It's Friday and it's thundering out there! I'm glad I got my dog walks done before the storm started. I'm spending the day indoors working on...you guessed it, CHEESE!!
This is my feline barricade. My second Cheddar is behind all of that during the 12-hour, 40 pounds of weight pressing. This Cheddar will age 6 months. And I'm in the process of making curd cheese for homemade poutine! Stay tuned, I'll post more this weekend! :)
These are what my pumpkins currently look like.
And lookie here! I have a green bean! Another first! :))
Alex is spoiling me with cookbooks...I got these two in the mail today and they are fabulous! He bought four as a set, the other two are coming next week, I can't wait! Hope everyone has a nice weekend with nice weather, good company and delicious food!
Ha! Methinks Alex is one very smart fella!
ReplyDeleteLol Mama Pea, I caught on a while ago. The gift that keeps on giving! :)
ReplyDeletehave a great weekend! we are getting cooler weather and i can't wait. i might make some fall food and build an outdoor fire!
ReplyDeleteAw, that is sweet of Alex. He is very thoughtful. Smart, too, since he'll benefit from all the good home cooking. Curd cheese for homemade poutine! Oh yummy. Both the curd cheese and the poutine :)
ReplyDeleteI love your dogs! They are so beautiful. I bet they're great company, too. And I laughed out loud with the cat barrier. HAHAHA! I can totally relate because anything left in open spaces has to be guarded with cats...while you sleep!
Love your feline barricade, LOL. I love seeing that you are plunging ahead with your cheese making. :) Green beans and pumpkins too! When do you usually expect your first frost?
ReplyDeleteI have some volunteer pumpkins in the front yard by the stoop. They were for decoration for Halloween and they rotted and got soft so all I could do was shovel them off the steps! LOL! This is the second time this has happened and I love it! Hopefully, I won't need to buy any.
ReplyDeleteWaht is poutine? I've never heard of it before. What a sweetie Alex is! Those cookbooks look great...love William Sonoma! I have an old apple skiver pan (cast iron) and William Sonoma has a mix for them which I need to try. I've never made them before. I had 2 beans that the deer left me! LOL! I'm still hoping my bush beans are safe from them. We're supposed to get rain starting tomorrow....for like a week! I need to get out today and work outside as it is only going to be 82F which is much cooler than it's been by over 10 degrees! HAve a great weekend and give those canines a cuddle for me! And the felines too! Hugs ~ Sam
I like to watch pumpkins grow, I don't have much use for the actual pumpkin other than some pies and animal food.
ReplyDeleteHi Rain, I'm always interested in seeing what you're up to. Those books from Alex look great. If there's any reason to give up smoking, you have to hear the noise my next-door neighbour is making. If he worked in a food shop they'd go bust pretty quick. I hope the neighbours are showing you a bit more respect. They sound like they're a bunch of arseholes if you ask me! Another cheese sounds good. That means more bedtime stories though. I'm sure you'll cope with it all. Can't wait to see your next blog.
ReplyDeleteHow neat that you are making homemade cheese !
ReplyDeleteMy hometown is famous for it's Cheshire cheese, a lovely mild crumbly cheese, and one of the oldest British cheeses on record, as far back the 1500's.
Your cookbooks look interesting, with lots of lovely pictures, perfect for that inspiration :)
~Jo
Hi Joyce :)) Your favourite time of year is just around the corner! I love fall too for so many reasons, but summer rejuvenates me so I'm going to really take advantage. I can't wait to see your fall food!!
ReplyDeleteHi Martha :)) Yes, Alex appreciates my zest for cooking and baking. He even allowed himself to gain weight after we moved in together lol ;)...When I was a young gal, I wanted to own a little bistro in Old Montreal, just a 20-seater or so, making home-cooked meals and having a comfy atmosphere. Working in restaurants showed me it would have been too much stress on me, but my love for food is really strong! (not just eating it lol!) I love getting cookbooks! Our cat Leo is basically a dog in cat's clothing...he sits, heels, lays down...will do ANYTHING for food, it's really funny...and he's ingenious about finding it. So far I've outwitted him lol!
ReplyDeleteHi Leigh :)) Oh thank you, and the feline barricade actually worked this time or it would have been feline steaks for dinner lol...the cheese making...I LOVE IT. I want to see some of your cheese making too Leigh, I hope you post about it! The first frosts here are usually in early October...but the last few years, summer has postponed all of that, it's hard to tell. I look at the temperatures each night because we could get frost as early as Labour Day.
