Random Update

Perhaps it is the cooler weather (or just Silas being pushy) but both dogs have been on one bed a lot lately! I think it's funny how tightly Silas can curl up. Saffy looks like the big dog here! You can see how Silas likes to use his tail as a nose cozy.

I've been feeling a bit derailed since late September. I've had little time for working on my knitting projects lately, or rather, when I have the time I lack the mental focus for it :( But my lining material for March Hare arrived from Japan and is SO pretty. It is even nicer than I expected as there is a gold thread worked into the motifs that did not show up in the only image I'd seen of it online. That gold thread will make it go even better with the Sari ribbon yarn that also has gold worked into it.

Cooking happens whether things are busy or not as one does want to eat! It is nice to be creative with that even when I can't get to other kinds of hobbies.

The barley stew in the previous post was even better the second night. The flavors developed more and it was even more risotto-like! Likewise, the pumpkin cake got better and better as the spices seemed to meld together more.

I made the 3 Cheese Baked Macaroni from the October Everyday Food, but it was not as good as I'd hoped. I actually wasn't that into the bacon, the garlic overpowered (and I like garlic) and I wasn't excited about the Cayenne pepper...I prefer the Tabasco that I usually use.

It was edible, I just felt 'eh' about it.

This is the Shepherd's Pie I cooked up last night--it's really an ultimate comfort food. I made the potatoes on top look like ocean waves.

I used a packet (gasp!). I saw it in the British section of the grocery store and thought it would be fun and make things easier during a busy week. It was really good!

After we ate, Jeff had the great thought that some lingonberry jam would go perfectly with it. We'll try to remember it for the leftovers! I also completely forgot that I had some HP sauce to go with it. That's how my attention has been lately and why knitting is not really happening at the moment. Bad things can happen if I blank out in the middle of my current sorts of projects.

This week, I am marinating some beef top round for a few days to cook into Sauerbraten. I'll make sweet and sour purple cabbage and mashed potatoes to go with that and celebrate my German ancestry and Oktoberfest! After we have that (for a few days!) I plan to cook a white bean and sausage soup. You can tell I am wild about the fall cooking!!

A couple of my new cookbooks have arrived today. The America's Test Kitchen Healthy Cooking one and Nigella's Kitchen. I am so looking forward to reading through the recipes and then picking some to try and making some grocery lists.

I bought issue 36 of BBC Easy Cook, a magazine I'd never noticed before. I think I will try some of the meals presented in that.

In reading, I am currently racing through Even Money by Dick and Felix Francis. I am enjoying it very much though I am still not entirely understanding betting/what bookmaker's do despite the information included in the mystery! Still, it's interesting and I don't think I need to completely get that to enjoy the story. I also got a discount rack copy of Silks by the same authors, so that will likely be my next read. They are just the sort of books I need at the moment.

There is plenty of TV viewing lately with my favorite current show being Wallander. PBS has shown two and there is one more next Sunday! I wish there were more! For the network shows, I am enjoying Modern Family, Community, Big Bang Theory and 30 Rock this season. I mostly watch PBS and another recent show that I loved was Myths and Legends, with the same guide who lead us through the Story of India last season. After Wallander, we have a new Sherlock Holmes series I'm excited to see, I'm wondering if it is going to have a sort of Dr. Who feel to it?

Hopefully in another week or so I can get back to the knitting bags and have some nice knitting posts for you!