DAY ONE HUNDRED FIFTY OF COOKING COURSE

 I finally got up the nerve to start the next chapter Vegan Pastry Essentials.  I finished Mouthwatering Vegan Desserts the other day and took the chapter test and passed it.  I was happy to get that chapter over with.  It was fun but not all the desserts were mouthwatering.  

So today I got up the nerve to start the pastry chapter.  It was not as hard as I thought because the first recipe was three steps and I was not wanting to do three things.  Then I read the recipe and I could do two of the steps today and leave the last step for tomorrow.  I made the pastry cream and the dough today and tomorrow I will cook the dough and put the whole thing together.  That was so much easier.

Pastry cream

Making the dough

Dough

I also took a walk.  Today I walked alone.  I needed to mail a bill.  

I also had to work in the morning.

Until tomorrow...

PCT SECOND GOAL MET

 I spent my morning working on a logo for my social media.  I am super proud of my logo.  This is the second logo I have designed and they aren't super crazy but they do the job and I am happy with them both.  This new logo is not anything I ever thought I would ever like since I don't really like the color green hardly at all but it looks really good the way it is.  

Lucky and I went for a walk.  I met my goal of 42.8 miles today.  That is the second pit stop of the Pacific Crest Trail.  

Lucky was quite ill last night and we were up most of the night.  She seems fine today.  Poor baby.  She had an upset tummy.  She just wanted her mommy to make it better.

I called my RA doctor and made an appointment for later this week.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FORTY-NINE OF COOKING COURSE

 It has been a while since I cooked anything for the cooking course.  I took a little time off since I needed some items to be delivered and my avocado needed to ripen.  Plus I was not feeling well.

Today the avocado was ripe and I could finally make the Avocado Chocolate Mousse.  It is a raw mousse that tasted pretty good. It is made from avocado, walnuts, cacao, and dates.  After I made it I added some agave to sweeten it more. It is chocolately and creamy and delicious.

I am still feeling not so great.  I spoke to my therapist today and he said I should talk to my RA doctor.  It has been 6 weeks since I went back on the Orencia and I am still not feeling 100%.  Not even 80%.  It is time to find out what to do about it.  He also suggested I do some other things to get some stressful stuff off my plate.  Finishing the solar inspections was a good step.  It is finished and paid for and done. 

Now I just have to get my schedule changed to doing things like running the dishwasher and the laundry during the day which is not my normal time.  I need to get used to doing these things first thing in the morning.  

Lucky and I went for a long walk.  It was cold and windy so it was a nicer walk.

Until tomorrow...

HAPPY PRIDE DAY

 Happy Pride Day!  I spent my day watching two more GLBTQ+ movies.  The first was Firebird.  It was a real story about two gay soldiers in Estonia at a Soviet Air Base.  If they were found out they would have been thrown out of the military and thrown in jail or worse. It is shown over many years.  It thought it was fantastic.  

The second film was Milkwater.  I am not sure why this film is called Milkwater but I loved it.  My favorite movie this weekend.  It is about a 52 gay bar owner/drag queen who tried for years to get a child and it didn't work.  He meets this 30 something year old woman one night drinking and they agree that she will be his surrogate.  It was a really good movie with twists and turns.  

I had another hard day today.  I am hoping I come out of this flare soon.  I am not sure why it is taking so long this time.  I have been back on the Orencia for about two months. I thought I would be back feeling better now.  I am not sure why I am not bouncing back this time.  

No walk today.  I didn't even get out of my PJs.

Until tomorrow...

PRIDE MOVIE SATURDAY

 This was a day of watching Pride weekend movies.  I watched one last night and I had three to watch today.  The one last night was super boring and I fast forwarded through it.  It just wasn't for me.  

The first one today was a bunch of shorts put into video form so they were one long movie.  I thought some were good and some were funny.  I especially liked three of them.  

