As I write this, Mike is down playing volleyball. It was always his intention to play volleyball since we've arrived in the park. Today is the first time. As for me, I haven't taken part in any group activities, except to stroll down to the Farmer's Market on Tuesdays for some strawberries. We were talking about this lack of motivation recently and we came to a conclusion that I've shared with some of you: We needed a vacation from our vacation. Our trip has been wonderful, but we've been on the go almost daily since leaving home last September. It's been a nice respite to be here doing almost nothing at all...aside from meeting up with good friends and drinking wine. Nobody will accuse us of being too active.
Speaking of the Farmer's Market...you might have noticed that yesterday was Tuesday, and so I high-tailed it down to the market to pick up some strawberries. Just take a look at these beauties.
After the last batch, I had a powerful yen for some strawberry shortcake (because, you know, we're dieting and everything), and so I was wishing I'd picked up another basket. And so yesterday, I righted this terrible wrong.
For us to have strawberry shortcake, I have to cut the seeds off Mike's berries. It really isn't that hard, especially with these nice big berries. I just cut the tip off, which makes them sort of cube shaped, and then I shave the sides off. The centers go into a bowl for Mike. The tips and sides go into a bowl for me. And, of course, I eat a fair amount of raw berries as I'm doing this. It's important to keep your strength up, you know.
Now here's where the (ahem) superiority of Oregon berries really shows itself. (And I've said time and again that we Oregonians are very snooty about our Oregon berries, so this shouldn't surprise you.) The centers of Oregon berries are red. The centers of California berries tend to be white, and so they're not as pretty when I cut the sides off of them.
Once I've done that, I just add a little sugar and let them macerate for a couple of hours. These berries are very sweet, and so they didn't require much sugar. Then, when we're ready for dessert, I make the little shortcakes off the Bisquick box. This time around, I made shortcakes for two. The Bisquick recipe makes six shortcakes, and so I wanted to cut it into a third of the regular recipe. It was a little tricky, so I'll share with you the measurements I came up with.
Bisquick Shortcakes for Two
2/3 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons Bisquick Baking Mix
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon butter (melted)
2 1/2 tablespoons milk
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Mix ingredients until dough forms.
3. Divide in half (approximately) and drop by large spoonfuls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment.
4. Bake until golden brown, 10-12 minutes.
5. Apply heaping pile of prepared strawberries. Add an enormous dollop of whipped cream (strawberries should remain visible). Devour with wild abandon.
Ooooooooh...aaaaaaaaaaahhh. Yes, it was delicious. But don't think we're not sticking to our diet. We had this menu item from the Cooking Light Diet, and so it's all good. These are the Chicken Verde Enchiladas.
They were very good, and ease of preparation is always appreciated when cooking in an RV. I liked them because the filling could be prepared all in one pan, and then it was simple enough to roll them up and bake them. Each enchilada has 200 calories. The diet allotted us two per person. Mike gets to eat a little more since the calorie count is set up for my body. As a man, he gets a little extra, and there is some left over for lunch.
As for my morning, I finished stitching in the remainder of the house, and now my hoop is full.
Now I've moved east a little, and I'm closing in on a finish for this one.
The rest of the day is expected to be as laid back as it has been thus far. I'll get out for a walk, and I'll probably do some more stitching. Otherwise...nothing...oh yes, except for kitty snuggling. That's on the agenda every day.
8 comments:
Opps almost thought I was going to have to fly out there to do the 'cat snuggling' but you came through in the end!! and I can bet you would be tired by now--don't know that I could of done all you've done since you left home!!
Have you ever been traveling before for this long???
enjoy, di
Sorry you've not been sleeping well. Maybe getting some walking each day will help. The strawberry shortcakes look fabulous.
Your food looks delicious and nice to have fresh fruit, we won't get any until summer.
I sleep well if I am going all day, that tires me out, but if Bill is having a bad snore night, I cannot sleep, need ear plugs, lol.
Debbie
I can actually identify with your lack of motivation to get out and do much. I recently retired and my husband is having trouble getting me to leave the house. All I want to do is sew, veg and read.
Mike's shortcake definitely pales compared to yours, poor guy. I'm sure it was delicious nonetheless. I know that feeling, when you have been traveling and are ready to be home. Our longest trip was 22 days when our kids were younger. I can't imagine being gone the length you have been, although I know that it has been a fun trip for your two. Here's to kitty snuggles -- they solve everything!
Strawberry short cake! Yumm. I have the strawberries but no whipped topping! I guess I will have to wait till morning!
I know what you mean about sleeping. It seems that I sleep good one night and not the next. Perhaps I'm not tiring myself out enough! Three days a week, I help my daughter with her baby, who is almost eleven months old now. She really wears me out, especially when she comes to our house, because there are not as many barriers to limit her "practice" walking. She's persistent and needs constant supervision, much like her mother when she was a baby. Yesterday, I stumbled on closing the door in the hallway that limits her to our TV room, pool table room and kitchen. Even this limited area is quite big, but gives her ample space to practice with minimal supervision. When she's not here and I can't sleep through the night, I'll get up and sew for awhile and then try to go back to sleep. Sometimes it works, sometimes, not. I like having this option, which I didn't have before we did a complete remodel of our home.
Rosemary
Mmmm the strawberry shortcakes look good! We have a "fruit guy" that comes to our office about once a week. He has fresh-picked-this-morning-in-Chino strawberries that are big & delicious! 2 weeks in a row I split 6-baskets of them, once with my cubicle mate, once with my friend Kay at the colleges. But I could not eat 3 baskets on my own, so I now have several bags of frozen strawberries in the freezer. I learned somewhere (Martha Stewart or Pioneer Woman) to lay them out on a tray to freeze before putting them in a baggie. Works good so they don't stick together.
Maybe I'll take some out for dessert tonight!
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