Bake bake bake

Tuesday's breads were lemon zucchini with lots of zest and nuts.

 

There is a glaze of lemon juice and powdered sugar that I didn't add since they are going into the freezer. 

 Edit - here's the link for the recipe and of course - my changes.
https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/lemon-zucchini-bread/

I used canola oil, not olive oil.

I did not “rub” the zest with the sugar.
Used 2  1/2 cups zucchini.
Zest from 2 1/2 lemons instead of two and also used 2 Tbsp fresh juice, not 1.
(we like lemon!) Still isn’t too overpowering.
Added a heaping cup of coarse chopped walnuts.
 

 I use the shredding disc on my old Cuisinart food processor and it is so quick and easy.  Only takes a few minutes to do several large zucchinis and the shreds hold up well for days in the fridge without getting soggy.  But just because I have shreds at the ready, I can't keep making breads so this may be the end.  I finished the night off with two more Death by Chocolate.

 

The first breads were double wrapped in plastic wrap and then vacuum sealed.  Unfortunately, the wrap didn't prevent the machine from sucking all the air out of the breads which are now, bricks.  We cut off the packaging but the poor things never recovered.  I expected them to take a deep breath and fluff up a bit, but they are still bricks.

 

We're down to the wire on the vehicle and although I really planned on the Forester, the Rogue has front collision warning, blind spot detection, much more chrome, and with those extra features it is still cheaper because Subaru's discount is minimal.  To get those safety features on the Subaru would add a few thousand more to an already higher price.  But it is a reliable and safe car and I'm taking another test drive.  I don't really care for either model's red color, no sparkle at all, but if I get the gray or silver or white, I will be walking around parking lots of neutrals, activating the car alarm to find it. 

 

Hope your week is going well.  This week we are having the weather that should have been August's.  And leaves are raining down earlier than usual.  Can you believe we're heading into the end of September already?

 

Thanks for visiting!

 

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The new project. So far.

 

Mary Halsey miniature sampler by the Examplarery caught my eye but I wasn't totally on board with some elements.  Hearts were a welcome addition to my stitching in years past, but not at all now, and that row could certainly be removed.  But for some reason .... I just couldn't click the BUY link. I do like stitchery sewn in the various heart shapes though.  LOVE the Ann Kitpin I just made.

 

You know I prefer the longer, thinner samplers and with my slump, this may be a perfect little stitch.  So I'm winging it.  I started one on 35 count Straw and then moved to my own dyed 35 count for a more subdued background.  I want the bird bright, flowers and berries, dark alpha, and a few borders.  We'll see how it progresses, maybe I will graph it first.  Stitched area will only be 3" wide.

 

It doesn't make any sense at all to me that I am not taking my own advice, well, par for the course I guess.  I hope it goes smoothly but shouldn't I be following a designer's chart and colors to avoid frustration?  Of course!  But this is from a person that blows up vanilla.  Must be the watermelon effect.

 

Have a great day!!

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Explosive news

Got 'ya to look!  That's what TMZ and all those ridiculous ads and headlines do to pull you in.  I don't fall for it any longer.  But this unusual incident created a real mess and I thought I would mention it.

 

Today was load the freezer with zucchini breads, reruns tomorrow.  I needed to melt the coconut oil and proceeded to the microwave as always.  But this time, I had already measured the vanilla into the small bowl, then added the solidified oil over it.  It practically blew the door off.  Did anyone know that vanilla explodes in a microwave?  It rocked the oven and blew melting coconut chunks everywhere, right in the middle of mixing the batter and tending to a full batch in the baking oven.  What a fricking mess.  I've made bread pudding and other goodies containing vanilla in the microwave before without issue. But this time it was the only liquid and exploded before the oil began to melt.  In another bowl without the vanilla, no problem at all.  My assumption is that vanilla must be mixed with other ingredients, but I have no plans to back that up with documented experiments, nor would anyone be microwaving vanilla!  Just happened this way and thought I would warn you.  Scared the zucchini out of me.

 

 

And what the hell is this?

 

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Browsing

If you like red in a sampler, some eye candy for you...

http://couleurtourterel.canalblog.com/archives/2017/09/16/35680349.html

I did not see information about using her photos so I hope I am not infringing, but her credit is on the photo.

