Have you checked out Freakangels yet?

(This free online comic contains "adult language and situations" as they say, so be forewarned)

Grilled pizza

We finally did grilled pizza right.

The first time, we basically smoked them, which is not as appealing as you'd think. But these were quite good!

Stop taking my picture, lady

A little visitor

I happened to check on the dogs when they were being suspiciously quiet outside this afternoon, and this is what was keeping them busy:

Yes, a baby raccoon in our lilac bush. Jeff and I finally managed to get it out and it's now under the neighbors' porch. Fun.

I severely trimmed the lilac so it won't be so attractive to wayward mammal babies. Cordy, however, is inconsolable that we scared away her new friend.

(Photo by Jeff while I was calling the wildlife center)

Sleepy Cordy

It's been a busy week or so, with the weather being nice and all. Cordy has been helping out by keeping an eye on the squirrels and redistributing the new mulch (into the house) with her tail. But it sure wears her out!

Artisan bread follow-up

I posted last week about the book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. A couple people asked for me to let them know how it went, so here's an update.

I'm shocked to say that it worked pretty well. I've actually made a second batch of dough this morning, and I think I'll continue to do so. I had to return the book to the library, but the basic recipe is easy enough to memorize, but I think I'll buy the book, too.

To make the bread, there are three pieces of equipment you need: a five-quart loosely-lidded container, a pizza stone, a pizza slide (one of those wooden things you use to put the pizza in the oven), and a pan to put water in. I had the pan and the pizza stone already, but had to buy the container and slide. The slide wasn't mandatory, but it really does make it easier. The container is just a big Rubbermaid one, and I just leave the lid cracked. Both set me back about $25. The other thing you need that not everyone may have in the house is stone-ground cornmeal. That's to cover the slide and keep the bread from sticking. I had some of that.

The recipe is simple. For the dough, I had to add more water - about a quarter cup - than called for in the recipe. I think that's due to the way they have you measure the flour: you scoop it up and level it off, which compacts the flour in the measuring cup. I think if I measured properly, the amount of water called for would be fine. It's no big deal overall.

The amount of dough did, in fact, make four loaves. I was convinced that it would make more, but it really did make four reasonably-sized loaves. I never did get the "audible crackle" when I took it out of the oven like the book said I would, but the crust was crunchy and the bread itself was nice and soft.

With the price of bread rising, it seems to make sense to continue making bread like this. Flour is going up in price, too, but not as fast as the processed bread. I figure that after this batch, I'll make back the cost of the equipment I had to buy. Plus, I do like knowing exactly what is in my food.

All in all, I'd suggest giving the recipe a try, even if you don't normally have much success with baking. It's pretty simple and the results are good.

(Click on any of the photos for a bigger view)

Sweet pea

No, not the dog, the plants she's standing next to.

The fluff-butt is gone

Yes, as you probably noticed yesterday, Cordy's gotten her summer haircut.

After the first year, where she was embarrassed beyond all belief, she has loved getting shaved ever since. She's very bouncy and playful - it must be such a relief after hauling around all that fur!

Despite what they claim, this is a full-size couch

Bread

In addition to the gardening, I've been trying to lower the grocery costs a bit by doing more cooking at home. We've never been ones to go out much, but I have been guilty of buying processed convenience foods probably more than I ought.

I'd heard about "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day" on a few blogs and it sounded interesting, so I got it from the library. That's my first batch of dough rising in a five quart container.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Seedlings

I'm hoping to finally get these seedlings in the ground this week sometime. If not, then over the weekend.

There are three tomato plants, three pepper plants, and three eggplants. Three other tomato plants didn't make it, but Territorial Seed is sending replacements. Hopefully, they just didn't like sitting inside and will do fine once in the ground.

Tomorrow, I'll be moving them out to the garden proper, where they'll get more sun and get used to the location.

Mint and cilantro

As you can see, the mint and cilantro are very happy. That's putting it mildly, actually. Before I planted the cilantro, I had to rip out half of the mint, and it's still invading the cilantro. You can see why it's so important not to plant it in the ground if you ever want anything other than mint!

This cilantro will probably go to seed pretty soon, and I'll get a few more plants and plant them in the shade where some radishes were. That should give me another month or so before it just gets too hot to grow any cilantro at all.

Jeff uses the mint for Mai Tais and other tropical drinks, and I've been using them both to make spring rolls and in other dishes.

A garden corner

The garden is coming along nicely, even with the weird weather we've been having. In April it was May-like, and in May, it's been April-like.

I've had to hold off on some spring tasks, but that's OK. We've been so busy the past few weekends that we haven't had the time to work in the yard anyway.

It's hard to believe that next weekend's Memorial Day already. At least the long weekend will help us catch up on all the yardwork that still needs to be done.

The tall things to the right of the photo are our Egyptian Walking Onions. They're a perennial, and I think we'll finally have enough to pick and use this year. They're easy to tend and fun to watch, so I can't wait to see how they taste!

How much is that doggy in the window?

There's a stray cat in the neighborhood, and Kaylee spends a lot of time watching for it.

Perception vs. reality

I was looking for a quick dinner this past Wednesday night, so I picked up a frozen pizza. It was Kashi brand, so not cheap.

Here it is:

Now, I know that packaging rarely shows what it really looks like, but this was really unappetizing. It didn't taste all that great, either. It didn't taste like roasted veggies, but veggies that were cooked with sugar. Far too sweet.

Oh well. I could have made a homemade pizza for just a little more effort and it would have been better. I shouldn't be so lazy.

Eddie Izzard in Stripped

On Tuesday night, we saw Eddie Izzard live in his show Stripped. It was fantabulous! There are still lots of shows on the tour, so you should really check out the list and see if he'll be coming near you.

My favorite bits:

• Giraffes playing charades
• Despite all of the animals being loaded, only two tigers on the ark
• Cutting-edge stone age
• Spartan sheep
• What is the pope's name, anyway?
  

Thanks to Spike, Cordy, and Kaylee for getting me the tickets for Mother's Day. Great choice!

Failure

A great post about the fear of failure from one of my favorite blogs, A Dress A Day.

Mmmmm. Radishes.

There are few things as good as radishes straight from the garden. The ones you get in the store are so dried out and bland in comparison. These have a wonderful bite and crunch.

The ones on the left are a basic Easter Egg blend. The ones on the right are Zlata radishes, and this is the first time I've grown them. I'm going out to sow a second seeding today, though - they're so wonderful! I've still got that many of both kinds still in the ground, just waiting to plump up a bit more.

For Orlando & Fiona

Spinach still in the garden, but it's time for picking! Sorry, Lando & Fi, but I don't think it would survive the trip to you. But I'll think of you while I eat it! :)

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

I love you, even if you did make us wear matching leisure suits. :)

Trip to Treasure Island

Sorry, no pirates.

Jeff and I took a long weekend to recharge at his uncles' place on Treasure Island, FL. I planned to do nothing the whole time, and that's pretty much what happened.

This is the view from the balcony, where I spent most of my time:

That's the Gulf of Mexico there. We started every morning with a walk on the beach. If I made the effort to look over the balcony the other way, this was the view:

That's the Intercostal Waterway. Lots of pelicans.