8/7/16

Saving Face

Yesterday morning, I canned another batch of applesauce. I have just enough apples for one more batch today...and that means I have lots of applesauce to give to the kids. A bonus for them.


This is my canning tally for 2016 so far:

5 pints of salsa verde
6 12-oz jars of dilled carrots
5 half-pints of sweet onion relish
7 pints of pickled beets
8 pints of zucchini relish
6 pints of calico sweet pickle relish
13 half-pints of apple chutney, and after today...
15 pints of applesauce.

Yep, we're working toward emergency preparedness for the Big One...which would explain my stash of fabric and thread. I wouldn't want to run out of either after the Big One hits, and quilting supplies will obviously be my biggest concern. And I haven't even canned the first tomato yet, so you know it's going to go down in the canning annals of history as a busy season.

After that, we took off to look at patio furniture (found none), and to finish off the week's grocery shopping (done). We got home around 2:00 p.m., and so there was plenty of time to carry on with Miss Sadie. I fixed the nose as I mentioned in yesterday's post. It was a simple matter of peeling up the left side just a touch, and then tucking under the right side just a touch, and voila! A much better nose for our little girl.


There was just the chin to finish up then, and I realized that I could fuse the whole body to the bottom at that point. There are still colors to add, but I wanted to move on to the ears first.


Each cat's ears have been a little tricky because of that thin rim of color around the edges. It means careful and fiddly cutting and placement for that one skinny piece. If I can get that part right, the rest is easy.


That's where I left it yesterday. Mike thought the area to the right and below the nose looked like "angry teeth". Okay, I'm up for that kind of feedback. He is correct that there's too much black in that area. Take a look below. So I tried sticking a lighter piece there, but it seemed too bright. I think the best plan of attack to lighten that up is still going to be thread.


So today I'll fill in the colors on the body to the right and then it'll be ready for top-stitching. The thread painting will be last.

The CSA veggies and the veggies from our own plants are so nice right now. I tried a new recipe last night, and also made this salad to serve alongside from six kinds of lettuce, CSA carrots, cucumbers, sweet onion, and cherry tomatoes (and some cherry tomatoes from our own plant). The colors are downright appetizing.


Then I tried this recipe for Baked Ziti with Summer Vegetables. Mine is actually made with penne pasta, which is practically the same shape. You could use any vegetables in this as long as you pair up the things that cook in about the same length of time. I used fresh yellow squash, fresh tomato, sweet onion, chopped green beans, and fresh basil from our CSA share, and to that I added zucchini from our own plants as well as some fresh oregano from our own herb garden. Pretty, huh?


I could see adding some of that delicious sweet corn to this too. Then, it's mostly veggies, but you add just a little pasta and some mozzarella and ricotta cheeses, then bake it for 15 minutes. It was quite tasty, and there are leftovers for lunch. Yum.


This morning I finished off Block 15 for the Bee-utiful Quilt-A-Long. This one is "Bee Courageous".


The next block won't be out for a few days, and so I'll have some time to get started on Hocuspocusville. Also, I'm cooking up one more batch of applesauce and then finishing off the fusing on Sadie's pawtrait. A full day ahead, so it's time to get going.

15 comments:

Sally Trude said...

Wow. That's amazing how Sadie finally materialized out of the fused fabric. Awesome. And Molly assumes that you decided to fuse the exterior to the wormy fabric since they were internal parasites. She's okay with that.

quiltzyx said...

And there she is, Sadie in Batiks! I knew you could do it.
Lots of fresh veggies & beautiful to boot. Yum.

Doreen said...

My head is 'swimming' with your achievements!!!!!!!

Lana said...

Another awesome pawtrait! And it's not even finished. Such talent. And I'm really craving some applesauce & salad now. Lol

Sally said...

You are doing an awesome job with Sadie's pawtrait! It really does look like her. I can't wait to see the end result!

Shirley said...

Sadie's pawtrait is just wonderful. It has been so interesting and impressive to watch it unfold. You are very talented. By the time you thread paint the pawtrait, it will be awesome.

Unknown said...

wow! Sadie pawtrait is looking so good. Those are perfect fabrics. This will be your best cat pawtrait yet. Will it be done in time for Pets on Quilts?

Quilting Babcia said...

Your baked ziti sounds wonderful. Something delicious to do with just a handful of each veggie besides making omelets and frittatas which we also love. Sadie is looking good. I always love to see how their character is revealed in the thread painting.

Vroomans' Quilts said...

Sadie is really coming to life! I made something very similar to your ziti - dinner, saved enough for lunch tomorrow and the rest I froze.

Ray and Jeanne said...

You have really been busy! I'm so glad to learn that I'm ready for the Big One with my fabric stash. Not sure what we'll eat but I'll be able to quilt! I'm off to check out the Ziti and Summer Veggie recipe. Thanks ~Jeanne

Dana Gaffney said...

Putting her ears on really pulled her together, I see her!

Meg said...

You posts are all so good! Your photography is amazing! What a canner you are! Someday I want to can.... Also make bread (use a bread machine occasionally). Love what you have done with Sadie's thing (I'm on my
phone, cant think of the what you call it). Anyway you really have so many talents!


The pasta dish looks out of this world! Yum! Do you have a recipe?

Sherry said...

I am sure Sadie is quite pleased with her purrfect pawtrait.

Teresa in Music City said...

Sadie's pawtrait is coming along so nicely! I do see Mike's point about the angry teeth - maybe add in a lip line for her "smile" on that side to break it up? I can't wait until you start the thread painting!

Brown Family said...

Dinner looks yummy! Love the colorful salad!