Marge, it’s 3 AM. Shouldn’t you be baking?”
The day is breezy and sunny. It’s also warm and will stay that way through tomorrow when the high is predicted to be 88Ëš. Last night we had rain. The drops started slowly around one. I know that because that’s when I went upstairs to bed and that’s when I found the dead mouse in my room. Earlier I had heard the ruckus and knew Maddie was the cause of the noise. It didn’t occur to me she was playing with a mouse. That’s the third one in a little over a week. There must be a small welcome mat outside the cellar walls. I wrapped the deceased in paper and took it outside. That’s when I felt the rain. I could also smell the air, the smell of the rain hitting the hot pavement. I stood for a moment enjoying the rain then came back inside and went back to bed in the cool house. I fell asleep right away.
When I was a kid, I never cooked anything. I wasn’t interested in the kitchen except to sit down to dinner. For lunch sometimes, I’d make a bologna sandwich, but I always cut the meat a bit lopsided, thin on one side and thick on the other. I’d add hot peppers to give the bologna a bit of a zing. It was always mustard on my bologna. Even in college, when I had an apartment, I didn’t do much cooking. I became quite adept at opening Dinty Moore’s beef stew. My roommate actually cooked meals for us with meat, potatoes and a vegetable. I was amazed.
I made sugar cookies for Christmas when I was in Ghana; they were traditional in my family, and I needed a connection to home my first Christmas away. I was hesitant as I had a total lack of baking skills, but I had nothing to lose so I gave those cookies a try. Despite my having to sift out the bugs and use a beer bottle as a rolling-pin, those cookies were perfect and they were delicious. They brought Christmas to me.
After that no recipe fazed me. When I got home, I was willing to try anything, even chicken Kiev. After all, I had made sugar cookies looking like bells and reindeer in a small oven in Ghana so I knew I could make anything.
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Tags: baking, Chriostmas, Ghana, mouse, rain, recipes, sugar cookies, summer heat
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July 16, 2012 at 11:23 am
This summer we are getting scattered but very violent thunderstorms. If you happen to be lucky enough to be underneath one of them you might experience heavy rain, with possibly hail, lightning and high winds. Yesterday we only received a sprinkle or two as the storms formed south of my home. Last summer it didn’t really rain from Memorial Day through Labor Day.
When I was single I used to cook for myself when I got tired of eating in restaurants. After marriage my wife took over the kitchen and I haven’t cooked in years. She likes being in charge and I let her enjoy herself. I loved to cook chicken Kiev but I couldn’t figure out how to keep the butter inside the breast while it fried. I didn’t have a deep fat fryer. I am not a baker and prefer to buy cookies in the store.
July 16, 2012 at 12:11 pm
Bob,
This summer you are getting more rain than I am. Last night’s rain was the first in a long time, but it is hardly enough.
I didn’t have a deep fat fryer either. It all had to do with the way you rolled and closed the chicken. That was one of the best dishes I ever made-haven’t in so long I was amazed I remembered it today.
I haven’t baked in a while, but i’m still trying new recipes to serve with friends on the deck. It’s fun!
July 16, 2012 at 12:09 pm
I would lie if I said it has been warm here today but it has been nice anyway, The sun is still shining and a chilly breeze keeps away most flies and mosquitoes.
I started to cook when my mother moved away when I was around fifteen. No fancy things but I did cook 🙂 I’ve always made dinner to take with me to work but I’ve been rather lazy this last year, it is so much easier to buy from the restaurant that delivers the food to the factory. It doesn’t taste anything but I get fed and still I haven’t been sick from it 🙂 🙂 🙂
We all took a long nap today, or so I thought. It turns out young Sune had been walking around in the garden all the time 🙂 I’m glad I had put up that barrier by the gate. It looks as if he can’t pass it but if he had looked closer he would have realized it would have been easy 🙂
Have a great day!
Christer.
July 16, 2012 at 12:14 pm
Christer,
It’s stay inside and be cool weather still. i do have to fill the feeders so I’ll wish the heat for a while.
I love reading about your breads and how wonderful they taste. I consider you a fine baker!!
How funny that Sune got to explore on his own. I too am really glad he didn’t get out. Gracie would have been on the run in heartbeat. When she was a puppy, we went to my mother’s house with a fenced in yard or so I thought. Gracie found the one hole and was off. In those days she came back when called-good thing too!
July 16, 2012 at 4:40 pm
Hi Kat,
I used to cook a lot when I was in my 20’s and 30’s. I went through a phase of learning different cuisines from around the world. Mostly I cooked out of books for a bit and then took what I had learned and did my own thing with it.
I’m not cooking much on these hot days. It’s been salads or yogurt with cut up fruit and a bit of cereal. And lots of cold water.
Enjoy the rest of the day and stay cool!
July 16, 2012 at 5:12 pm
Hi Caryn,
I used to do an annual dinner where we visited a different country each year. That was great fun cooking all sorts of cuisines and decorating with the country in mind. For those dishes, I used cook books.
I have been using the grill mostly though the oven is okay with the AC on.
I took a nap with Fern and Gracie-it was lovely!
July 16, 2012 at 5:32 pm
I’ve been using the drive-through window a lot, too. 😀
July 16, 2012 at 7:48 pm
Left alone it was always peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, bag of chips, and a cola. I lived on that through High School and ate out mostly once in College. A girl friend bought me the NY Times Cookbook. I still have it. I think I got as far as the recipe to T bone steak.