10th anniversary

We celebrated our 10th anniversary. We are planning a weekend trip to the Smokies in a few weeks so we didn't do much on our anniversary. We went out to eat after work at a nice Italian restaurant and brought dessert back to the house to eat with the dogs since they hadn't seen us all day. Adam brought these flowers home for me. They're so colorful ad full of different textures.

The last 10 years haven't gone the way either of us ever imagined they would. We've had some good times, some hard times and some disappointments but we have been blessed with happiness and the ability to move on with our lives despite not having things the way we would like them. I'm so glad that Adam is my husband and that we are able to support each other and keep each other happy. I love you, Adam...here's to a few more of these 10 year milestones.

Corn tortillas and chili verde

Last night, I made dinner for tonight so I could eat before 9. Turns out that I didn't walk the dogs because I wasn't feeling too hot so I would have had time to cook but it worked out well anyway. I made the chili last night and the corn tortillas today. This was my first time making corn tortillas. They are even easier to make than flour tortillas which also are not hard to do. The flavor is much more subtle than store bought so I liked these better. Next time I will make them thicker and cook them for longer to make them more stiff. We have a tortilla press somewhere but I have no idea where so I just used a rolling pin this time. Even when using the press, I use a gallon sized ziploc bag with all but the end seam cut off. The dough doesn't stick to the bag. I am not good at getting circles even when I use the press so they are "rustic" shaped.

I once made pitas and these reminded me of that since they puffed up. But once off the grill, they fell.

Like I said, next time they will be thicker.

I put a little sour cream and mashed avacado on mine to help temper the spiciness of the chili.

Chili Verde

3/4 lb boneless pork, cut into 1-inch cube (I used chicken breast)

1 large onion, thinly sliced (didn't use)

6 cloves garlic, chopped

1 lb fresh tomatillos, coarsely chopped

1 15-oz can chicken broth

1 4-oz canned diced green chilies

1 tsp ground cumin

1 15-oz can great northern beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup loosely chopped cilantro

sour cream

Spray large skillet with nonstick cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add pork; cook until browned on all sides. Combine cooked pork and all remaining ingredients except cilantro and sour cream in slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Gently press meat against side of slow cooker with wooden spoon to shred. (That didn't work for the chicken so I just left them cubed.) Reduce to low. Stir in cilantro and cook 10 minutes. Serve with sour cream.

I was concerned that Adam wouldn't like it because he mentioned that he doesn't like verde sauces but I had already planned on making it so I gave it a shot. He really liked it and said he would definitely eat it again if I made it. He polished off 6 of the 8 tortillas as well. Dinner was a success.

Kishk from Nourishing Traditions

Here's another recipe from "Nourishing Traditions". I LOVE that book. It is a cookbook but it's so much more. Dr. Weston A. Price was a dentist in the early 1900's. He noticed that people from different cultures had better teeth and were more healthy than people of other cultures. He had a theory that diet had a lot to do with that and began traveling the world, researching people's diets, mostly concentrating on people who were still eating their primitive diets. He studied not only what they ate but how they prepared foods. The healthiest groups of people had certain things in common in their diet. I don't know the list off the top of my head but those similarities included fermented veggies/fruits, soaking grains and beans to release phytic acid (some even ferment them as well), they included animal fat in their diet, and whatever I'm forgetting. I first learned about this guy when I was on the raw diet. There is a whole book that comprises his findings, and this book is like the how to of his findings. The first pages give a brief overview and each chapter has information on that particular subject. And on the side of each page has more information. It's the kind of book I could sit down and read...and often do. It's my night time reading. It's a great book but can be very overwhelming when I think about all I'm supposed to be doing.

Like any change, it's best to take baby steps. So my first step was to do some lacto-fermenting. I've made several batches of sauerkraut and a couple of dilly carrots. I've not mastered it in any way, shape or form but I have started. So, now that I am comfortable with fermenting, I can add to it. I have chosen to add soaking grains. For some reason, it's the most intimidating of all. I'm not really sure why. So, my first attempt at soaking is actually one that also ferments. Kishk comes from the Middle East. And it's a super simple recipe...a good one to start with.

4 cups bulgur
4 cups plain yogurt
(I cut it in half in case I really didn't like it)

Mix them together in a bowl and put in a dark place to ferment for 24 hours, covered. Make sure there's extra room in the bowl because it will expand to about twice the original volume.



Spread the mixture on cookie sheets and put in the oven which should be set to the lowest setting. I would dry it that way for an hour or two then just leave them in the oven for several hours to continue drying. The recipe says 12 hours but I didn't need nearly that long.



You can store it on the shelf in an airtight container after it dries but if you plan on having it around for months, it might be better off in the fridge/freezer. For me, I plan on replacing my bran flakes with it so one batch won't be around long enough to have to worry about the fridge.



