Munchy Monday: Best Ever Thai Peanut Sauce

 Last week I became edgy for some fresh spring rolls.  I called the restaurant where a friend and I enjoyed the buffet and where I ate at least two and possibly three of them.  I wanted something yummy to eat.  The telephone number was not answered.  When I went to Google to see if I had the right number, there in red letters Google said, "permanently closed"!  What a sad sad thing.  The lady was older and I can understand but I am sad.

So I decided to make some fresh spring rolls myself.  I did it, too.  They were not very pretty but they tasted fine.  ESPECIALLY after I made the Thai Peanut Sauce below!

Thai Peanut Sauce

1/3 cup peanut butter
1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
1 Tablespoon maple syrup
1 Tablespoon Bragg's Liquid Aminos
1 large clove garlic
2-3 Tablespoons water

Since we have a Vitamix that uses the 8 ounce cups I put all the ingredients in one of the cups, installed it on the blender base and blended for 60 seconds.  I used 2 Tablespoons water first them thought I would used 2 more Tablespoons water.  This entailed removing the cup for the blender and adding more water.  It worked out.

This peanut sauce was so light and fluffy I could have just eaten it all with a spoon, but I did not!  I dipped the falling-apart spring rolls into a small bowl of sauce and really enjoyed myself. I offered some to Dear One but he was happily eating pizza and refrained.  More for me.  

Since I am trying to be more health-conscious this year there is still some sauce in the refrigerator...people should be impressed that I did not eat it all.

It appears that I did not photograph the peanut sauce!  Here are the spring rolls however. You can see they are kind of a disaster but they tasted good. Only vegetables and a sliced dill pickle spear inside.  Pretty yummy.

Food Friday: 1-1 Waffles

 Another "while watching YouTube or Facebook" recipe suggestion found while on vacation: 1-1 Waffles.

In this case there were two ingredients: self-rising flour and Greek yogurt.  At least, we used Greek yogurt.  The batter was so robust I needed a little plant milk to loosen it up.  The batter was still stiff enough that it did not drip off the spoon.

We have one of those little Dash individual tiny waffle makers. Dear One wanted waffles for breakfast.  After a brief though heart-felt sigh, I retired to the kitchen to make waffles.  (I actually had other things on my mind to do at that time...)

In this case I used the last 1 cup of self-rising flour and 1 cup Greek yogurt in the refrigerator which was not yet furry.  I did add possibly a tablespoon of soy milk then put a heaping serving spoon blob of batter/dough onto the middle of the heated little waffle maker then pushed down the lid to get the batter to the edges or so.  I let it cook through two cycles.

In the meantime I took two small Russett potatoes and 1 Yukon gold potato, also small, and washed and peeled them then using the box grater turned them into shreds.  All this potato prep time the real waffle maker was heating up.  After spraying the waffle plates with a little oil I distributed the shredded potatoes over the entire top and pushed down the lid.  After ten minutes I lifted so see the progress.  They were looking good but not crispy so I put the lid down again.  

After 16 minutes of cooking in the waffle iron Dear One was home from his bike ride so I served these hashed browns immediately.  I could not have done this if he had been home.  He LOVES hashed browns and always lifts the lid at the stove or the waffle maker.  This always somewhat irritates me because some things need to be left absolutely alone to cook in good shape until almost done before checking. Otherwise, they do not lift off the pan nicely.  At least that is my experience.

The hashed browns were superior, if I do say so myself.  They could have been better if I had put some chopped onions in with them which I will try next time just for the sport of it.  Also they could have used some seasoning but since I had my trusty dispenser of Old Bay seasoning readily to hand I was in great shape.  Dear One loved them.  If I get the rest of the jobs for today done in time I will make more for supper with the onions and maybe seasoning.

Nooch Disaster

 Starting right this moment I need to acknowledge that I am NOT a good housekeeper.  I need to change, repent, etc, immediately.

As a case in point a few weeks ago I got fed up with all the counter space in the kitchen being taken up with all kinds of good things.  I came to realize that my spirit needs empty space to thrive.  SO...I moved all the binders of recipes, exercises, healthy suggestions, etc out of the bookcase/cabinet in the dining room.  I then moved all the canning jars that held self-rising flour, dried beans, broccoli seeds for sprouting, and every other kind of good dry thing you can imagine that I had had around the edge of our counters against the wall since we moved here.  This only began the process of making empty spaces for my spirit to embrace and about which to sing.

This was a pretty good thing until the past weekend when I was looking to send some recipes to loved ones that I thought they would like.  In the meantime since I had placed the canning jars (half gallon, quart, pint, and half pint all on the same shelf...) I had printed out quite a few recipes that I wanted to try.  There was probably an inch deep pile of them.  They had been on the dining room table but I needed the table cleared for a paper-crafting project so I smartly shoved the recipes and other papers on top of the canning jar storage shelf.

