No Mojo

Pattern:  7-Stitch Per Inch Socks 

from Ann Budd's "Getting Started Knitting Socks"

Yarn:  Cascade Heritage Sock Yarn

Needles: Size 2

I seem to have lost my cooking mojo. Not sure where it went but it's not in my kitchen at the moment. I did actually bake bread yesterday and I went to the grocery store and cooked a good supper last night, but just basic cooking--no new recipes to share. For a while now, we've been playing the "wonder-what-can-we-have-for-supper-without-going-to-the-store-game." It was time to stop!

Mommy and both sisters were here for supper and as Mommy watched me cook, she would occasionally comment, "Oh, that's how you do that." There are so many cooking things that I do without thinking. That happens after about 40 years in the kitchen. Recipes are great but they don't always teach you the little things. Sometimes just hanging out in the kitchen with your mother is the best way to learn. I wish I had watched better when my mother-in-law baked biscuits. Writing down a "recipe" wouldn't not have produced the same results. Her biscuits were light enough to float off the plate. We won't talk about my attempts.

While I haven't cooked as much lately, I did finish a pair of socks for Granddaddy. He likes the socks and is happy to have them, but I think he's ready for me to get back in the kitchen.

Saturday Night Out

Last night when we got to Baby Sister's house to baby sit so Mommy and Daddy could go out for dinner and a movie, Big Sister had just dressed her baby sister in one of her favorite shirts. 

There was some serious engineering required to make the shirt fit. Hair clips and rubber bands worked well. Big Sister is a clever girl.

It was Baby Sister's first time styling sequins. It looked like she thought it was a good thing. Big Sister has always loved dressing up her dolls. Now she has a real doll to play with. 

Baby Sister had a surprise for us, too. We had seen her for just a couple of minutes on Wednesday before we left for the mountains and she was doing her usual step-step-step-step-step-sit routine. Most times she would take 5 or 6 steps before she would plop down on her knees or her bottom. A few times we counted about 15 or 16 steps, but never any more. But when we got there last night, she was just walking all over the place. Across the room. Anywhere she wanted to go. What a difference a couple of days made.

After supper we decided to have our own movie night. Baby Sister only lasted through the first few minutes before she was rubbing her eyes and was ready for bed. 

Coming down the road just before midnight, Granddaddy said, "It's been a long times since we've been out this late on a Saturday night." Yep, our definition of "going out" is not what it used to be. 

Renewal

One of the perks of being "grandparent" age is having the ability to take a mid-week vacation. Just a couple of days when the rates are cheaper and the crowds are smaller. Granddaddy and I took a quick trip up the road for some rest and renewal. It was perfectly okay that it rained most of yesterday. We were cozy inside by the fire. This morning we got to watch a little snow fall as we sipped our coffee. And then we were home in time for lunch. Just a nice little get-away.

Baby Sister Says...

"It's more fun when they let Granddaddy tend to me!"

Sunshine On A Cloudy Day

 

It was cloudy all day yesterday. Today is even darker and it's raining. I just couldn't face another day of knitting dark gray socks. This the second pair of dark gray socks in a row. Plus, I'm right at the heel of this last sock--not a good place to carry the sock around with me to knit. I need to sit in one place--preferably a quiet place--to knit the heel. Then it can go back on the road with me, riding along in my bag so that I can pull it out for a few rows here and there.

So when Mommy needed an early morning baby sitter this morning, I grabbed a pair of needles and a new ball of yarn as I walked out the door. Bright colored yarn. Baby Sister needs a new hat.  And before she woke up, I had a good start on this one.

This yarn was like a fuzzy rainbow after knitting miles and miles of dark gray. 

I made one last trip up the stairs to check on Baby Sister before I left and I discovered she had just woken up. Now THIS was the sunshine my day really needed!

Mommy Cooks

I was so happy to find this photo in my emails this morning. And then the next email with the recipe. I've had no recipes to share this week. The kitchen in my house must be out of order. (It must be the kitchen-- it couldn't be me, could it?)  The best supper I had here all week was a bowl of Cheerios. I kept thinking about grocery shopping but I just never actually went to the store. We pulled leftover pizza out of the freezer last night. Sad.

