Updates on me and my birds

You remember the Robins that are nesting in my porch? They are thisclose to fledging and I am way too enthralled with watching them.  Every morning I wake up and expect that the nest will be empty, but these guys are just hanging on.  

But who can blame them, right?  Mom and dad are feeding them all the time and they don’t have to do anything but sit there and beg for food.  

I thought sharing a room while growing up sucked, but at least I got my own bed.  These guys looked cramped.

Cute little grumpy faces, aren’t they?

It is a sad state of affairs that my life is so exciting that watching Robins not fledge is the highlight of my morning today.

Yesterday’s highlight was 45 minutes of weeding, during which time I discovered that the chives that I thought were lost to the winter weather gods, actually came back and are HUGE, but were just covered in grassy weeds.  Which I cleared out and then promptly made a nice scrambled egg and chive breakfast.  

How about an update for the week of Today I Made?  

I do love rhetorical questions, don’t you?  

Leaving off last time, I gave you a bonus “made” for last Tuesday.  Which means I could have rested on my laurels on Wednesday, but I didn’t.  I made Peanut Butter Balls.

Call the Buckeyes if you must, but don’t do it around me.  These are peanut butter balls.  Period.

On Thursday, I made Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats for a BBQ, and didn’t take any pictures.  I am pretty sure we all know what Rice Krispie Treats look like.  Just picture them with a slight brownish tint.

I just subbed peanut butter for the butter called for in the standard recipe.  Easy.  Tasty.  Crowd-pleaser.

On Friday, I spent the day planting and finishing up my garden.  (Post to come soon…promise.)  I also made this bird bath, which looks cooler than it is practical.

And by that I mean that it isn’t practical.  It spills water everywhere.  It isn’t stable.  It sways with the wind.

Basically?  It’s the worst bird bath ever.  Have I taken it down?  Nope.  It’s cute.  I like it.

On Saturday,  I started some kimchi fermenting.  It is Wednesday now, and check out the bubbles!!  

Okay, you can’t really see them in this picture, but trust me, they are there.  This is still fermenting, and I have been tasting it daily.  I think it’s got a few more days until it is perfectly ripe.  

Have I mentioned that patience isn’t a virtue I possess?  

It isn’t.

On Sunday, I made Cherry Chutney.  (Recipe to come….if you want.  Even if you don’t, I’ll probably still post it, because WHOA.)

I had a bunch of cherries that a friend left after the aforementioned BBQ, and of course I could just eat them like a normal person.  I shoudl say that I couldn’t just eat ALL of them like a normal person, because I did eat many many of them straight.

What made me decide on a chutney?  I have no idea.  My brain works in mysterious ways, what can I say?

On Monday, I worked on the rug that I am crocheting for my bathroom.  (Update on that coming too.  I’m not finished quite yet, so you’ll have to wait for the big reveal.  I know….you are dying.  Try to contain your excitement.)

Here’s the thing about that rug – I made it too wide.  But I hate to start over and rip it all out.  Except that, if I do that, I can use a bigger needle (which I should have done to begin with), which means that it will go faster AND use less yarn.  

But…then I have to start over and I hate starting over.  First world problems, eh?

I suppose that is the silver lining to not getting to eat bread.  I don’t have to worry about the uneven bun/dog ratio.  And hey!  I also don’t have to buy buns!  Double silver lining!

Speaking of hot dogs, Applegate Farms hot dogs are awesome.  I haven’t eaten a hot dog in ages, but I bought a package on sale last week and grilled those bad boys last week.  They were so good, I almost didn’t even want the burger I made too.  Almost.

If last summer was the summer of the brat, this summer is going to be the summer of the hot dog.    

I can’t think of question right now.  But you should still leave a comment.  I like comments.  They make me feel like there are more than 2 people reading my ramblings.

Vanilla Ginger Cookies

When I was in high school, I dated this guy who told me that I speak in superlatives.  At the time, I didn’t think much of it, but it has obviously stuck with me, since I still remember it, um, many years later.