Now to the actual story:  As I pulled out the glut of papers from the top of the jars, the quart jar of nooch (as nutritional yeast is fondly called by the whole food plant based eating crowd) fell to the floor.  The wonderful white sturdy Ball plastic widemouth top smashed as the nooch fell on the floor and spread widely around.  As a sadly normal state of affairs, I did not immediately clean up the mess.  I pulled out the recipe I wanted and put it in the mail and moved on to other things...forgetting all about the nooch disaster.  Yes, I did forget.  My mind had moved on to other things.

The next day or so I was sitting down for a meal at the table and noticed the nooch and also the broken plastic cover.  As I looked at the cover (after picking it up) I noticed it was a sort of half-moon shape.  Immediately I thought that would help me with the Gelli printing I have been working on. I am trying texture now as well as color.  I thought this would be a great texturizing implement.

Mind you, I still had not cleaned up the mess.

Late last night after coming home from a Council meeting I saw that nooch again, and even though I was so tired I just wanted to crawl into bed, maybe even with my shoes on, I went to the garage where the broom corn broom is stored. I prefer that broom.  The nasty icky plastic broom we have in the cleaning closet it not my thing at all!  Anyway, I swept it up. Put it in the waste basket and put away the broom and dust to their separate homes. Probably half a cup of nutritional yeast was wasted.  The jar had not smashed and there still is about half a jar left.

This morning as we were on our way to the temple at the crack of dawn I asked Dear One if he had noticed that I had cleaned up the nooch.  Nope.  Oh well.  A good job should be its own reward...!

NO!!  I was not playing in the mess. I was totally oblivious to it and as I moved my chair out from the table and back in under the table after a meal or two this lovely design was made.  I should have taken a picture of the empty floor but failed to do so.  You will just have to take my word for it that I did, finally, clean up a mess I had made. I did NOT ask Dear One to do it...I feel somewhat virtuous on THAT account...though on no other account of this whole deplorable situation.

Munchie Monday: 3-2-1 Pancakes

 Last week while we were on vacation someone had a recipe posted on Facebook or YouTube or some other place that I saw for 3-2-1 Pancakes.  Because it looked pretty healthy I decided to make them when we got home.  ESPECIALLY since I had a bunch of five VERY ripe bananas.  We were so happy with the bananas because we found them at Piggly Wiggly. As my sister and I were going through the produce section we got to the bananas which I wanted to add to the cart.  There were a few bunches with plastic wrap all around them.  A sign nearby said, "Packaged Bananas Free To A Good Home".  That was definitely us so I picked up two packs.  We ate one immediately but then vacation was over.

So here is the recipe:

3 very ripe bananas
2 cups uncooked oatmeal (not instant)
1 cup plant milk

Mix all ingredients together and fry on a non-stick frying pan.

This was our breakfast on Saturday morning. 

Instead of mixing them in a bowl I put them into the blender and blended for 60 seconds.  I also added 1 heaping teaspoon ground cinnamon and 1 Tablespoon ground flax seed for added nutrition.

Since I do not trust non-stick pans with pancake batter, I brushed a little bit of oil on the hot pan.  One thing I have learned about cooking pancakes: ALWAYS HEAT THE PAN FIRST before putting on the batter. If you don't you are pretty much assured of a nasty mess which puts you off the bother of making breakfast from scratch.

The report from the dining room table by Dear One after eating his pancakes:  they were pretty sturdy.  Not light and fluffy.  He had not trouble eating them with Vermont maple syrup on top however...!

This is the last pancake that I just barely was able to photograph before consumption.  I thought they were okay, too.  Not so great that I wanted to throw caution to the wind and fill my plate but certainly edible.

Knitting Today: Spa Headband

 Many years ago I was visiting our daughter in Logan, Utah.  She was attending Utah State University.  As we were getting ready for bed she put on a wide headband before washing her face and putting on night cream.  I thought that was a great idea.  Having said that, I never purchased such a headband and I never made one.  Until today!

As I was talking with my sister  before she returned home, I told her I thought the coconut oil and frankincense she had given me this summer was good for my skin...but that my hair always got into and became oily and icky.  For some reason that reminded me of our daughter's headband. I started looking on YouTube for a knitted spa headband.  And found one.  Only one.  Lots of fabric ones.  Lots of crocheted ones.  One knitted one.  Probably there are more there but I tired of looking and wanted to get on with it!

As it happens I had already started packing up the car to go home so it was not such a slog in the morning but I had retained a ball of cotton yarn and my little knitting tools bag which included the new VERY EXPENSIVE crochet hook I purchased when we arrive on the island last week for a crochet project I was going to try.  More about that later...!

The headband has only fifteen stitches on the needles and starts with a crocheted provisional cast on. I had to try this cast on a couple times before the stitches were even but then it went like a charm.

