Thursday's News and a Winner!

Weirdly, when I checked my blog this morning (thanks to a hint from Dana), I discovered that yesterday's blog post hadn't posted. I'm pretty sure I published it, but somehow it magically reverted to draft form and then didn't publish. Oh well. The ways of cyberspace will always confound me. But that won't stop progress because it's time to announce a winner!

Thanks to all who played along in the July NewFO Challenge. It's time to pick the winner of the red and blue Shoo Fly lapel pin. There were 25 participants this month, and Mr. Random has spoken. I generated a number and came up with:

#16--Pattilou in UT

Pattilou, I've sent you an email, so check your inbox.

No worries if you didn't win because we'll be right back here on August 31st to play again. And this being August, I figure you've all had your share of sun by now. Next month, we'll be playing for the Sunbonnet Sue lapel pin.

Yesterday I did a lot of running around, but I did manage to get started on the quilting for Joseph's Quilt. This quilt has 13 blocks, and I'm just quilting them randomly. I started in the center with a sort of zig zag pattern on this block:

and then, I was able to get the next block marked. I've seen this design on other quilts, and I really like it.

This seems like a good time to try it out. It's not a difficult design, but I can see myself getting confused on what direction I'm going. I decided to short-circuit the process by marking it ahead of time. You can't see it, but I have some marks in the half square triangles as well. Still, I could change my mind before I quilt them.

I'm using this pretty variegated thread. It has all the colors in the quilt, and so it seemed like a good choice.

Also yesterday, I tried out a new recipe that I found in the June/July 2014 issue of Cook's Country called Fire and Ice. If you're like me, you've got ripe tomatoes coming on the vine, and this was a good use for them. (I don't have them in enough quantity to do any canning yet, and so I'm looking for ways to use these early birds.) This is the image from the Cook's Country magazine (since I neglected to take a picture of my own salad).

This was so tasty and refreshing. I served it up with my version of grilled cheese sandwiches that include slices of apples grilled along with the cheese. The original recipe made a ton of salad, and so I cut the amounts in half...which also means you can double it if you want more. Also, I used my chive blossom vinegar, always a good choice in salad dressing. The original recipe had me peeling the cucumber, but I wanted the color from the English cucumber. It sat for about five hours in my refrigerator, and so the skin was nice and soft by the time we ate it. Here's the recipe the way I made it:

                      

Fire and Ice Salad

Adapted from the original recipe by Cristin Walsh

Serves 4     

1/4 Cup White Wine Vinegar (I used Chive Blossom Vinegar)

1/2 Tablespoon Sugar

1 Teaspoon Salt

1/2 Teaspoon Dry Mustard

1/4 Teaspoon Celery Salt

Pinch Red Pepper Flakes

Pinch Pepper

1 Pound Tomatoes -- cored and cut into 1/2-inch-thick wedges

1 English Cucumber -- sliced 1/4-inch thick

1/2 Green Bell Pepper -- stemmed, seeded, and sliced thin

1/2 Red Onion -- sliced thin

Whisk vinegar, sugar, salt, mustard, celery salt, pepper flakes, and pepper together in large bowl. Add tomatoes, cucumbers, bell pepper, and onion, and toss to combine. Refrigerate salad for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours. Serve.

Notes: It's important to refrigerate the dressed salad for at least 1 hour before serving so the tomatoes and cucumbers can release their juices and balance the dressing, as well as absorb the flavor. In fact, it can sit for up to 24 hours, chilled, with no further dilution of flavor.

Recipe may be doubled.

So there you go. The kids are coming over for dinner in a couple of weeks, and I think I'll put this salad on the menu when they come.

Today I have another day of running around. I need to drop off my quilts at our local Sleep Country for entry into the Oregon State Fair. Then, this afternoon I'm seeing the doctor who did a fusion on my neck about ten years ago. Ever since returning to swimming, my neck has been giving me grief. I don't know if he has any ideas about how I can get some relief (beyond stopping swimming), but I figured I'd check in with him anyway. 

And that's my day. What's going on in your world today?