It’s true.  I do that.  You should see me at a zoo.  Every exhibit is The Best One!  Every animal is The Coolest Ever!

It’s even worse when I teach Ornithology.  My students started teasing me after only a few days, because every time we saw a new bird, it was My Favorite!!  It had The Most Beautiful Plumage!

How can you not say that about this Magnolia Warbler?!

I do it with food, too, naturally.  Last week, I had some friends over for a BBQ, and while eating a hot dog (something I’ve not eaten in years, I couldn’t stop myself from exclaiming “Oh my god.  I LOVE grilled meat.  It is SO good!”  (Seriously though, why is anything on the grill a thousand percent better than that same thing cooked inside?  I’d eat a dirty sock as long as it was grilled.)

Then there are these cookies.

Before I get to the recipe, I have to remind you that when I make cookies, I make small batches.  I am just one girl, and I don’t need (or want) to have 3-4 dozen cookies sitting in my pantry.  Because yes, I have some willpower, but not that much.

Plus, since I rarely use recipes, it’s a way of ensuring that I don’t waste a ton of ingredients on crap cookies.  Which does happen, yes, but thankfully not that often.  I hate wasting food.

Here’s how the thought process in my head went down when I was making these cookies:

I should make some cookies this morning.  What kind should I make?  I’m feeling like a simple flavor.  Vanilla?  Oh! Perfect, I have that Madagascar Vanilla Bean Paste that I haven’t used yet.  

And then, while reaching into the baking pantry (yes, I have a separate section of my pantry devoted to baking stuff) to get the ingredients, I saw an unopened bag of uncrystallized candied ginger that I bought ages ago at Trader Joe’s.  This stuff is like crack, people.  It rivals nut butters for me in the Can’t Control Myself When I Get Around This Stuff Department.

It’s the Best Ginger Candy Ever!

But I’d never used it in  anything before, I’ve only eaten it straight.  Ginger and vanilla are complimentary flavors also.  Well, they are in my personal flavor book.  I don’t know about yours.

Like all my cookies, these are small.  They are soft.  They are chewy (not cakey!) and they are packed with flavor and sweetness and have a great tang when you bite down on one of the ginger chunks.

They are, in short, The Best Vanilla Ginger Cookie Ever.  They may even be the Best Cookie I’ve Made, but for sure are the Best Cookies I’ve Made In Recent History.

Who me?  Speak in superlatives?  What?  Never!!  (<- See what I did there?)

Soft Vanilla Ginger Cookies

• 1/3 cup oat flour
• 2 T coconut flour (see note below)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup margarine or butter
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup erythritol, plus a pinch of pure stevia powder (or 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar)
• 1 T vanilla bean paste
• 1 ounce candied ginger, cut into small pieces

Cream the margarine and sugars until fluffy.  Add the egg and vanilla paste and mix to combine.  Add all the dry ingredients and stir until combine. Fold in the ginger pieces.

Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.  Transfer to cooling rack immediately to slow the baking process.  (If you use a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet- as you should! – it’s really easy.  You just move the whole sheet off the metal cookie sheet.)

Note: Coconut flour is a great flour for keeping baked things moist and chewy, and it doesn’t crisp up, so I’ve been loving it in recipes.  However, a little goes a long way.  It also takes a few minutes to absorb the wet ingredients, so stick the dough in the fridge for about 10-15 minutes before you bake them.  If you don’t have coconut flour, double the oat flour and reduce the margarine slightly.

Would you look at those vanilla bean flecks?!?!  And you can just see the softness of these cookies.  I’m dying.  

Here’s what happened next:  I ate the whole batch in two days.  No joke.  Two.  And on the third day, I made another batch.

And I ate that batch in TWO days, too.  And then…I didn’t make anymore because I apparently can’t be trusted with a batch of these cookies in my house.  But, I have more of all these ingredients, and a full day ahead of me.  What are the chances that I’ll make them again?

Do you have a Best XXX Ever story?  

Edit:  HA!!  I did not intend XXX to represent the “for adults only” type of story.  I meant it to mean a best [insert your topic here] story.  This is a testament to my obliviousness.