A blanket

The yarn was made from my Oma's sheep. The yarn is incredibly scratchy and would be terrible for clothing. It worked out for a blanket though. I don't recall what the pattern for the purple center piece was. The border is (I think) sc ch sc ch over and over. Then the next round the sc stitches go into the ch spaces.

Boden likes to snooze on this blanket during Lego time.

 

Potholder

I didn't have a potholder at work. People watched me struggle to carry my hot bowl from the microwave to my office. Kevin pointed out that since I do that yarn stuff I should make a potholder for work. So I did. Here it is. 

Here's a link to the pattern on the off chance anyone wants it (and also to acknowledge this isn't my design). https://ravel.me/mini-snail-sample-lfc

Luci is a taco model

The deal was that I'd trade a cat sweater for a painting with Kevin's sister. I decided that the cat sweater would be a taco. I didn't have a pattern for this. It came out ok. A little big for most cats. Actually, it came out pretty well. Yeah there's room for improvement, but for winging it, it's decent.

Bees, please

I have forgotten the name of the pattern, and consequently, the designer. I made this for the front gate. The colors are to let bees know they are welcome. I don't know that that's how the bees see it, but that's ok.

Croissants are not easy to make

I live in an area that lacks a really, really good croissant. It's been rattling around in my brain for a while to try and make them myself. I mean, I make lots of other good food, so this should be doable, right? Well, maybe with more practice I could get good at it.

These took 3 days to make. On day one I made the dough and got the butter ready. That went smoothly enough. I even kneaded the dough by hand! (Usually I rely on the bread machine to knead for me.) The second day was where things went wrong. This is where you laminate the butter in between the dough. It's a lot of rolling and folding and chilling. The first two laminations went ok. The second one went so well that I thought I had this DOWN! On the third lamination, I guess I got too aggressive with the dough. The dough broke and butter leaked out. That's not a thing I could fix. The 4th lamination went about as well as the 3rd. I considered tossing the dough and giving up. But reading other people's experiences led me to believe that the croissants would still taste ok, just not be flakey.

On the third day, all I had to do was let them proof for an hour and then bake them. They smelled right as they baked. And sure enough, they taste fine, but aren't flakey. They're more like croissant shaped biscuits. 

I haven't decided if I will ever try this again. Croissants aren't even a favorite food of mine. This was just something I had to try. At least I know what I did wrong, in case I do ever try again.

Wisteria wreath

 A few weeks ago Peter asked if I wanted to make a wreath from the wisteria vines that are sprawling all over. I liked the idea, and finally got around to trying it today. It's 8 or 9 vines, looped around each other. I deadheaded some flowers and stuck those in, since they still looked ok. I'm curious to see what will happen to the wreath as it dries. Will it stay intact? Will it unravel? If it stays intact, I can keep hanging things on it.

The wisteria had lots more vines. I might make another wreath, or find something else to weave the vines into.

Apple review

Back in 2019 my sister sent me a box of assorted apples. I took notes on the apples as I tasted them and intended to post these apple reviews right after tasting them all. That didn't happen. Obviously. But I did save the notes and the photos. Better late then never?

Winesap 

The flavor was not strong. It tasted sweet at first, then became tart. The tartness stood out more as I ate more of the apple. I liked the tartness of this apple. The texture was neither firm nor soft. A decent apple overall.

Crimson Crisp

This apple at least lives up to the crisp part of its name. It was very crisp. This apple was very sweet, but the sweetness had a flavor. I could not place the flavor. It was fruity like a Golden Delicious, but not exactly like a Golden Delicious. I don't really like sweet apples, but this was decent for a sweet apple.

Northern Spy 

The Northern Spy was crisp. It was not sweet. It was not tart. The flavor was very subtle- almost nonexistent. After eating this one, my tongue felt like it was coated in powder. P said it was very apple-y.

 

Sunrise Fuji

This apple has a pretty skin and I can see how it got the sunrise part of its name. This apple was medium crisp and very sweet. The taste is reminiscent of a Red Delicious. Although pretty, the Sunrise Fuji tastes bland.

Roxbury Russet

This is not an appealing apple from the outside. It's very crisp and dense, not too sweet, and a hint of tartness. The taste is somewhat reminiscent of an under-ripe pear, but that could be influenced by the color and firmness. It still tasted like an apple though. It could use more tartness. Great texture, but a little bland. Not bad, not bad.

 

 

Snow Sweet

The skin and texture of this one reminded me of a McIntosh- papery skin and soft flesh. Although this apple was sweet, the flavor was more complex than sugar water.  It had a mild sweet apple flavor with the faintest hint of tart. It tasted a little bit like a green apple candy. I thought this was good for a sweet apple.

Baldwin

This firm apple was very sweet. Although the flavor was simple, it was still better than a Red Delicious. I thought the flavor was similar to a Golden Delicious. Overall, the apple had more flavor than sugar water, but the taste was not very interesting.

 Mutsu

I had a cold when I tasted this one. It was crisp. It left a slight powdery sensation on my tongue. Not too sweet, a little bit of tartness. There was some complexity to the flavor. I liked this one.

Sweet 16

Another crisp one. This one was sweet, but in an interesting way. It had a kind of fruity flavor. I liked this apple even though the flavor ran out before I was done chewing. Sort of like gum.

Molly's Delicious

Soft and mealy. Sweet and flavorless. This apple was gross.

 

Arkansas Black

Crisp and tart. I still had the cold when I tasted this one, so didn't get to experience the full flavor. I liked what I could taste though.

Wolf River

I waited too long to taste this one. By the time I got to it, it was wrinkly and soft. It smelled apple-y and slightly fermented. The flavor had faded, but I picked up some tartness and noted that the flavor was generally fine. The texture had gone mushy and mealy. I regret my procrastination on this one.