I tasted it for the first time yesterday. It has a subtle sour flavor to it when eaten alone but when mixed with fruit and milk, you don't really notice it. It does not get soggy at all! It takes a lot more chewing to get through this bowl than it does to get through a bowl of bran flakes...which is probably a good thing anyway since I tend to inhale breakfast.

Next batch (which will be very soon), I will try it before I dehydrate it. If I like that better, than I'll forego the dying step. I can keep a container of it in the fridge to slow down the fermenting process so the flavor doesn't get too sour.

Thirfty find of the year

Last year, in the summer, I found this bike at Goodwill. It's got flat bars, like a mountain bike. It's a name brand, Fuji with low end Shimano parts and both wheels have quick releases. Frankly, the bike confused me a little. It had skinny tires but flat bars. I couldn't figure out what it is. It was only $30 so I bit. I figured, I could strip the parts off it and give them to my mountain bike which is in serious need of working shifters and derailuers. But when I got it home, I looked at both bikes and instantly knew it just wasn't going to work for swapping out parts. The frame was too big for me though so I couldn't just use it instead of the mountain bike...plus the tires are so skinny that it wouldn't ork with the dogs too well anyway.

So, it's sat in the basement, gathering dust. Adam tried to get me to take it back to Goodwill and while I was gone on vacation to Utah, he hounded me about it so I told him that he could take it if it was that big of a deal. I had decided I could just fix it up to sell and make a bit of money. It currently has a few mechanical issues that I think I can handle. Well, he never took it to Goodwill even though he was acting like it was a huge deal.

Tonight, I finally went down there to take a look at it and to decide what I'd need to buy to work on it. Funny thing is, the bike actually seems to fit me. Bizzare, I know. There's no pedals on it currently and it's pouring out rain so I can't ride it to make sure. But I think I solved my problem of not having a lighter weight bike. It's not my first choice, or even second choice for a bike but beggars can't be choosers. Anyway, I don't know when I'll actually get the repairs done on it but now I know it may work for me which is pretty cool.

I did some reasearch on it and turns out it actually is a road bike just with flat bars...interesting. This year's model (I have no idea what year this one is) is selling for $459.99 .

Tribble Mill to Monroe and back 50 miles

I prepared my lunch the night before this time to save time in the morning. But I made up for that by walking the dogs before I left for the ride. Last week, I didn't walk them because I was too sore and tired after my long ride and I didn't want that to happen again. Then, I left them outside afterward since it promised to be a nice day.

I drove out to Tribble Mill Park. I had mapped out a route that would be mostly on roads I had never been on, I thought. But I was wrong, I had been on almost all the roads on different rides. So much for that.

From the park, I went out on Callie Still RD where a family of goats were hanging out with their super friendly "guard dog". He came right up to the fence, stuck his head out as far as he could and wagged like crazy. So I petted him for a few minutes. I wasn't too far into my ride and I already had to take a layer off.






I had already figured out that I had been on this road before but I didn't really know where I was exactly, or how I had been on this road before...still haven't figured that one out but I recognized houses and then came the reserviour which I know I've biked past but really don't know when.

It was a nice spot to stop and have lunch.


This tree has Kudzu vines (dormant) hanging all over it. Won't be long before the kudzu completely kills the tree.


I looked in a field and saw a guy riding his horse. He appeared to be a good horse trainer putting the horse through its paces. He had the horse high stepping across the whole field. He left the field, still high stepping, came down the driveway. I stopped my bike to watch and when the guy reached the end of the driveway, the guy said sharply, "Whoa!" The horse stopped immediately. It was a very obedient horse indeed. Then they turned around and headed back to the field with more high stepping.


I had hopes of riding 50 miles but knew that last week I was dead at 40 and didn't think I would manage 50 this week either. But the winds and hills must have had better combinations because I actually did manage 50 miles, 50.08 to be exact. It took me 6 1/2 hours compared to last week's ride of 40 miles at 6 hours. This past week, I was depressed about how slow I am on my bike now. Well, I'm not normally fast, but slow even for me. I was depressed about the fact that I sold my Bianchi because I really wanted a light road bike instead of always having to ride my clunky touring bike. I was depressed mainly because I wasn't getting nearly enough sleep but that was the way it was manifesting itself. But the ride made me feel better...probably because the endorphins mainly but seeing so much improvement in one week really helped too. So maybe I don't have a light, fast road bike, I still have a reliable bike and I know how lucky I am. I can't wish for more than that.

So, back at the park, the sun was setting over the lake. This pic doesn't show it very well but Adam says we need more pics of me since I'm always the one taking pictures, it's hard to be in them. Anyway, here's one of me with 1//2 mile to go to my car.




I ran into a dog (not literally) on the bike trail. He was very skinny and rooting through the leaves looking for food. He was skittish and wouldn't let me get close to him. He had a collar on so I wanted to see if I could read his tag. He didn't have one. So I took the half egg salad sandwich I still had in my bag, bit it into bite sized pieces and threw them to him. Each time it hit the ground, he would run away, then back to it. Poor scared dog.