Sunday Dinner was hysterical!  It was about an Italian family having their typical Sunday dinner.  One has news.  You would think it was him saying he was gay but no it was that he is a vegan.  It was a bit like a SNL skit recently.  The family goes berserk.   

Another short that was funny was Thank You For Being There.  It is two roommates where one thinks she is pregnant and she has to pee on the stick.  It was just funny since the whole thing is filmed in the bathroom.

The third short I thought was funny was The Test.  It had a funny ending.  Girlfriends are in a doctors office because they are getting a test.  For what?  You don't know.  I won't ruin it for you but it has a funny and surprise ending.  

Then I watched another movie called Invisible about lesbians in country music.  You might say what lesbians in country music??  I would say watch the documentary and you will find out why there are no visible lesbians in country music.  It was very insightful and proved what I figured all along.  Gays and lesbians are everywhere, you just don't know it. 

Then I watched Jump, Darling.  Not sure why it is called that title.  It is about a drag queen/actor who breaks up with his boyfriend and moves in with his grandmother (played by Cloris Leechman as her final role).  It was well written and entertaining.  It felt like a movie I would see in the movie theater.  Cloris Leechman was fabulous.  It had a great story line.  

Tomorrow I have two more movies to watch to finish out my Gay Pride Weekend extravaganza!

Lucky and I had time to take a long walk in the middle of these movies.  It was hot and humid today so it was not much fun.  Plus we had to rush because Amazon was coming.

Until tomorrow...

BANANA ICE CREAM

 Two things: I made banana ice cream and I passed the solar inspection.

I used some very ripe bananas to make some banana ice cream.  It tastes really good.  I had some tonight with some chocolate sauce. So decadent.

This morning the solar inspector came and I passed the inspection finally.  Now I have to wait a few weeks for the paperwork to go through and then the process is finished and I am 100% solar (mostly).  That is the goal.  We shall see how I do.  I looked at the app today and I saved 6 trees today.

I took a long walk with Lucky.  I waited until she came home from the dog walker, ate and took a short nap and then we went for our walk.  

I gave a neighbor a piece of the berry roll and she so kindly bought me some tin foil when she went to the store.  She heard me say I had run out.  Wasn't that nice?  

Until tomorrow...

MADE SOME SPICY PEANUT DIP FOR THE WEEKEND

 Today was a day of planning on what to cook next since I have one recipe left in my chapter but the avocado I need is not ripe yet so I have to wait.  I was going to go on to the next chapter but the first thing to cook was a bit intimidating and I had so little time, I called it off.  Tomorrow seems like I will have more time.

I had a webinar this morning and then a doctor's appointment on zoom.  The doctor's appointment was my gut doctor that I had the appointment with last week but the new scheduling system got messed up and my appointment got lost.  We met today and all is good.  I have a tentative colonoscopy scheduled for November but that all depends on where things are with Covid.  November is a long way off in Covid time.  The doctor is so funny.  She wants to hear all about my cooking adventures.  I keep telling her that I should let her go and she asks more questions about what I am cooking.  

I made some of the Spicy Peanut Dip that I made months ago for this weekend.  It is Gay Pride weekend and since I am inside and there are no festivities, I am watching some of the GLBT festival movies.  I bought eight movies and watched two of them already.  I have six left to watch.  Some are longer than others.  The one I watched tonight was funny and then saddish at the end.  It was about an old drag queen/hairdresser who was in an old age home.  He used to be quite well to do with a boyfriend, a big house and business.  Then his boyfriend died of AIDS and it got around the small town they lived in and no one would come to the business so he lost everything.  That is only part of the story.  It was called Swan Song.  I liked it but it moved  slowly.  Don't watch it if you are tired. 

Lucky and I walked over a mile today.  She was sound asleep after our walk.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FORTY-EIGHT OF COOKING COURSE

 Today was a long day.  I had to work in the morning.  Then I got rid of Lucky when I sent her off with the dog walker and I started this recipe.  It was Raw Mixed Berry Jam.  This took an hour.  

