Have you ever made pretzels? Scott and I made a batch last week, and oh man! They are wicked easy, at least in terms of delicious baked goods and the insane effort that can sometimes be involved. When I think of a difficult recipe, something like sfogliatelle comes to mind. Pretzels aren’t like that. Pretzels involve a few extra pots and pans, but are almost as simple to make as cookies.
It goes like this: Mix. Knead. Rest. Roll. Tie. Boil. Brush. Sprinkle. Bake. Eat. We used Alton Brown’s recipe, and they came out GREAT. My pal, Hilah, made some killer pretzels over on her site too. Check em’ out.
We may have gotten a wee bit competitive during the rolling/tying phase. I think mine (on the left) are prettier. Scott says that center twist was cheating.
It was my birthday last week! I sometimes get a little sad on my birthdays. To fend that emotional blusteriness off, I always plan something fun to do. This year, I invited some friends to come and listen to Ruby Jane perform at Shady Grove. It was a great night, just the kind to remind me why I fell so hard for Austin in the first place.
My sister, Heather, bought me a sushi boat! I have always wanted one of these. It will be loaded up with vegetarian sushi pronto. It was a good year for presents. I received some lovely things from my friends, a cute recipe box, and a pretty notebook. Scissorina treated me to a stash of super-cute flower fabrics. I think I see some pot holders in my future. Maybe a new apron too.
Another birthday ritual I have is to buy myself a present. Actually, it’s usually a present from Scott, but I pick it out, and we share a bank account, so really, it’s a present from me, endorsed by Scott. In any event, this year “we” got me a boss food processor. I’m so in love with this thing. It chops like a champ. After killing a Ninja last year, and two KitchenAid blenders this year, it’s nice to finally find something that can make a batch of hummus without comitting hare-kare halfway through.
Check it out! Faye from Aradia’s Cauldron cooked up some of my Ginger Garlic Tofu, and even took a picture! There’s not much that I enjoy more than feeding people, but seeing someone else cook one of my recipes might just do it. Thanks for the picture, Faye!
Our nephew, RJ, is visiting from Connecticut this week. We’ve been hitting the town almost every day, taking in the sites, visiting museums, swimming our butts off, and of course, cooking. RJ loves to cook, and is a GREAT eater, meaning that he’s willing to try just about anything. This is just one of the many reasons why I love him so very much. He’s also sweet, funny, and an expert on sneakers. Do you know what a Yeezy is? Yeah, me neither, but RJ can tell you all about them.
We’re headed down to South Padre this weekend for some beachy fun. I have some awesome recipes lined up for you guys. I promise they are coming just as soon as I finish this jug of watermelon agua fresca. Mango Dream Bars and Cornflake Crusted Green Tomatoes are almost ready to go.
Just hang in there while I put on this sunblock.
Don’t blame me. Blame Summer.