Gator Pam

Connection is slow Traffic jammed and parking slammed Yet it’s worth all this!

Happy Happy! Silver anniversary next year!

If there are any seconds available and listed, I’ll be checking Grim Oak Press’ Black Friday sale for copies of Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonflight and Dragonquest. I’ll also be checking Thermoworks for silicon spoonulas as stocking stuffers and Amazon for buy 2/get 1 free specials on Jeffrey Eisner’s newest Instant Pot cookbook. Other than that, I have nothing planned to purchase. But, I’ll keep my eyes on posted ads and see if anything strikes my fancy.

Rabbit! Rabbit!! Rabbit!!!

Received mine. No postage due and they’re awesome! Happy 20th, GottaDeal!

This sounds amazing. hmm. I forgot about the interaction with baking soda. Excellent point. I’ll need to think on this.

I think for me the only thing I’m hoping to score well in is the Grim Oak Press Black Friday sale. I missed out on the BF version of McCaffrey’s Dragonflight last year, but I would still like to start collecting with Dragonquest if they offer any seconds of it. Otherwise, I’ll see if anything advertised catches my eye. With my son grown and not with anyone yet, I’m not really going excessive with gifts anymore.

Well fudge… To quote the Stones, “What a drag it is Getting old” I’ve been doing a daily Amsler grid test due to dry aging macular degeneration for about five years now. I’ve always had the central dot fading out, so that’s considered my base. But today the adjacent line next to the dot is curved, so off I go to the ophthalmologist on an emergency basis. Wish me well, please.

I’m starting the thread a little late this year, but so far I only did some baking for the second night of Rosh HaShannah. I tried a new challah dough recipe, which was very good. I also tried a new shape for the crown challah, which can use some improvement, but I think I know what I’ll do next year and updated my recipe accordingly. To make the crown challah, start with a standard 5-strand braid shaped loaf. Taking three smaller strands, make a small 3-strand braided loaf. I find starting in the middle and then flipping the braid over to braid the other side turns out prettier. Taper the ends of the mini loaf and even out the middle. Keeping the mini loaf flat, roll it upon itself… …to generate this pretty rosette. The rosette is supposed to go along the side of the 5-strand loaf in the middle and then curve the larger loaf around it. But I had extra dough, so I made two rosettes and wound up with an oval. Allow to rise covered for 45 minutes. Brush with an egg wash and add desired toppings. Our household has folks who like toppings and others who don’t, so I made half with and without toppings. Fresh out of the oven. Next time I’m going to make two smaller loaves, and bake them in round foil pans, so they don’t spread as much. The Apple Honey Upside Down Cake fresh out of the oven. It is so pretty… The cake calls for baking in a 9” round pan, but I prefer a taller cake so I made the full recipe and baked it in my 8”X3” round push pan, using the longer time of 70 minutes per the recipe. It came out lovely and tall with a tender crumb. The recipe calls for serving warm with whipped cream and a drizzle of additional honey. I found a slightly warm slice without the additions to be just fine. A question for those who experiment more with baking recipes than I do. The apple honey cake uses 3/4 of a cup of buttermilk, making it dairy by kosher standards. It uses butter as well. I have no problem with that, as I don’t keep kosher. However, most honey cake I had in the past is parve, so it could be served with either meat or dairy. If someone wants to make the recipe, I don’t suggest changing it as it is wonderful as is. However, I’m finding I’m missing the bitterness of the coffee in the cake. Do you think I can reduce the buttermilk to a half a cup, and replace the quarter cup with cooled brewed espresso? Or would that change the flavor profile [i]too[/i] much?

Rabbit Rabbit! Rabbit!!! (almost forgot)

Feel well soon!

Rabbit! Rabbit!! Rabbit!!!

Belated Happy Happy!

Taken Saturday evening at Redmond Derby Days in Redmond, WA while waiting for the closing drone show. ”Sunset Dragon Protecting the Oncoming Night”

Rabbit. Rabbit! Rabbit!! and Happy Canada Day!

Rabbit Rabbit! Rabbit!!

It’s Armed Forces Day here in the States. To those currently enlisted... Thank you for your service.

hoo-boy… So, I have seedlings popping up all over my garden box, far heavier than I remember sowing. I thought maybe they were my golden beets, but I know I only sowed the seeds on one side of the box, and these are spread throughout. Another gardener walked by as I was working yesterday, and commented that I had planted a lot of melon or squash. I told her I had only planted spinach and beets, other than the obvious broccoli, garlic, and collards. Her English wasn’t great, but she was insistent that what was popping up was neither. So, I decided to ask my section mentor, who was training me today to come look at my garden so we could discuss it. She also felt it was a type of squash, and we spent time speculating where it could have come from. It’s far too heavy to have been dropped by birds, and even if some seed from a neighboring box had somehow blown into mine, it’s really quite a lot of plants. I did take the free wheelbarrow of compost from the community pile that was offered, but no one else seems to have this happening. Then I remembered I used some of my own compost in March from my rotating tumbler, and I had tossed a broken up pumpkin to compost after Thanksgiving… My garden box definitely won’t accommodate all of these pumpkin plants, so I’m going to let them mature a little more and then dig them up to donate to the food bank garden. I might keep one or two.

I know it commemorates Lag BaOmer. But I can’t read cursive Hebrew. Does anyone care to translate?

This should be good all month…

However, for today specifically…

Ooo… Only a day off this year between Star Wars Day and Pesach Sheni…

Rabbit Rabbit! Rabbit!!

I received an email this morning saying all Tuesday Morning stores are closing and gift cards will be accepted until May 13th. Is there any further information on this?