Saturday, August 31, 2013

Miscellaneous Musings

Hello Everyone,
 
While I'm sequestered away at the cabin, writing my Quilting Math reference manual, I'm also stopping to eat.
 
Yesterday I made this oven pancake with fresh berries.  It was good! 
 

Oven Pancake with Berries

2-1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1-1/4 cups milk
3/4 cup flour
3 eggs
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
powdered sugar, fresh berries, maple syrup (heated)

-Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place butter in a 9" glass pie pan and melt in oven. 
-In a blender or food processor, combine milk, flour, eggs, sugar, salt and vanilla and process until smooth.
-Remove pie pan from oven and increase oven temperature to 425 degrees.  Pour batter into pie pan and return to oven.  Bake for 20 minutes.
-Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees and bake an additional 8-10 minutes.
-Invert on serving platter.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar and berries.  Maple syrup is optional.

It was a little tricky inverting this whole pancake on to the serving platter.  I could have baked mine a little less.  I never know how my baking is going to turn out in the high altitudes.  I've had my share of complete failures.....however, this was NOT one of them!

This is what we see every morning, the smoke from the Rim fire.  We are about 50 miles away from the fire, but we have smoke every morning and ash on the deck.  This fire has now become the 5th largest fire in the history of California.  Thankfully no lives have been lost, and not too many structures have burned.  There are over 4,000 firefighters battling this blaze, along with countless air tankers and helicopters.
 

This is what one of our neighbors saw Wednesday about a block from our cabin.  I sent this picture to Quilt Sue yesterday and I could hear her hollers from across the pond!  Sue will be arriving from England on the 24th of September for a visit. We'll spend the first part of her visit in Livermore and the second part of her stay will be spent in the mountains.  I suggested we curtail our afternoon walks while she's with us at the cabin.  So folks, you had better sign up for Sue's class at Quilting in the Garden at Alden Lane Nursery while you can.  (I promise I'll take good care of her while she's under my wing.... I just need to be able to run faster!)


Soon,
Lynn

11 comments:

  1. Oh that pancake looks sooo good, the smoke not so much, and the bear? Well, all I can say is that I'll be buying some trainers before I come. Maybe we (actually, "you" cos I'll be locked indoors with all the windows shut and the chimney blocked up with quilts if necessary)could nip out and divert him with a trail of bowls of porridge?

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  2. You guys are funny....we live in the rim fire area and we also have bears......more of them since the fire.....we have a spot across from our house that is flat and open....so the firemen would park their truck there at night looking for embers.....well I was taking them some cookies one night and I couldn't find them....they were on top of the truck because they were afraid of the bears....it was very funny....

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  3. The pancake does look good....

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  4. I think the bear came down from the fires to eat your pancake, Lynn! I know we would! From the looks of him, he's eaten quite a few pancakes in his life! I hope the smoke clears before Sue arrives. You might want to stock up on some bear spray, too!
    Cheers!

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  5. Thanks for the recipe! Looks scrumptious! I hope you all have a fun visit with Quilt Sue. We've become good friends in blogging land; sure would love to be with you in her workshop!

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  6. Thank pancake looks divine. You'll have to make it for Sue and she can compare it to the French Toast I 'forced' on her at Bag End!

    She didn't mention the bear when I spoke to her earlier but she's counting down - I think it's just 23 sleeps now :}

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  7. Mmmmm, looks yummy! Thanks for the recipe. Sounds like you'll have a fun visit with Quilt Sue!! I'd like to see a bear. It's been a few years.

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  8. But how cool for Sue to send photos home - 'how I spent my time in the USA next to a bear'!

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  9. Love the look of the pancakes, but I am a little skeptical about that bear! I can just picture you and Sue jogging very quickly in the other direction! Hope those fires get under control soon!

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  10. That pancake looks so yummy! I love strawberries...and razzleberries & even furry bearies...as long as they're not chasing me! He's a handsome fella isn't he? Reminds me of visiting hubbys brothers place in Montana...the night we arrived a neighbor called to report a bear had been rustling around in her garbage when she arrived home from work. Not quite the welcoming we were expecting.
    As for the smoke from Yosemite...it's blown up here into the valley too, so sayeth the weatherman!

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  11. Just read Sue's comment about porridge and had a vision of her wrapped in a quilt with her hair in ringlets! I thought the classes were pretty much full last I checked...no???

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