Maia Spins

Pickled Red Onions

Been pretty busy around here lately.  I have a progress picture on the Aeolian shawl.

It is about 80% done.  Here I am 6 rows into the Main Edging chart.  There are beads, about 1,600 so far.  Good golly that takes time!

In lieu of real knitting or spinning content, I thought I'd share my new favorite recipe.  Pickled red onions have always been a favorite, but I'd never made them before a few weeks ago.  They are insanely easy and so very delicious.  I haven't ever measured the ingredients so I am giving rough amounts.  Adjust the ingredients as you see fit. 

Pickled Red Onions

1/2 cup rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup water

2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

1-2 Tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

5 whole black peppercorns

Simmer for 5 - 10 minutes while you slice the onions.  You may want to keep a lid on the pot a vinegar fumes are intense.  Note: I use rice wine vinegar because it is mild.  You want a vinegary taste but not too strong.  If you substitute white or wine vinegar, decrease the amount of vinegar to 3/8 cup and add an extra 1/8 cup of water.

1 1/2 cups thinly sliced (1/8 inch or 3.5 mm) red onion, peel away and discard any dry or partially dry layers of the onion before slicing.

Add the onions to the vinegar mixture and stir.  The vinegar may not cover the onions at first.  Not to worry.  Cover the pot and stir every couple of minutes until the onions are translucent, but still have some crunch, about 10 minutes.  Allow to cool and then put into a resealable jar.  You can eat them right away or keep them in the fridge a couple of weeks (they don't last that long at our house!).  Use on sandwiches, in salads, in coleslaw, on a burger, or as a small side dish.  They make a great palate cleanser in between bites of strongly flavored food. 

This is a basic recipe and it is excellent and versatile this way.  You may want to try adding something else for variety.  Make it sweeter or tarter or add 1 Tablespoon of mustard seed.  Try adding star anise or caraway seeds for an exotic zing. 

I usually use a fork to pull out the onions from the vinegar juice.  After a while you will have more juice than onion.  Use it to make a yummy salad dressing:

1/2 cup pickled red onion juice

1/4 cup plain yogurt

2 Tablespoons oil (light flavored like canola or safflower or sunflower)

1 Tablespoon mustard (whole grain or Dijon)

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

salt & pepper to taste

Shake or whisk to combine.  Quick and oh so yummy!  (ETA the oil)

To add cuteness to the end of this post, a picture of Sammie sitting on my lap while I am knitting on my Aeolian.  He is in his usual spot on my lap.

 

Love the one ear up, one ear floppy look.  So cute!

Grammie Day

My maternal grandmother was a tremendous influence on me.  Today would have been her 96th birthday.  She died 23 years ago when I was 23 years old.  Half my life ago, yet my memories of her are still strong.

Every year I celebrate this day as a remembrance of her.  She was my anchor and my guiding star.  I know I am verging into the sappy zone here, but it is true.  The sun rose and set on her.

This is a picture of us taken in her back yard in 1972.  I am wearing a hand knit dress that she made for me.

I want to send out a big thank you to all the grandmothers, aunts, uncles, grandfathers, and friends  who invest in the children of their lives.  It is a great and wonderful thing you do just by being there.

My Grammie loved fruit breads.  I used to make her bundt cakes when she visited.  In her honor, I will share a recipe for Banana Bundt Cake.  It really is a banana bread with an icing, but I have terrible luck with banana bread so I am calling it cake.  I made this over the weekend and it was a big hit.

Banana Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Icing
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

3 cups pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
Sift or whisk together.

4 very ripe bananas
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup oil
2 oz Pernod *
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
In a large bowl, break up the bananas with a whisk.  They don't need to be completely liquefied.  Whisk in the eggs followed by the vanilla, oil, Pernod, buttermilk, and brown sugar. 

1/2 cup ground toasted pecans (optional, but it gives a wonderful texture to the cake)
1 banana, sliced
Stir the flour mixture into banana mixture with the ground pecans and sliced banana.