Back on the move again, I spied an egret on the edge of the lake behind some brush. I had to spook it a little to get it to come out of hiding so I could get a picture of it. But he tired of that quickly and flew away.




It had been so warm that I was in my summer cycling gear, short sleeved jersey, shorts and fingerless gloves. It was so perfect! Still getting used to the saddle again though. I think it's time for a new one. It's 12 years old and well past the prime of life. I want a Brooks, a leather saddle that lasts a lifetime, or more. I rode one on Dan Lundell's bike that he lent me for a year and I loved it.

Butter

Adam bought some cream to make caramel that he never got around to making. There are 3 quarts but there was only one that needed to be used up now...the other 2 have use by dates a little further out. But I needed to use it or lose it...and since we were nearly out of butter I went to work on it.

You can only fill the container 1/3 full since it expands as it becomes butter. I use a quart canning jar so that meant three different batches to finish off the quart. I just shake, shake shake until it finally turns into butter. I tried a few different techniques and what seemed to work best was to just shake up and down for about 20-30 minutes until it gets to the point where it becomes so stiff it doesn't feel like it's moving anymore. Then, you take an end in each hand and shake side to side kind of forcefully. In a minute or two, the buttermilk suddenly separates from the butter.

Here's different stages of the cream. The square tupperware had whipped cream in it. The jar had the stuff that was so stiff, it felt like it wasn't moving, just minutes away from being butter.

Once you have butter, drain the milk into one container and the butter will go on a board (though I show it in another container because I was working batch by batch collecting it all before I worked out the buttermilk).

Put the butter on a board and work the butter with a paddle (had to use a wooden spoon) pressing as much buttermilk out as possible. I collect this milk too. Then, you put it under the faucet and work it some more with the water flowing over it. It's important to work as much of the buttermilk out as possible to keep it from going rancid sooner.

Once you are satisfied that the buttermilk is out, sprinkle some butter on it to help preserve it. Work the butter in, then you're done.

I got the instructions from "The Self-Sufficient Life and How To Live It" which is a great book with instructions for all kinds of things like this.

Ride to Dacula and back

Today, I went for a ride. I've been itching to go all week! I was originally planning on continuing the route I had set for myself at the beginning of last year. But that would have meant a 45 minute drive and I didn't have enough time to ride with the daylight not sticking around enough. So I was going to drive to a local park and bike from there so I wouldn't have to ride on my usual route...but by the time I actually got ready, it was later than I had planned so I just biked from the house with no route in mind.

Before a long ride, I have to get all my food together before I can change. Here's what my food looked like for today's ride: 4 clementines, 2 hard boiled eggs (in case of emergency), an egg salad sandwich, a ham and cheese sandwich with lettuce and tomato, 3 servings of baby carrots, 3 mini sweet peppers, one large fuji apple, and in the thermos is mashed butternut squash in case I really wanted something hot...and water bottles.

After lunch is gathered, then I can change into my biking clothes and load everything onto the bike. I wore a short sleeved jersey, long sleeved jersey and my winter cycling coat on top, biking shorts, and fleece pants under rain pants on the bottom. I left my biking shoes at home since they leave my feet freezing in this weather (low 40's) and went with thick wool socks and my insulated hiking boots. I used my winter cycling gloves, a neck gaiter and a hat under my helmet. It was a lot of clothes but I kept them all on the whole time, except for the neck gaiter which was on and off periodically.

I don't find Georgia particularly pretty in the winter. I don't like dead looking trees without snow on them. But I did some scenes that I enjoyed, dead trees and all.

I had been down this road a couple of times before and knew there was a river there but the trees had always been too thick to see that it actually cascaded down some rocks. Well, I couldn't see that from the road but I could see that it dropped off out of view. I got off the bike to see what was over the edge. I walked down to the bottom of the cascades which don't show up very well in the pictures. After getting a few pictures, I climbed back up. I was walking back up and made the mistake of stepping on a mossy spot. I tried to stay calm and just hold my feet in the same position. I slid backward and backward. I was sure I was going to land on my face and destroy my camera which was still in my hand. I made it without getting wet though. :o)

I also found another pecan tree for picking from next fall...or I guess this fall. These pecans are a lot bigger than the ones from the tree I picked mine from.

Here's a dirt road that I found recently. Well, I found it years ago but never could find it again...now I know where it is.

I was hoping that I was going to get 50 miles in but about half way through the ride, I knew I was overachieving. I was close to home with about 32 miles on the computer. So I decided to take the long way home and see the house that recently toppled over. This house didn't give any clues as to the previous owners like the last ruined house I looked at.

But I did find this that made me laugh. This tree grew up through a tire so it must have been there for a few years at least.

By that point, my legs were really tired and my sit bones HURT!!! I am sitting on a pillow right now because they are still really hurting. It was getting very cold and I just wanted to go home.

By the time I got home, I only had the 2 hard boiled eggs, 2 clementines and half of the squash...I love being able to eat so much!