Mark – Page 10 – Marked Up

Trendsetting

I can’t help it. It just happens. As you can see, I was collecting snowman heads long before every Metal band and their brother were singing about the need to “hew many snowmen”. It’s a heavy burden.

I have no idea if that’s the real name of it. Judging by the results of searching the Intertubes, it’s not. That’s the name I learned, so I’m sticking with it unless or until someone provides the actual name. First, why am I bothering to post this? If nothing else, I referenced it at theContinue reading “The Aunt Mary Game”

Needy Macaroni

I just can’t help but snipe at serenity. This is version two of Nidi di Ronide from The Most Serene Republic of San Marino (version one, for backstory). The differences: To roll the noodles, I decided that an eighth of the dough at a time was a good amount, mainly because it’s easy to measureContinue reading “Needy Macaroni”

Learning 2 Bake from Scratch – LXII

Peanut Butter Cookie Perfection I consider this not only “learned” but “perfected”. I can’t imagine them getting any better. Third time is the charm. The first batch was the original recipe, which was tasty, but a bit dry. The second batch had less flour, which made them less dry (more moist sounds vaguely icky) butContinue reading “Learning 2 Bake from Scratch – LXII”

Learning 2 Bake from Scratch – LXI

Peanut Butter Cookies Nobody makes peanut butter cookies for Christmas, so I have a good chance to be unique. I went to the Farmer’s Market (mostly to return a big pile of canning jars) and bought more white chocolate peanut butter. I followed my own suggestion and they turned out better with less flour. ThisContinue reading “Learning 2 Bake from Scratch – LXI”

Mac & Cheese

Last week, my work had a “how to make a comfort food lunch” webinar. They do a “how to make healthy lunches” thing every now and again and that was the most recent. Our intrepid nutritionist made macaroni and cheese. It seemed to take too long and I have a Cook’s Illustrated recipe that I’veContinue reading “Mac & Cheese”

Millennia of Dreams – Crushed

It takes a special sort of culture to turn millennia of human dreams into a soul crushing experience. I suppose one can take a certain sort of pride in that. I am speaking, of course, of flying. The vast amounts of money involved make the situation far bleaker than the spiritual pain. Humanity can finallyContinue reading “Millennia of Dreams – Crushed”

Learning 2 Bake from Scratch – LX

Angel Food Comparison I was in the mood for baking on Sunday (it was gloomy and there were snow flurries). I didn’t find a cookie recipe in Grandma’s cookbook that caught my fancy, but I did find five angel food cake recipes. I had been wondering if angel food cake required that special pan. ItContinue reading “Learning 2 Bake from Scratch – LX”

InstaPot vs Dutch Oven

I recently watched a “kitchen on $300” YouTube video by Brian Lagerstrom: Nothing surprised me, although I may buy a Y-peeler when my current “normal” peeler gets dull. The Dutch Oven vs Crock Pot comments were interesting, so I thought I’d try an experiment. I have both an Instapot and Dutch oven – and IContinue reading “InstaPot vs Dutch Oven”

Garden Beds Done

At least for this year. I wanted to get the “roadside” beds done before the deck went in. Mission accomplished – due more to delayed deck building than the garden bed project completing expeditiously. That’s the ground-level view. Here’s what it looks like from the window: I see no sense in adding soil, now. I’llContinue reading “Garden Beds Done”