Takes the Cake

Siiiiggghh. Well, finally I think I am on the mend, hack, cough. Sure am tired of this bug and glad I have fought it to a standstill - I hope. I have been sick for two weeks, and it will take me at least that to get completely over it. Will check with the doctor the middle of next week.

I am actually going out of the house today, to get a few groceries. Only as far as Walmart because I think that is all I can handle after my two week incarceration. Got some recipes I want to try so need some ingredients for them and some food to eat too, oh and dog food, wild bird food. And liquid lecithin. I found a recipe for making Vanilla Extract without alcohol, I want to try it and it calls for liquid lecithin.

At Walmart, Richard goes to the Tire and Lube shop where he works while I begin shopping, using a store supplied electric cart to wander around the store with. I stopped taking my arthritis medication while I was on my antibiotics, and believe me when I tell you, I am suffering for it. Just as I go down the baking aisle, Richard comes back and tells me they need him to come in to work early by 2pm, not 4pm as he originally was scheduled so we hurry with our purchases.

Back home we have a quick lunch and then Richard goes off to work while I put groceries away. The dogs are nattering to go outside. I comply. As I wander around the garden boat slowly and very carefully, ever mindful of hidden doggy mines, I try to decide what to plant there next year. Definitely Sweet Peas and Petunias. Here it is the 14th of November and both those flowers are still looking really good. Neither were touched by the frosty nights we had in October - in fact if we had sunshine, both would bloom. For sure will plant more Calendula, that is one of my favorite flowering herbs. Oh and Marigolds, they did so well last summer in the mass planting. Geraniums. Bright Red ones for the bow of the boat, like before.

I have lots of herbs growing in there, and doing quite well for the most part. My Lemon Thyme is lovely, as is my Pineapple Sage. Chives are doing ok. Purple Sage, ditto. Yarrow is tall and graceful. Apple Mint in a pot looks great.

But what about vegetables? I think some beans, perhaps Pole Beans as they grow upright and you can get more of them in a small space. I want to try peas again, and still have the chicken wire in place for them to grow up. I also have some grains, spelt and rye, and I could plant them in the gunwales of the boat. I don't want to plant a lot, just enough to see how they do and how much grain it will produce. Spelt on the port side, rye on the starboard side, that would work.

Tomatoes are going into the other large container, my 300 gallon stock tank. Will plant Black Prince, Yellow Mortgage Lifter, Brown Berry, Tumbling Tom and Bull's Heart for sure. I will plant more Marigolds along side them, maybe some onions, and for sure some chives. Maybe transplant my garlic chives in there. Hmmmmm, what else?

I got an e-mailed newsletter today from West Coast Seeds. They are on the mainland and their products are specific to our Island environment. The newsletter is about Blue Orchard Mason Bees, something that Richard and I have talked about getting for a few years now. These are hardy little bees that live to pollinate. They don't appear to be affected by the diseases the Honey Bees have been dying off from. They thrive in cooler weather, and, "a single female Mason Bee will visit 2000 blossoms a day." Wow, what more can you ask for from a bee? I think we should order some, and a starter cottage to keep them in. Think of the flowers and plants we could have!

The dogs are done snuffling and sniffing the yard, and we go back indoors. I have a recipe I found in an old Taste of Home Magazine Kate brought up to me. It is called "Cheesecake Waffle Cups" - I LOVE Cheesecake - and it is quick and easy. I bought the waffle bowls at Walmart today, and have the other ingredients on hand. Here is the recipe as written. Then I put my comments and how I would do it next time.

Cheesecake Waffle Cups
Ingredients:
1 - 8oz package softened cream cheese
1 - 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon pure Vanilla extract
4 Waffle Bowls
1 cup cherry pie filling

Directions
In a small mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk. Stir in lemon juice and vanilla. Spoon about 1/3 cup into each waffle bowl; top with 2 tablespoons pie filling. Repeat layers. Yields 4.

First off, I used my food processor so it took me less than 2 minutes to mix this up. Just pulsed the cream cheese til smooth, about 30 seconds; added sweetened condensed milk in 4 lots, pulsed 3 to 4 seconds after each time; poured in lemon juice and vanilla, pulsed 3 or 4 times. That's it. Done.

Next time, I will use juice of a real lemon and the zest. Or maybe a lime in place of the lemon. Maybe an orange. NO CHERRY PIE FILLING! It makes it waaaaaay too sweet and overwhelms the flavor of the cheesecake. Just fill the little waffle bowl - or a waffle cone, that would be cool - and top with a dollop of whipped cream. Top the whipped cream with some zest. Keep it really simple. It tastes scrumptious, or as Bente would say - after she first calls me a BITZ for making it, grin - scrumlicious!

For those who are watching what you eat, substitute light cream cheese and top with Cool Whip. It won't be very caloric that way, but still quite tasty.

I give this recipe 4 stars out of 5. It is so quick, so easy, so tasty. Yes, I do prefer baked cheesecake, but that takes hours, and this takes no time at all. Can't wait for Richard to come home and try it. What's that you say? What about Bente? Well, um, she's not eating sweets right now, trying to watch what she eats, so, um, I probably won't tell her about this, right away. Will wait a few days and then casually mention it.

I text messaged Kate and told her what I had made.

She text messaged me back a one word response.

BITZ!

Hmmmmm, you think she's trying to tell me something?