Green peas can be quite a different experience when it comes to salads. Usually these little gems are used in Spring and Summery cookery but thanks to frozen or canned versions they can be enjoyed all year round. Also note, black eyed peas are a wonderful item that doesn’t seem to be used a lot. Theirs is a rather different taste – I rather enjoy them – mostly seen in Autumn meals.
Here is a collection of recipes I found over on AllRecipe.com. Many look familiar and most look quite appetizing. Click HERE to check out the list.
I especially like that there are all kinds of options for those of us who really need a change from the same old, same old.
A few days ago I came across The Hunt For Red October on one of the free streaming services. Needless to say, I sat down and settled in for an hour or two. I’ve seen the film numerous times over the years. I even read the book. While the book can be a bit…much (Clancy did like to add layers to the layers on top of the layers…) the movie is still one to be sitting on the edge of one’s seat when watching.
A recent find in my audio book library is Presumed Innocent. I have seen the film a couple of times over the years – enough that I knew who did it, why and how, but I’d never read or listened to the book until now. I so enjoyed what I’d been listening to I started looking to find the film. Got it! Tubi has it in their line up. Even with commercials it is a great watch. So many wonderful performers! And the story, even in movie form, still holds up.
Oh, and I did a bit of digging and found Scott Turow has several books available…
The Books to Movie thing can be a great disappointment or a great adventure. The Firm has a slightly different ending in the film which makes both watching and reading rather fun.
I’m curious to discover what comes next on my Watch / Read List…
A recent America’s Test Kitchen taste test of yogurts might just encourage me to try something other than my tried and true…
I did not grow up eating yogurt. I first learned about it after I left home. I have my favorites but there has been some reluctance to rock the boat, so to speak, when it came to trying other brands. Mostly because when I had done that I wasn’t all that impressed.
When I was researching the Instant Pot, one of the things that caught my attention was the ability to make my own yogurt. While I thought the option might be useful, the reality is that I don’t eat enough to warrant (a) the cost and (b) the time. Granted, if I was in a larger household and more folks consumed yogurt, these things would be different.
There is also the fact that, as I did not grow up eating yogurt, I don’t cook with it, either. One learned skill I have yet to acquire.
All that being said, this taste test was interesting and informative. I have already checked to see what is available in my area…the next grocery order could be a bit different. 😀
Cottage cheese seems to be undergoing a bit of a renaissance. Folks have (re)discovered it and have embraced the tangy tasty cheese in many ways.
I grew up eating in – mostly mixed with fruit, often plain with sugar. I don’t have a preference between large or small curd but I don’t care for low or non fat versions. What is the point? It is also a respectable replacement for ricotta and in many markets less expensive.
Recently Anna over on Cooking The Books prepared 3 different recipes using cottage cheese. Click HERE to go to her channel. The 1970’s Borden Cottage Cheese Cookbook is a great resource if you want to experiment – don’t forget Anna has the full recipes in the description box below the video.
I have to admit I am encouraged by the recipes she chose. What might you try?
I have followed design for decades. My mentor, who had worked in the interior design industry, lamented that I was a designer’s dream because I liked everything. She wasn’t exactly wrong, I do like a lot of different styles, but there are some styles I don’t want to live with.
When it comes to designing a room, let alone a home, there are some basic … I hesitate to use the word ‘rules’ … that should be taken into consideration. If followed properly they will save us time and money while providing a home that is a reflection of us, not the latest trend. Unless, of course, you like the latest trend…
Christopher Lowell’s design philosophy is a solid foundation. It provides a guideline on what to think about when considering the space and it allows us to move at our own pace rather than rushing everything and living with the results. Good design takes a bit of time.
The following is from his show and walks us through every step of the process. While the colors, etc., might not be the latest trend, the basics are timeless.
One thing I have noticed over the years is that every good designer uses the same basic layers. They might call it something else but they are all there.
I also subscribe to the idea of having a, for lack of another phrase, swatch book on hand. When you contemplate adding something to a room, that swatch book will have the things you need: color, fabric, reminders of what you want the space to look like. Yes, you can keep something on your phone, but remember that colors and textures on your phone will not look the same as samples in your hand. It might not seem like much until you get that One Special Purchase home and discover it doesn’t work…
Christopher approached his show with a touch of humor and whimsy while entertaining and educating his audience.
Chef John has done it again! I do enjoy a good tomato pie. I’ve even found ways to make them in the dead of winter when fresh tomatoes just aren’t available. Well, fresh flavorful tomatoes aren’t available.
