My stiff, swollen fingers and tingly hands completed a very basic project: a blankie for Stella. My true intention is to protect furniture from her hairball eruptions and general shedding. But oh, how she loves this! I put it on the chair last night and she kneaded it for half an hour. I’m content to have made it, and she’s content to have it. Stella is the perfection of contentment. Now I need to figure out what to do with myself until the baby comes. Don’t want to overdo the wrist stress.
American scones that I have typically enjoyed are triangular in shape and sweet. Usually when I meet a friend at a café I buy one. Since I’m staying home more now, though, friends are coming to visit me, and I like to offer them a goody. This recipe makes a simple, sweet scone that bakes up firm but not hard; it is soft to chew and not overly sweet, so it’s good with coffee or tea.
Simple Scones
2.5 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
8 Tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut up
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2/3 cup milk (whole or 2% is best)
Ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 425F. Put flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl; mix well with a spoon. Add the butter pieces and cut in with a pastry blender or rub with your fingers until the mixture looks like fine granules. (I start with a pastry blender but usually switch to fingers to really work it in.) Add sugar and mix. Mix vanilla and milk together in a measuring up. Add the milk to the bowl and stir with a fork until dough forms. Using your hands, form the dough into a ball. On a large cutting board or flat surface, pat the ball into a 6-7 inch circle. Cut the circle into 8 triangular pieces. Place the wedges on an ungreased cookie sheet, slightly apart for crisp sides, touching for soft. Sprinkle white sugar and ground cinnamon on each scone. Bake about 12-14 minutes or until light brown on top. Makes 8 scones.
Shirl asked for pea recipes because her garden is overrun with them. So here’s one I hope you’ll like!
Braised Lettuce and Peas with Scallions
1/4 cup butter
4 Bibb (Little Gem) lettuces, halved lengthways
2 bunches scallions, trimmed
14 oz. shelled peas (about 2 1/4 lb. in pods)
1/2 cup water
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Melt half the butter in a wide, heavy pan over low heat. Add the lettuces and spring onions. Turn the vegetables in the butter,then sprinkle in salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Cover and cook gently for 5 minutes, stirring once. Add the peas and turn them in the buttery juices. Pour in the water, then cover and cook over a gentle heat for 5 more minutes. Uncover and increase the heat to reduce the liquid to a few tablespoons. Stir in remaining butter and adjust the seasoning. Serve immediately. Serves 4.
This was tasty and easy to make. The smell of frying basil was heavenly.
Tomato, Bean, and Fried Basil Salad
11 oz. cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
14 oz. can of mixed beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup of fresh basil leaves
5 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
salt and ground black pepper to taste
Put the halved tomatoes and rinsed beans in a bowl. Tear the basil leaves and put with the oil in a small pan. Cook gently on medium heat for about a minute, until the basil sizzles and begins to color. Pour the basil and oil over the tomato bean mixture, add salt and pepper, and mix them all together. Cover and leave to marinate at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. You may top with fresh uncooked shredded basil leaves if desired. Serves four to six.
I knit this little scarf in May on my trip to Washington and Oregon, before the carpal tunnel became too severe. I think it’s okay if I take a little knitting break; it’s darn hot here these days!
Rowan Kidsilk Haze, 70% super kid mohair/30% silk, colorway 596, one-half of a 229yd/210m ball and 1 skein of Patons Classic Wool (merino): 223 yards. I used the Yarn Harlot’s one-row pattern; size 8 needles.
On March 29, while I was going crazy with anxiety awaiting the amniocentesis results, I went the Purlescence Yarns to hang out and help tag merchandise. I didn’t bring my current knitting. (Danger! Danger! Entering a yarn store without supplies!) I didn’t want to go home after I finished the task, so I ended up buying a skein of Malabrigo and a circular needle and casting on. I had no idea what I would make; I just needed something to do. After working it for a few days, I decided it would become a felted bag, because I had two random skeins of Malabrigo that I’d no idea what to make with because the colorways were so bold. Well, I finished it today and felted it. (Working diligently on it this week helped me cope with the loss of my dear kitty.) Wow! I was a little worried it would remain huge, but I kept it in the washer a little longer (checking it frequently) until it was a size I liked. It’s very firm and sturdy. The handles aren’t perfectly aligned, but it’s a small quirk. I made this without a pattern, and I’m super pleased with the result. Look see!