The pattern stitch is a forgotten rib or some such thing.  An easy two-row repeat for 18 inches then Kitchener stitch bind off.  Set up row is Knit Across. Row 1: Slip 1 purlwise, K1, P1 across ending K1.

Row 2: Slip 1 purlwise, Knit Across.

That is it.

YouTube Megan whose pattern this is made a tiny "headband" which she put around the middle of the headband to make it cute.  I did not.  Shortly after finishing it I did put it on and slathered the coconut oil and frankincense onto my face.  It took quite a while to sink into my skin but right now my skin feels soft as a baby's behind. Well, one side of my face-the one which had the ghastly chemo cream treatment this year.  The other side is now rougher, even though it was only a year and a half ago that I had that treatment. Oh, well.

More on the headband:  I used US #8 needles and Sugar and Cream worsted weight yarn because these were in my bag.

Knitting Today: Potpourri Bag

 Some months ago I was watching a podcast by Arne and Carlos.  They mentioned a free pattern they had uploaded.  I looked at it, loved it, and downloaded it.  Then it sat and sat waiting for me to do something with it. Sadly, I don't know how to locate the pattern currently.

Because of the failed yarn kit delivery and the project I wanted to do while on vacation and since I had brought yarn enough to make this pattern I got started.  

The above photo is the bag on Monday.  Along with a few feet and other extraneous background features...

Today I finished it. Here is the bag (above) with the design showing.

Here is the bag sitting up and ready to insert potpourri into it.  I gave it to my sister.  We asked for potpourri at a shop in Sea Pines but they did not carry it.  They DID carry blueberry ghost pepper jam, however!  Not my cup of tea at all.

Relief Society Activity: My Favorite Things

 At our Relief Society activity this month we are going to share Our Favorite Things...at least one of them!  For some people our favorite thing is actually a physical thing. For other people favored things are mental or spiritual.  Or crafts or hobbies or foods.  This evening I was talking with JS who knew I could not attend the meeting. She suggested I blog about my things, so here it is.

For myself, I actually have many favorite things!  Which can be a problem.

Three I will mention here.  One is my love of knitting.  Many years ago I became somewhat disabled and had to be in bed for a year.  I then had to spend a great deal of time sitting.  That was such a problem for me.  No longer being a productive member of society, and especially my family, was a very bad thing for my mind and spirit.  SO...I tried to think of what I could do with the constraints I had. 

Knitting became my new dear friend.  I could sit and knit.  I could produce gifts for family and friends. I could make beautiful things. I could make useful things.  To this day I love to knit and always have one or more projects going.

My new goal is to record all knitting and crocheting in my Ravelry feed.  Ravelry was started in 2007 as I recall and was meant as a tool for people to record the yarns they had on hand and the needles and other tools  they had.  This would help people get organized and save them money because they would not buy multiple sets of needles they did not need nor yarn that they already had in stash. It started out that way for me but then I fell off the wagon...sort of like every other good progress in my life!

There are two projects that I have not recorded that I am currently working on or have completed.  One of my intentions for this year is to be a monogamous knitter.  So far so good.  I had ordered a kit to work on while on vacation but the Post Office failed me.  The kit was to arrive on Thursday but did not.  It arrived on Friday after we left so I was pretty happy I had packed some alternative projects to work on.  With the ankle and foot issues currently on board I knew I would need to do a lot of sitting...so knitting and crocheting was the thing.

The second favorite "thing" is friends.  There are so many wonderful women who have been friends to me for decades and others who have been friends for only a short time.  How I love you all.  You make my heart sing.

The final favorite thing I want to mention is containers. I LOVE containers.  I love their shapes. I love their sizes. I love their usefulness.  In church on Sunday a lady, also a visitor here to the ward, had the most wonderful purse. I asked her about it.  It was a basket she found at Whole Foods.  WELL!  My sister and I went to Whole Foods yesterday and they still had the baskets!  I was so happy.  I picked one up.  It turned out my sister bought it for me.  She is so generous always.  Another of the many reasons I love her!

This is the perfect purse/basket for Sundays!  I can slip in my notebook and pen, my iPad, my phone, my keys, my ID and not a lot else.  Perfect.  Dear One just looked at me and smiled when I came home with it. He has given up suggesting that we have enough containers.  At least for this week...!

View From The Window Today!

We are blessed to be able to "Use up" some weeks when we were not able to take a vacation for about 4 years.  This week we are at a beautiful island paradise about three hours from home!  My sister and her husband are with us which makes it even sweeter.

This is from the "porch" outside our unit.  So beautiful! And comfortable.

Also:  right below us is a row of hammocks with little cupolas overhead.  PLUS--a rowboat swing!  So adorable.  People actually use the hammocks and this swing. When more than one person are in the rowboat it makes you wonder...