 Then I made Mixed Berry Roll.  It was called Mixed Berry Cinnamon Roll but there was no cinnamon so it made no sense to me.  I guess they mean like a "cinnamon roll".  Basically I had to work with yeast again.  Ugh.

I made the yeasty dough and put in to rise.  Then I rolled it out and put the mixed berry jam on it.  Then I rolled it up and cut the roll in half.  Then I braided the two half's.  Then twirled it like a snail and put it in a pan.  45 minutes later I had a beautiful roll. 

I put some of the Coconut Rum Cream Sauce on top.

It tastes so good.  It is made from whole wheat flour so it is earthly and heavy.  If I made it again I would use regular flour and make it lighter.  

This took most of the day.  It was make the jam and then wait an hour.  Make the dough and then let it rise for an hour.  Then do another step and wait 15 minutes.  

Lucky and I took a short walk today at 6:45pm.  It was so late.

I am just finishing this and then vegging out.

Until tomorrow...

STILL FEELING NOT SO GOOD

 I am still not feeling that well so I didn't do my cooking course today.  I am reserving my energy.  My next cooking recipe is complicated and long and I just don't have the energy for it.  I did make a new recipe for dinner and will post it another day.  

Lucky and I went for a little walk just to get her outside.  Now that we have been going outside she is spoiled and wants to go out every day.  She cries if we don't go for a walk.  

It was just not a good day again.  I am achy and sore and I have inflammation all over.  

I got a few Amazon deliveries today getting ready for the next chapter.  I needed things like pastry flour, marzipan, and cardamon pods.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FORTY-SEVEN OF COOKING COURSE

 Today I had to be quick with my cooking course.  I had a bunch of things to get done.  First I had a zoom meeting at 10 am.  Then I had some work to do from that meeting.  Then I had the regular odds and ends from each day.  Then I had to eat lunch and take a work phone call.

Finally I could begin cooking. I made some quick Tahini Truffles.  They are raw and fabulous.  They are basically dates and tahini ground up and then chilled.  Then some ganache is put inside a ball.  Then chilled again.  They taste decadent. 

I tried something new with lighting today.  I think I need to experiment some more.  The truffles look okay but I didn't get the effect I wanted.

After making the truffles I went on a one mile walk.  Nothing exciting.  I just wanted to get it over with today.  I am still not feeling up to doing much.  

Last night I had to prepare a presentation that I gave this morning.  I did it and it went well.  I just felt so crappy yesterday that I really pushed myself to get it done.  I spoke to my doctor about it and he said well you get the work done.  But I feel like I get it done because I have to and I am basically working on adrenaline and fear that I won't be prepared.  But is that good for my health?  Is it healthy for a person who has RA to work on adrenaline to get work done because they fear for their job because they were sick over the weekend?  I don't have an answer.  I just started pondering this question.  How much stress am I putting on myself when I don't feel well.  How many times have I done work while I was in the ER when I was ill?  Participated in conference calls while in the hospital with meningitis?  Worked while in bed ill or laid up and supposed to be resting?  Taken a job interview the day after getting a concussion?  Not to mention taken emergency phone calls or done work while on vacation and supposed to be relaxing.  How much wear and tear is that doing to my body with the stress?    I think I need to rethink the way I work, the stress it is causing and how it is affecting my health and RA.

Until tomorrow...

REALLY HAVING A FLARE

 I was not sure I was having a flare a few days ago but now I am sure.  I had a hard time staying awake today.  My feet were swollen and they hurt this morning.  My whole body feels swollen.  I basically laid on the couch today and slept though TV shows.  

I delivered pineapple cheesecake to my neighbors door this morning as a thank you for giving me the rum to make the rum cream.  I have slices cut for two other neighbors.  One is coming by at 6:30pm.  Once I give a slice to my dog walker and one slice for me, the whole cheesecake will be gone.  

