Thursday, January 07, 2016

Blondin v.The Gingerbread House 2016-the Re-Match

"Hey, this is even tastier than last year's house. Good work there, lady!"

He'd better eat quick, as the rain has really been coming down today, and it is likely to become a soggy pile of dough before long. He seemed rather excited by the fruit leather shingles.

I took advantage of a rainy day to tackle organising my wardrobe. It really didn't need much work (I keep things tidy for the most part) but I was disappointed to see I hadn't worn most of my holiday pieces before running out of time. That means either I have far too many Christmas outfits, or I need to start changing clothes multiple times during the month of December. I'm going with the latter, because truth be told-I do love outrageous holiday clothing.
Just as Blondin likes to tuck in to a good meal, so does Mr. ETB. I love his fork and knife clutched in fists pose, but I really laughed at him putting pajamas on over his work clothes before sitting down to supper. It is the human equivalent of gnawing at the roof of a gingerbread house. Nice to see him enjoying the pajamas though-they were a Christmas gift.  I've finally perfected my lasagna noodle recipe:

3 large egg yolks plus 1 whole egg (save the egg whites for the cheese filling)
3 tablespoons cold water
1 scant teaspoon salt
1-1 /2 cups semolina flour

Whisk together the eggs and water until light. Add salt, then beat in the semolina until you have a very stiff, dry-ish dough. Wrap in cling film and let rest 30 minutes. Roll as desired. 

Because they are fresh, thin sheets of pasta they do not require much cooking-no more than a minute in boiling water. Drain quickly so they do not continue to cook. 

I use sieved  cottage cheese as a filling, and it works best to beat some egg whites into it along with a handful of grated, hard cheese. It does take care of using up the egg whites. 

I have an old, Imperia pasta maker that rolls quite thin, but if you are using a rolling pin, it should still be manageable (I've done both). This was a meatless lasagna, so I was able to use very thin sheets of pasta as it didn't need to support ground beef or sausage. I call it, "Knife optional" noodles, as you really can cut it with a fork. This is a good, basic egg noodle recipe that can be used for ravioli, or really any noodle you like. I won't give you a recipe for lasagna because I make the sauce slightly different each time depending on what I have. I tend to vary the cheese selection as well. 


"How do you know I don't like lasagna? Did you ask me? You know what they say about assuming. I  do too have room for lasagna!"


I thought such a grey day needed a bit of sparkle. The shoes proved to be a dumb choice, but eh, whatever. It wasn't like I was standing and waiting for a bus in a downpour (or standing on the patio gnawing at a gingerbread house). 


 I guess it is time to redecorate the hall-tree for the next holiday. Maybe I'll tack a kilt to him for Burns Night.
 Outfit Particulars:
Sparkly sweater-K Mart
Vintage camel skirt (part of a suit) Goodwill
J- Lo Shoes for Kohls-Goodwill
Vintage Coro earrings-Sequels thrift store (in the Dairy Queen) Council Bluffs, IA
Vintage West German beads-Hand-Me-Ups
Vintage handbag-Goodwill
J Crew jacket-Goodwill
Brooch-Goodwill
Nan tights-Leggs Sheer Energy (a lie! I'm no more energetic than I was before I pulled them on)
Fragrance-Vintage formulation Diorissimo
Lippy-Revlon Snowy Peach

 Not good shoes for sleet.

This brooch is difficult to wear as it is so pale it tends to disappear on anything except black. I really like the frosted plastic flowers, but finding something to wear it with is a challenge.  







































As I've been writing, the rain has turned to snow-the sort that falls straight down when there's no wind, and makes huge flakes because the air is so humid. It is definitely time to pack away those shoes!

Guess I'll just have to rely on my sparkling personality to light up the room...there should be a picture of me flipping you off here, but I didn't take one, so just go ahead and insert a mental image.

Love 'Ya
Goody.

5 comments:

Bibi Maizoon said...

Anything metallic, I love.
That peachy pink looks great on you!

I think the Mr Moose tree would look great in a kilt, perhaps he could multi task a bit if you put cherubs & hearts in his branches for Valentine's day. Or better yet, he could go ultra multi cultural with some Chinese lanterns & monkeys in his branches - it will be the Chinese 'year of the monkey' on Feb. 8th.
I sure hope the Chinese come to Nepal for their winter holidays this year, hard to say with their economy going nuts over there.
I'm glad someone has a tidy wardrobe, I certainly don't!

Sue said...

You would sparkle even without sparkly clothes, but the sparkly clothes are pretty fine!! Dear sweet Blondin will be in a food coma very soon if he tackles the entire ginger nut house by himself. Snow, way cool, we have rain and there is no chance it will turn into snow anytime soon, like never. Fingers are crossed for your big win!!!

Mim said...

Aw, Blondin is so cute. It's good to see him enjoying his house.

I agree with Bibi, that colour really suits you. I didn't think the other day's lavender sweater looked bad, but the peach really sings.

Beth Waltz said...

Back in the Jurassic, when I was the lady executive type, the muted camel tones separates would have been what one wore during the daytime convention with plain pumps and bag. The glamorous shoes, bag and jacket would have been the costume switch for the evening reception. (*sigh* That was when I could manage stairs in heels.)

Blondin and Mr. ETB certainly appreciate your cooking skills!

Goody said...

@Bibi
I hope the Chinese get their act together too. Year of the monkey, eh? I can do something with that, I'm sure.

@Sue
If you guys get snow, the world is really fucked!

@Mim
The gingerbread house finally collapsed this morning with Blondin sitting next to it quite smug and pleased with himself.

@Beth
If I had any sense at all I would stop wearing heels. I'm asking for a fractured hip, and I will have no one to blame but myself.