Pour into a well greased and floured bundt pan.  If you don't have a bundt pan, use two 9 inch cake pans or two loaf pans. Bake 50-60 minutes or until a knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.  Allow it to rest for 5 minutes and then turn it out onto a plate.

Cream Cheese Icing
4 oz cream cheese at room temperature
1 Tablespoon sour cream
1-2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/3 to 1/2 cup powdered sugar
Whisk cream cheese and sour cream until smooth.  Whisk in lemon juice and zest.  Add powdered sugar to taste.  This icing should be thick, but not stiff.  Pour over bundt cake.

This cake is quick and easy to make, tasty, and looks great.

If you don't have enough overripe bananas all at once, stick them in the freezer as they occur.  When you have 4, it is time for cake!  Frozen and thawed bananas mash very easily too.

* I you don't want to use Pernod, substitute brandy or just use more buttermilk.

If you wait to take a picture,this is all you get:

Green Beans

What do you do when life (or in this case, Linda) hands you green beans?  Make pickled green beans!  I haven't made them in ages, but with the promise of a bumper crop delivered by a friend, I may have to pull out the canner.

The are so easy.  Anyone with a canner can make them.  Because they contain acid, a pressure canner is not required.

Green beans (flat and yellow beans are good too)

Wash and trim so they are 1/2 inch shorter than your jars.  Pack raw green beans into pint jars.  Meanwhile start the brine.

Brine for about 4 pints:
  2.5 cups water
  2.5 cups vinegar (white or cider)
  1/4 cup sugar
  4 teaspoons salt
  1 bay leaf
  2 teaspoons mustard seed
  1 teaspoon black peppercorns
  1/2 teaspoon celery seed
  1/4 teaspoon allspice
  1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Combine in a saucepan and simmer for 20 minutes.  Pour into jars, leaving 1/4 inch of head room in the jar.  All of he beans should be covered in brine.  Process for 15 minutes.

I like to let them "cure" for a month or two before eating.  It allows the flavors to meld and mellow.  They are yummy straight from the jar, in salad, or in a Bloody Mary.

Other ideas, 'cause variety is great:

• Add any or all of the following to each jar: peeled clove of garlic , lengths of green onion, strips of red bell pepper, or a sprig of dill. 
• You can simplify things by using pickling spice instead of the individual spices. 
• Or cut the green beans into 1/4 inch lengths and make green bean relish (sweet it up by adding more sugar).  This is a great way to use up the trimmings!  Add some corn and minced red bell pepper for a colorful mix.

As always when canning, use precautions.  Be sure to use new lids.  Keep the top lip of the jar clean to ensure a good seal.  I use (and adore) a stainless steel canning funnel.  So easy to use and clean, they are fabulous!  And, never, ever, ever, eat anything from a jar that isn't sealed. </CYA>

Thank you Linda for the yummiest green beans we've had all summer!

Next time I'll give you my GGFI report.  It was great fun!

 

Tour de Fleece

The Tour de France starts today.  Therefore the Tour de Fleece begins today (Flickr group here).  I was going to spin some tussah silk for a shawl, but I want to pair the painted with some yellow and I don't have more undyed tussah.  The other project is a fleece and tussah sweater, but I want to use Brooke's picker to open the locks.  What to do?

Go for the mystery fiber behind door number three.  Enter the lovely saffron colored merino-tencel fiber that Ronni gave me.  It is the perfect color for the occasion too!

Here is the start of it on my trusty Schacht wheel.

Speaking of yellow, I was reading Karen's blog post Bundt Pan Love in which she talks about her love of bundt pans.  I agree.  Bundt pans are wonderful (not necessarily yellow I know, bear with me for a moment).  She had just made a lemon cake with a glaze.  Yumm! Lemon cake!  Well, it was too good an idea to pass by.  I went and bought a lovely cast iron bundt pan that can be seasoned like a cast iron pan.  It is big, thick, and built to pass down to the grandchildren. 

I didn't have the ingredients* for the cake Karen linked to, so here is my own recipe.  It is not too sweet and very lemony.  Be warned, you won't be able to eat just one piece.

