From the book I’m reading; “The only color in her face was her nose, red with a summer cold. She found a tissue and blew the way children do, one side, then the other.” Isn’t that the way adults do it too?

🍜 I tried the Golden Diner Pancake recipe from NYT Cooking. The pancakes came out nice and fluffy. I didn’t make all the add-ons but they were tasty with maple syrup. I added a few peach slices and that was good too. One issue came up when my understanding of “small” didn’t match NYT’s.

Katafiti Saganaki Feta. Feta dipped in egg, covered with katafiti and fried. Garnished with honey and sesame seeds. 🍜

I had the wrong reason for getting blue right. Got purple by default. Connections Puzzle #785 🟨🟨🟨🟨 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟦🟦🟦🟦 🟪🟪🟪🟪

My first loaf of milk bread 🍜

Colorfle 1185 1/6 🟩🟩🟩 My average color accuracy was 100%!

Pickled shrimp. From Does This Taste Funny? By Stephen and Evie McGee Colbert. 🍜

Another recipe from Does This Taste Funny? By Stephen and Evie Marie Colbert . Crispy Brussels Sprouts with Hot Honey. The title tells it all. They were almost gone before I remembered to take a picture. Definitely a keeper. And so easy.

#cats 😻

Mock Unagi Bowl Thin strips of eggplant browned on both sides then simmered in unagi sauce. Served over rice. It isn’t close to being unagi it’s a great eggplant dish. 🍜

A friend sent a Food&Wine recipe for Banh Mi Smash Burgers. She used ground turkey instead of pork. I used Impossible sausage, spread filling on dumpling wrappers, then pan fried. Used recipe’s spicy mayo & my pickled veggies. Folded the wrappers into tiny tacos. It was delicious. A keeper. 🍜

I’ve been experimenting making something similar to the viral, tasty Dubai Chocolate bar. It took time to source the pistachio crème, the kataifi (for the crunch) and a small mold (1.5”x3”). I’m happy w/ the first, though I want to work on perfecting the chocolate so it’s shinier and has a snap. 🍜

Shakshuka Egg for breakfast. I used my leftover pico de gallo as the base. 🍜

Salmon potato “lasagna” from @adamwitt on IG. It was delicious. I paired it with some sautéed spinach. 🍜

I had to visit the DMV today to renew my Real Id. I’m old so I had to go in person. Like my experience w/ cataract surgery, the anticipation anxiety was much worse than the actual visit. Arrived at 9:30 for a 9:40 appt. My number was called at 9:41 and 10 minutes later I was out the door.

Chile-Crisp Chickpea Rice Bowl. Recipe from NYT Cooking. I like all the ingredients but wasn’t sure I was going to like them together. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. I will make it again. And again. 🍜

I made this pull-apart samosa dish today. I love the dough and the filling though I don’t think it was very pull-apartable. I also thought there was too much bread or not enough filling. I will make it again but make individual samosas and air fry them. Recipe in the comments. 🍜

Happy Caturday 😻

I tried a recipe for Spicey Instant Rava Paniyaram from cookclickndevour. Made with semolina, yogurt, chilis, onion, carrot, and ginger. They were easy to make and quite tasty. I would add more veggies.

Spoiler Alert for Top Chef I stopped watching Top Chef about 4 seasons in because I couldn’t stand the negativity and drama. I started watching again last year and was happy to see camaraderie. That being said, I did not like Massimo this season. I rooted for him to be eliminated.

I made my banh mi based on the recipe in the comments. The marinade is yummy. I air fried the tofu. I used my own pickled veggies. And I baked the Vietnamese baguettes using the second recipe in the comments. 🍜

Thanks to our local SF restaurant Bun Mee, I’m craving pickled veg. Today I did a quick pickle with daikon and carrots, and had enough juice left to make some pickled Persian cucumbers. Looking forward to making some tofu Banh Mi sandwiches this week. 🍜

My fresh batch of yellow mustard. My last batch was more Dijon-ish. I like creating my own flavors. I used our ramp vinegar for this one. A little amount of seeds goes a long way and I struggle to make small enough amounts since I don’t use mustard every day.