Top Down Button Front Capelet

 After finishing the test knit socks I immediately cast on this capelet to wear in the temple.  I hope it works the way I think it will!

Using Yarn Bee Must Be Merino yarn held two strands together and US Size 10 needles, it seems to be moving right along.  This will hopefully be another monogamous knitting project because I am expecting a knitting kit to come in the mail later this week. I plan to take that on vacation with us!

Here is shoulder detail of the FINISHED capelet!  It was about a three-day project.  I am writing this after the first to paragraphs.  THE KIT I NEED FOR VACATION HAS NOT ARRIVED!!!!!!  I am so disappointed.  As a result I opened a bag where the Sleeved Cable Poncho was that I started ten years ago or more.  I pulled all the rubbish out of the bag and found that the written pattern in not there!  So I went to the Mary Maxim website where I found the pattern but apparently not a pdf.  R-r-r!  Does this mean I am not supposed to knit on vacation?!  Well, I have other bags of started projects...

Anne Elliott Socks Test Knit Completed

 This test knit for Barnaby Knits who on YouTube is Tiny Desk Knitting was pretty fun and way faster than I thought it would be.  Monogamous knitting has its place in life!

This picture shows many of the stitch markers I used to keep track of where I was.  Also it shows the Fish Lips Kiss Heel which I love. I love the no holes and how easy it is to make a nice-fitting heel.

Here are the completed socks not shown in any kind of attractive way.   To see a description of this project go to my page on Ravelry.

Thai Peanut Sauce!

 A couple of days ago I saw that Jane and Ann Esselstyn had put up a new YouTube video.  It was about Thai Peanut Sauce I think from their new Warrior Women Cookbook. When I saw Thai Peanut Sauce in the notification I sat up and took notice.  I LOVE peanut sauce. And this one is easy and so good.

The way I heard them (I have not gotten the book yet, and frankly, I hope I don't...new year, new resolve to mind our bank account in a more serious way... because, well, I do have ENOUGH cookbooks.  Even enough vegan and vegetarian cookbooks!) this is the recipe. At least it is the way I made the recipe.

Thai Peanut Sauce

1 cup peanut butter (I used crunchy peanut butter since that is what Dear One likes)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup maple syrup (the real thing!)
2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
1 Tablespoon lime juice
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh ginger (mine was from the freezer where I had stored some a good bit of ginger  chunks without peeling it--and I still did not peel it. I figured the peel was good for fiber...)
A tiny pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup water

Put everything but the water into the food processor and let 'er rip for about 60 seconds then add the water and process again until all is combined.  Then pour it down the gullet in case you can't wait to get out some rice or vegetables or something else to pour it over.  

We had some leftover Mexican rice I had gooped up last week.  Dear One was eating it down happily but since I never mind gilding the lily I poured a little Thai Peanut Sauce over it.  So good. SO good.  Dear One asked what it was and when I told him he declined to eat any.  One day he will east some. I am confident but am NOT holding my breath!

Here is yet another unattractive photograph of food that we actually ate.  The globs on the side of the mason jar are little bits of fresh ginger.  I made this sauce in the Cuisinart food processor.  Next time I will use the high speed blender which will make the sauce smooth as ice.  Sometimes I actually do follow a recipe the way it is written but often only the first time.  Like today.  I am now thinking of making some fresh spring rolls to dip into this sauce!  Can you just imagine the culinary delight for your tongue from that combination!!!

Newsflash:  the only reason you are getting this recipe today is that I am writing it in the middle of the night...well, shortly after midnight.  When I made the sauce I happened to be barefoot, something I don't often do for the following reason:  when I brought the sauce to the table with the rest of the cullings from the refrigerator that were supper (we are going on vacation shortly and I want to leave the refrigerator empty, and maybe even clean...) I jammed my little toe into the chair leg.  I did not spill the sauce and even better, I did not curse!  (I asked Dear One if I cursed and he said not.  Thank goodness.  That is another one of my self-improvements hoped for for the new year.)

That is the same toe that I smashed into the door jamb when I was rushing out of my room at college at 602 North 1st West one day.  On that day I broke the toe.  Nothing to do about it but wear a tight shoe until the pain goes away.  I do believe I broke it again.  I had after the jamming episode put on my sneakers and thick socks which cushioned the toe but then was so unwise as to take off the shoes again while sitting in the tv room/Dear One's office before hobbling into our bedroom. When I rolled over in bed the sheets aggravated the poor little thing which woke me up, thus the writing which I remembered I had planned to do earlier today but did not get to. 

So the moral of the story is:  wear socks and shoes always. And BE CAREFUL WHERE YOU WALK!

Plus--make this sauce.  The cup of water makes it so you can feel a little better about the number of calories you are swilling down.  To make this sauce optimal, leave out the water and just dip things, like toast points or the aforementioned fresh spring rolls into the bowl of thick delectableness.

Happy New Year to All!