Lemon Bundt Cake
1 cup (= 2 sticks = 1/2 lb) butter at room temperature
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 cup coconut milk (you can substitute milk or buttermilk)
3 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 Tablespoons lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 3/8 cup all purpose flour
1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt (2 teaspoons if you are using unsalted butter)

Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy (this is a very important step, don't skip it).  Add the eggs one at a time.  Combine remaining wet ingredients.  Combine dry ingredients.  Mix 1/3 of the wets into the butter mixture, then 1/3 of the dries, continue in this manner until everything is incorporated.  Mix only as much as you need to get everything combined.  Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees F on the middle rack for about an hour. 

Glaze:
3/8 cup fresh lemon juice
2/3 cup sugar

Warm the lemon juice just enough to dissolve the sugar.  Pour the glaze over the hot cake while it is still in the pan.  Let the cake sit for 30 minutes and turn out onto a plate.  Eat it right away while it is still warm if you wish.  It would be fabulous with fresh berries and fresh slightly sweetened whip cream.

*Yes, I went to the grocery store where I got everything to make tacos with fresh homemade salsa, avocados, grilled onions, grilled pasilla peppers, and queso fresco.  Did I remember to get the cake ingredients?  Nope.  Oh well, I'm quite happy with my version.

Sidewinders on 2 circulars tomorrow.  Yes, I did say that yesterday.  Sorry.  Today it is today, not tomorow.  Hopefully, unlike yesterday's tomorrow, tomorrow's today will be tomorrow, not today.  Confused?  You won't be after the next episode. 

Happy Earth Day

Happy Earth Day! 

Spring has bit me.  I have been a little distracted in my garden this week.  I got some help cleaning up the weeds and preparing the front yard for planting more natives.  I planted almost everything from my first and second visit to Annie's Annuals.  The yard is definitely taking shape.

In other yard news, the fiber I put out for the birds has been a hit.  Hopefully, I will get to see it in a nest.    It is just outside my front door, perfect for monitoring.

The suet cage has also been a hit.  With the squirrels.  Becca was right.  However, I have heard more birds than ever before in the front yard  so we must be doing something right.

There is not a lot of knitting and spinning to show.  Soon.  Meanwhile, I am LOVING my Forecast Socks.  I have finally discovered a toe-up gusset heel that I love.  It is my own creation and I will do a tutorial for it soon.

I have started knitting on the Surf yarn, but, the pattern stitch isn't clicking for me.  Then, I was distracted by some commercial sock yarn (a top down sock, it has been a while).  I'll show you both projects tomorrow.

Rockin' Good Time
We had a great time last night hosting a bourbon tasting.  It was a lively bunch.  It was great fun for me because, while I don't drink bourbon, I did have a fellow knitter, Rachael present.  We also had the delightful company of Lala, Deborah, Lear, Ken, Heidi, and Rick.  Speaking of Heidi and Rick, they are 2/3 of 5 Cent Coffee.  We saw them last weekend with some other folks for a night of Tom Waits songs.  What a great time out.

We had dinner as part of our evening.  At 6 pm, after making a huge green salad from the garden (yay!), I realized that I have no salad dressing.  I whipped up my easy cheater dressing.  Rachael wanted the recipe so here ya go-go:

Quick & Easy Salad Dressing
1/4 cup mayonnaise
2-3 Tablespoons sour cream or plain yogurt
juice of 1 lemon (3-4 Tablespoons)
salt & pepper to taste
1/4 - 1/2 cup minced herbs (I used Italian parsley and basil)
1/2-3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2-3/4 cup vegetable oil (I used grapeseed because that is what I had handy)

In a medium bowl, whisk together everything except the oils.  Slowly whisk in the oil.  Add enough oil to balance the acidity of the lemon juice. 

The mayonnaise provides an emulsified base.  It is a very forgiving recipe.  You can add more or less lemon juice and oil, depending on your tastes.  You could also use other herbs or garlic.  The lemon flavor comes through nicely in this dressing, but it would be just as good with a nice vinegar.   Best of all, it will keep well for a week in the fridge.