If you cut off the root end of green onions, plant them, and water them occasionally, you will eventually have long stalks with puffy flowers. Those flowers have tiny onion pods that are delicious in salads or dips. 🍜

Ready for a new challenge. I’m hoping this puzzle is easier than my last one. For starters, the sorting is much easier. Yay for lots of color! 🧩

All the other Waymos are jealous. #StreetsOfSanFrancisco

Finally!! Now I will leave it out for a few days so I can admire my accomplishment, and then it will go back into the box. I won’t be doing this one again. 🧩

I took inspiration from an IG post about folding grated butter into sourdough to make a croissant loaf. I decided to fold it into my discard sourdough pizza dough and make mini croissants. Fluffy and tasty! 🍜

Hardest puzzle ever. At least I’m starting to feel I’ll finish it. Someday. 🧩

Added Parmesan, panko, and egg to my leftover rice. Rolled it into balls and stuck some mozzarella in the middle. Then rolled them in seasoned panko and air fried them. 🍜

I’m still working on perfecting my sourdough and my daughter has decided to work on loaf decoration. 🍜

This game frustrates me a lot but I play anyway. Finally got a high score. [Bracket City] April 17, 2025 Rank: 💼 (Power Broker) ❌ Wrong guesses: 1 Total Score: 98.0 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

Ms. Pentecost told me once that it's a product of my claustrophobia. I told her I wasn't claustrophobic. I just didn't like being somewhere I couldn't get out of, and I think that's reasonable enough you don't need to invent a five-syllable word to cover it. Stephen Spotswood, Murder Under Her Skin

The orchids are blooming

I like Haiga-mai rice which has a softer texture than brown rice, but more nutritional benefit than white rice. And it only takes a few more minutes to cook than white rice does. I had it for lunch today with spicy salmon bites. 🍜

1 success & 1 not a keeper. Caramelized onion bread pudding - delicious. Homemade sourdough bread, caramelized onions, ramps, and Gruyère. Mud hen bars via IG. Cookie base topped with chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, and brown sugar meringue. Way too sweet, though a glass of milk helps. 🍜

I don’t remember ever getting this on the 1st try. Colorfle 1078 1/6 🟩🟩🟩 My average color accuracy was 100%!

Avi loves to lie in the sun

Happy Ramp Season! Our first batch of ramps cleaned. Sautéed some for pasta, and covered some with seasoned vinegar and stuck in the pantry to create ramp infused vinegar. Some of the remaining ramps might end up in sourdough bread. 🍜

Sourdough discard popovers. A new favorite. Right there with discard pizza dough. 🍜

Listening

Listening

Drop biscuits made with sourdough discard. 🍜

Hard puzzle! I’ve been working on it for days. If I get 10 pieces placed in a sitting, I’m doing great. 🧩

Crab sandwich at Little Shucker. YUM!

Listening to one of my all time favorite albums.

The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat: Wordle 1,371 2/6* ⬛⬛🟨🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Archive March 20, 2025 Wordle 1,370 X/6* ⬛⬛⬛⬛🟩 ⬛⬛⬛🟩🟩 🟨⬛⬛🟩🟩 ⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩 ⬛🟩🟩🟩🟩

Goldilocks moment Jude’s cat tree was wobbling/creaking when he jumped on it. Went to find the special tool the assemble-it-yourself cat tree came with. The first tool I found was too small, the second was too big, and the third one was just right. Jude’s tree is now safe for 17lb cats. 😻

Sourdough discard soft pretzel bites. Recipe from my new favorite baking website - Amybakesbread. A sourdough queen. These were easy to make. I dipped them in an improvised cheese dip and also some marinara I found in my freezer. Tomorrow I’ll toss them in cinnamon sugar for a breakfast treat. 🍜

Same amybakesbread sourdough crust dough for today’s breakfast pizza. Cheese sauce, scrambled eggs, hash browns, mozzarella, and cheddar. Topped with cilantro, green onions and hot sauce. 🍜