Blueberry Season During the time of COVID

Blueberries are plentiful.  I was shopping this morning and when I walked through the produce department they called out to me to take them home. I love blueberries so I willingly obliged.  In fact I bought three pints.

I am going to make the zucchini and blueberry bread I blogged about earlier. I had to eat some plain.  I just popped them in my mouth and savored their sweetness. Then, since I have always wanted to make scones I decided to make blueberry scones.  They came out pretty good so I am sharing the recipe I found on allrecipes.com.  Hope you enjoy them.  

2 cups Flour                                                    1/4 c chilled butter

1/4 cup packed brown sugar                            1 cup blueberries               

1 tablespoon baking powder                             3/4 cup half and half

1/4 tsp salt                                                     1 egg

• Mix flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Cut butter int the dry mix.  I actually grated frozen butter.
• Add blueberries.
• In a separate bowl beat  egg and add half and half
• Slowly pour egg mix into dry ingredients
• Divide dough into half
• Shape each half int a 6 inch round.
• Cut each round into 6 pieces
• Place dough on sheet pan lined with parchment paper
• Bake in 375 degree oven until dne.

Peach Pie in the time of COVID

Peaches were on sale so a bought a lot and we ate a lot.  They were very delicious but there were 5 left and we didn't feel like eating peaches anymore so I made this free form pie also known as a galette.  

If you are a good baker which I am not, you can make the crust from scratch.  I did not.  I used a prepared crust from the grocery store which I happened to have in my fridge.

I cut the peaches in thin slices, dropped them in water mixed with lime juice and then mixed them with sugar and flour.

I think it was a success.

Here is a more formal recipe and tips.

Summer Hours at the Robbers Library

She was a young girl who walked into a book store to buy a dictionary because she loved words and wanted to be able to look up new ones.  She didn't have enough money, took the book and got caught.

She appeared before the judge in children's court and was sentenced to community service in the town library.  There she meets a variety of folks that become her world.  Specifically she meets Kit the librarian who has come to Riverton barely holding on to her sanity and as far away from her old life as possible and Rusty a once successful trader until he wasn't.

They form an interesting unit and go done a path that they probably didn't expect to find in this town.  It's a nice read.

Weddings in the Time of COVID - The Guest List

To me Weddings are extremely stressful.  I know mine was.  My husband and I were all about having the wedding in front of the Justice of the Peace but my Dad was not having it.

When I met my husband and we decided to get married he was in the military stationed at Walter Reed but in the middle of the planning he was sent to a base in Virginia about an hour from Richmond,  He then got his orders to go overseas so there were a lot of moving parts.  I had a job that I loved that required me to be on the road 4 days a week.

The wedding was in New York so I would end up flying to New York 2 times a month from where ever I was.  It was exhausting.  Plus we still wanted a simple wedding which was a little too simple for my family so it turned out somewhere in the middle.  I had also only met my husband's family once before all of this and planning a wedding is not a good time to be getting to know your in-laws.

This book is all about the wedding of a magazine publisher Jules and her handsome reality show fiancee.  Jules wants everything to be perfect and it does start out that way until the guests arrive.  The main characters all have a lot of baggage and I don't mean the kind you pack your clothes in, I mean emotional baggage.  Top that off with the remote location of the wedding venue and the fact that a dead body turns up and you have a real page turning novel.

I loved how the author wove all the character story lines together.  This is a great summer read.

Deep Dish Pizza in the time of COVID

This is deep dish pizza made with King Arthur Flour.

I got the recipe From the King Arthur Website.  The secret is the flour and using  a cast iron skillet to bake the pizza in.  The skillet gets really hot and makes the crust crispy.  There is nothing better than crispy crust.

Ingredients

Crust

• 2 cups (240g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast or active dry yeast
• 3/4 cup (170g) lukewarm water
• 1 tablespoon (13g) olive oil + 1 1/2 tablespoons (18g) olive oil for the pan

Topping

• 6 ounces (170g) mozzarella, grated (about 1 1/4 cups, loosely packed)*
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup (74g to 113g) tomato sauce or pizza sauce, homemade or store-bought
• freshly grated hard cheese and fresh herbs for sprinkling on top after baking, optional*

Instructions

1. 
   
   Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess.  
2. Place the flour, salt, yeast, water, and 1 tablespoon (13g) of the olive oil in the bowl of a stand mixer or other medium-large mixing bowl.
3. Stir everything together to make a shaggy, sticky mass of dough with no dry patches of flour. This should take 30 to 45 seconds in a mixer using the beater paddle; or about 1 minute by hand, using a spoon or spatula. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to gather the dough into a rough ball; cover the bowl.
4. After 5 minutes, uncover the bowl and reach a bowl scraper or your wet hand down between the side of the bowl and the dough, as though you were going to lift the dough out. Instead of lifting, stretch the bottom of the dough up and over its top. Repeat three more times, turning the bowl 90° each time. This process of four stretches, which takes the place of kneading, is called a fold. 
5. Re-cover the bowl, and after 5 minutes do another fold. Wait 5 minutes and repeat; then another 5 minutes, and do a fourth and final fold. Cover the bowl and let the dough rest, undisturbed, for 40 minutes. Then refrigerate it for a minimum of 12 hours, or up to 72 hours. It'll rise slowly as it chills, developing flavor; this long rise will also add flexibility to your schedule.
6. About 3 hours before you want to serve your pizza, prepare your pan. Pour 1 1/2 tablespoons (18g) olive oil into a well-seasoned cast iron skillet that’s 10” to 11” diameter across the top, and about 9” across the bottom. Heavy, dark cast iron will give you a superb crust; but if you don’t have it, use another oven-safe heavy-bottomed skillet of similar size, or a 10” round cake pan or 9” square pan. Tilt the pan to spread the oil across the bottom, and use your fingers or a paper towel to spread some oil up the edges, as well.  
7. Transfer the dough to the pan and turn it once to coat both sides with the oil. After coating the dough in oil, press the dough to the edges of the pan, dimpling it using the tips of your fingers in the process. The dough may start to resist and shrink back; that’s OK, just cover it and let it rest for about 15 minutes, then repeat the dimpling/pressing. At this point the dough should reach the edges of the pan; if it doesn’t, give it one more 15-minute rest before dimpling/pressing a third and final time. 
8. Cover the crust and let it rise for 2 hours at room temperature. The fully risen dough will look soft and pillowy and will jiggle when you gently shake the pan.
9. About 30 minutes before baking, place one rack at the bottom of the oven and one toward the top (about 4" to 5" from the top heating element). Preheat the oven to 450°F.
10. When you’re ready to bake the pizza, sprinkle about three-quarters of the mozzarella (a scant 1 cup) evenly over the crust. Cover the entire crust, no bare dough showing; this will yield caramelized edges. Dollop small spoonfuls of the sauce over the cheese; laying the cheese down first like this will prevent the sauce from seeping into the crust and making it soggy. Sprinkle on the remaining mozzarella.
11. Bake the pizza on the bottom rack of the oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling and the bottom and edges of the crust are a rich golden brown (use a spatula to check the bottom). If the bottom is brown but the top still seems pale, transfer the pizza to the top rack and bake for 2 to 4 minutes longer. On the other hand, if the top seems fine but the bottom's not browned to your liking, leave the pizza on the bottom rack for another 2 to 4 minutes. Home ovens can vary a lot, so use the visual cues and your own preferences to gauge when you’ve achieved the perfect bake.
12. Remove the pizza from the oven and place the pan on a heatproof surface. Carefully run a table knife or spatula between the edge of the pizza and side of the pan to prevent the cheese from sticking as it cools. Let the pizza cool very briefly; as soon as you feel comfortable doing so, carefully transfer it from the pan to a cooling rack or cutting surface. This will prevent the crust from becoming soggy.
    
13. Serve the pizza anywhere from medium-hot to warm. Kitchen shears or a large pair of household scissors are both good tools for cutting this thick pizza into wedges. 

French Fries not Fried in the Time of COVID

I really enjoy french fries, most people do.  I try to stay away from them because of all the fat and calories.  I found this video from the American Test Kitchen that uses your oven instead of a deep fat fryer.  The secret is covering the potatoes with a minimum amount of oil and cornstarch.  

I followed the video and my fries came out pretty crispy. I was pleasantly suprised.  I am going to use my air fryer next time.  Here is the video.  Enjoy!

An Exercise Companion in the time of COViD

Our last picture of Josh

I have a fit bit.  It was a gift from my husband.  I love it because it tracks the things I want information on or should I say confirmation on.  It tracks how much I move, how many calories I burn and how much I sleep. 