I need to relax and take it easy. Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FORTY-SIX OF COOKING COURSE

 It was a nice day and I decided to take Lucky and find a new place to walk.  I wanted a place that was flatter and different than our usual walks.  I was headed to another neighborhood when I drove by a park.  The park did not look crowded so I stopped a few blocks away. We walked back to check it out.  It was not crowded (surprising) so we took a walk in the woods.  Surprisingly I have lived here a long time and I never went to this very popular park.  It was very nice.  Lucky goes to this park regularly with the dog walker and she was leading me around.  It was super cute seeing her not afraid and wanting to go certain places that she knew.  

I finished the Pineapple Cheesecake with Coconut Rum Cream today.  It is so good.  I had to borrow some rum from my neighbors to make the coconut rum cream.  The cheesecake is so creamy and delicious. The crust is made from coconut and dates. 

Watching Luca tonight on Disney+.  

Until tomorrow...

GAVE AWAY SOME TREATS

 Today I gave away two plates full of treats to neighbors.  My next door neighbor who had brain surgery a few months ago, got a plate.  Another neighbor who was helpful during the lock down got a plate.  They each got one of the hemp tarts, a slice of banana blondie and some of the salted carmel chocolate slices. I am waiting to hear if they liked the treats. I only have one slice of blondie, one tart and a bunch of salted carmel slices left.

I did some baking that I will unveil tomorrow but I had to do the first part today.  It has to sit for 8 hours.  I am very excited to try this dessert.  I had to ask my neighbors for some rum to make this dessert.  They kindly gave me 3 Tablespoons of rum.  I promised them a slice of whatever I was making.  This is a good trade for me since I can not eat all these desserts.  

I went on two walks today.  I am trying to increase my walking distance.  Today it was very hot again so it was hard to walk for a long time at once.  Just the one mile walk was tiresome in this heat.  I got to distance talk to two neighbors and catch up.

There is a chapter of food from my cooking course that doesn't have any videos attached.  I made one for tonight's dinner.  There is some good food in that chapter.

Until tomorrow...

TOO HOT TO COOK TODAY

 It was hot today.  I mean hot.  The side of my house hit 100 degrees.  In my house it was 86 degrees.  At as certain point Lucky cried and wanted to go downstairs where it was cooler so we went.  Downstairs it is about 20 degrees cooler and I had a ceiling fan going.  After two hours I got so chilled, I had to come upstairs.  

I decided it was too hot to cook.  I was supposed to make cheese cake and I thought it would melt.  Tomorrow I will make the cheese cake.  

Lucky and I went for our walk early in the day.  It was warm but not hot yet.  During the walk Lucky grabbed some food (I think it was a large brownie but I can't be sure) and would not let go.  She was growling the evil growl at me with this giant piece of food in her mouth.  I grabbed her collar and tried to shake it free but she wasn't letting it go.  I finally poured my bottle of water on her and she let it go.  She hates water of any kind.  Of course I had no water for the rest of my walk in the heat. But Lucky will live to see another day.  

I am not sure what is going on but my joints are really acting up.  They have been increasingly getting worse for the last two months.  I thought it was just me but now I am thinking it was going off the Orencia for 8 weeks and then going back on the Orencia just under two months ago.  First it was my feet that hurt so much. Then my legs and hips.  Now it is my shoulders, neck, hands, wrists, and fingers.  Plus the fatigue is worse. I am not a happy camper right now.  I am hoping this rheumatoid arthritis flare passes quickly.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FORTY-FIVE OF COOKING COURSE

 I was showered and ready for my zoom call with my doctor and nothing.  I waited. And waited.  I called the office and no one answered.  Just so you know I got about 10 reminders in the last two weeks because my healthcare system is converting from one system to another system so the old system was sending me reminders plus the new system was sending me reminders.  I was ready.  I was there.  No doctor.  

