Driven to distraction

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have FALLEN IN LOVE.

Truly.

Deeply.

Madly...

My I present my true love - leather and canvas spectators with no less than a 4.5 inch heel.

As I like to call them - ExPats Spats.

Can you not envision yourself descending from a Gipsy Moth in these?

Smoking C to Cs in a sand storm whipped by the ghibli or aajej?

Walking into Shepheard's for a stiff drink and a tryst with your lover?

Perfect for a holiday or a lifetime in Paris on the Nile.

It has been long time since a shoe or any other bit of fashion has conjured up such a rich fantasy, but here it is, and I am content to let it wash over me... like the sea spray that dampens my finger waves as I stand on the bow of a Cunard Steamship. 

@#$%^$*%$#%!!!!

I park in a garage at work. I like to take the spots at the corners and back in like a well-greased eel. It pleases me to negotiate this bit of choreography.

It's challenging - but not too challenging - at 8:30 am, except this morning when I heard that sickening "crunch."

There are pilasters that stick out about 8 inches - normally they simply add to the challenge of understanding your existence in a three dimensional space.
Today - they clawed my car.

I've had my car 2.2 years...
I should have expected a ding, a gash, a loss of paint at some point.

My last car looked like it had seen a war zone. I ran it through parking lot arms, took it off-road in Arizona to get to a trail-head, got it stuck in April mud in rural Ohio. It was broken into FOUR TIMES. It got sideswiped by a City of Cleveland snowplow - the mirror destroyed, the hubcap in a pile of snow 2 blocks down and tremendous gash along the side. The lock on the passenger side dangled like a sad broken limb until one day, it fell off.

So I was glad to get a new car. I pretty, unspoiled car.

*sigh*

Nothing lasts forever...

Dead weight

Revenge is often best served in a failed pas de deux.

Sorbet!

No pics yet - but I'm working on a new sorbet...

Honey lavender (first draft)
2 cups H20
3/4 cups honey
2 Tbsp dried Lavender buds

Heat honey and H20 to dissolve honey.
Add lavender (I added some lemon verbena, too).
A note about the lavender - I had some dried on hand that is considered edible, and I'm unsure as to the edibility of say - fresh lavender from the garden... I wonder if all the recipes I read that mentioned "food grade lavender" were to try and keep one from raiding the potpourri jar - I'll look into it, but I'm guessing fresh lavender is fine. 
A wee sprinkling of salt.
Bring to boil.
Reduce to simmer for 5 minutes.
Remove from heat and allow to sit (10-ish minutes)

Strain all the bits out.

Mix in 2 Tbsp lemon juice & 2 Tbsp vodka.

Refrigerate until cool and let the ice cream maker do what it does best.

Fingers crossed (I'm at the "Remove from heat" step and my kitchen smells divine...

Wow

This morning I stumbled upon something in magazine.

"Do something that scares me so much that overcoming my fear of it will change me."

Now I just have to figure out which of my many, many fears I'm going to tackle first...

Ice Cream!

Obviously, I'm on some sort of manic cooking jag - and it's only going to get worse as more foods arrive on the vine. Last night, in addition to the pesto and boursin, I made my favorite summer ice cream, chocolate mint.

I used the basic Martha Stewart recipe, but instead of adding vanilla, I steep chocolate mint at the creme anglais stage overnight and add 3 oz dark chocolate, 3 oz milk chocolate & a Tbsp cocoa at the custard stage.

Steeping the mint...


Wait.. 8... EIGHT yolks?


Finished base, ready to freeze.


Tonight I was staring at my strawberries trying to figure out what to do. I was thinking about a pie with custard, but ran out of eggs since Martha requested EIGHT (seriously, Martha...). I though about jam, but lack the containers. I really like the simplicity of fresh strawberries with a bit of balsamic vinegrette drizzled over, so I went looking for a recipe and found this one. I added a bit more honey than they call for and added a tetch of salt and pepper, since the flavor is a bit more complex than just sweet.

Finished base, ready to freeze.


The Cuisinart is getting a HELL of a workout this week. Flavors I still want to do this summer: lavender, lemon verbena, salted caramel, mint, chocolate orange, watermelon and come fall, I make a MEAN concord grape sorbet.

Other suggestions are appreciated!

More local food

It's early in the season, but my herbs are doing well with all the rain and sun.
I decided it was time to gather and create.

From the garden (clockwise from upper left): thyme, basil, rosemary, chives, with sage at the center.

Many thanks to Mulberry Creek Herb Farm for all the organic herbs over the years. If you like a mini-road trip, don't miss their Herb Fair this weekend - with a Tuscan theme.

I thought boursin cheese would be a good result from what I had on hand - I use it in salads (with the strawberries) or slather it on toasty bread.

I mixed equal parts goat and cream cheese, then added chopped herbs, garlic, salt and pepper to taste.


A bunch of spicy-smelling, earthy, clove-y basil.


I put the basil in the food processor with olive oil, salt & pepper, garlic and a bit of parmesean cheese...


I can't wait to have it over pasta tomorrow night...