Granted I did think twice about the Frito crust on this one but…it makes sense. It is also easier than making a regular pie crust.
I’m adding this one to my collection. How about you?
A friend recommended the book and when I found it on Audible (not to mention in a sale) I grabbed it.
I want more, please!
The story is a nice cozy collection of magical folk, dragons and such. Written in a way that is relaxed and enjoyable. I like that the main characters are retired rather than just starting out. Their adjustment away from old ideas and ideologies while dealing with the results of injury and aging is, frankly, engaging.
This carries over to the rest of the inhabitants of the island. We’ve encountered them before in less than pleasant circumstances but here they are much more likeable and a bit unexpected.
As you go through the story you can’t help but get hints of where this series might go but the location, Safe Haven, feels exactly that.
Overall a good book with the potential to become a good series.
I am one of those folks who do better with some structure in my life. Being a retired person, this can occasionally be an issue. Recently I mused that I missed having what has been called appointment TV. The schedule where shows landed on a certain day of the week and I either had to sit down and watch or make effort to record. The recording aspect was an unexpected bonus for my folks. The very idea of recording for later viewing arrived decades later in their lives…
The thing is, I tend to get stuck in my particular moat and don’t always seek out new things to watch. This can be an issue in mid Summer when my regular shows are on hiatus. (There’s a word we don’t hear often these days.) I recently gifted myself a subscription to watch a show I’d been eyeing for a few months. The trouble is, I’ve watched the show and now look at that subscription and realize…there isn’t much else I am interested in. Queue cancelling the subscription.
I do think the streaming model is a better option than cable but…too much is too much just as too little is too little. That being said, I am seeing the same pit falls that cable tripped over happening with streaming. The sad truth is you can’t be everything to everybody.
Anyway…reset time has come and I’ve gone through my watch lists and reading lists, etc. removing things I’d forgotten about or out grown while not quite adding things…yet. The truth is interests change (on both sides) and sometimes we sign on for reasons that no longer apply…
At the moment (95 degree temps with more to come) I’m contemplating pot roasts and casseroles and cozy kitchens where baking (!!!) is being done.
You too? 😀
I don’t think we are actually ‘done’ yet, just getting ready for the next round…
Everything Old Is New Again. At least that is what the old song says.
Honestly, however, I do see those <cough> reruns of ideas gussied up to be presented as Brand New. The reboot that is advertised as something totally brand new.
Advertisers have made a point of telling the consumer a lot of things that might, or might not, be actually true but the goal isn’t honesty, the goal is to get the consumer to consume. Think Fast Fashion. Fast food. Convenience foods.
I don’t know about you but I have noticed a trend from the clinical monocolor environment (think grey walls, neutral furnishing colors, ‘modern’ looks) to something more in line with Granny homes, mid century modern, bright colors and patterns. While I have no objection to the first my preference is more toward the latter. Color and texture give my eye something to look at. Design adds a touch of warmth in ways that isn’t easy to explain (for me at least). Over all, it gives me something to be interested in rather than existing in.
Real Vintage Dolls House recently posted a topic that I found interesting and inspiring.
Besides being practical and budget worthy, these thoughts provide some creativity. On the one hand, for example, it might be less expensive to dive into the nearest shops and spend less money than making things ourselves, how long will those items last? What we we do with them when they’ve outlived their life expectancy? For a little more considered cost and our time, we can create things that will more than likely have a longer use time while creating the environment that makes us happy. Said environment could be your home and your closet.
Granted many of those skills are not always part of the current standard education in schools – and I would argue they should be – they can be learned in a variety of ways.
Self reliance, self dependence, skill sharing were things our parents and grand parents knew all too well because they were the currency of the day. People worked together, helped each other, shared the load when they could but when they couldn’t, they could depend upon themselves.
Everything old is new once again.
Food for thought.
And, yes, I am going to be checking out Fogpoint radio. Details are in the description of the video…
August started out not quite the way I anticipated. Which could be good, by the way. I won’t really know for a few days yet.
My Summer Binge began in July and has extended itself into August. I have to admit I am enjoying myself but the truth is that the unexpected effects are a bit startling. Lack of sleep. Upended schedule. Gratitude that I don’t have a regular job – being retired has been a blessing because I am no longer at the age when what I’ve been doing won’t impact my regular 9 to 5 job. Who would’ve thought?
In the meantime I have been clearing out my Watch List as well as my Want List. I’ve also been doing a deep dive into Sherlock Holmes via Stephen Fry’s wonderful audio collection. The stories are just as wonderful but now I know them much better. A new Lady Sherlock book will be out this month and I am so looking forward to it!