An hour later I got a phone call from her assistant saying that the change over to the new system did not change over all the appointments on her calendar and she was off this week.  So the assistant did not even know about my appointment to change it.  So she was incredibly apologetic and we set up another appointment next week.  All good.  At least I didn't drive somewhere and park.  Then I would not have been so nice. I was sitting on my couch watching TV.

Once Lucky was off with the dog walker, I started baking.  I made Salted Carmel Chocolate Bars. Of course I waited until the hottest day of 2021 so far.  It was 80 something degrees.  The chocolate was melting when I was cutting the bars.  The bars taste so good.  I ate a bit when I was cutting them for the photo.

I have plenty of bars and will give some away.  I gave my dog walker a piece of the blondies from yesterday.  I will give him some of these Chocolate Bars.  

I did not walk today.  I waited so long for the doctor and then the rescheduling phone call.  Then I had a work phone call.  Then I had to wait for Lucky's pick up.  By then it was the mid-day heat.  Then I had to bake to get it done in time.  By then it is time for Lucky to come back and I have to feed her and pay attention to her.  It was too hot to take her out with me after her dinner.  It is 9:24 pm and I am sitting here with my windows open. That would have been unheard of three days ago it was so cold and windy. Tomorrow it is supposed to be even hotter so we will have to walk early in the morning.  I have mail to post so we can do that. 

I can also take my neighbor so baked goods.  He had brain surgery a few months ago and has been recovering.  He said he would love some baked goods.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FORTY-FOUR OF COOKING COURSE

 Lucky and I went for a walk early today before it got warm.  

Then I started the new chapter Mouthwatering Vegan Desserts.  I made Nut Butter and Banana Blondies. They are okay.  I am not a huge fan of blondies to begin with and not a fan of bananas in brownies.  They taste okay but not my favorite.  

Besides phone calls from family and work, I basically baked today.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FORTY-THREE OF COOKING COURSE

 It was another nice day for a few hours.  I went for another mile walk while Lucky was with the dog walker.  I know that sounds weird but with the dog walker she is with a group of dogs getting socialized.  Although she really doesn't play too much, she does spend time with four legged animals which is good. She is less shy and more confident around other dogs and people.  

I made almond milk and once I had the almond milk I made Magic Milk.  It has salt, sweetener (a date), a little coffee, vanilla, maca powder and carob powder.  It tastes like a very light coffee ice cream in a milky drink.  I only drank a little since it was late in the day and I don't drink coffee. 

I took the test for Raw Food Fundamentals and I passed!  I got my certificate.

I have been watching a new show: Big Shot on Disney+.  It is a really cute show.

Until tomorrow...

MEXICAN TORTILLA LASAGNA AND ROASTED CAULIFLOWER, CHICKPEAS AND OLIVES SHEET PAN

 I was a busy person today.  First Lucky and I went for a mile walk.  We ran into a neighbor who was walking across the street and had a conversation.  I realize that many of my neighbors haven't seen me in over one year and don't recognize me with my long (and now red/burgundy) hair and a face mask.  Today I walked right past a neighbor I've lived around the corner from for 15 years and said "hi" and he didn't recognize me at all.

Then I cooked two dishes to last me the week.  In the cooking course I am moving on to desserts so I will not have any main courses to eat.  I figured I better do some cooking to prepare so I am not standing at an open refrigerator at 6:45pm every night trying to figure out what to eat.  I made Mexican Tortilla Lasagna and Roasted Cauliflower, Chickpeas and Kalamata Olive Sheet Pan.  They will last most of the week.  Both taste delicious.

After all the clean up and doing some laundry, the day was over.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FORTY-TWO OF COOKING COURSE

 I finally finished the composed dish Chocolate Hemp Tart.  It was days in the making.  First I had to make the Candied Cacao Nibs.  Then I made the Candied Sprouted Buckwheat.

Today I made the Chocolate Ganache, CBD-infused Tart Crust and Hemp Carmel Cream.  Then I put it all together in little tart tins.

