Catching up

I haven't blogged in a long time :(

So this is a 'catch up' post.

RANDOM NEWS FROM THE PAST FEW MONTHS:

Scary headless kitty decides to move in



My husband hates cats, I kind of like them - so I sneak this neighborhood kitty in occasionally. It showed up yesterday morning after a big snowfall crying at my door. I let it in. It looked around, zeroed in on the softest spot in the house and fell asleep for eight hours!

It has a head - somewhere

I cooked!

Life is so busy lately that this is a rare occurrence.

I made my Dad's dill pickles



I used to can them in the summers - but that was ages ago. Recently I discovered the Costco bag of a dozen or so small tender cucumbers. I brine them and put what's left after sampling in the refrigerator. Here's the recipe:

Put the following into a large glass jar or bowl:
Sliced cucumbers (I cut them lengthwise)
3-4 cloves garlic (sliced)
piece of hot pepper or pinch of pepper flakes

Bring the following to a boil:
1 1/3 cups vinegar
1 quart water
1/3 cup salt

Pour over cucumbers. Cool and store in refrigerator.

We are into Quinoa lately. It's supposed to be a wonder grain - great source of protein and all kinds of good things. We bought a big bag of it at Costco so I went hunting for a good recipe. I came across this Citrus Quinoa salad that was fabulous



Citrus Quinoa Salad

1 cup quinoa
1 cup diced cucumber
1/2 cup diced figs or dried apricots or raisins
1/2 cup drained canned mandarin orange sections, halved (I used the whole little can)
1/4 cup sunflower seeds or toasted almonds
2 green onions, diced
2 Tbs chopped coriander or parsley

Dressing:
1 tsp grated lemon or lime rind
3 Tbs lemon or lime juice
1 Tbs sesame oil (I used olive oil)
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp each ground cumin and coriandor
salt and pepper

Rinse quinoa and drain. In saucepan bring 2 cups water to a boil; stir in quinoa. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until water is absorbed and quinoa is transparent; drain and let cool.

In salad bowl combine quinoa, cucumber, figs, orange sections, sunflower seeds, onions and coriander.

Dressing: In small bowl mix lemon rind and juice, sesame oil, sugar, cumin and coriander; pour over salad and toss to mix. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Makes 8 servings of about 1/2 cup each (it was so good I ate 2 cups)

More catch up news tomorrow - I ran out of time as usual