I’ve cooked Denver O'Brien potatoes before, but breakfast-for-dinner bore repeating because of the wonderful breakfast my neighbors treated me to on my birthday. I had heirloom potatoes in my pantry that Patrick brought home from the community garden as well for my clean-the-refrigerator meal. Green bell pepper (de rigueur for this dish), tomato, ham, cheese, onion, garlic mise en place on my cutting board.
handmade hobbyist
a chronicle of creative endeavors (mostly) in ceramics, sewing, and cooking
Sunday, October 13, 2024
cook: breakfast for dinner on repeat
Tuesday, October 8, 2024
cook: asian invasion in my kitchen
Did I mention that it's hot as heck in the Bay Area? Despite my kitchen being as warm as an oven, I needed to not let vegetables molder and decided that they needed to be tempura.
Sunday, October 6, 2024
coziness: on my reading radar and the promise of tinned fish
Even though the Bay Area is hot as hades this past week, I've been pondering fall and winter and all the making I'll do once the off-season outrigger canoe paddling practices are over after November 16th. I've been paying attention to what stories and books I'll want to listen to and read. I'm reading Claire Keegan's "Foster" right now and pondering whether to subscribe to the New Yorker for perhaps just 4 weeks. And I checked out the Mary Gaitskill book yesterday from the library.
Because of Instagram book recommendations not only from the New Yorker, but also the Library of Congress, I also put a hold on the two science fiction dystopian novels and decided that I don't want to read the nonfiction book a slow sewing club member suggested.I also put a hold on American Mermaid below, but forgot to put a hold on the original Bambi. And so I just put a hold on the story electronically. I also just put a hold on an author recommended by Ann Patchett's Instagram from Parnassus Books because I just finished her audiobook, Tom Lake.
And before I Christmas gift any books to children this year, I thought I'd preview The Dictionary Story, of which I'm thinking for Charlie in Pennsylvania and my nephew Josh's kids.
Monday, September 30, 2024
canoe + clay: stressful week = weekend warrior
I set the air plant mansion on the greenware shelf for candling, and since I had scraps from the sea platter, I made a sea mug too.
It's got an Isak Dinesen paraphrase about salt water as the cure for anything: sweat, tears, or the sea. Gotta love that ball point stylus for punctuation marking. And because Patrick was laid up from his knee replacement, I went into his garden and harvested all these tomatoes and boiled sauce and made marinara with lots of onion and garlic in order to empty out the fridge a little.
The refrigerator and freezer are over full again because I bought chicken thighs and ground beef and a steelhead trout (it had a styrofoam tray which was the form for my platter), and so the plan this week is to cook chicken karaage and kabocha and sweet potato and eggplant and summer squash (which I'll have to procure from the produce store because the summer garden has none) as well make an instant Dan Dan noodle sauce. I'd also like to go the clay studio and make some text mugs that say, solve the problem; carry on; don't be a rat bastard. Those were things I used to say in my English class that I don't know if my former students will remember. Hopefully all the busyness will temper a very stressful observation and evaluation meeting over the course of the week.
Thursday, September 26, 2024
cook: deux petits cochons bahn mi, part trois
I've been making bahn mi for a few years now, and I take lots of shortcuts. I don't bake. The French-Asian baguettes with a crispy flaky rice flour crust can't be baked in the dry air of California, nor do I make my own Vietnamese pork sausage or pate though I do roast pork with Asian ingredients and make the Vietnamese pickle of daikon radish and carrots. For this weekend's sandwiches, I bought bread and pate. I’ve been liking Trader Joe’s baguettes which are only 2 bucks a loaf and turn out very crusty when reheated in a 400 degree oven.
Wednesday, September 25, 2024
clay: air plant mansions
Last year I admired the shelves Zan built with scraps from her slab plates. And I'd been wanting to make similar ones. I made a white one which fit the one air plant I made, but then ordered more air plants and en masse, they were a lot. I've so far made 2 of what I call their mini manse. For air flow, I started using the mini cookie cutters at the studio to make decorative vent holes. And they're a fun palette on which to test glazes. The one below is my favorite so far.
Tuesday, September 24, 2024
canoe + clay: huli practice + bowls
I was also meh about this deep blue. Again I'll try the finger splashing the next time I layer on another glaze on to a dark blue.
It's holding rubber bands at the library.
It's my favorite bowl, and I can't wait to adhere an iron oxide decal of a fly on it.
I might donate this bowl to the Vallejo High School Class of 2005 Reunion's fundraiser.
I do love the turquoise glazes.
The Blushing Pink instead of looking pink on top of the Teal Appeal adds a depth that's giving me ocean vibes. I'll repeat these glazes again because there are more bowls to come. I threw 2 plus a vase this past Sunday.