Last, but not least, a picture of my snuggle-boy Sammie.  Aw, such a cutie!

Sock Progress

Socks are socking along.  I have one little lacy number in ArtYarns UltraMerino4 (can you say yummy to knit) and one cabled toe of a Wensleydale millspun yarn that I naturally dyed last spring.

I love toe-up socks and I love gussets.  Gussets fit my high arches so much nicer than a short row heel.  I looked for something on-line to do a gusset toe-up, but couldn't find anything except references to a book I don't have.  So I made up my own version of a toe-up gusset (have I said toe-up gusset enough?).  It worked pretty well; the fir on this sock is good.  More experimentation will be needed to figure out exactly where to start it and much gusset to make.

The toe of the yellow sock is in sport weight Wensleydale.  I love this wool.  It has a long fiber, so it is well suited to hard wear and a bit of fuzz like an unbrushed mohair.  Granted, it is not as soft as merino, but it is not harsh either.  My skin is sensitive and I can tolerate Wensleydale on my feet without trouble.

I naturally dyed it with osage orange (or maybe it was fustic) and added little dabs of logwood grey (grey to slightly greenish) and madder (red clay color).  The "dabs" were watered down to be subtle.  It knits up as an almost-solid yellow with just a bit of variation.  Love it!

On the food front
I have been craving Mexican food lately.  We had burritos and enchiladas last night and I wanted Heuvos Rancheros this morning.  Unfortunately, we did not have tortillas or salsa. Whaaa!  What to do?  You go to the cupboard and ask Mother Hubbard what she has. 

I present to you (insert drumroll here): Uovo Campagna (Italian for Country Eggs).

Uovo Campagna serves 2
Slice one onion and one bell pepper (I used yellow), saute in olive oil until lightly browned, set aside.
Slice a roll of ready-made polenta and fry in olive oil until lightly browned, set aside.
Fry four eggs.
Assemble by placing polenta on two plates, add 3-5 Tablespoons of canned pasta sauce (warmed), add eggs (salt & pepper here if desired), top with onion-pepper mixture, and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.  Eat it up yum!

To further demonstrate how resourceful I can be in an emergency:
A coffee grinder for that morning when the power is out.
Must. Have. Coffee.
Thankfully, we have a gas stove.

Everything, no matter how stupid is blog fodder.

Handspun & taters

I've mixed up some naturally dyed handspun to post on Dea Terra.  There is a mix of merino-tencel, merino-silk, blue-faced leicester, merino-kid mohair, and shetland-mohair.  All of them are soft and yummy. I'll have more to post in the next few days.

Red Scarf
I have finished the red cabled scarf; it is blocking right now.  Hopefully, I'll have the pattern finished tomorrow.  I am planning on calling it Cable Embrace or Embrace Me.  Thank you for all of the great name suggestions.

Meanwhile, I made some potato salad.  It was one of the dishes that didn't happen for the BBQ.  Hubby has been hankering for for it, for her ya go.

Mashed Potato Salad
This potato salad happened as an accident, but has become our favorite mayonnaise based potato salad.  The idea is to use russet potatoes (also known as baking potatoes) and overcook them just a bit.  As you blend the ingredients some of the potato breaks down to a mashed potato consistency.  You must chop the potatoes before cooking them to get this effect.  It has the mouth-feel of a mayonnaise based potato salad while using very little mayonnaise.  It is very yummy, you will not feel like you are missing anything.

4 medium russet potatoes, peeled and chopped into 3/4 inch dice
1/2 package of frozen corn or peas
2-3 Tablespoons of sweet onion, minced
2-3 Tablespoons of rice wine vinegar (or white wine vinegar)
1 medium red bell pepper, 1/4 inch dice
2-3 Tablespoons of mayonnaise
1-2 Tablespoons fresh flat leaf (Italian) parsley, minced
salt & pepper to taste

Cook the potatoes in salted water.  When they are just starting to fall apart at the edges, take them out and drain them.  Put the frozen corn or peas and onion in a large mixing bowl and dump the potatoes on top (this thaws the vegetables and takes the edge off the onion).  Sprinkle the vinegar over the top and stir in.  Let the mixture cool.  Add the remaining ingredients and stir.  The consistency should be creamy.  Adjust seasonings to taste.  It is good right away or after refrigerating for a couple of hours.  The next day, you may want to add more vinegar; those potatoes are thirsty.