They really taste amazing.  I ate one of them just to try it out for my posting.  I have five more in the refrigerator.  It is going to be very hard not to eat them all quickly.  

Lucky and I went for a walk on this gorgeous 80 degree day.  We walked quickly to get it over since it was sunny, warm and lots of people were out and about.  

I sat outside when we came back from the walk and read my book in the shade.  It was quite relaxing.

I barbecued for the first time this season now that I have vegan burgers.  I had the best burger for dinner.  Yum!

Oh, yeah.  I dyed my hair.  It is a bit reddish/burgundy.  I like it.  I have a Mallen streak in my hair.  That is a white/gray steak of hair.  Some think it is cool.  I didn't think it was too bad when I had short hair but it is so long since Covid that it is really obvious now.  Sort of like Bonnie Raitt obvious.  It is really called Poliosis. People with poliosis have a decreased level or complete lack of melanin in the roots of affected hairs, also called hair follicles. It can be a sign of thyroid disease or a B-12 deficiency and the cause could be an autoimmune disease.  Well, it is reddish/burgundy now and in a few weeks it will be pink. 

Until tomorrow...

SOLAR PART 102

 Or at least it feels that way.  This solar project seems to be going on forever.  Today they came and were here for 20 minutes to make an adjustment.  Now there has to be another inspection.  They could not make another appointment for two weeks.  So the solar project goes on...

I did food shopping yesterday and today so I had many deliveries.  I had two deliveries and I had to be around to accept them and put all the food away.  Now I have the necessary food to make actual food.

I took a walk today with Lucky.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FORTY-ONE OF COOKING COURSE

 I am busy today with dehydrating.  I removed cocoa nibs out of the dehydrator this morning, cleaned it, let it rest and then got it working again dehydrating some buckwheat.  I am super excited to see how it turns out. These are two parts of a compilation dish I am making (hopefully) tomorrow. 

cocoa nibs

 

buckwheat

Lucky and I went on a walk.  Yesterday we hit a 20 mile mark.  Since we have been going outside we walked 20 miles.  

I did a big online food shop today.  It will be delivered tomorrow.  I needed so much.  I had so little food in the house. Okay that is a lie.  I have tons of food in the house but not the food I need to make the food I have.  I ran out of things like peanut butter, ketchup, mustard, bread, sugar and soy sauce.  You know the important things.  Hard to have a vegan burger without ketchup.  Hard to make vegan stir fry without soy sauce.  You get it.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED FORTY OF COOKING COURSE

 Today was Kombucha day.  I opened the container and poured the Kombucha into two jars and a glass to drink.  I tasted my first taste and I like it.  Since I put peaches in the last fermentation, it tasted very peachy and tasted a bit like peach juice.  I also put dates in the last fermentation so I think the tartness people warned me about went away.  

I had sweet potato leftovers from the taco's last night.

 I started on my next compilation dish which is a dessert.  It is going to take a few days to finish it. 

Lucky and I went on a 2,000 step walk late in the day.  

I dealt with a few small tasks today.  I ran out of syringes and had to get my pharmacy to ship me a batch of new syringes.  There was a short discussion about whether they were able to ship me syringes but they were.  I use the syringes for my B12 injections.

I got my check situation figured out.  Last time I ordered my checks there was a screw up and the checks arrived with no address and the wrong kind of checks.  I was not able to fix it myself and had to call the bank.  Ergh... They fixed it but I had to call twice because I got disconnected.

I dealt with a credit card envelop that was probably opened in transit and the person called to authorize the card.  I had to call and cancel the card and get them to send me another. 

Until tomorrow...

TACO TUESDAY

 I made tacos tonight.  I used TVP which is Textured Vegetable Protein a highly nutritious soy product.  It is tasty when I put taco seasoning on it.  

These tacos were so good.  

Lucky and I went for a long walk today.  It was a nice but windy day.  

Until tomorrow...

