of food and questions

the food...

I didn't think to take a picture of this *before* we started eating it... and soon there was absolutely none left. There was a small fight over who would get to scrape the pan.

Fridge-raid Pie

3 onions, peeled and cut into wedges
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cups chopped ham
1/4 cup flour
1.5 cups milk (or 3/4 cup milk + 3/4 cup chicken broth)
1 cup grated cheese (I used a 4-cheese Italian blend... I think sharp cheddar might have been better)
3 cups leftover mashed potatoes mixed with 1 head roasted garlic
1/2 cup parmesan cheese (approx.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Caramelize the onions in the olive oil (saute gently, stirring often so that they get well-cooked without browning - this usually takes at least 30 minutes. Don't try to rush it!) Add the ham and cook til it's heated through. Stir in the flour until it's completely absorbed by the oil in the pan. (Add more oil if necessary.) Slowly stir in the milk, and bring to a boil, stirring constantly til thickened. Pour into 2-qt baking dish. Put a layer of grated cheese over top, and then top that (carefully) with the mashed potatoes. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake 25-30 minutes, til the cheese on top is golden, and the filling is bubbly.

Comfort food!!!

...and now the questions.
This is a shawl I made last week. The yarn is gorgeous... noro silk garden. I love the colours - to look at. D'oh! When am I going to figure out that although I love bright colours and multi-coloured objects, I. do. not. wear. them.
Ever.
Nor do I wear bulky chunky things around my neck.
On the other hand, when I'm cold, which is most of the time these days, I have been known to walk around the house with a blanket around my shoulders.
So, do I keep the thing? Frog it? Try a different style of shoulder-warmer? Dye it black (heaven forbid!)

I ask you

Does it get any prettier than this???

the difference a day makes

Yesterday:




Today:
Four inches of snow fell here today.
Our 'bird treat' was very busy. I tried to take photos, but a combination of shooting through window and plastic, and skittish birds made for very blurry pictures. But you can make your own bird treat and watch your own birds... that's almost as fun...

1 cup almond butter
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup birdseed
1/2 apple, peeled, cored, and minced
1/2 cup raisins minced

Mix it all together and form into a ball. Shove it into a mesh produce bag, and hang up for the birds. Try to put it somewhere that squirrels can't get to, as they'll devour it in seconds.

Shrove Tuesday

Happy start of Lent.
This is the best crepe recipe I've ever tried... found it at allrecipes.com. Of course I have to increase it by a factor of 6 just to keep my family happy...

Basic Crepes

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the eggs. Gradually add in the milk and water, stirring to combine. Add the salt and butter; beat until smooth.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each crepe. Tilt the pan with a circular motion so that the batter coats the surface evenly.

Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes, until the bottom is light brown. Loosen with a spatula, turn and cook the other side. Serve hot.

one foot in front of the other

The only way out is to just walk forward, one step after the other, right?

Today the sun shone, and I spent the day with my sister, and I did some things right, and messed up on others. And I'm keeping on putting one foot in front of the other, and one day I will make it out.

I will.

bleh

I feel like I might be coming out of the fog now... maybe. This time of year is hard. There's not much I really like about it, and there are too many bad memories associated with it. Spring can't come soon enough.

Give-aways

There's a really cool give-away at Crafty Crow this week. If blogging it wasn't a pre-requisite to entering, I so wouldn't be doing this, cause I really really want it for myself.

I spent too much time today following links at Sew Mama Sew's big huge give-away day. I'm pretty sure there's over 200 links to people giving stuff away, and many of them will be open for a few days yet, if you missed it. One of them is absolutely amazingly huge... it's at Confessions of a Craft Addict. She's been accumulating crafty stuff all year, just for this giveaway!!! WOW!

I didn't get on the ball soon enough to take part in that large event, but in honor of the day (and because I feel a smidge guilty for putting my name in for so much cool stuff), I'm going to do my own little give-away just for fun.This is a wee wristie (actually it's fairly big for a wristie, standing 6" tall and 7" wide) with one internal pocket. It's made of linen, lined in cotton. I'll collect names til Sunday the 7th, and then pull one from a hat. If you link to this on your own blog, I'll put your name in twice. And to spice it up a bit, please also tell me something interesting or funny that happened to you today. Merry Christmas :)