A Wonderful Day

Saturday was a beautiful day for our anniversary and BBQ.  Late September and early October tend to be very warm and sunny.  It is one of my favorite times of year. 

You may have heard Mark Twain the quote: “The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco”.  There is truth in that statement.  In spring as the weather warms we have gorgeous warm days with little to no fog.  As the inland valleys warm up in summer, the heat pulls the the weather just off-shore in toward the coast.  Those of us on the coast get cool, foggy mornings where the sun doesn't come out until mid-afternoon.  That is our summer; 70 degree days (if we're lucky) and evenings too cool to eat outside.  To make matters cooler, we live in-line with the winds that blow through the Golden Gate (the inlet between San Francisco and Marin County) every afternoon at about 4pm.  Our house is just past the tip of the large arrow on the map (click to enlarge).

In fall as the inland valleys cool, we warm up.  The sun rises and shines bright all day.  We stop wearing sweaters in the morning.  It is a slice of heaven for 3-4 weeks.

Saturday was one of those perfect late September days.

We had oodles of yummy food featuring BBQ ala Roget (hubby).  We had a great time.  The company was a varied group, most of whom didn't know each other. 

I thought I'd share a couple of recipes: ginger soda and cheesecake.  Be warned that I don't tend to measure ingredients.  Adjust as your taste buds see fit.

Ginger soda
1/4 cup fresh ginger, sliced thin (don't bother to peel it)
2 cups water
Combine in a saucepan and simmer for an hour or so, strain while warm
1  1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Add, adjust to make a sweet, thick syrup
To serve, combine syrup with your choice of bubbly water.

Cheesecake makes 2 - 9 inch round spring-form pans (you can freeze half the batter)
crust:
1/2 cup hazelnuts
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 stick of butter - melted
Grind hazelnuts in a food processor, add remaining ingredients to combine, press a thing layer into the spring-form pans.  Bake in a 300 degree oven until lightly browned.
batter:
3 lbs cream cheese at room temperature
Beat in a mixer until smooth, scrape sides the bowl to prevent cream cheese lumps.
2 cups sugar
6 eggs
2 cups sour cream
Add gradually, scraping the bowl periodically.
1 lemon, zest and juice
2 teaspoons vanilla
Stir into batter.  Pour into spring-form pans.  Bake a 300 until it rises and has a flat top.  It will still jiggle.  If it starts to fall in the oven, take it out it is more than done (but still yummy).  Let it cool until the center sinks (about 3/8 -1/2 inch).  If there are any cracks in the top, press them closed.
topping:
1 - 2 cups sour cream
1/4 - 1/2 cups sugar
splash of vanilla or lemon juice.
Combine and pour on top of cheesecake (in the sunken area).  Bake for 5 minutes.  Cool.  Refrigerate overnight before serving.

I know what you are thinking: "heat attack on a plate".  Yup.  A very tasty heart attack.  It is best to not make it often, but eat it with gusto when you do make it.

You can make many different flavors: add melted and cooled chocolate to the batter or to half of the batter and swirl it.  Add your favorite liqueur or extract.  Add chunks of fruit.  Pour a fruit sauce over the slices when you serve it.  Add peanut butter and chocolate chips to the batter.

It IS a small world

A couple of months ago, I ask for a recommendation for a dog trainer from my veterinarian.  I was given a brochure for Canine Culture in Oakland, CA and was told to call Alison Smith.  In high school (in Massachusetts) I had a good friend named Alison Smith who loved dogs, so I thought it was an ironic coincidence.  When I looked up the website I saw it was the very same Alison Smith!  Her current office is about a mile from my house.  Freaky.

