I Wore an Apron for Two Days

And it served me well, not only for keeping my clothes clean, but I don't know what I'd have done about wiping my hands! Before leaving our home, the Iceberg held my dishtowel, which was directly behind me at the sink. I can't bring myself to put it on the new fridge, or at least not yet. Then too, I know I'm in the minority, but I'm not a big fan of paper towels. Crazy, right? And then there is the big pocket on the front which held my reading glasses as well as Angela's house key. Her key? Yep. I used her wide oven to cook my two pans of dressing, which for the first time ever, I cooked all of it out of the turkey. I won't get into the dressing/stuffing debate, but it seems to me that if it is out of the turkey it should be called dressing.

Before I donned my apron I arranged these lovely roses sent by my brother-in-law Danny.

I know others think it is too much work, but for me, there is nothing like homemade. Thus, I made my pie crusts and fillings. Making a pie crust is so darn simple I have no idea why more people don't try it. As long as you use ice water and cold fat, it comes together easier than making a cake or cookies.

Although I bought the pastry sheet last year I did not use it this one, instead, placing a sheet of plastic wrap on the counter, covering the chilled dough with a second sheet, worked like magic. Talk about easy! I kept thinking of how last year Matt fashioned a lattice top for my apple pie which I did not attempt.

No, I didn't cook the pumpkin....I'm not that crazy! Instead I used the same recipe that our Mom did--the one on the back of the can of Libbeys. I did, however, mix it up in the blender which works like a charm.

The pie went into the still perfect oven:

It is times like these when I'm thrilled at the size of my kitchen because it was far enough carrying this ultra-full pie from one counter to the oven! The finished product:

As you can see my crimping skills are minimal. The apple pie looked like this:

Sorry for the blurriness--taken with my phone! The apple pie was a fat, lumpy mess, but it sure tasted good!

I made the pies in the morning and other stuff in the afternoon, including this simple recipe that I encourage you to try:

 Cucumber Salsa

Mix 2 c finely diced peeled cucumber

1/2 c finely diced red onion

1/4 c chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 c fresh mint

1 finely diced jalapeno (with seeds if you like it HOT)

3 T fresh lime juice

1 T vegetable oil

Season with salt and pepper

Enjoy!

It may sound weird to make a salsa for Thanksgiving, but it seemed to be quite the hit. Because we had some vegans in the house, I searched for anything tasty that would suit a vegan. My brother Pat, along with his wife Ruth, decided to go vegan earlier this year in an attempt to lose weight and lose weight he did, shedding over 70 pounds!! He's sitting at the head of the table with Bruce and Michelle in the background doing dishes.

The other day I mentioned the cranberry stuff and I'm here to tell you it was delicious even to a non-cranberry lover like me! Furthermore it was pretty.

I must admit I did not enjoy the work involved in getting those orange sections. The towel behind the bowl is covering my oatmeal roll dough. A new recipe which will be a keeper.

I slept well Wednesday night. Bright and early Thursday morning I began preparing the rest.

It may look like my new carpet with a wooden instrument on top, but it is really cooked quinoa, one of the strangest looking grains I have yet to cook. Part of a vegan salad with arugula, mixed spring greens, Granny Smith apples, (don't you wonder who Granny Smith was?), red onions, roasted sweet potatoes with a simple vinegar dressing. They said it was good. I made some vegan dressing (see above), as well as some mashed potatoes which gained protein from pureed navy beans.  Everyone began arriving around 4 in the afternoon, with merriment and feasting into the evening. Another year, another day of giving thanks for our many, many, blessings.

Friday morning I finished the clean up, and around noon began the laborious process of signing 90 prints. Talk about blessings, I am ever so grateful that my images sell, but I freely admit that the business side of things is difficult for me. With distractions it took me nearly four hours! Yikes!

The weekend show was to run from 11-8 on Saturday and 11-5 on Sunday, making this our first ever nighttime showing. Surprisingly it took only two lights to make my tent glow. My friend Brandy was right next to me making the show even better!

 But wait, I'm getting ahead of myself! Saturday morning as we were setting up, a ladybug landed on my hand, staying there until I inadvertently knocked it off. You know what they say about that don't you? Good luck indeed.

The weather was perfect with a nice crowd on Saturday, that is until the annual Florida State/Florida game, which did not go well for our Florida State Seminoles, despite the fact that I drank hot tea out of my lucky FSU mug all week long.    :(

Sunday was beautiful again, as in probably the best-ever-weather for an art show, which goes a long darn way when you are outside for most of the day. All in all, I sold 54 things, making for a nice weekend. Bruce arrived in time to have a beer before the take down, and we were home and unpacked by 6:30. Dinner was a chef salad and a glass of wine, and as you've probably guessed, bed time came not too much later. Bruce took the 6AM flight to California and I won't see his darling face again until Friday.

Because of all this activity I've not been on my bike in days which now that we're done catching up I think I'll get my shorts on and get a move on. As I've been typing this, emails keep popping up with deals for Cyber Monday--perhaps some online shopping to come later?