Wednesday, where'd you go?

What with laundry and cooking and baking and son visiting and Gary dashing in, and a nap and an online meeting, Wednesday zoomied by and it's nearly midnight and here's my blog.

I baked a chocolate cake, with cacao nibs on top, very good too. Handsome Son enjoyed some with tea, Gary accepted a couple of slices, he loves chocolate cake.

And I made an amazingly good soup entirely from frozen leftovers of tomatoes, sauce, ground turkey, very spicy rice, whey from making yogurt, and cooked carrot chunks.

I didn't add anything, just heated all the items together and because of the spices already in there, I got one of the best soups I've ever had. 

Like tomato rice soup raised to a whole new power. Four more helpings of it to come. I was really surprised at how good it is, and detected the red chili oil helping with the flavor.  One of the easiest soups I ever made.

I usually use one or two frozen leftover soup ingredients, but this is the first time they've constituted the entire soup. I must do this again.

Oliver Twist is starting to drag a little, so I'm skipping here and there, and taking refuge in Pride and Prejudice. 

Happy day everyone, make freezer soup, it's good.

 

Opening day at the farm and other excitements

Early May is the opening of the asparagus season at the local farm. First day today, 10 this morning till sold out, that's usually about an hour later.

So I showed up at 10.30,  saw an even earlier bird leaving as I arrived.

Picked this morning from the field you see  across the street.

Now on the menu for this evening. Steamed, dipped in lemon butter sauce. Doesn't get much better.

Meanwhile, Handsome Son is visiting this afternoon, to test the new patio chair and whatever baked goods are on offer with his pot of tea.

Yesterday I tried the idea of ganache (my word recall not being too swift at the moment, I ran through soutache and gazpacho before landing on  the right word). using cocoa instead of chocolate, which I didn't have, and heavy cream powder instead of whipping cream which I also didn't have. 

It didn't exactly come together as something you could spread between layers, so I added cornstarch and brought it to the boil and made a really really rich and lovely chocolate sauce, to pour over slices of the chocolate cake I was also making.

So he'll have a choice of plain chocolate cake, or enrobed (!) chocolate cake. Or both if he wants.

Full disclosure: I tested this for breakfast this morning, why not, I had a wonderful bill of health from yesterday's annual Wellness Visit, Medicarespeak for physical. 

It was definitely good, the cake and the physical. I'm struggling to be nice enough not to reserve the rest of the helpings to myself. 

I'm definitely not giving oxygen to the current apology for a Supreme Court, supreme? as if, draft decision. 

Other than being profoundly glad my State this year enshrined reproductive rights into the State constitution, as a firewall against the current dumpster fire known as the judiciary.

Meanwhile Nancy Pelosi and other Dems, Republicans refusing to make the trip, made a hazardous and timely visit to Zelenskyy in Kyev. Showing up is a big part of being an ally.

As is men speaking up when other men slag off women and make rhetorical speeches about reproduction,  men refusing ordination to a religion which denies it to women, that'll be the day, or anyone speaking up when your immigrant friend isn't being served lunch when you are, at the same table, yes, this happens.   If you don't walk the walk you're not an ally.  Please remember to notice, act, be an ally 

One last note about brave young immigrants, this from today's local obituaries. She died a while back, but this just appeared.

Isn't she great? Someone who brought value!

Happy day everyone!

Midwinter fed up of cold and not seeing neighbors comfort food

As with a lot of neighborhoods, winter, even in a friendly place like mine, is when you rarely see the neighbors.  Nobody's outside having a nice chat and swopping cuttings and gossip.  The news everywhere is terrible, and I can only do so much activism. It's not so fun.

But comfort food does help.  I have a go-to soup that's easy to make, makes a lot, and never fails me.  It's just mixed vegetables. One big can of diced tomatoes (in season it would be fresh, but oh well), two or three cans of different sorts of beans, big chunk of parmesan cheese rind, garlic, onions, basil pesto, tomato paste, bit of curry powder, salt, chicken broth.  No recipe, really, just follow usual procedure for soup.  It's great, makes a lot if you want to, and you can freeze it.  This week it's cannellini and pink beans.  I like to use the stick blender toward the end just to break down enough to have a nice texture.

And it's good now and then to have a simple chocolate cake.  This is just that one everyone has, named crazy cake or something like that, I don't like that name, maybe we could call it easy chocolate cake, very simple stuff. Just flour, vanilla essence, cocoa powder, oil, baking soda, salt, warm water. I add in half a cup of crushed walnuts. And finish it with a water icing of cocoa powder and confectioner's sugar, water.  Note the cook has already tested this one.

Escape reading and noshing

In terrifying times, after we've done all the resistance work available to us, we need a bit of self care.  

This can be reading comic mysteries, like the Mrs. Pargeter series by Simon Brett, pic in poor lighting, so focus not so hot, but you get the gist

and making a batch of Crazy Chocolate Cake, iced with chocolate/walnut/peppermint icing.  

This is that dead simple recipe
 
 Both books and cake are failsafe! Both are recommended.