In My Kitchen: May 2016

Gadzooks! it has been ages since I have invited you to drop by and visit. It's nothing personal, honest, but the routine kitchen activity aound here hasn't been all that engaging as the last weeks of winter dragged on. I am counting on Spring to supply some creative cooking energy - although the sunshine and blossoms visible through the sliding glass door keep interfering, luring me outside to enjoy the day. Spring in Seattle is something to behold, sunny or not.

Photo: Mt. Rainier and rhododendron blooms vie for attention.

...in my kitchen, breakfast is not routine and predictable. Traditional and non-traditional items alternate on a random basis, some healthy and others not-so-much. On the current list of breakfast favorites, cold pizza slices rank right up there along with almond milk/fruit smoothies, toast and avocado slices, or a soft-cooked egg atop a mixed green salad... with fresh croutons and bacon crumbles, of course. Today RL requested Swedish pancakes. Pancakes?  I really prefer sourdough waffles to Swedish pancakes, but he offered to man the griddle so I smiled and cheerfully enjoyed the treat. Along with blueberries and kiwi, this started the month off right. Happy May Day.

Photo: The balloon lifting off on the "Up, Up and Away" plate fit my uplifted spirits in Seattle's MayDay sunshine and warm weather. 

Photo: Swedish Pancake as a wrap or breakfast taco? Any excuse for finger food, just add a dab of Greek yogurt and some fruit, or try a slather of butter and a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar.

...in my kitchen this lovely bouquet from friend Laci added a welcome explosion of color throughout the past week. The flowers arrived in tight bud, unfurling in slow sequence. First to open were the brilliantly blue iris, next the sweet snapdragons and red roses, and finally the lilies. I wish I had recorded each step of this progression from the beginning. (Note: the scraps of paper on the counter are paint swatches for the upcoming exterior repaint project - thankfully not in my kitchen!) 

  

   
...in my kitchen you will find more new, single-purpose items. Lack of impulse control... again. The new apple corer has proven to be easier to grip and much kinder to achey hands than a previous model, and releases the core without any fuss. The strawberry huller was just too cute to pass up, in addition to being relatively functional and requiring little drawer space. Necessary, you ask? whatever does that have to do with gadget love?!

Three new madeleine pans called for reorganizing some vertical storage space, but oh my! the sweet little cakes are such amazing bites. How could I have waited this many years for my first taste?! It's time to make up for lost opportunities and explore various flavor combinations. Stand by for posts to follow as the taste tests proceed. 

...in my kitchen old gadgets mix with the new. Ages ago my father-in-law delivered a large cardboard box filled with "old stuff" he  had accumulated, things he thought I might find interesting. Many hung on the wall as objet d'art, but eventually were boxed up, labeled and sent to long-term storage. During a recent flurry of organizing and decluttering, these treasures resurfaced again, tucked away on a closet shelf in my study. Imagine the fun of rediscovery... and the puzzle of what to do with all of this cool "old stuff". Photo props, I suppose, and I'll think of John whenever I use one of his nifty gadgets. The egg scale seems workable, though the calibration needs some fidding... surely the grocery didn't make a mistake with the eggs labeled "large". How do you size eggs today when you raise chickens?

This IMK post began with sunshine and breakfast and ends with dessert, Lemon Pound Cake with Lemon Custard Sauce and fresh strawberries with mint. Guilty confession - not just dessert, we ate some for breakfast as well.  

Now I'm out the door to check on the latest blossoms and watch the waterfowl. Small flotillas of Canadian geese are paddling by, honking loudly while shepherding scores of newly-hatched downy little fluffballs. Wow, those chicks (okay, goslings) can move fast, paddling like wind-up toys as they race for the shelter of a dock or overhanging bush whenever eagles cruise overhead.

The monthly In My Kitchen roundup is hosted by Maureen at Orgasmic Chef. Click on the link to visit Maureen and see what is happening in other kitchens around the world. Check back often as the list of IMK participants grows daily until the 10th of each month.

Happy Spring, and thanks for the visit.