Friday knitting joy, fish pie and winnowing

Today was the Day of the Fish Pie. I've never had it, never made it, just heard it referred to, so  I though I'd look at a few recipes to get the general idea.

A base of white fish, layer of mixed vegetables , cheese sauce over, top lid of mashed potatoes. 

So I figured everything's cooked, then the time in the oven just heats up and blends the flavors

So

Cod, cilantro, potatoes, carrots, chard, scallions,  cheddar and Parmesan cheese, salt, nutmeg, berbere 

I spiced the chard heavily with berbere, steamed the carrots, microwaved the potatoes, poached the fish in milk, some of which I added to the potatoes to mash them with butter

The rest of the milk went into the cheese sauce. Fish layered in buttered glass dish

 cooked vegetables next, cheese sauce poured over, some cheese saved for the top of the pie 

Mashed potato on top 350f about 25 minutes, all bubbling and smelling very good 

And here's lunch. Five more meals in this dish, which is why it was worth all the steps. It's a complete meal, and I think poaching the fish, which I've never done before, was a good idea. In fact the whole thing was a good idea. 

The nutmeg against the fish worked, and the berbere in the vegetables wasn't too strong, because of the blandness of the fish and potato combo, so that worked. 

All in all, worth a bit of trouble.  I learned a few things, too, always a Good Thing (tm).

This afternoon was the knitting group, and this wonderful piece, part of a cowl, by Sandy, starred

Less glamorously, today's winnowing

We're a little past halfway through my allotted winnowing season, and I'm starting to run out of material.  I suppose this is good. There's always paperwork, though.

And the puzzle answer is

NINETEEN!

Not so obscure once you know the answer, but quite opaque until then. Caro was on it right away.

Happy day everyone, try something new. Or don't. You're the boss of you.

Answers to two puzzles, lunch and knitting

I'm trying the idea of blogging in the evening, just as a change from writing in the morning, brain semi functioning, eyes not yet focused. Maybe evening will work better.

Today ze moment of trrrruth, the mystery next door is solved

I'd say that's conclusive evidence that they're renovating a bathroom. I rest my case.

And the carrot/lentil soup is beautiful, golden power soup,  part of an excellent lunch, here with pita bread filled with fresh spinach and mashed sardines in olive oil, handful of cherries to follow. 

 A different form of food is this book I just started

She's a serious knitter ss well as writer, who traveled about Britain researching knitting traditions and styles and trying them herself . 

Looking forward to this and hoping she doesn't retail any of the knitting myths which are constantly being Snoped and still circulating. 

Like the one about the women knitting special designs into their fishermen relatives' sweaters so as to identify them if they drowned.   

I mean, if that had been an issue, how much easier to knit in his name, as one myth exploder says! Too true, but people insist on romantic stories to the point of inventing them.

Anyway, on to the other puzzle which I think a number of people got, the eight letter word beginning and ending with ke.

KEEPSAKE.  It seemed impenetrable at first and I tried various hopeless words before it occurred to me. 

Debra and Tom are the lightning swift puzzlers around here, I think, over the horizon, while the rest of us are panting up the straightaway to the finish a bit later.

Happy day, or evening, everyone, may all your puzzles become self evident.

Oh, since everyone has been too exquisitely polite to ask if this virus which may, don't look now, be lifting, was maybe Covid, and had I had the sense to check: I did a home test. Negative. 

So I'm still a Novid. It's a nonCOVID virus, who knows what, possibly RSV. But thankfully going away now.