Malabrigo Kettle Dyed Pure Merino Wool, worsted weight, 216 yards per skein: 3 skeins of #186 Buscando Azul, 1 skein #7 Cadmium yellow, 1 skein #97 Quartzo purple; knit on size 10.5 circular 29" needle.
Part of one ball of Rowan Calmer (75% cotton 25% acrylic/microfiber), colorway 482; size 6 needles using this pattern. I’m using up my stash of random yarn.
I’ve been on a knitting kick. I’m nesting, or something. I just finished making a felted bag I started June 2006. I also made a small felted bowl out of some stash yarn.
Noro Kureyon, 100% wool, 100 meters (50 grams): 4 skeins, colorway 147, 153, and 2 others (I lost the label); 1 skein of Crystal Palace Fizz, 100% polyester, 120 yards (50 grams), color 7122; knit on size 11 needles. Pattern used: jag-bag-knits.blogspot.com/
Finished size: 3 inches tall x 3.75 inches diameter (16 inches circumference). Made with two strands held together of a skein of Cascade 220 (220 yards, 100% wool) and a two strands held together of a ball of Crystal Palace Aran Marl (102 yards, 100% wool, color 3005) on size 15 circular 16" needles and size 15 dpns.
Here’s a batch of from-scratch goodies. I will never buy a box mix again. I always have the necessary ingredients on hand. I just haven’t ever tried to make homemade before. Vastly better! The recipe makes a fudgy brownie. For a more cakelike texture you can use 1/2 tsp. of baking powder.
1 & 2/3 cup white sugar
3/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 Tbsp. water
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 & 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup of baking cocoa or 4 squares of unsweetened baking chocolate
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips or nuts (optional)
Stir together the sugar, butter and water in a large bow. Stir in eggs and vanilla. (If using chocolate squares, melt over low heat and stir into the mixture.) In a separate bowl, combine flour,cocoa, and salt. Stir into the sugar mixture and then add the chocolate chips or nuts. Spread into a greased 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 18 to 25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out a little sticky. Cool in pan before cutting.
We were invited to a party on Saturday, and I was assigned dessert. (Wise choice by the host, as I love to bake. I also made from-scratch brownies.) I had only three large apples; not enough for a stand-alone apple pie. I searched the internet and came up with a recipe for apple-pecan pie. I modified a couple of things, and the recipe is below. One thing I’d do differently next time is not use molasses. The pie tasted fine; in fact, if you like mincemeat pie, the molasses is a plus. I’d like to try it without though and see which I like better.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare 9-inch pie shell.
Cream the butter and sugar until smooth. Stir in eggs, molasses, corn syrup, lemon juice, and spices. Add apples and pecans and mix thoroughly. Pour filling into pie shell. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Bake for 40-50 minutes or until the filling is bubbly and crust brown. Cool before serving.
Recently I’ve noticed a tingling, burning, and numbness in my hands, more the left than right, but definitely in both. I feel this when I hold a book or the phone for any length. I feel it when I sleep. I feel it typing (ironically, less so). And I feel it when knitting.
So knitting needs to happen more slowly. Alas, it’s already a glacial pace in my life. I know the reason for this problem. It’s carpal tunnel, but not due to repetitive motion. It has to do with the fact that increased weight and retention of fluid increase the pressure in the bony canal formed by the wrist bones on three sides and a ligament that runs across the wrist, and compressing the nerve that runs through this. Eventually (in about six months), this will abate (I hope).
While I’m busy knitting the short-sleeved top (which is inches and inches of stockinette), I offer you a new forum to explore.
If you like to cook or bake, check out Bake Space. Join and hang out in the kitchen! Link up as a friend by visiting my profile.
My sister-in-law is in town tonight for several days, so the knitting is taking a small vacation too.
Today I knit a swatch to get gauge for a simple knit tee. My mother bought the pattern for me at Christmas, and I have yarn in my stash. After I got the gauge, I cast it on. Cheers for me!
It’s not incredibly complicated, but it’s several levels more complex than anything I’ve knit so far. If I can keep at it and just finish, it will help me break through my avoidance by perfectionism.
The dish cloths I made in the past were too large, and I didn’t like the stitch, so I made new ones this weekend. Knitting with cotton makes my hands ache. I used Sugar ‘n’ Cream yarn.
I made these dishcloths for my Mom for Christmas. I ended up making four (one a day) and she loves them. I made them from Rowan All Seasons Cotton on size 7 needles.
