be able to cut it open with a pair of scissors. Joke. We tried scissors, knives and eventually Matt used the cable cutting section on a pair of pliers. I complained to Johnson Health who assured me it could be cut with scissors. I wonder what kind of scissors they use. If I had known about this, I probably would not have bought myself a treadmill. Even once you do get a hole in the stupid bottle, its a messy job. Oh, if anyone does know how to open these things, please share.

This recipe was so nice and colourful; plus I am looking for something different to do for an upcoming dinner party so thought I would share it. Oops, just realised, I maybe can't eat it because of the similarity to grapefruit. If one is on a statin, grapefruit is a no no.


Tangelo Pork Stir-Fry

WebMD Recipe from EatingWell.com
4 servings

This pork and pepper stir-fry uses strips of tangelo zest and bright tangelo juice, which offers a little sunshine on a midwinter night. Tangelos, hybrids of tangerines and pummelos (or grapefruit), are often labeled as Minneolas or Honeybells.

Ingredients
Prep: 45 minutes | Total Time: 45 minutes

• 2 tangelos, such as Minneolas or Honeybells
• 3 teaspoons toasted sesame oil, divided
• 1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into thin strips
• 2 medium shallots, thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 2  red bell peppers, thinly sliced
• 2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

Instructions

1. Using a vegetable peeler, remove zest from tangelos in long strips. Cut the strips lengthwise into very thin pieces. Cut the tangelos in half and squeeze enough juice from them to get 1/2 cup.
2. Heat a large wok or skillet over medium-high heat. Swirl in 2 teaspoons oil, then add pork and cook, stirring, until just cooked, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
3. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil to the pan along with shallots, garlic, ginger, crushed red pepper and the zest. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add bell peppers and celery and cook, stirring constantly, until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in the tangelo juice and soy sauce; bring to a simmer. Cook for 1 minute.
4. Whisk vinegar and cornstarch in a small bowl, then pour it into the pan along with the pork and its juices. Cook, stirring often, until thickened and bubbling and the pork is heated through, about 1 minute.

Have a great weekend

Plagiarism, Bowling, Award.

I have just notified an author that I think her book has been plagiarised. I knew I had read a similar story to that of the blurb I read today, I contacted an author friend who located the right book which it turns out I had read last April although I couldn’t remember the name of it. I wrote a message on the author’s blog to tell her what has happened. I hope it can be sorted out. As I said, I read the original last April whereas the copy has not actually been published yet although the blurb is virtually word for word the same.

Bowling on Monday was great, LOL. Actually I had the best three games I have had in months. Long may it continue although bearing in mind how well Matt did last Thursday, he had a less successful day today. That’s the name of the game though. Frustrating to say the least. I nearly fell flat on my face too, I tripped up a step and if someone hadn’t been standing there, I would have fallen.

I received an award from Father Dragon yesterday, but I am not doing the full acknowledgement today until I have had time to consider who my five nominees will be.

Here’s a nice calorie loaded dessert from Cooking.com which sounds delicious, but… I do love the taste of Maple syrup and am a sucker for Maple candy which most people find way too sweet. You could use Maple candy leaves to decorate.

Maple Tart

Source: Dessert - The Grand Finale

Serves 10

This easy-to-prep tart packs in all the sweetness of Fall. Sugary pastry leaves are fun but optional.

INGREDIENTS
Pastry
2 cups all-purpose flour
11 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons sugar
1 whole egg
1-2 tablespoons ice water
1 egg white, beaten, for pastry cut-outs
Filling
5 eggs, beaten
1 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup maple syrup
5 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

DIRECTIONS
FOR THE PASTRY: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place the flour, butter and sugar in a food processor and process to a coarse meal. Add the egg and 1 tablespoon of the water and pulse until the mixture comes together. (It may be necessary to add more water, a little at a time.) Remove and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Roll out the pastry to line a 1-inch deep, 11-inch tart pan with a removable base. Line the pastry shell with parchment or waxed (greaseproof) paper and fill with baking weights, dried beans or rice. Bake the pastry shell for 15 minutes. Remove the weights and allow to cool.
Using a small sharp knife or cookie cutter, cut out maple leaf shapes from any remaining pastry. Line a baking sheet with parchment or waxed (greaseproof) paper. Brush the pastry shapes with a little of the beaten egg white, place on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, until golden.
FOR THE FILLING: Combine the eggs, brown sugar, maple syrup and melted butter in a bowl. Mix until combined.
Brush the cooled pastry shell with a little of the beaten egg white and pour in the filling. Bake the tart for 40-45 minutes, until filling just wobbles when shaken. Allow to cool.
TO SERVE: Decorate the tart with the maple leaf pastry shapes and serve.

Have a great day

Bowling, Asparagus.

Yesterday we had our bowling banquet and also bowled in the alley for the very last time. They are, apparently, having a kind of wake on Sunday, but I don’t think we’ll be going along. The announcement was made that the owners of the business would not be seeking a new venue after all, but that the woman who has been running the place forever (27 years) and her husband are looking into opening a new alley and are negotiating with a building owner. She asked us for all our phone numbers if we were interested and will let us know in approximately a week to 10 days. I do hope this goes through as we have so many friends amongst the people with whom we bowl although a couple of them have decided to quit anyway.

