Reading Between the Lines

I opened the door to walk out and get the paper in this godforsaken heat at seven in the morning, and this fellow was staring at me. First of all, it must have taken him all day to get up the gigantic hill in our back yard to our FRONT door. Omg. Poor creature. 

Then, working in the book biz continues (to my utter shock and dismay). At times, my intermittent dealing with the public slowly erodes my faith in the future of humanity. Not that all book lovers are dealing a blow to my sensibility of our plight, but let's say if I have one more seventy year old woman ask me to look up five erotic-romance titles for her while she steadies herself on her walker, well, I think I might just leave the whole entire job behind with utterances of "WTF?!" I cannot make this up. I wish I could. But nope. When I come home and share these stories with DH, he laughs hysterically, shaking his head in disbelief.

March Gardening Chores and What the. . . Snow?! (And Books I'm Reading Now: Padma Lakshmi, and When Breath Becomes Air)

I'm so glad mother nature has a sense of humor. It's not unheard of to have snow in St. Louis in March or April for that matter. But this morning, it looked like a December morning when I pulled back the curtains and looked outside. The flakes were like wet cotton balls coming down. Very odd.

Taming the Introvert Anxiety with LOTS of Knitting (new career, more gray hair: I Want to Believe!)

Well, week one went off without a hitch. I arrived, I met, I chatted, I learned. In the evenings I crawled into my shell and collapsed into bed for very hard, long sleeps. I got up the next day and hit repeat. 

Suddenly our whole world has been turned on its head by the arrival of my new career/J-O-B. 

I am in the book business now. Books and people, how bad can it be you ask? Not bad at all. . . so far.

I love books. I love people who love books. I love reading. (Truth be told, not much of that going on now that I'm the working girl again--though I sneak in as much as I can in the wee hours of the mornings or late evenings right before bed.) The working girl in me says, "calm down, this is the chaos part", this is the remembering what it's like to be surrounded by noise, people, and strangers all day. The introvert in me climbs out of her shell (yes the one who has spent the last seven years and mostly every day surrounded by canines, plants, food and my own quiet pace and rhythm)--and crawls into the depths of business/work. It's going to be a long road to my fully grasping every little detail of my new role.

Roasted Corn, Avocado and Black Bean Salad (A Yankee as "Miss Maudie" reading . . . To Kill a Mockingbird)

This salad is a result of a time-honored tradition as head chef of this household: It's a hundred and thirty here in St. Louis. Cripes almighty! No cooking will happen--we are all raw foods here. This salad took literally five minutes to prep. I have tomatoes and cucumbers galore from the garden--I pulled out whatever else I had on hand to make a lovely main-dish salad. It was dressed with a yummy balsamic vinaigrette and fresh lemon juice. I had so little energy yesterday afternoon, I could barely scoop the avocado from its shell. Chopping and peeling the cucumber from the garden nearly did me in. And the corn roasting part!--I was able to muster only because I had made a quick dash to the store after my morning run, husked it right away and put in a bag in the fridge. All I had to do was place the corn over the open flame of the stove for a few seconds to add a nice color of "I-worked-hard-to-make-you-a-salad-for-dinner" appeal. Simple. Straightforward and filling. I topped the salad with some quinoa for an extra protein boost. Salads are an essential summer staple right now. 

Vegan Banana Flaxseed Quick Bread (finished reading "Wild", now I want to hike the Pacific Crest Trail, too. . . except for this one little thing)

The bananas were a buck sixty-nine. For a whole bag! I love a deal. I love what my house smells like when I bake banana bread, too. There's no substitute for baked banana bread smell wafting through the home: no candle company, no spray, no plug-in fake smell thingy that does banana bread justice. I would have been content to eat this entire loaf for dinner last night. The bread literally takes only five minutes to prep, then bakes for about forty-five minutes and viola, you've got breakfast, snack time and late night all zipped up. There will be much banana bread, banana smoothie and banana cupcake happenings around here in the coming week. What I don't bake up, I'll peel and store in a plastic bag in the freezer for later.

Sabih and Zhough: 'Jerusalem' Cookbook Inspired (And. . . For the Love of Book Fairs and Great Finds)

Sabih was never going to be something I just thought, "Oh, how about Sabih tonight?" Yes, if I'd had the chance to bond further with my Croatian born grandfather, perhaps a food trip or two would have been in order (I happen to know he loved food as much as my father did and as much as I do)--I may have encountered something akin to this dish on one of our excursions. But perhaps not. This is, according to my cookbook Jerusalem, a dish not from Jerusalem, but "developed by Iraqi Jews settling in the 1950s in the city of Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv". Who knew? Ottolenghi says this eggplant/pita (yes I made my own spelt pitas to go with this) with yummy filling is "exciting street food". Well, for me, this dish is seasonal and super flavorful and exciting vegan dinner food. Made with eggplants I bought local-- because I can't get an eggplant to grow to save my life--combined with the other components (pictured below) and the husband and I were smitten throughout the entire meal. Here's a link to the full recipe. I added some left over vegan meatballs to this, just in case you wondered what that other non-eggplant looking item on the pita was. They, by the way, made a devilishly good addition to the sabih. In most instances the dish is served with hard boiled eggs. 

