Fresh Clam Chowder

My husband and I were at our local health food store, well local to us (2 hours away!) and saw fresh clams.  So began our adventure of fresh clam chowder...

Of course I would never attempt this with out some kind of recipe to ignore...so I consulted Epicurius and  they were more than happy to explain how to cook our clams...seemed pretty simple, the only thing I didn't really understand was the cutting off the the siphons, wasn't really sure what that was but figured I'd know it when I saw it. So, first step:





Put clams into cold water and gently swish back and forth. Transfer to another bowl of cold water and do the same. Continue until the water isn't murky anymore, but clear. Then:

Bring Water to a rolling boil and carefully place clams in water, when they are done, they will open. We kind of just stirred them around a bit to be able to see as they were opening. As they open just put them in a bowl to cool as they were done:

And there you have them...I do have to admit I did freak out a bit when they started to boil and bounce around in the pot, but Ryan assured me that they were dead when we bought them and logic stepped in and helped me move on to...the siphon.

This is the part where you get to dig your finger in and pop out all the poop...yes it is gross and if you don't like the idea of having to remove the waste product from your food, stick to canned clams!

Fun? Yes, it made me feel like I was transported to New England, just got back from clamming and was steaming up the harvest. No I have never been to New England, nor have ever been clamming...but it is fun to pretend.

The rest was fairly simple a little of this a little of that...

And dinner's ready! One thing we did do was use the broth from the clams for the soup, which seemed to add a lot of flavor, or maybe it was psychological, but in my non-expert opinion, pretty good. And a great way to spend the evening together!

A Little Something I Put Together

Some one gave me these cute little embroidered cars after the fire. I held onto them, trying to think of what to do with them...then the other day, I decided they would look better in a quilt for Knowle than in my sewing box.

I just framed in each car.

Here is my favorite square...maybe because of the green?

Here's my cutie with his new blanket!

Now that I've had a little break, I can work on my quilt again...stepping away for a bit gives me new excitement for an old project!

Never Make Important Decisions at Night!

Well, at least I shouldn't...Maybe it is because my brain has been pretending to work all day, and is worn out...So the other night I was looking into ways that I could promote my etsy site. They have a method where you purchase a showcase to show your work.  Sounds good so far right? The only problem is that every time I remember to look for one, they are all sold out.

The other night was different. I looked and there were available slots! So my fingers went into actions and my brain just sat back, relaxed and waited to see what would happen...unfortunately I didn't bother to read further until after I purchased a showcase for 'Winter accessories'.  Hmm...I guess I can make it fit, sort of...no not really. I decided to cancel, since I was sure they were looking for hats, gloves, scarves and the such, only to discover that once you buy your stuck.

My only other option now was to try to make it work...did I mention it is on the 22nd? Epiphany, I will make a winter line! How exciting, my first collection! To be accomplished in a couple of days...So here are some options for beads that I threw together...

I kind of went for a couple different ideas.
1. to look at the nature of winter for inspiration.
2. to incorporate winter colors (as in trends) into some pieces.
There's nothing like a mistake to inspire...so come by the shop and see how it went!

Never Finished

Here are some photos, I finally got the living room sort of put back together...

There you go...I love the blue, it brightens up the room! We still have to paint the trim and attach around the windows. You may also notice the concrete floor...I kind of like it the way it is, but we may decide to paint it, not quite sure yet.  Kind of looks Urban Outfitter-Esq don't you think?

Well, it snowed...now I am in an emotional seasonal turmoil. You see I cannot cope with the cold and dreariness of winter, and then it starts to snow...and I find myself rooting it on! Looking outside every couple of minutes to see the accumulation and a little spark of hope for a foot of snow goes off inside me! Then the next morning I get up and this...

I do admit that it is beautiful, but quite disappointing for snowing  for the past 18 hours...but there is another storm coming in...
WAIT! What am I saying?

The Trouble With Remodeling

We embarked upon the exciting remodel of the living room. One reason, I hated the carpet...well actually I just hate carpet in general...I just can't live with all the little things that could be living in my carpet! So it came down to me or them...

Then of course if you are going to move everything to rip up the carpet, you might as well paint. However the trouble with that is you have to dismantle it, move it, or cover it.  So for a week everything was in disarray!

 I should have taken better 'before photos' but I didn't think of it till later, and I wasn't about to put it all back together!

 

Well, now that 'easy' part, putting it all back together! Just a few more finishing touches, and I will sent some after photos!

Sorry Martha

Drum roll please...the results of the bake challenge, not just in, are...(long annoying pause)

Well, it's not that easy. There was a bit of a meltdown, due to privacy issues, I will not say who it was...but to make a long story short, the baking challenge was cancelled and we had fun making a cake together. I chose carrot, and yes we made it with all wheat flour.  And it tasted wonderful! I will tell you what I did, if you don't care, skip the next paragraph.

I used regular wheat flour. I would have used whole wheat pastry flour, but when you live 2 hours from the store you make due. The only other difference was I put in a little extra carrots for moistness, and I separated the eggs, beat the egg whites to not quite stiff peaks then folded them in when the rest of the batter was mixed together. Oh and I added some nutmeg and cloves too.

I like to think of a recipe as a suggestion, then I do with it as I please...of course I am not ever good at writing down the changes I made, so we tend never to eat the same thing twice!

Okay, another drum roll please...

Shhhhh...If you are really quiet, you can hear Martha Stewart crying.