Gourmet Meals & Dish Soap

All is well again with Thelma, she is her usual chatty and pushy self and is back to laying an egg a day. I am still adding a bit of flax seed oil to their yogurt everyday just in case they are in need of some omega 3. I scored yesterday at the grocery store, they had some outdated (by one day) Greek organic yogurt on sale for 50% off, the girls were so happy. Which makes me wonder, what do they do with it if it doesn't sell, most likely throw it out,  might go back and ask if I can have it for the girls. 

One of the luxuries of being single, aside from owning the whole closet, and using the passenger seat in your car as a closet as well....is that you can have whatever you want for supper and not feel bad about it, you are no longer responsible for anyone else's health or setting an example for anyone. Last year some time I read "Alone in the kitchen with an eggplant" by Jenni Ferrari Adler, it's a collection of short essays of single people reflecting on their eating habits, it's a good quick read. Some people love eating alone, some don't, some just can't do it, it was very interesting. After my daughter left home mealtimes were down right depressing for me, just the thought of sitting down at a set table all alone was just awful, I hated it. I did it for awhile and cried in my soup bowl many a times until I started just standing over the kitchen sink and eating my food as fast as I could to get it over with.
Then I lived on the beach in Mexico and started eating outside, who could possibly be depressed eating on the beach with the sound of the surf. It was so relaxing, peaceful, and saying grace with sincere thanksgiving was just easier than when you are facing a big empty table where there used to be chatter and conversation but is now silent. The ocean is not silent, it lulls and rocks you continually. After I came back home from Mexico the first time I started eating my meals outside as well, and now I love it, I enjoy my food again, whatever it may be. I have even learned to enjoy cooking for myself. No one ever says "ewww what's this green stuff under the cheeze" or "why are the eggs slippery" or "what's this floating in the soup?" or "why are we having this AGAIN" When there is no one to criticize every meal is gourmet and perfect....what's not to love about that.

A great supper, granola, saskatoons, yogurt, watermelon and topped with ice cream, and some toast. 

My strawberry patch was told last year that if it didn't produce this year I would replace it with something more productive....it heard me. About every 3rd day I can pick a bowl of strawberries....also makes a great supper topped with yogurt and ice cream.

Things are coming alone, I love my green fence. 

Getting greener every day

This is a "before" shot, before the lilies are blooming...soon

On to a totally different subject and not related at all....that's how I write. I ran out of my favorite dish soap and it's only July. I bring this stuff back from Mexico. Seems strange to bring dish soap back when we have so many kinds in our stores. I like this stuff because it is solid, not liquid. Since I live alone I don't have enough dirty dishes everyday to fill a sink up with water and put dish soap in, it seems a waste to wash one plate and a spoon this way. With this soap you can dip your scrubbie in it and wash your plate and spoon real quick just under the tap, no need to fill the sink, because it's solid you have better control as to how much you put on your scrubbie, with liquid dish soap I find I always use way too much. I forgot to bring some back this year and just had the one container from last year. I need to start checking my list sooner when I am down there instead of leaving everything to the last week. 

Some more chicken talk and cake of course

As soon as I come home from work and undo the latch on my gate the ladies start talking frantically before I even get to the back yard, they both want to be the first to tell me all the exciting things that happened in the yard while I was at work, you know, things like the neighbors's cat stopped by and they stuck their tongues out at him, Thelma caught a big daddy long legs and Louise laid a monster big egg, the couple living in the condo behind us had a fight and the police came (again) you know the normal chicken stuff...they are quite the gossipers.
A few days ago I came in through the gate and no chattering....none, nothing, just silence, just like it used to be before chickens (BC). Now some bloggers would stop the story right here and keep you hanging for another week, I thought about it but that would be way too mean. I'm just not like that. 


I raced to the back to see what was going on....nothing was going on, they were both there but had nothing to say. Weird. I just finished reading Joel Stalin's book "Pastured Poultry Profits"no I don't want to start a chicken farm this is just how geekish I am. He writes that happy chickens are always chattering, when all is quiet (just like with children) something is wrong.....but what? So I grab a handful of spinach and Louise is all excited and eats from my hand but not Thelma, she just stands there and stares at me, lets me pet her but won't eat. I run to the house and get some yogurt and again, Louise is all over it but Thelma is not interested, just stares into space, every once in awhile her eyes slowly close and stay closed for about 1/2 a minute. I am worried. I suddenly think "Flax seed oil" that cures all (I believe) so I mix some with oatmeal and run back out, but Louise wants it all, I can't feed Thelma with her face in there so I decide I will have to take Thelma out of the coop, I think that a blanket to wrap her in would be nice, she is sick after all, she needs cuddling. I run back to the house  (it sounds like the house is so far away) I look around real quick for a blanket of sorts...a chicken blanket that is, I can't find one, a big rag maybe, can't find one, I see a white tea towel laying on the dryer, it was my favorite tea towel, a cousin of mine hand embroidered it and gave it to me as a gift some years ago, I notice the last time I used it it had lots of tea stains on it and I was debating whether I should try bleaching it or just use it as a rag, I hadn't made my mind up yet, it was defiantly too pretty to throw away and almost too pretty to use as a rag but perfect for cuddling a chicken,I grab it and run back out. 