Canning: Homemade Chocolate Cherry Preserves (And Summer Reading List Part Two)

I never saw my grandmother canning with chocolate. Grapes? Yes. Chocolate? No. If you're thinking OMG, this sounds crazy good. It is. Trust me. What else does one do when it's a hundred degrees outside? Why can, of course!

Vegan Espresso Coffee Cake with Chocolate Chunk Crumble (My Own "Tara" and Why Gone with the Wind. . . Finally!)

Lordy, how long's it been since I last baked a cake for crying out loud?! My cake cravings kicked into high gear late yesterday afternoon. (So getting dinner finished sort of took a back seat. Sorry, honey.) Chocolate AND espresso are mandatory items to have on hand if you are to truly enjoy the finer points of what makes this coffee cake--well, a coffee cake.  

M.F.K. Fisher's Ginger Hottendots (Grateful for The Love of A Good Book And of Baking)

If there is one thing that heals, it's baking. I cannot tell you the number of times I've worked through grief via my kitchen. It must be in the hundreds. It's a gravitational force that beckons me forth: Here. Come in here. Preheat. Mix. Bake. Taste. There. It's all much better now.

The shift in the house from one less member is going to take some time to "deal with". I deal better with it if I am kept busy. I sat in the corner of my kitchen yesterday afternoon (god it was an awful day outside--cold, dark, rainy--very Novemberish) my feet propped up under me on my favorite kitchen stool, next to the bookshelf of baking cookbooks, pouring over the "cookie" sections. Because we needed some cookies. Because it is cookie-baking season and because I know that the instant that oven preheats and the aroma of cinnamon and ginger begin co-mingling with the everyday smells of us living here--it will override everything else. The mind will focus on other matters evoking pleasure: cookies. 

White Bean And "Lotsa" Garlic Sage Soup with Swiss Chard (From My November Garden. . . Now Reading "Rin Tin Tin" by Susan Orlean And Realizing Again Why I Love Dogs So Dang Much)

This soup originally began as a simple white bean and garlic/sage soup. It evolved as I cooked. I added carrots, fresh and canned tomatoes, then some garden finds. It was delicious. It was just what I needed to finish my day. I was recovering from a morning of stress. I wanted something simple. Our boy's eating had stalled again. Nothing since Friday night. Oh, a kibble here and there--and maybe a few treats. Here we go again, I thought. I called the vet yesterday and asked for insight into the "what now" question. Does he need antibiotics again, or another round of steroids. They said steroids--at least this would stimulate his appetite. So off I went for yet another visit to the vet. My fourth in a month. Sigh. 

Vegan Roasted Butternut Squash And Garlic Soup with Pistachio Crumbles (Now Sewing "The Jacket" and Now Reading "The Help")

I know it's fall "officially" but I really didn't begin to feel fall until last night as the aroma of roasted butternut squash and a whole head of garlic began to fill the house. Now. It's. Fall. I bought a really good looking squash (not too big, not too small. . . just medium-ish) when they started to look like they might withstand a few weeks or longer on my kitchen counter. In this case, "longer" is the operative word--said squash was purchased about a month ago. I don't know why, but I find having a squash on hand during the months of September through March sort of an imperative. This little guy shared a spot in a bowl with some apples. I thought they made a nice arrangement. A "fall bounty" aesthetic. So now after having successfully enjoyed the heck out of this soup, I wonder if I've accidentally discovered a way to increase the shelf life of the butternut by pairing it with apples? Yes, these are the things I contemplate. Food shelf life. 

Vegan Raisin Bran Muffins (And. . . Why Book Stores Matter)

Nothing keeps me full and satisfied like eating cardboard for breakfast. I am not a newbie to the "fiber" trend. I have always believed that if you ate wood chips for breakfast, you'd not want more wood chips the rest of the day. And this is pretty much how I roll when it comes to baking with bran: the bulkier, the better. I've had these muffins for breakfast now for the past four days. I can attest to their sticks-to-your-ribs quality. They are superb for keeping the mid afternoon cravings at bay, but I cannot promise you will dodge the four-o'clock munchies.

Ginger Miso Soba Noodle Soup (Great paired with Jonathan Franzen's new novel "Freedom".)

Taking measures to cure yourself with soup is nothing new. I remember the cans and cans of Campbell's Chicken Noodle soup I would be forced to sip from as I lay sick in bed being tended to by my mother. That was about the extent of her capability to "help" her sick kid. (This is the same mother who left me writhing in pain when I told her I think I broke my arm and said, Here, take two aspirin, I'm sure you'll be fine--I can't worry about this now, I have a meeting to go to!. . . two hours later after her "meeting" was over, finally capitulated, taking me in for x-rays only to discover that my arm was indeed broken--a clean split--suddenly felt like the Mother-of-The-Year award would not be graced upon her lovely soul.) Mom, if you are up there, I finally think I can forgive you for that. But only maybe.

