afternoon fade
Apr. 23rd, 2010 02:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ksmithJust checked the radar. Looks as though rain is a couple of hours away, maybe less.
But it was sunny this morning, so after I brought King and Gaby home from the vet--King for his vaccination, Gaby for moral support--I headed out for errand-running, gas and groceries and hardware store. At the h-ware store, I went a little nuts in the garden center. Brought two hanging baskets with small flowers that are very pretty but that I don't recognize. I also bought herbs, two each of rosemary and Texas? tarragon, and one each of curly Italian parsley and cilantro. Deck planters for the herbs, and potting soil, and window well covers to replace a couple that shattered due to age.
At first I thought I would jam all the herbs into the two deck planters. They're like window boxes, about 18" long, which hang off the deck railing via wire holders. Read the planting instructions for the rosemary, realized they wouldn't have enough room in the planters, and dug a couple of large pots out of the garage. Filled those with soil , then added a single rosemary plant to each. They're supposed to grow up to 3 ft high, so if all those well they should be OK in the pots.
I put both tarragon in one planter, and the cilantro in the other. Dug another largish pot out of the garage for the parsley. Hoping the next few nights are warm enough for them. I really do like having the fresh herbs around.
Cookie report--not sure if the Best CCC Ever are indeed the best ever, but they are good. Rich, though, because of the butter. I tweaked the recipe, which may have affected matters. I replaced half the all-purpose flour with the King Arthur white whole wheat flour. In addition...I had read in the past that the addition of coffee (liquid or instant) to a chocolate recipe really boosts the chocolate flavor. I had a jar of instant espresso in my cupboard for just that reason, but I had hardly ever used it because I don't bake with chocolate that often. I thought maybe the stuff would boost the flavor of chips as well, even though that chocolate isn't dispersed throughout the dough. So, I added two teaspoons instant espresso powder. I also added two teaspoons cinnamon. Think cappuccino chocolate chip.
The dough tasted great. The cookies are good, but rich. They also aren't as flat as they look in the recipe photo, which is fine with me.
I'm tired. Pups were out with me while I worked--they're asleep. Now I wait for the rain.
One funny thing happened at the vet. King and Gaby pile into the lobby, and there encountered a gangly puppy--may have been an Amstaff. Much nose-sniffing ensued. As I tried to pull my two away, the tech showed up to take us to an exam room. She was surprised to see Gaby, who wasn't scheduled for anything. I said that it was just for moral support, and tried to lead Gaby after King into the room. But Gaby planted and wouldn't come no matter how I pulled. That cracked up the puppy's owners. "That's moral support," the guy said.
Gaby followed eventually. They were both good puppies.
But it was sunny this morning, so after I brought King and Gaby home from the vet--King for his vaccination, Gaby for moral support--I headed out for errand-running, gas and groceries and hardware store. At the h-ware store, I went a little nuts in the garden center. Brought two hanging baskets with small flowers that are very pretty but that I don't recognize. I also bought herbs, two each of rosemary and Texas? tarragon, and one each of curly Italian parsley and cilantro. Deck planters for the herbs, and potting soil, and window well covers to replace a couple that shattered due to age.
At first I thought I would jam all the herbs into the two deck planters. They're like window boxes, about 18" long, which hang off the deck railing via wire holders. Read the planting instructions for the rosemary, realized they wouldn't have enough room in the planters, and dug a couple of large pots out of the garage. Filled those with soil , then added a single rosemary plant to each. They're supposed to grow up to 3 ft high, so if all those well they should be OK in the pots.
I put both tarragon in one planter, and the cilantro in the other. Dug another largish pot out of the garage for the parsley. Hoping the next few nights are warm enough for them. I really do like having the fresh herbs around.
Cookie report--not sure if the Best CCC Ever are indeed the best ever, but they are good. Rich, though, because of the butter. I tweaked the recipe, which may have affected matters. I replaced half the all-purpose flour with the King Arthur white whole wheat flour. In addition...I had read in the past that the addition of coffee (liquid or instant) to a chocolate recipe really boosts the chocolate flavor. I had a jar of instant espresso in my cupboard for just that reason, but I had hardly ever used it because I don't bake with chocolate that often. I thought maybe the stuff would boost the flavor of chips as well, even though that chocolate isn't dispersed throughout the dough. So, I added two teaspoons instant espresso powder. I also added two teaspoons cinnamon. Think cappuccino chocolate chip.
The dough tasted great. The cookies are good, but rich. They also aren't as flat as they look in the recipe photo, which is fine with me.
I'm tired. Pups were out with me while I worked--they're asleep. Now I wait for the rain.
One funny thing happened at the vet. King and Gaby pile into the lobby, and there encountered a gangly puppy--may have been an Amstaff. Much nose-sniffing ensued. As I tried to pull my two away, the tech showed up to take us to an exam room. She was surprised to see Gaby, who wasn't scheduled for anything. I said that it was just for moral support, and tried to lead Gaby after King into the room. But Gaby planted and wouldn't come no matter how I pulled. That cracked up the puppy's owners. "That's moral support," the guy said.
Gaby followed eventually. They were both good puppies.
