Summer is here and school is out! Thanks to the fabulously cold winter, spring was delayed and the garden has been bursting at the seams inspite of the winter freeze. June also heralds the start of what forecasters promise to be a busy hurricane season. So, watch out for signs of Alex.
As I'm sure all have heard our beautiful gulf coast is now an oil slick, the worst spill in history. Oil has reached the beaches of Louisiana and will soon make its way around the peninsula and onto our beaches. Tom and I were reminiscing of the early '80's when a trip to the beach always included a can of Zippo lighter fluid and a roll of paper towel to clean the tar balls off our feet, thanks to frequent tanker spills in the Atlantic. We'd blissfully put those days away.
So, back to more pleasant things like knitting…
I made a rare after Christmas pilgrimage to the mall earlier in the year and hit the evil Anthropologie empire. Home to overpriced stuff and more stuff. I couldn't resist opening up my thin wallet and snagging a couple of Frosta Design crochet basket kits slashed from $60.00 to $10.00. I just now cracked the first one and uncramped my knitting hands and begged them to take on the position, the crochet position. They had forgotten how. As persistence would have it, they remembered and soon I was hooking my way towards a great basket. Those clever and generous Swedes; much to my surprise, I still have a huge ball leftover so another basket is in the works.
A leftover Ravelymics project has limped over the finish line. No excuses, it was napping in a bag, sleeping away spring. These are super cute and great on the feet. Mountain Form Slippers only take about 100 yards to make. I used the last of the pea green Debbie Bliss Cashmerino, getting yet more mileage out the yarn that won't go away.
Not to be forgotten, blueberry season was late this year and I totally expected few berries, what with the freeze. I was shocked at the abundance of blueberries. The bushes were loaded and I picked 25 pounds. In the spirit of sharing, here is a great breakfast recipe that showcases any berry, freshly picked.
Cheese Blintzes
Ingredients
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 1/2 cup whipped light cream cheese
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup flour
• 1 1/2 cups skim milk
• 1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs
• 2 cups
blueberries or other fresh berries
• 2 teaspoons powdered sugar
•
Prep
Place cottage cheese in a blender or food processor until smooth. Add cream cheese, sugar, vanilla; blend until smooth. Cover and chill.
Place flour in a medium bowl. Combine milk, oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla, salt, and eggs, and add to flour, stirring with a whisk until almost smooth. Cover and chill.
Heat a 10-inch crepe pan or nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high. Pour 3 tablespoons batter into pan; quickly tilt pan in all directions so batter covers skillet with a thin film. Cook about 1 minute.
Carefully lift edge of crepe with a spatula to test for doneness. The crepe is ready to turn when it can be shaken loose from the pan and the underside is lightly browned. Turn crepe over; cook 30 seconds on other side. Place crepe on plate to cool. Repeat procedure with remaining batter.
Spoon 3 tablespoons cottage cheese mixture in center of each crepe; fold sides and ends of crepe over filling to form a rectangle. Place filled crepes, seam sides down, on a baking sheet lined with plastic wrap. Place a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat until hot. Place 4 blintzes, seam sides down, in skillet; cook 2 minutes or until lightly browned. Turn blintzes over; cook for 2 minutes. Repeat procedure with remaining blintzes. Serve warm with blueberries, and sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Yum!