Raspberry Chocolate Chip Buckle (Weekend Full of "Framily", Cookbooks, Sewing, Meeting Sophie, Etc.)

I am a pushover when it comes to anything remotely in the "coffee cake, crumb cake, buckle, tea cake" category. Just say cinnamon crumbles and I fall in love instantly. If you've got a few minutes to bake today, make this "raspberry chocolate chip buckle/cobbler", now! This recipe didn't start out as a raspberry chocolate chip kind--I really wanted a blueberry buckle. With no blueberries in the house, I settled for raspberries--then the chocolate chips make an appearance, too. To me, this version is possibly better than the blueberry version. The jury is out on that and I'll let you know when I make the other. I'd say this cake is in the same camp as the coffee cake--but would be pulling double duty in this house as I wanted something with just a hint of chocolate, some fruit (for sure) and that oh-so-delightful cinnamon crumb topping. (My favorite part, personally.) With the summer winding down, it makes perfect sense to dive into the last vestiges of ripe fruit in the seemingly little time we have left. Hard to believe our summer fling will be over soon--not soon enough for me, thank you very much. This treat will take you through the week, and even steps in nicely as dessert duty if you warm it slightly and top it off with some vegan vanilla ice cream. My buckle adaptation is from one of the best cookbooks ever published: The King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking cookbook. I turned their Blueberry Buckle into this winner, making the following changes--vegan unsalted margerine sticks, Ener-G Egg Replacer for eggs, a bit of nutmeg in the crumble--plus I added a bit of almond extract in the batter, too. I used frozen raspberries--two cups, and 1/3 cup of mini chocolate chips--folding in at the end of the mixing of the batter because to "overmix" this sort of cake treat would be bad karma.  

Right after we dug in. This is truly a sublime any-time-of-year treat.

Peas in The Pod (Day One on The Eat to Live Formula Plus Summer Reading List: Laura Bush)

The pea is one of the most fascinating of all vegetables I grow. One of the tastiest, too. Not many pods even make it into the house--I just snip and eat right out in the yard. Thus, no photo of some yummy pea pod dish this morning. (Maybe later.) I cannot fathom the energy it takes to go from a tiny pea to this goliath vine forever climbing and strethching toward the sun--until the last pod is formed and then suddenly the plant says: enough and vines turn yellow and wither. I love the peas!

You cannot miss this towering square foot of peas. Your eye is drawn in by them towering over everything else. I planted the peas this year next to spinach (behind it) and in front of it--corn and cabbage and brussel sprouts. As the pea vines began to climb, I would train them to not creep over to the side and onto other "ground" items within their growing space. The pea vines are very fragile, so handle with a light touch!

My summer reading list. So far. I am a big reader. I am also a big fan of Laura Bush. (My political leanings may be fodder for another post--not today's).

My new pursuit and interests are taking me down the Eat to Live path as well as dabbling in raw foods while I am at it. I also love a bit of fiction from my library. My summer reading list cup runneth over.

The bellflower--native to Missouri. This grows on a lovely ground cover vine, and then suddenly you have these stems growing up from it--nice and straight--and finally these beautiful flowers form--they are so fun!

While I'm at it, I thought it might be fun to plant blueberries, blackberries and some grapes this spring. We've also just purchased two apple trees, a peach tree and an apricot tree--more on those later.

I finally finished the borders on my quilt! I love it! Now I need to put the backing on. Since this is my first quilt, I am going to need input on the matter of stitching and "finishing" my project. I know it's not rocket science, but I would feel much better with some assistance, so off to my sewing store I go tomorrow! Plus I've enrolled in a beginner sewing class in which we are going to make this super retro, super cute apron. I figure a fresh immersion in "sewing" basics couldn't hurt. (Plus I just had to have this apron--it screamed my name!)

*This is kind of a long post, but we're starting down a new path, it's a new month, etc. Feel free to skip this one. But you might find something interesting. . .maybe.

Where's the vegan food you ask? It'll be back real soon y'all. Lately, I have had my hands FULL with all things "yard". Our outside to-do list never seems to end this time of year. My mowing alone takes me about three hours every four days. Plus I require a full day to recover from the whole sweaty mess--especially in this monster heat we've had. (A wonderful workout in its own right. The other day, I used my pedometer to see how far I walked when I mowed: three miles--of HARD walking!) Plus the heat we're experiencing brings really humid, miserable days with it. It's not for the faint of heart. I like to call this "swamp" living. I keep telling Mr. Thyme I want to retire ABH: anywhere but here--further north--this heat kills me. But then he argues back, "You'll regret it when it's March and there's three feet of snow on the ground and the first day for gardening doesn't happen until May." My reply, "More knitting time for me."