I have a digital camera, thanks to the dumpster-diving prowess of my friend Jackie in Richmond, VA. Unfortunately the camera cannot take a picture of itself, so I offer this instead:
The camera takes three AAA batteries. I got some rechargeable batteries and a charger, so if you need your aaa’s charged you know who to come to.
I’ve been working on polaroid transfer techniques with my 125 Land Camera and expired peel-apart film. These are my first ‘roids of La Casa. I need to acquire new (to me) film!
(The transfer of the bees photo was not particularly visually interesting. Perhaps next time.)
listening to cliqhop.
oh here comes heather.
oh noes! maria cut herself. “oh it’s fine. i just don’t wanna get blood on you.” the assistant has gone missing. she wipes the blood on her leg.
a bluish purple car pulls in across the street.
maria thinks the music is too creepy.
i would like my hair to not look like a clown. maria finds this funny & we snap a picture in the photo booth.
“i don’t know what this is turning into.”
the music takes a turn for the worse.
hair falls on my right arm.
“i need a third hand.” “i know the feeling.”
a moment of clarity as the music recedes & maria blows hair off my neck.
“oh sweet, another cut.” wipes it on her leg again. ew!
we discuss the differences between awkward and quirky. quirky can be cute. there is hair on the keyboard.
“it sounds like you’re just snipping into the air.” “i’m shaping it, i’m giving you volume you’re gonna love it you’re gonna love it!”
maria just cut herself a third time. i’m getting worried.
here comes heather! the most prominent feature at this point is a puffy tuft on the top of my head. heather recommends trimming the tuft.
“it’s not really that hard to cut hair if you just…take your time.” today i thought the same thing about html coding.
time to go make food.
*Look for before & after shots soon!
There was a potluck here at the house last week. I made Polish style deviled eggs.
Our chicken eggs are perfect for this because they have hard shells, especially the darker ones. Hard shells are easier to cut through and don’t completely fall apart. However, I’ve noticed that the shells aren’t as hard as they were in the winter time when the hens were laying less.
Jacob started keeping “office hours” a few weeks ago. The hours themselves vary – sometimes he goes 6-8, sometimes 10-midnight, but he leaves his door open and openly welcome distraction. Of course, he used to do that anyway, but now it looks intentional.
We miss Jacob! In his absence, Maria and I are holding honorary office hours, I at his computer, blogging (obviously), and Maria on his bed poking around at his books and DVDs. Anyone with something on their mind is welcome to stop by.
Last Monday, Jacob and I toiled away in the kitchen for many many hours. He made bread while I prepared things for open-faced sandwiches.
Here is the dough being made.
Being Jacob’s protégé, I helped with kneading. It’s fun. And gets tiring. But you can build some guns in the process.
At one point, the chickens escaped from the coop, making a mad dash for the compost pile. With the help of Ronna, we wrangled them in and went back to our toiling.
Here it is! The bread was toasted in the oven. You can also see some curried eggs in the back that Jacob made.
Top: sauteed leeks, chard, shallots and swiss cheese. Bottom: fresh arugula, tomato, avocado, goat cheese. Right: sauteed mushrooms, shallots, swiss cheese. And then a curried egg. It was quite the feast.
Ronna got the house on a salsa kick after she made it a couple times. Here is how I make my salsa:
- Throw the following into a food processor: 1 can diced tomatoes, an onion, green pepper, some bunches of cilantro, garlic, chives, hot pepper (or substitute with chili powder), cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, fresh black pepper.
- Press the button on the food processor several times.
- Dump into serving bowl and watch it disappear before your eyes.
When a house our size has bulk amounts of at least six kinds of bean, I’ve got two hours to make dinner, it is sometimes difficult to justify making food that requires buying fresh ingredients: “Cauliflower? Plantains? But the lentils and black-eyed peas are right here!”
(Of course, the tables will turn come harvest season!)
If a house goes on like this, without taking care to coordinate what is cooked, weeks’ worth of dinners may lack the expected textural and stylistic range as we spoon gruel from a bowl for the umpteenth time.
Now, I’m mostly a recipe person. I delight in following directions down to the letter for the promise of surprisingly perfect food (provided no one gets hurt). I think I got this from my mother (Hi Mom!). Nevertheless, occasionally I indulge in improvisation. This one began with an oath to make “gruel salad”, a joke that became reality. It was “one of those evenings.”
Cut celery, scallions, and asparagus into 3-inch chunks. Braise in medium saucepan with a little oil and a little more water. Add sliced mushrooms and broccoli. Pepper half-heartedly. Add half a cup of wheat flour and enough water to keep everything from sticking to the bottom. Overcook until gooey. Serve atop whole leaves of lettuce, carrots, and pear, with a vinaigrette dressing.
We had a potluck dinner at La Casa tonight, which turned into a little fire in the garden firepit with guitar, conversation, & digestion. The food theme? “Americana!” I tried out a new recipe, which came out very well, so I think I’ll share it.
It comes from this website & goes like this:
INGREDIENTS
- 1 (16 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 green bell pepper, cut into 2 inch pieces
- 1/2 onion, cut into wedges
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon Thai chili sauce or hot sauce
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs
DIRECTIONS
- If grilling, preheat an outdoor grill for high heat, and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum foil. If baking, preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C), and lightly oil a baking sheet.
- In a medium bowl, mash black beans with a fork until thick and pasty.
- In a food processor, finely chop bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Then stir into mashed beans.
- In a small bowl, stir together egg, chili powder, cumin, and chili sauce.
- Stir the egg mixture into the mashed beans. Mix in bread crumbs until the mixture is sticky and holds together. Divide mixture into four patties.
- If grilling, place patties on foil, and grill about 8 minutes on each side. If baking, place patties on baking sheet, and bake about 10 minutes on each side.
I tripled the recipe, cooked black beans instead of messing around with cans, & (of course) used eggs from our chickens. I didn’t like how the burgers came out baking them, so I decided to fry them in sunflower oil. Yum!
Maria, JP, & Gretchen also cooked amazing food, so maybe they’ll share their recipes, too. & of course, our guests brought great dishes, so maybe some of them can share in the comments.
