I FEEL THE NEED NOT TO KNEAD

Being the bread baker I am, it made me feel momentarily inadequate not to have known about Jim Lahey's no-knead bread popularity dating back to 2006. I have to thank Steve and Chicky's friend Kentz for introducing me to this great option for making bread. So here is my first try at it, the Irish Beer Bread Kentz made for our St Patty's Day dinner. After the uneventful initial 24 hour rise, and the second rise in the towel, the only tricky part was getting the dough not to flop too much when dropping it into the hot dutch oven. As you can see, it recovered quite a bit, judging by the air holes in the bread, but I think a "bigger" loaf could be produced if this step did not require to "drop" the dough. Overall, I am very pleased with the outcome. Next will be Jim Lahey's standard bread recipe. JIR  

SPRING AND FIRE

Meadowlarks and robins have returned. They may be wondering why they even bothered to leave. Trees are sprouting and weeds seem to be popping off the ground overnight. Spring is here, earlier than I can ever remember. Cabin fever was short-lived. We'll take it. In South Dakota, the ground is dry. Hoping spring rain will add moisture and lessen the risk of fire.  

We fired up the pit and the grill. The air at dusk was chilly and still. 

Keeping our distance from the fire

T-bones and corn on the cob, icing on the cake. JIR 

ROAD TRIP

We have taken a lot of risks in our lives and, for the most part, they have paid off. Planning a 860 mile round trip by car in early March is a risk because some of our biggest snow falls can happen this time of year. Not this year, and not while we were on the road. 

On our way to Denver, we cut through the Black Hills going through Hill City and Custer. Cloudless blue skies and temperatures in the 40-50's when we left

Eastern Wyoming is a vast desolate place so a rest stop is a welcomed sight when the bladder is full. Quiz: what stands out and looks very unusual in this picture? (the answer is just below)

Green grass in winter in eastern Wyoming? Yes, thanks to artificial turf state officials in Wyoming can proudly say the grass is greener in their state (in winter).  And visitors can pose for pictures after they pee.

Why do I want to pronounce the name of this town with a "t" at the end?

Fort Collins, Colorado is a vibrant little city (pop. 150K) where Colorado State University, Hewlett Packard and lots of microbreweries reside. Budweiser also calls Fort Collins home but we won't go there (literally). We enjoyed spending the first and last nights of our trip in Fort Collins.

On the outbound we visited O'Dell and Funkwerks. O'Dell is the granddaddy of Fort Collins microbreweries, noticeable in it's size and complexity. Funkwerks, more laid back and only serving 4 types of saison beers, is a newer microbrewery.

We did not take any pictures in Denver but enjoyed our visit there also. Based on Chicky and Steve's recommendation, we ate dinner and tried Belgian ales at the Cheeky Monk. The highlight of our dinning experience was Cuba Cuba, an authentic Cuban restaurant whose owner is a first generation Cuban-American.  She opened the restaurant because, when she moved to Denver, she missed her mother's good Cuban cooking. No visit to Fort Collins is complete without a visit to New Belgium, perhaps the most popular of it's microbreweries. Friday late afternoon before last call at 6PM is an experience not to be missed at New Belgium. We enjoyed a pint of Belgo, one of their Lips of Faith series IPA's JIR

ABOUT TIME!

Winter doldrums maybe, laziness perhaps. Whatever it was, it's over, it's time to blog. What better way to start it off, than with a preview of the latest work of art by my extremely talented partner in life. Her latest quilt is a potpourri of shapes and colors, a visual experience of immeasurable pleasure. Priceless artistry masterfully expressed in cloth. It's not finished, but I could not resist to tease you with a post...

Our African violets have been blooming most of the winter, adding much needed color to the season's blah's  

 It was crisp winter day, cloudless blue sky, light southeast breeze. We bundled up once the temperature hit 20 and went out for our daily dog walk. It made it to 32 later in the afternoon, which is when I went back out with the pups for a few minutes of running and stretching before the sun set and temperatures dropped.

This is Gidgie's full attention stance just before the ball is thrown

Yep, that's the ball in her mouth. It is practically embedded in there most of the time. JIR

CHRISTMAS 2011/New Year 2012

Yes indeed, we celebrated Christmas in our beautiful abode in Montana. Waiting for me to arrive, Linda decorated our tree with ornaments that tell many stories and bring back memories of our wonderful life together. We've had time to think about all we have accomplished, the 2 outstanding children we raised, and the other exceptional 2 who became part of our family by marriage. We have a lot to be thankful for. The Holiday season gives us the energy and vision to continue to try to live our lives the way Christ showed us, with kindness, love and compassion. We are thankful for our friends and family. Even though we have drifted away from the habit, or sometimes chore, of sending Christmas cards, we love and appreciate you. We look forward to a happy and healthy 2012, including all its challenges and opportunities. JIR and LAR