Yay! Yogurt Heaven!

Hi! Just wanted to report that the homemade yogurt was finally a success.

Took two tries and almost a week but WOW! it is really amazing and delicious.

This is the strained result plus the whey which is supposed to be good used in baking bread. [?]

Not sure if I'd make it again....pretty labor intensive. And takes up a LOT of space in the fridge....

And I have a feeling that the next stop on our culinary journey will be artisan pizza made on the BBQ grill. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/19/dining/19pizza.html

The arugula-gremolata version looks and sounds delicious.... 

I'm just glad that when I got the inspiration one time to learn to make sushi...my kids very firmly said, No!...and handed me a takeout menu.

have a great weekend!

love

            lizzy

            gone to the beach.................

Try, try again....

Courage does not always roar. Sometimes it is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying,

"I WILL TRY AGAIN, TOMORROW."

                                                                anonymous, as far as I know

A teeny tiny bit dramatic, but I adore oddball quotes....
[You're welcome to share any favs, of course!]

                                                                                              junk from my pockets...

So okay, it is grey here and chilly ---cool verging on cold. My daughter and I tried to make this delicious looking and sounding Greek yogurt yesterday.


http://jchandmade.typepad.com/jc_handmade/2010/04/make-it-yogurt.html

It was fun to do, interesting, looked great, turned into, well, yogurt! Too bad I burned the damn milk, eeewww. I will try again tomorrow...since we bought the go-withs, the berries and the granola and the honey, and....

                                                                       and a tiny chalk blue curlew decoy.....

[One more failure and it's back to store-bought! Geez, who knew...]


I'll keep you posted!

                                       treasured sea stars....

love
                   lizzy




                                                 first rainbow of the year
                                         
                         gone to the beach.........

Buying Local-The Farmers' Market Opens!

Today was the first Wednesday Farmers Market! (May 5th).

It was sooo fun! A friend of mine is volunteering to assist the market manager so there was a smiling face to greet me after a long winter of mediocre produce and sullen Waldbaum's cashiers.

And---new cool vendors! And old favs, all my market "friends."

Lots of smiling faces. The farmers market is so fun and festive and cheerful, hardly seems like grocery shopping at all!

The first thing my kids asked when I got home was: Was the Cheese man there? An Italian market from our old neighborhood in Brooklyn sends their guy and his handmade cheeses, ravioli, cannoli---more urban artisan than farmer but we love the fresh cheeses and pasta. (Papa Pasquale). There I bought fresh mozzarella, scamorza cheese (aged mozzarella in a wax coating) and whole wheat ravioli.

More favorite sellers, the lovely ladies from Madura Farms, Goshen, NY: 

I bought gorgeous asparagus, thick as your thumb--so sweet and fresh!--- and shitake mushrooms, and the newest tiniest  radishes you can imagine!

I find their fabulous mushroom so intriguing! If a bit daunting.....

Then, Millport Farms, the Amish vendor, from Lilitz PA---yummy homemade egg noodles...

A new and charming face belonged to a handmade soaps lady. (Saturday's Soap http://www.saturdaysoap.com/ )

Her products are all handmade and organic, something very cool and different. And she is very outgoing and friendly.

I love how her booth looks like a little old-time apothecary shop! And her soap and potions---body butter, lip balm, sugar scrub---are amazing.

I plan to buy some rough yarn, hemp? Sisal? and make bath mitts with a soap pocket for her fabulous soaps. My friend crochets---I will knit mine or hope she'll teach me to crochet them too.

And last, at Stan-Pat Farms tent, I bought an immense bunch of lilacs for only 6.oo!! Just gorgeous.

But such a strong scent. They may have to go out on the deck.

What I didn't get!---white wine dijon mustard; NY wines; artisan breads (all gone!); brown organic eggs, fresh yogurt and fresh cheeses; pickles, shoofly pie, fresh organic fruit juices. And the most beautiful happy-faced blue pansies....

Now if they would only get a wool and yarn vendor....And let's hope it doesn't rain.

Yum! Perfect!                                                                   gone to the beach.....

RECIPE: For the whole wheat raviolis, I made a light, garlicky white sauce (Mornay) with Chenin Blanc wine, added the sautéed shitake mushrooms and steamed to crispness asparagus, cut into 2" pieces, lots of fresh Parmesan and black pepper....served with an appetizer course of the tiny radishes and the mozzarella drizzled with a smidge of olive oil and fresh herbs.

Shop green! Shop local! It is so fun...and healthy too.
 
enjoy!
 
love
 
              lizzy