Edges are turned neatly to the back, the original appears hemmed.  I don't remember seeing a piece framed on her site, but maybe because photographing is easier without.  Such a gorgeous blog.

 

My husband is amazed at the number of watermelons this old lady consumed. His last count was 25.   People often use the phrase "she has watermelon for brains" and now he believes that has happened.  He asked what I was doing with these two and I replied that I was considering selling them.  Yep, he said.  It's official. 

 

Have a good weekend.

 

I'm out of melon so a trip to Aldi's is on my list for today.

 

Thanks for visiting!

 

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Decision made

My car will be a Subaru Forester.  Or a Nissan Rogue.  Yes I know that's two, but a decision was still made to narrow the choice.  Husband likes the Rogue styling, I prefer the Subaru for other reasons. 

 

Hope everyone is doing well.  Fall is here.  Leaves are already falling and September is half gone.  Damn.
Edit - I just found out that Thread Heaven is discontinued which most of you already know.  I found them on Etsy from several suppliers and ordered two, just because.  Can't stand it when an item that I may want/need in the future is no longer, so I buy more than I will ever use. 
 

No decisions about needlework but I think about it every evening.  It's a strange sense to feel the need to work on a piece of linen while at the same time not really wanting to.  Like choosing vegetables that you know are good for you but you don't want to swallow them.  Like being polite to a loud mouthed know it all but the words are getting stuck in your throat.   The right thing to do isn't always easy.  But the longer we delay, the harder it becomes.  There is no right or wrong when it comes to a pastime but not having one at all is not good.  Everyone needs a diversion to give the mind a break from the mundane and stress.  With all the decisions on a car and especially what to do with the house repairs, I think that sense of needing linen is my brain telling me it wants a little play time. 

 

You would think that small motifs would be a simple and easy solution but they are not.  I need to check every motif for stitch count, work out which linen count would result in the desired size, search for a scrap so I don't cut into a large piece, change threads based on the linen color, and it's just too much.  Not when I'm slumped to the floor.  A kit?  Much better.  But mine are all behemoths and at this time I have no interest for other than small projects.  This evening I will choose a small sampler and stick to the colors recommended.  All I need to do is go through the linens for count and color.  Even that is a chore, but I'll pull up my big girl gutchies and do it. 

 

 This is a piece I stitched decades ago on Aida that I no longer want but decided to keep the frame. 

 

When I removed it, the film was just as bad as from the linen.  You can see the cleaned half on the bottom.

 

 

 

I thought the Aida being cotton may not leave a film but it does.  My sister gave me several prints she found in her attic and there is nothing on the inside glass, so I guess the fabric is the culprit.  But what about off gases from the Styrofoam back board?  Mine have it, her prints do not.  Doesn't really matter but I'm still surprised.

 The dust cover on one was unreadable except for Cavallo, it's old, and she wanted me to search online for information before she donated it.  After a few days of no results for an artist named Cavallo, my brother informed me that horse in Italian is cavallo.  Yes, it was a drawing of a knight in armor mounted horse, that obviously rode off into the sunset because he is no where to be found.  Carole does not remember the print and thinks it may be from her late husband's parents who came from Italy.

 

Have a great weekend folks.

Thanks for visiting.

 

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Correction

for anyone trying the zucchini bread.  I made a correction to the coconut amount in the recipe posted earlier.  I made four loaves for the freezer, kept half of one out, and it did not taste the same as Carole's.  Why you ask?  Because ditzy sister once again didn't pay attention.  I loved hers, she gave me the recipe, and failed to tell me that she increased the coconut to 1 full cup, not 1/2 as the recipe calls for.  And her 1 cup of sugar was heaping.  But of course, she didn't tell me that either.  So I made the four loaves as she instructed and they are good, but not as sweet and as flavorful as hers that we so enjoyed.  Next time, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup packed sweetened coconut.   My brother prefers less sweet and my aunt (exactly like her sister, my mom) criticizes everything, so they will get a loaf each.  Done!  Maybe I'll take the last loaf to the car dealer since the lease offer they gave us is $60 more a month for the exact car that our friend leased last fall, only $500 difference in sticker.  So the loaf won't be a sweet offering, it will be a projectile.

 

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