One afternoon this week when Baby Sister was here, she had fun pulling cookbooks off the shelf in the kitchen. When Mommy was picking them up, she found Busy Moms Weeknight Favorites (an old Southern Living cookbook) in the pile. I told her since she is the "busy mom" now, to take it home with her.

So happy that she is actually using the cookbook. She made this for their supper last night and said the recipe is a "keeper." So I am delighted to have her recipe to share. Who knows....maybe we will have it for supper tonight. If the kitchen "works."

SAUTÉED TILAPIA WITH LEMON-PEPPERCORN SAUCE

1-1/2 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

1 Tbsp. drained brine-packed green peppercorn, lightly crushed

6 tsp., butter or margarine, divided

2 tsp. vegetable oil

4 (6-oz.) tilapia or sole fillets

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 all-purpose flour

lemon wedges (optional)

1. Combine first three ingredients; set aside.

2. Melt 2 tsp. butter with oil in a large skillet over low heat.  While butter melts, sprinkle fish with salt and pepper.  Place flour in a shallow dish.  Dredge fillets in flour, shaking off excess flour.

3. Increase heat to medium-high; cook the butter and oil mixture 2 minutes or until butter turns golden brown.  Add fillets to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until fish flakes with a fork.  Remove fillets from pan.

4. Add broth mixture to pan, scraping to loosen browned bits.  Bring to a boil; cook until reduced to about 1/2 cup.  Remove from heat.  Stir in remaining 4 tsp. butter with a whisk.  Spoon sauce over fillets.  Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.

Makes 4 servings

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook:12 minutes

MOMMY'S NOTES:

- I was unable to find brine-packed green peppercorns, so I substituted ground green peppercorn.

- I substituted house seasoning* for salt and pepper.

- We served this with quinoa and steamed broccoli.

*House Seasoning: 4 tbsp. salt, 1 tbsp. ground black pepper, 1 tbsp. garlic powder. Mix. Store in an airtight container.

Bang!

Our 2012 started with a bang! Literally. After cooking our collards the day before, I let them simmer for a long time last night while I cooked the rest of the supper. Just minutes before we were ready to eat, I heard a loud bang. The glass lid on the pot had shattered. It was safety glass, so most of the glass remained intact. But I could see just a few very tiny, very shiny glass fragments around the gas burner. Enough to make the wonder if some had fallen into the pot. So we could only look at the good greens that almost made it to the table.

But it was New Year's Day--we HAD to have collards. I had bought a couple of cans of collards the day before because a friend who owns a local restaurant told me this brand was really good. Thanks to her recommendation, we did have collards after all. Not the same, but we did manage to keep the tradition going. Thank goodness for canned vegetables.

The rest of the supper was fine, though. My personal favorite of the meal (besides the marinated pork) was the cornbread. I love this recipe. It's a good, moist cornbread. We've made it many times. It's easy to make--mostly dump in the ingredients and stir it up. When I make it for just the two of us, I will put half in the freezer for later. It's just as good when you pull it out and reheat it. 

Corny Cornbread

1/2 cup vegetable oil (plus extra for greasing the pan)

1-3/4 cups self-rising cornmeal mix

1 cup cream-style corn 

2 eggs

1 cup sour cream (the light kind works just as well)

1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Generously grease a 7x11-inch baking pan or a 10-inch cast iron skillet with cooking oil. Preheat the pan in the oven. 

Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl, stirring with a spoon until combined. Pour batter into the preheated pan. Place pan in the oven and bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve hot.

If you've heated the pan long enough, the batter will sizzle when it hits the hot pan. Sometimes I heat it long enough. Sometimes I don't. The difference? If the pan is hot enough, you'll get a good crust on the cornbread. Don't worry if yours doesn't sizzle. It will still be good, but the crust will not quite as crispy.

I used Martha White buttermilk cornbread mix for this because it's my favorite brand. I also like Cope's frozen creamed corn, but it's hard to find. Use whatever kind you can find--frozen or canned. 

Baby Sister had her first taste of collards last night. Wish I'd had the camera at the table. She was not a fan of cooked greens. She made quite a face as she spit them out. Maybe it's an acquired taste. She did gobble up her share of peas, cornbread and sweet potatoes. She might not have folding money this year, but her piggy bank should be full of coins!