It had been over 15 years since I had seen her.  In that time I had gone from being a baker to a structural engineer and from a lonely knitter to a happily married spinner/knitter.  She completely missed my thirties; how strange it is to think that I was a twenty-something when I last saw her.

As it happens she got married yesterday.  She was a beautiful bride and I like her husband, Rob, who I met at the wedding.  I also got to see her mother, Julia.  Julia's home was my home away from home for a few months before I left Massachusetts to return the the left coast.  Here is a picture of the three of them.

I offered to make some of the food for the wedding.  Here are a few of the recipes I made; all are vegan.  I generally don't measure as I am cooking, so the amounts I list are approximate.

Arugula Pesto
3 Tablespoons pine nuts
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
4-5 cups arugula leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
2-3 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
salt & pepper to taste
Toast the pine nuts in a dry (no oil) frying pan, tossing occasionally, until lightly golden.  Allow to cool slightly, place in food processor and grind until it resembles coarse cornmeal.  Add the olive oil and as much of the arugula as will fit in the food processor.  Pulse a few times, add the remaining arugula and other ingredients and process until the arugula is finely chopped.  Adjust seasonings to taste. 

This pesto is great on bread, over pasta or potatoes, on salad, or as a dip.  If you aren't vegan, you can add grated Parmesan cheese and use a little less salt.

Grilled Vegetable Tapenade
1 medium onion
2 medium eggplants or 4 Japanese eggplants
3-4 medium zucchini
1-2 medium red bell peppers
1 small hot pepper (I used a red jalapeno)
1medium onion
8-10 cloves of garlic in their papery skins
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon or lime juice
1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
2-3 Tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
salt & pepper to taste
Peel the onion and slice them into 3/8-1/2 inch thick slabs.  Cook over very low heat in a covered heavy bottom frying pan with a bit of olive oil.  When they get caramelized on the bottom, flip them and cook until they are sweet.  Slice the eggplants and zucchini into 1/4 inch slices and grill on an outdoor grill or indoors with a grill pan.  If you have a gas stove, place the peppers over an open flame, turning periodically until the skin is blackened.  Place garlic (in their papery skins) in a baking dish in a 375 degree oven and bake until they are soft.  When cooled, remove the skins and roughly chop them.  If you have an electric stove you can put them on a high rack in a hot oven or you can put them on an outdoor grill.  You want to cook them hot enough the char the skin without overcooking the pepper flesh.  Place the peppers in a paper bag for at least 5 minutes; this helps to loosen the skin from the flesh.  Using your hands, rub off the charred skins.  I prefer to not use water as I feel it washes away flavor; a bit of char will add to the dish not detract.  Cut off the top and remove the seeds.  Chop all the vegetables into 1/4-3/8 inch dice (mince the hot pepper).  Combine the vegetables with the remaining ingredients.  Adjust seasonings to taste.

This spread does well with a couple of hours to let the flavors marry.  It is great with a crusty baguette.  The same ingredients with the veggies left whole, makes a tasty anti pasti.

Tofu-Tamari Spread
1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
16 oz soft tofu
3-4 Tablespoons of olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon or lime juice
4-5 Tablespoons of tamari
black pepper
Toss everything in the food processor and process until it is smoothish.  You may need to add salt if you use low-salt tamari like I do.  Simple and delicious!

Korean-Style Cucumber Salad
2 cups thinly sliced cucumbers
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 small hot pepper, roasted, seeded, & minced (or substitute a chili sauce like Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce)
2-3 Tablespoons minced shallot
3 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons water
salt & pepper to taste
Place sliced cucumbers in a colander with the salt, toss to distribute the salt and let the cucumber sweat out some of its moisture (at least 15 minutes).  Combine everything in a bowl, season to taste.  It is best when it has a few hours for the flavors to marry.  You can use any kind of cucumbers.  If the cucmbers are bitter you can add a teaspoon of sugar.  I had a lot of Armenian cucumbers (technically a melon not a cucumber) from my Riverdog Farm CSA veggie box.