FAILED THE INSPECTION ON SOLAR

 The solar inspection did not go as planned.  I am not sure what part failed other than the inspector wants another electrical thing changed.  So now they have to schedule to come out and make the change and then schedule to have another inspection.  I think part of it also probably stems from the scrutiny my area is going through with the director of a department of inspectors just being indicted on fraud.  I am not saying this would not happen anyway and I am glad they are being ultra careful so my house does not burn down but I know what the inspection situation was like when I did my construction and they normally just had them send in a photo not have the inspector come out so many times.  Anyway, it will get sorted.  

I held off on cooking anything because I had to be available for them, then work some and then I had a meeting about my ex-foster kid.  Then the day was over.  

If I didn't say it before, Lucky is fully recovered from her dental surgery.  She is playing with her plushies and eating all types of food.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-NINE OF COOKING COURSE

 Today was the day I flavored the kombucha.  To do that I had to take out the scoby (which is the slimy disk that was put in the jar to make the kombucha) and put it in another jar to save it until I want to make kombucha again.  Then I put some dates and peaches in the remaining liquid for 24-48 hours.  At that point I should have a fizzy peach flavored kombucha.  Fingers crossed.

Lucky has been very unhappy that I took her toys away since her dental surgery.  The dentist didn't want her to pull her stitches out so he asked me to take her toys away for a few days.  This is the look I have been getting:

She wants to play but with no toys she is confused. She sits there and she stares at me and whines.  Today I gave her the toys back.  She wore me down.  I think her stitches should be fine today.  

We went on another walk today.  On our way back I remembered that a local street concert was happening a block from my house.  It was on our walk so we went by.  People were pretty much bunched up so Lucky and I stood 20 feet away from the others to listen for a bit.  It was some okay folk music.  We stayed for two songs.  

Until tomorrow...

NOT MY BEST DAY

 So I am not feeling too good today.  I think part of it was eating so much raw food.  It did my stomach in.  I was up part of the night and couldn't eat in the morning.  I had to drink a ginger ale. I finally ate around 11 am.  Then for linner (lunch and dinner) I had rice and tofu.  My version of comfort food.  

I tried to watch 101 Dalmatians with Glenn Close but I fell asleep.  When I woke up I went outside for a bit and read my book.  It was one of those days.  TV, reading, sleeping and drinking tea.  

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-EIGHT OF THE COOKING COURSE

 I have been having issues with my hands, feet and legs.  I thought being back on the Orencia would help but so far it has not.  I am not sure what is going on.  I wonder if it is still blow back from the vaccine or from going off the Orencia.  

I also have a weird bump on my left shin.  It doesn't show if you are looking at my shin except for a red sort of mark or rash.  I can feel the bump when I touch it.  It also hurts when I touch it and when I walk.  It is very bizarre.  At first I thought I banged my leg on something but a bruise never showed up and I bruise for any reason.  Then I thought maybe I got bitten or something but there is no sign of a bite or puncture.  I think if it is still the same way next week, I may have to call a doctor.  It is right in the area where I cross my legs so it is a bit of a pain.  

Last night I heard a loud bang.  It was garbage night so I didn't think too much about it.  Today I went in the garage to get something and found the cabinet that holds all my paint, etc. broken and paint cans all over the floor.  I guess the last time the handyman was in the cabinet he was less than delicate in how he put the paint cans in the cabinet and last night the cabinet "called it a day".  All the shelves collapsed on each other and the back panel was broken.  Three paint cans opened slightly when they crashed to the ground and there was paint on the ground drying.  Granted the cabinet was not the most secure but I thought it would last longer.  I have to have paint type items locked up if I have foster kids in my home.  So, I guess I need to figure out what to do about this.  I cleaned up the paint as best as I could and stacked and closed the paint cans.

I finished the Harvest Bowl dish today.  It included the items I made in the last week: Fermented Cream Cheese (I flavored it with lemon), Tomato Crisps, Turmeric Sauerkraut, Savory Herb Granola and a vinaigrette. Today I made Massaged Kale and Romesco Sauce.  Then I put it all together in a Harvest Bowl.  

