A Mouse in the House

This is my Director of Pest Management.  I’ve posted about her before.  Her main objective in life is to catch things and keep unwanted guests out of my garden.  She really does an excellent job of keeping the birds from eating our raspberries.  However, lately, I’ve been considering writing her up for dereliction of duty.  The squirrels have been eating my almonds and she’s done nothing about it.  I usually find her sleeping in the ferns.

Daring Bakers' Challenge: Baklava

Erica of Erica’s Edibles was our host for the Daring Bakers’ June challenge.  Erica challenged us to be truly DARING by making homemade phyllo dough and then to use that homemade dough to make Baklava.

Typical of most ancient recipes, the origins of baklava are claimed by many ethnic groups but no one is really certain where it originated.  The educated guess is Central Asian, with it’s more current form being developed in the imperial kitchens of the Ottoman Turks after they captured Constantinople.  The palace chefs came from all the different Ottoman territories, so it’s considered an urban creation and not an ethnic one.

Tempeh "Crab" Cakes

I’ve wanted to try this recipe for tempeh “crab” cakes from the moment I read it in Isa Moskowitz’s Vegan Brunch cook book.  I have the book, so there was just no excuse.  It’s the perfect summer dinner, a protein we can eat on a salad.  As far a soy proteins go, tempeh is one of the best.  Now, you can have crab cakes out of season and no crabs need to be harmed in the making of your dinner.  Tempeh crab cakes are a lot less expensive too.

After the Rains

In California it almost never rains after the first week of May, but this is the first week of June and it’s still raining!  It must be another sign of global climate change because I can never remember a time when it’s rained the whole month of May.  I haven’t ventured out into the garden much because the weather has been so unpleasant.  However, it now appears that the rains are finally over so it’s time to check on my garden’s progress.

Tofu Scramble

Tofu scramble is one of my favorite comfort foods.  When I get home late from work or I’ve had a bad day or it’s still RAINING and it’s June already, I turn to the tofu scramble for dinner.  It’s inexpensive and quick to make and it’s very good for you.  

First Spring Harvest

Last week we traveled to the other side of the county for T.C.‘s graduation from NYU. (We’re very proud that she graduated with honors) When we returned, the late spring rains and longer days brought the first harvest.  Raspberries, blueberries and strawberries!  To be honest, the first berries of the season are never the sweetest but we don’t care because we haven’t had fresh vine ripened fruit since last season.  It’s so wonderful to finally have berries for our oats in the morning.

German Chocolate Cupcakes

I made these delicious German Chocolate Cupcakes as my dessert contribution to our annual Mother’s Day family pot luck picnic.  When I asked my mother what type of dessert she wanted, she responded by saying “something with chocolate of course”.  I figured cupcakes travel better than a cake because you can put them back in the muffin tins and they won’t get damaged.  I added the coconut pecan topping to them when I arrived at the picnic.