ReplyDeleteHi Sam :)) I'm so excited about the pumpkins! That is my "baby" of the garden! I sure hope I get some before Halloween! Ahhh..poutine...it's an addictive dish and a fattening one lol...not good for cholesterol counts that's for sure! It's french fries doused with gravy and curd cheese...the gravy is super hot and melts the curds...it's DELICIOUS. I found a recipe that uses Guinness stout in the gravy, we'll be trying that tonight and I'll post about it!
ReplyDeleteAt least your deer are generous, leaving you TWO WHOLE BEANS...I think I would cry Sam if deer found my garden! I had to take all the chicken wire off the tomatoes because they are getting so tall...fingers crossed they still snack at the community garden!
I had to look up "apple skivers"...they look really good! "Apple Pancake Puffs" is the definition I like! :) Williams Sonoma is wonderful! I can't afford to shop there though lol...but they have great stuff. Since we discovered the cookbooks, Alex has been finding them all used but in great condition - at Thriftbooks too, thanks to your suggestion! :)
Hi Gill :)) It's funny, we don't really like pumpkins for eating too much, but I really wanted some Halloween pumpkins of my own. I like to carve them each year, it's a fun thing to do!
ReplyDeleteHi Terry :)) Oh my gosh, that is not fun to hear your neighbour, hacking away I'm assuming....I'm glad you gave it up, and trust me, I know how difficult it can be. My neighbours...I don't even want to grace them with that word...this doesn't feel like a neighbourhood, more like a war zone, lol...okay I'm exaggerating! But really, they are just people living in structures next to each other. Zero respect or courtesy. I'm glad I found that other hidden trail, the idea of not walking the dogs made me really sad...and I wish the police could have been more help with that creepy guy, oh well...in due time, Alex and I will be on our own property and gawd help any trespassers.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to get the last two cookbooks of that series! Ha ha ha...I can cope with the bedtime stories for the cheese, without a problem! I just tell them about my day and how they are the light of my life... :-D
Hi Jo :)) Oooh Cheshire cheese! I've had that only a few times, it's not easy to find here! But I agree, it's LOVELY. I've got my fingers crossed that my cheese will turn out well. I'm finding it a challenge to keep the right humidity and temperature for the aging process - without the coating getting all sticky again! It's a learning curve though! Those cookbooks are great, each recipe has a photo and they all look so cozy...makes me want to redecorate just to fit the meal! :)
ReplyDeletePoutine, I had to look that up! Sounds filling! I'm going to look into making cheese, good cheddar is getting expensive... Did you list somewhere where you get your supplies or are they local?
ReplyDeleteHi Nancy :)) The poutine is filling and thrilling lol :)) You are so right about good Cheddar being crazy expensive. Mind you, getting set up for making it can be costly, though in the long run, once you buy your supplies, you can make lots of wheels...plus you KNOW what's in the cheese. I buy mine from a Canadian company called Make Cheese (makecheese.ca). I WOULD buy everything from The New England Cheese Making Company (cheesemaking.com) but the exchange rate of CAD to USD is really high currently. That company is the best one out there in my opinion! You should check them out, they have so many recipes, a weekly newsletter, all the supplies you need...and I'll tell you something. I was having issues with my Cheddar and couldn't get in touch with the Canadian company. I took a chance and called the New England Cheese Making Company....just for advice. I was honest with them and they couldn't have been more helpful! I hope you venture into cheese making!!!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful pumpkin;) is that going to be this years jack o lantern ?
ReplyDeleteI really hope so Nik!!!
ReplyDeleteMarvelous pumpkin dear Rain!
ReplyDeletehope and wish they go great for you .
cookbooks sound great help to your nerve for cooking
Thanks Baili :)) Being in the kitchen is very comforting for me, so the baking "therapy" really does help. And my gosh, since I posted that photo of the pumpkins, they seem to be taking over that part of the yard! Scary lol! :)
ReplyDeleteLove the cookbooks!!! How very lovely :)
ReplyDeleteLove your cheese barricade - wine bottle made me laugh! Don't knock over my bottles cats!! :) I do the same thing at home.
We are having rain today - but we have been so hot and so dry its worrisome.
Hi Dianna :)) The cookbooks are amazing! I love Alex for knowing me so well! :) Oh lol...if any of those little cats knocked over my wine there would be hell to pay!!! >:/
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