Dehydrating the Romesco Sauce

Harvest Bowl

I took a walk in the middle of all of this.  

Update  on Lucky:  She had a really rough night.  She didn't eat anything until this morning.  She had horrible diarrhea until 2 am.  She kept crying and staring at me wanting me to fix it.  Of course I could not.  The doctor told me she was not allowed to eat hard food and play with toys for a few days.  She is not liking this.  She did go to the park today under strict orders to not chew on anything and no hard treats.  Tonight she seems much better after eating two meals.

 Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-SEVEN OF COOKING COURSE

 What a day!  I need a day that is relaxing.  Today was not that day.  

I had to get up super early to get Lucky to the veterinarians office by 7 am.  She needed to check in for her dental appointment.  I got back home and had breakfast.  Then I went for a walk.  Around 11 am I got a phone call from the vet and he said Lucky's appointment went well.  She had a lot of plaque but only one bad tooth.  Only one!  That is the least amount of teeth she has had removed in all the years she has been with me.  But now she has tipped the scale. She now has less teeth than she had pulled out.  

I was told to come and pick her up at 1:30.  I showed up and she had her catheter in.  I was told to come back in an hour but call first.  I called at 2:30 and they said come at 3:00pm.  So you can see where my day went.

Finished my Seaweed Cracker plating.  This includes garlic fermented cream cheese, smoked mushrooms, pickled spring onions and greens.  I was wary that this would not taste good.  I don't like onions, I didn't like the taste of the fermented cream cheese before I flavored it and I don't like nori seaweed.  But I was surprised how good it all tasted when it was put together.  I ate all three crackers that I made.  I am going to make more tomorrow they are that good.

The last picture was me smoking the mushrooms with my new smoker.  So cool. 

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-SIX OF COOKING COURSE

 This day did not go as planned.  First the solar people showed up at 10 am and stayed until 12:45pm. That threw me a bit.  I was expecting them earlier and didn't expect them to stay so late.  So I could not really do anything all morning.  Plus they turned the electricity off for some of the time.  Then when they left, I had to jump on a zoom for an hour.  Now it was 2pm.  The day was mostly gone. 

I needed to get to cooking.  I had to make the Seaweed Crackers.  They had to be mixed and then hydrated for 24 hours.  They smell pretty good.  It is made out of cashews, nori shredded, hemp seeds, spirolina powder, and flax seeds.  It is green from the spirolina.  

I should have done more cooking and gone for a walk but I was tired and I wanted to spend time with Lucky since tomorrow is her dental appointment.  She older and is going under anesthesia.  She is also going to loose more teeth so I needed to get ready.  I froze some rice and I have baby food ready to go for her to eat.  

Going to bed early since we have to be at the vet super early.  Also she can't eat after 10 pm.  Got to get her to bed early.

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-FIVE OF COOKING COURSE

 This chapter Raw Fundamentals is so creative.  I have to do so many different things.  I have four jars fermenting in some sort of way. 

Today I made fermented cream cheese that sits for two days.  Then I have kombucha that sits for at least 4 days.  Turmeric sauerkraut that ferments for 4 days.  Then today I made pickled spring onions that needs to sit for 2 days.  I have post-its on each jar so I know when they are done fermenting or when they move to the next stage.

The Dehydrated Tomato Crisps are done.  They dehydrated for 24 hours.  They will be used in a dish later this week.

I have been having fun with all these different types of cooking.  You will see the dishes later this week.

I took Lucky on a walk at the end of the day after she returned from her day at the park with the dog walker.  I ended up carrying her 1/2 way because she was tired.  I don't think I will do that again.  She has been knocked out since we got back 4 hours ago.  I think two hours walking with the dog walker and then 2,500 steps with me is too much for her.  Poor baby.  She is getting older. 

Until tomorrow...