Making Frozen Yogurt

In the current edition of Sunset Magazine there is a recipe for making frozen yogurt...I asked for an ice cream maker for my birthday, specifically to try this recipe because it sounded delicious and easy!You can use either sugar or something else to sweeten...perhaps honey or chocolate syrup. I used lemon curd. I also mixed in some morello cherries.The result was fantastic...tart and sweet. I think I found my treat for this summer, it's easy and inexpensive. I bought the ingredients, yogurt, cherries and lemon curd for about $6 - it will end up making about 15 servings. If I went to one of those trendy frozen yogurt places, I'd be paying almost that for one serving. I like the math on my version much better, not to mention my version is delicious!

Cauliflower and Cabbages

There is a ton of joy for me in watching these gorgeous vegetables grow. I love their color and texture. I love eating food that grew in front of me, that is alive in the dirt in my garden. Garden to plate is the way to go!

We are all a little tired around here...

Today was my final day at work...at last. It was a relatively uneventful day. Finals were finished yesterday, so many students didn't show today. It was nice to talk to those who did show up...a few of my favorites (yes, I did say favorites, all teachers have favorites, they just don't all admit it) brought me a sweet gift of a bouquet of flowers - the daisies in the picture below, a very soft purple stuffed bear, and a sweet card. My colleagues in my department also gave me a card with a thoughtful gift inside. It was a strange day, but Bambino came to work with me to help me keep it light...he did the trick, no tears or overwhelming awkwardness. Not that tears are bad, I've just already had my share!

We had an early dinner while out doing some grocery shopping this afternoon (can't go into a grocery store hungry, too many impulse purchases). So I got hungry again, my snack this evening was some salted radishes and one lone carrot from the garden, pinapple juice and soda with morello cherries dropped in to drink, and some yummy chocolate macaroons made by a local company that I discovered at the market today.To top it all off, the husband picked fresh strawberries from the garden, cleaned them up, cut off their stems, and served them up.I realize evening snacking isn't the best thing to do, but it's fun every now and again! I'm exhausted, physically from not getting enough sleep lately, anxiety tends to contribute to insomnia for me, and emotionally from going through all of the stages in my job shenanigan...I'm going to spend the next few days puttering around the house, finishing a few tasks, gardening, sewing, following up on farmer's market stuff...and maybe even napping! Cheers!

Thick With Carrots...

I never thinned my rows of carrots the seeds I planted sprouted. I don't like thinning anything, it makes me feel bad. So here's my three rows now. I pulled out a couple to check their progress. Man, they smell good! I never notice the smell of carrots when I buy them at the grocery market. They still need a little more time in the ground, but soon!

I love growing my own food, it makes me feel more alive. Shortly after snapping this picture I washed the dirt from these beauties and munched on them right there in the garden.

I put another row of carrots in the ground this last weekend...I tried to space them a little better so thinning them out wouldn't be an issue. Hopefully that works.

Farmer's Market Projects

Here's a little taste of what I'm working on...hopefully to sell this summer at a local farmer's market.And here is what the husband so effortlessly created, without a pattern, in "about an hour". He says the next round will be easier. Now that my job has finished up (my last day is tomorrow, it's a half day), it will be easier to have a clear head to focus on being creative. It feels like I have been on a windy down hill road full of pot holes and I just hit a nice, flat, freshly paved, straightaway. Free!

Radishes Round Two

A small radish and broccoli harvest.

This is my 2nd round of radishes this season, and I just put my third round of seeds in the ground. The warm weather we've had at the end of May and beginning of June made the second round come up in slightly less than 3 weeks!

Until recently, I'd never tried a white radish before. They seem to be a bit more mild than their red and purple counterparts. The best comparison I can make is black pepper vs. white pepper. They are similar but different.

By the way, how cool is it that the first white radish I ever tried was grown by me in my own garden! Love that!

Celebrating 31 Years...Over a Couple of Days

My birthday celebrations began four days early with a small family dinner party thrown by the husband. He made dinner, tri-tip and potatoes cooked all day in the slow cooker. My mother-in-law brought a macaroni salad and a delicious fruit salad. We also had my favorite bread, a sourdough baguette.One of our family traditions is to use this plate for each person's birthday or special occasion. I painted it the summer before we got engaged at one of those pottery painting shops.

The husband asked what kind of cake I wanted...for the last two years it's been Black Forrest Cherry cake for me. It makes me think of my Oma. She passed away in November of 2001. She was the classic Oma, made all the yummy German treats as I was growing up. She brought over this kind of cake for my birthdays when I was a little girl. I've always loved the combination of chocolate cake with cherries since.The husband hand washed the "Special Day" plate between dinner and dessert - nice touch!

On my actual birthday I woke up earlier than the husband so I decided to start cooking breakfast. When he woke up he helped me finish up. The strawberries that went on our waffles came out of our garden...the husband picked about a pint of them the night before.
Later in the day I got to go shopping...it's been a LONG time since I've bought clothes and shoes...long for me this time was about 10 months. I've picked up the random shirt, pair of underwear or other piece from time to time, but I haven't gone out and splurged on several things at the same time. It's been good to take a break, I think I appreciated today even more. Besides, it was a good day, I found some fabulous items.

My new shoes

One pink flowy tube top, three cami's in pink, black and salmon, jean capris, white clamdiggers, and three pairs of peds...all good summer staples.

What a fun birthday!