I get Thelma all wrapped up and try to feed her some oatmeal and flax oil, she doesn't want any, I keep rubbing some on her beak in hopes she'll lick it off. She doesn't, just stares at me. I am so sad for her. Then I remembered that I had also read that one should give chickens a little vinegar in their water sometimes to help with respiratory problems when the temperatures fluctuates. It was blitzin blazin hot today maybe she is dehydrated. I run back to to the house and get some vinegar and try getting some into her mouth, I might have gotten some in. I am so sad. I put her back in the coop and give Louise the rest of the oatmeal mixture, she loves it but isn't talking, I guess when her sister is sick she had nothing to say to me, I guess they were talking to each other all the time and not to me like I thought. Before I go to bed I try giving her some oatmeal again and still nothing. Sadly I go to bed and hope for the best. I did put some vinegar in their water just in case that is what they need. 
Before I was even out of bed  the next morning I could hear some chattering, not loud and boisterous,but chattering I run outside in my pjs and Thelma is moving around and eating, scratching and talking a little, she dives into the oatmeal and flax this morning but her eyes still closed once in a while.
When I came home from work all seemed to be well again except there is only one egg. I have had 2 days now of Thelma holding back an egg, but she seems perfectly normal again, her usual chatty self. I am so happy she is ok, I don't even mind the missing egg.

That's the chicken talk for today, now on to some cake talk...I tried something that I have wanted too for a long time but was too afraid too. I made a Tres Leche cake, Tres Leche is Spanish meaning three milk, it is a very popular cake in Mexico and because it is vanilla and not too sweet (depending on the icing) it is a cake that I like and have always wanted to make but there is a scary component to it that and up until now I have not been brave enough to try....I did it.
The cake itself is easy enough, it is like a heavier yellow chiffon cake with 5 eggs in it, it helps if you have chickens in your backyard laying eggs every day (which I do teehee), it helps if the yolks are really really bright orange (which they are) The cake calls for white sugar and white flour, I really really don't like white sugar so I used brown but I did use white flour, because I thought using whole wheat would make the cake less yellow.....I wanted a bright yellow cake., and yellow it was, oh my it was beautiful yellow, I couldn't believe the yellow goodness and I even licked the spoon, I couldn't help myself it just happened, had not done that since the 70s.

Beautiful yellow goodness....and one happy licked spoon

Once the cake is baked you take it out of the pan and cool it and then cut the sides off (the crusts if you will), I must have heaped the baking powder on my spoon too heaping or my eggs were extra fluffy because my cake had a round top on it so I had to trim that off too to make a flat cake, then I had cut it crooked so I had too cut some more off and then some more, soon I had a plate full of delicious yellow goodness cake trimmings...hummm. Then you put it in the fridge. Now you take a can of sweetened condensed milk, a can of evaporated milk and a cup of heavy whipping cream and mix it in a bowl and put it in the fridge too, chill them both for a bit...until they are both chilled....you'll know when it's chilled......when you're so anxious you can't wait any longer that's when it's chilled. Then....here is the scary part, you cut your cake into pieces (that's not scary) and poke holes in them with a shish ka bob stick then.....here it is, you pour ALL the milk ONTO the cake...oh, you put the cake pieces in a bigger pan that has a lip or a side to it...so milk doesn't run everywhere. Yup all the milk is poured onto your beautiful yellow cake. This has always frightened me because it looks like the beautiful yellow cake will become a soggy messy soggy soupy mess. But I am telling you, I promise you it doesn't. Now you put it in the fridge to soak, yes you are putting your cake away to soak....how long? Depends on who you ask, some soak overnight, some for 4 hours, some longer....me, I decided to go halfway, I soaked for 6 hours. After 3 hours I turned all the cake pieces over to soak the other side. After 6 hours the cake had not soaked all the milk up there was still a little milk left in the bottom and I was getting nervous (about getting a soggy soupy mess) and I was so anxious to try it so I took the cake pieces out and put them in a different pan....now, here is the really really good part....what to do with this milk mixure, ah ha! I had thought about this the day before already when I was contemplating this adventure and I had a plan...oh yes. I heated it up just a wee bit and put .....are you ready? In my coffee! Genius! I whipped it (coffee and milk) in the blender for s few seconds...oh my, bliss! Pure bliss I tell you. 


I topped the cake with a wee bit of whipped cream.....because there hasn't been enough milk and cream consumption here already and some of my homemade berry sauce that I made last fall...remember when my kitchen was a berry berry big mess....ha. Seriously people this cake and this coffee will change how you look at milk and cream and the farmers chickens that you pass by on the highway. You need yellow eggs....and lick the spoon. 

Tres Leche cake and the best cup of coffee ever

There are many recipes on the world wide web for a tres leche cake and they all vary in some ways (yellow eggs are not negotiable)  I choose this one from Joy the Baker http://joythebaker.com/2010/04/tres-leches-cake/ I love Joy the Baker and have been lurking on her blog for some time now, you should visit her too.
Put on some Anna Gabriel and romance your self with some Tres Leche cake and coffee....you'll like it I promise.

Happy Canada Day......may it rain on your parade, sorry but we need rain so badly.