At last I have had my first taste of freshly grown asparagus this year, deeelicious. All I have done with it so far is to cook it briefly in boiling, salted water, and then serve it with a little butter. I am enjoying it so much. However, I will, of course, be getting a little more adventurous as it becomes more plentiful. Those of you who don’t enjoy asparagus will be groaning about all the asparagus recipes I am going to be posting in the next week or two. I have just reminded myself of just how many delicious recipes I have collected over the years.

Oops, I nearly forgot, L. Diane Wolfe passed on the Zombie Rabbit award for being one of her Spunky Soldiers during THE blogfest. Thanks Diane. Mind you, I am not perfectly sure what a Zombie Rabbit is, LOL.

I have recently become friends, through the A to Z Challenge Blogfest with Al Diaz or Father Dragon. Currently, through illness, he is restricted to a vegan type diet and he told me that he makes his own yoghurt with soy milk, which he also makes. I asked him for the recipe and he was kind enough to send it to me and to allow me to share it with you. Agar agar is a seaweed product which is used to thicken things, a bit like cornstarch, I used to use it years ago when I was first on Weight Watchers.


Soy Yogurt
Father Dragon

Okay first, here it is the link where you'll learn to fix your own soy milk. It is important you do it because those in store are not good to make a high quality yogurt.
http://www.spiciefoodie.com/2013/01/14/homemade-soy-milk-or-how-to-make-soy-milk/

Once you have your milk, the procedure is the following:

Ingredients:
6 cups of hot soy milk
1 1/2 spoons of muscovado sugar
1/2 tea spoon of salt
1/3 cup of Tapioca flour
1 tea spoon of agar-agar
1 cup of plain yogurt without sugar

Process:
1. Wash all the kitchen tools you're gonna use with boiled water. (Spoons, containers, etc.)
2. Add the salt and sugar to the hot milk.
3. Put 1/2 cup of milk in the freezer.
4. Once the milk is cold, dissolve the tapioca and the agar-agar in it, using the blender.
5. Add 2 cups of hot milk and put it on low heat until it boils. Use a big pot. You must keep moving the milk with a spoon at all times to prevent it from sticking in the bottom and burn.
6. When you see it thick and glossy, blend the remaining milk and boil it again. Don't forget to move it with a spoon.
7. Let it cool down for about 30 minutes and add the cup of natural yogurt. Mix perfectly but do not use the blender this time, to not kill the lactobacilli. Pour it all inside a thermal container. Wrap the container with one of the warmest blankets you have and keep it in the hottest place of your kitchen for about 10-12 hours.
8. After that time. Pour it in another container and put it in the fridge for 12 hours. Then it is ready to eat. You can mix it with fruits and honey, or cereals, as you like. I personally like to add a bit of cardamom with fruits and it adds a refreshing touch to it. Love it.
You may want to keep a cup aside to fix the next batch.

Have a great day

C = Chihuahuas and Clam Chowder

I am thrilled to bits, I finally reached 100 followers yesterday, thanks so much to all of you and especially to Al Diaz, Father Dragon, for being #100.

A lot of people don’t like Chihuahuas, but I think they are a great little dog. My mother had two of them both of the black and tan colouring, I don’t remember the name of one but the other was Henriquetta la Pequeña, or Quetta for short. They were both the bravest little dogs you can imagine and would stand up to dogs many times their size if necessary. They are also extremely intelligent animals. Apparently their origins are shrouded in mystery, although the favourite theory is that they were the dogs of the Toltecs: the current breed was discovered in Chihuahua, Mexico hence the name. They were used in religious ceremonies and were pets to the upper class. They were certainly great pets in my parent’s household and my mother took hers everywhere (she only had one at a time). In fact Quetta used to have a basket which she lay in on the bar in the yacht club whilst my German Shepherd lay on the floor below. They got on fine. I always remember Jayne Mansfield, an actress/singer trying to smuggle one into England in her purse. There was, maybe still is, a strict quarantine law in the UK and any dog entering the country had to spend time in a kennel until it was sure it didn’t have rabies. Jayne Mansfield tried to circumvent this law but got caught.

When we lived in North Carolina, Matt could walk out into the sound almost anywhere and rake up a mess of clams, we never had to buy canned clams of any kind. I would then cook them long enough that they would open up and virtually proceed as shown. We also used to add a can of corn and I ate one chowder in which the cook had added something spicy, not sure what, but it was delicious. If you get fresh clams, make sure they are the smaller ones, they call the big ones chowder clams but they can be very tough.

Clam Chowder

Allrecipes.com


Submitted By: PIONEERGIRL

Photo By: DEJAVU1669

Servings: 8

"A delicious, traditional cream-based chowder, this recipe calls for the standard chowder ingredients: onion, celery, potatoes, diced carrots, clams, and cream. A little red wine vinegar is added before serving for extra flavour."

Ingredients:
3 (6.5 ounce) cans minced clams
1 cup minced onion
1 cup diced celery
2 cups cubed potatoes
1 cup diced carrots
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 quart half-and-half cream
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
ground black pepper to taste

Directions:
Drain juice from clams into a large skillet over the onions, celery, potatoes and carrots. Add water to cover, and cook over medium heat until tender.
Meanwhile, in a large, heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Whisk in cream and stir constantly until thick and smooth. Stir in vegetables and clam juice. Heat through, but do not boil.
Stir in clams just before serving. If they cook too much they get tough. When clams are heated through, stir in vinegar, and season with salt and pepper.

Have a great day