Sunday, December 30, 2012

Snowed!

12/29/2012...started about 2pm and was done around 11pm. 10" (3-7" had been forecast)
First time I got to plow with Mickey Mouse the Garden Tractor...worked out OK. I spent about three hours...but a lot of that can be divided between still needing to finish some repairs on the plow so it works more efficiently, some learning, and a lot to pushing snow way back so I can deal with other storms.

Unlike a snowblower or truck plow, the short blade on the tractor can't really "throw" snow over a bank so it's really critical that I made snow dumps.

Cooper was just here for a visit this weekend, he goes home this afternoon.







If I get to the point I have to keep the car down by Route 6, it wouldn't actually take that long to just plow it out. That's where I really pushed snow back so I would have room if needed later in the season.

Friday, December 28, 2012

Scallops and Risotto

Scallops with Risotto and onions, mushrooms, and because I had some to use up green beans -- my first attempt at Risotto. Second time I've fried scallops.

The onions carmelized on me, which is what I think darkened everything. I don't think that was supposed to happen.

Give it about a 1 for presentation, but it tasted average to above-average...but for a first attempt at a lot of things, probably not bad over all.

Part of the recipe involved some wine...I am not a wine drinker, and indeed as stuff was cooking I had to go scrambling through my backpack to find a Swiss Army knife since I realized I didn't own any other corkscrews!

Based on:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/risotto-with-wild-mushrooms-and-scallops-recipe/index.html

Edited to add: It was *very* good as left-overs. Go figure!

Monday, December 17, 2012

Kindling

I got a Kindle from my sisters last Christmas. Only complaint is how much it cost me buying books for it :D

Looks like I bought 26 in 2012, and I had a couple more PDF downloads, plus a couple books I bought in old fashion paper:

Girl Hunter: Revolutionizing the Way We Eat, One Hunt at a Time Pellegrini, Georgia 22-Jan-12

Freakonomics Rev Ed: (and Other Riddles of Modern Life) (P.S.) Levitt, Steven D., Dubner, Stephen J. 23-Jan-12

Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit Estabrook, Barry 28-Jan-12

The Feast Nearby: How I lost my job, buried a marriage, and found my way by keeping chickens, foraging, preserving, bartering, and eating locally (all on $40 a week) Mather, Robin 4-Feb-12

Growing Up Amish: A Memoir Wagler, Ira 5-Feb-12

Success Made Simple: An Inside Look at Why Amish Businesses Thrive Wesner, Erik 9-Feb-12

Garbage Land: On the Secret Trail of Trash Royte, Elizabeth 13-Feb-12

After God (Religion and Postmodernism) Taylor, Mark C. 21-Feb-12

Banana: The Fate of the Fruit That Changed the World Koeppel, Dan 4-Mar-12

A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present Zinn, Howard 5-Mar-12

The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance: A Memoir Baker, Elna 4-May-12

Four Fish: The Future of the Last Wild Food Greenberg, Paul 13-May-12

Rurally Screwed: My Life Off the Grid with the Cowboy I Love Knadler, Jessie 15-May-12

Grace Leads Me Home Miller, Marlene C. 28-Jun-12

Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World Kurlansky, Mark 15-Jul-12

Folks, This Ain't Normal: A Farmer's Advice for Happier Hens, Healthier People, and a Better World Salatin, Joel 25-Jul-12

Spice: The History of a Temptation Turner, Jack 5-Aug-12

Better Off (P.S.) Brende, Eric 12-Aug-12

Why I Left the Amish: A Memoir Furlong, Saloma Miller 19-Aug-12

The American Way of Eating McMillan, Tracie 20-Aug-12

Dirt: The Erosion of Civilizations Montgomery, David R. 25-Aug-12

The Contrary Farmer (Real Goods Independent Living Book) Logsdon, Gene 1-Sep-12

Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back To Health Davis MD, William 24-Sep-12

Rats Sullivan, Robert 31-Oct-12

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking Cain, Susan 9-Nov-12

Consider the Fork: A History of How We Cook and Eat Wilson, Bee 12-Dec-12