Wednesday, February 5, 2020

Downsizing and the staff of life

Today's downsizing, on a raw damp cold no good very bad weather day involved dumping out and dumpstering large old plastic pots from the patio, stacked in case I wanted to plant them, etc

I spared the planted chive pot, which will come back, a container of flowers taken over by lemon balm, and my strawberry pot planted with honesty. Also the sage and lavender. The Thai basil is in the kitchen so it escaped scrutiny.

But other just-in-case containers with exhausted soil and dead undiagnosable foliage, very unscenic, went. The  contents were heaved into the ground cover, the containers to the dumpster.

As usual this was heavier work than expected, since we'd had rain. So then it involved a nap on the sofa before getting to the actual work of the day, bread baking.

Whole-wheat with oats, and fennel and caraway seeds generously flung about. Oatmeal makes a great crust, light but very crunchy. And the combo with the wheat makes a lovely dense crumb. I used two cups of oatmeal to five and a half cups whole-wheat.


I make one giant loaf, which becomes four smaller ones, three now in the freezer.



And for tea, a slice, toasted, buttered, with a boiled egg, like a tea of childhood, except I didn't soft-boil the egg or cut the toast into soldiers for dipping in the yolk.

But I do occasionally like an "egg to my tea". Probably some obscure quotation, forget the origin.

12 comments:

  1. Spring cleaning! So many of my old saved plastic pots have broken. They need to go as well.

    Your bread looks very hearty and delicious!

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  2. I can't tell you how many times I've noticed those pots and thought I should do something about them. Finally get to it in the most unpromising weather.

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  3. Fancy setting. The bread does look good.

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  4. Thank you for both. I love my bread. Neighbors get some, too. It goes over well. It's a recipe that doesn't involve kneading, my hands not being up to it. And it's really good. I change the flours for a bit of variety.

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  5. What a lovely tea. After all that heavy lifting, you deserve it.

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  6. I figured I had to keep up my strength!

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  7. I can't seem to throw away plants/containers until I am absolutely certain they are 1. dead, never to rise again and 2. containers broken, split, or smushed. The oatmeal bread looks yummy!

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  8. All of them above are true of the plants and containers I tossed. I tipped out contents into the ground, though, so some plants may rise again. Certainly the spiderwort will, since it planted itself in the container to start with! Sometimes if you firmly dump them elsewhere they get a new lease of life.

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  9. I'm impressed you dealt with the plant containers on a raw damp cold no good very bad weather day. And happy for you that you rewarded yourself with some scrumptious home baked bread!

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  10. It says something for my determination. Not too much for my intelligence..

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  11. Ah, a nod to Judith Viorst (and Alexander)! Seeing your bread now has me craving some and I have to steer clear. Good bread is my weakness and it certainly doesn't help with weight loss.

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  12. Bread is my mainstay. I don't have a big appetite but I must have my crusty bread.

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