Yesterday morning’s bread was wonderful to mix, knead and bake. The smell….indescribably wonderful! The result - very good, but I should have let the second rise go a bit longer and baked the loaves a bit longer…

We enjoyed regardless!!

Rhubarb pie… rhubarb is in the freezer is the prior post that starts the rhubarb scenario. I made the pie one morning this week.

At the time of the “rhubarb is in the freezer post”, I asked Bill about the pie that he was remembering…was it a mix of rhubarb and strawberries - usual - or something else or pure rhubarb? He said “Just rhubarb”. I made a “pure” rhubarb pie… As I was taking it out of the oven, while Bill was sitting at the kitchen table, he said, “Did you put the pudding in?”… “You mean tapioca?” I asked…there are many recipes that call for tapioca. “That’s it!!” he said…

No tapioca, no other fruit - pure rhubarb!

But the day of reckoning is today…dinner tonight…Bill made rotisserie chicken on the grill 2 nights ago…

Tonight’s dinner is creamed chicken over biscuits….southern biscuits…flaky, hi-rise, light, southern biscuits….stay tuned!

For the history of my biscuit baking:

Southern Biscuits

Biscuits 101

My mother has told me that the family honor is at stake. It is a LOT of pressure!

I am a morning person…it doesn’t matter what time zone I’m in or what time I’ve gone to bed, I am up with the chickens…maybe before. This morning it was 4:25 a.m. And this time of year, it is getting light by then. Sunrise is about 5:30 but there is light in the sky, behind the mountains, through the trees.

Karl and I walked down the driveway and across the front property line and back to the house through the front part of the woods - our usual beginning of the day little walk. I carry my first cup of coffee (AND the pepper spray…) and enjoy the morning air, the birds singing and the quiet.

We end up on the front porch where I like to sit for a moment and watch the day grow. This late spring, early summer ritual is a joy to me and I’m grateful for every beautiful morning and also for the circumstances in my life that allow me to start my days in this beautiful place.

Yesterday, I promised Bill homemade bread for this morning’s breakfast. Bill is not exactly a morning person and he knows I like my hour or two of morning solitude so I have plenty of time of a morning to accomplish this. And I love making bread - especially in this house. The woman half of the prior owner liked to make bread and when they redid the kitchen she requested one of the counters just a bit lower than normal. The counter tops are granite - perfect for various pastry mixing and kneading. And there is a window to the woods and the mountains in front of the lower counter - a totally satisfying experience to mix and knead the dough while the sun is coming up through the trees!

I started making bread in my 20’s after an article in Redbook or some such mag - a complete how-to. I haven’t made it regularly for some time but on a blog I enjoy - Chickens in the Road, author Suzanne McMinn’s Whole Grain Grandmother Bread and several of her other recipes - bread and otherwise - caught my eye and I’ve since been back to bread making as well as enjoying some of her other recipes.

It is just after 6 a.m. and the dough is in the pans on its second rise. There will be fresh bread for our breakfast!

If you are not a regular reader of this blog there is some required background reading before you continue:

Biscuit fiasco
Biscuit lesson
Rhubarb
…and maybe the About page if you’ve never read that!…The “flower” brings you back home.

Me: I made a cherry pie and took it to my neighbors…as a thank you for the plowing they did this winter.

Me: Oh, and I found a recipe for crusty french bread. I’m going to make it for our Italian Beef sandwiches.

Bill: I hope this doesn’t make you mad, baby…

Me: silence

Bill: But do you make bread better than you make biscuits???

…The distance from amazing to not is short.

My bread is amazing, though and the Italian Beef sandwiches on it will be amazing also.

And on this day, please take a moment and visit this wonderful Memorial Day Tribute at The Mental Pause Chronicles .

Ginger Ale…I am happy to report that every last can of Vernor’s made the trip up, over and around all the mountains and mountain passes between Ohio and Montana - intact! (see comments on Goodbye Canada Dry Post). I am grateful! I had a recent comment from my brother, via Kristie, that he thought it was “scandalous” that I drank Diet Vernor’s and that he would have thrown the Canada Dry out. He-he! - well, he does a much better job maintaining his weight and I think has way more willpower regarding daily quantity consumed. Re the throwing away - WOW - see, I am definitely NOT frugal and he definitely IS…or was ??? …so that is saying quite a lot!

Speaking of weight - regarding Bob’s weight - Sara maintained the diet plan and Bob is down to 18.5 pounds. While we are still shooting for 16, .5 pound loss over the winter when he’s out less - not too bad!

Karl and his treats - this is not really a follow up thing. It is normal Karl - he “collects” a morning ration of treats from me and then buries some. Usually, he puts them here and there and later in the day I will see him go and get one. Yesterday morning, though, - maybe because I was out with him AND with the camera…

Put that thing where no one else can find it…

Hmmm - not sure that is right - dig it back up.

I think I’ll just keep an eye on it.

And today - a few of the neighbors came to say “Hey” and have some breakfast while they were at it.

There are 4 in the photo above ..hard to pick out…

They do blend in with the woods.

The wind stopped and the clouds came back this morning. I am not complaining as the returning clouds made for a most glorious sunrise that Karl and I watched as we finished our morning walk.

In between fighting my fledgling knowledge of C# (C-Sharp - programming language) I tried out a new electric kettle…

I went hunting for a small crock pot yesterday and came home with this. It reportedly slow cooks, steams, deep frys and ??? - I guess anything else you need a medium large pot to do. So far it has dealt with one of those pasta-chicken-veg meals in a bag and today it was home to the makings for Italian Beef Sandwiches. About 3:30 after no lunch and living in close quarters with the smell of roast beef, italian sausage, green peppers and au jus on the simmer, I succumbed…

I think I’ll make it through the rest of the work day…

…but it did break my heart to make this without Bill - one step forward, two backward or something like that…