My job has me sitting at a desk all day.  When you work in IT you tend to be glued to a screen and not move as much as you should.  So I am glad that my Fit Bit reminds me to get up and walk.

Counting calories during this time of COVID is more important to me now than before.  Working for a healthcare organization where IT needs literally change every fifteen minutes is stressful.  I try not to snack but sometimes it is difficult to avoid. I try to make healthy choices but sometimes a handful of blueberries is not as good as potato chips. 

That is why the calorie counter on the Fit Bit is so great.  I try to stay within 1200 calories but when I don't make it, I then try to up my exercise and calorie burn.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

As for sleep, that's a joke.  I use to be an 8 hour a day sleeper but lately if I get four hours I am not necessarily happy but I can deal with it.

We had a dog named Josh.  He was more of a child that never grew up than a dog.  But  just like the dog in this video, he felt like he had to be down on the floor with me when I did sit ups and push ups.  Notice the dog is exercising side by side.  Josh was usually in my face or laying on me because usually when I was on the floor I was playing with him or relaxing with him, his head in my lap. Sometimes working out was a struggle around him.  I miss that dog, he passed away from cancer.  We haven't had the heart to get a new dog yet but we are working towards it. 

Gotta go, my Fit Bit sent me a warning that I need 50 steps more this hour.  Love it!

How To Stop Time

Would you want to live for hundreds of years?  Your cells aging at such a slow rate that on the outside you barely look like you have aged at all.  You fall in love and your partner ages and you watch him or her die before your eyes.  Yes this happens to all of us but not over and over again.  You watch your children grow up and then die of old age.  

But think of all the things you experience and people you meet.  Innovations you experience.  But ultimately you become a loner and just go through the motions of living.  This is what happens to the main character, Tom until one day he has a revelation.

I don't even remember how I  found How To Stop Time.  It certainly is not what I expected, but it was fun to read.  Once I started I couldn't put it down.

Holiday tree made with Cookie dough

It is July.  For some reason many places are advertising Christmas in July events.  Take for example the Hallmark channel.  They are having a whole Christmas in July movie marathon.  If you didn't get your fix in October, November and December 2019 than this is the event for you.  

After all, in this time of the COVID virus everyone could use a little Christmas right this very minute and if you want to do a little Christmas shopping early, there is always QVC.  They are rolling out their Christmas in July Holiday shows this month.  I confess, I have already picked up a few choice items.

I am not a big cookie baker but I found this idea that I thought I would share with you.  I am thinking if I want to take a supermarket short cut I can just buy the Pillsbury sugar cookie dough and make these adorable trees.  But that is just me.  Here is the recipe I found.

Competitive Eating Update in the Time of COVID

It is the 4th of July which means the Competitive Eating contest at Nathans in Brooklyn.  I blogged about this earlier (June 24, 2020).  Joey Chestnut won last year eating 71 hot dogs.  This year he was set to break his record from last year and he did it.  In fact the person in second place only ate 42 to Joey's 75.  Amazing that someone can eat that many hot dogs and not vomit on TV.

He said the only thing missing was the crowd cheering him on. COVID strikes again.

A Week At the Shore

I know many of you are planning a beach vacation.  Lots of people have had a rental at the beach on their calendar forever.  Sadly, with the COVID virus once again causing a large uptick in cases being diagnosed, many of us will have to make the decision not to go.  Working in the health care industry I am a believer of wearing masks and social distancing and would not put my family in a situation that would increase their chances of falling ill.

Whether you go to a beach or sit out on you deck, balcony or a socially distant outdoor space, this book has all the requirements of a good beach read. It is an interesting story mixed with a little romance.

It starts with a call received by Mallory from the love of her life Jack who she last saw twenty years ago.  An event happened in their life that ripped them apart.  Of course it all had to do with family and a death.  I liked the book.  It had enough of a story to keep me reading.

Flash Mob Pre COVID

Instrumentally, Stairway to Heaven has got to be one of  my favorites.  There has been much controversy surrounding this song.  A lawsuit was filed against the band by a  Journalist on behalf of the Randi Wolfe Trust who claimed the opening chords were written by him and sung by the band Spirit.

Recently the lawsuit was finally settled with the verdict for the band.  Here is a lovely rendition that comes all the way from Mainz Germany.  It is a lovely rendition and I thought I would share it with you.  Stairway to Heaven