When I was dead tired last night, and making supper, I needed to mince garlic. I can do that. I reached for the jar with two new heads of garlic. Totally stumped. The last time I handled garlic from scratch was before Laura.
Google said put it in a plastic bag and give the root end a good smack. I quit after one thump. My palm is still bruised today. I looked around, picked up the knife holder for a mallet and it let fly. Woohoo, a bag of cloves. The paper kept flying as I put them back in the jar. I think if I shook the bejammers out of that jar, I could separate them from their skins.
Jenny_O wonders what I bought at Abby Ann's. The clerk wrote it up as the Pumpkin Bowl. $2.56.
I want a way to keep my soap pods accessible. I made an emergency run to Abby Ann's the other day. I gave Laura the casseroles I improvised to a double boiler for brown bread.
I bought a Pyrex casserole that's stashed there in the spring form cheesecake pan. The red lid is to the red tin cup I use to bake brown bread.
I emptied the trash and missed the flowers, so they went out separately. There is the red cup passed along to me from Alberta. I had a note from Linda, Alberta passed away July 2nd, at 102. Alberta is at the picnic table in the picture sidebar. I so admired her.
There was much on my list for today, and I have only accomplished trash and flower watering. I have an afternoon of shopping to do; three stops. It is raining torrents. I will go put more thread on the beam.
So, I'm closing with my dancing glass lady, who acquired the suitable size upright this morning, while the sun was shining and the rain was still in Wisconsin, according to Ann.
Some days doing the trash and the flower watering is more than enough. I have a guilty confession. I buy my garlic pre-minced. No additives, just garlic. And now I only have to wrestle with the jar when a mood or a recipe demands garlic.
ReplyDeleteHari OM
ReplyDelete...and garlic makes me puke, so I avoid it like a vampire! Days such as you had, though, are just fine for a retired lady such as your good self &*> YAM xx
The cat's thinking of how comfortable that pantry would be to sleep in for a few hours.
ReplyDeleteI put the garlic between two layers of paper towel and bash it a couple of times with a soup can. Powerful tool that soup can!
ReplyDeleteI so love your new digs. Looks easy to organize.
ReplyDeleteMinced garlic here, too. It is the only way to keep it in one place that I can find and I can use only the small amt I require at any given time.
Your garden has already started.
One thing at a time...no need to wear yourself out. Toby looks very interested in the contents of that cupboard. Probably trying to decide if he should get in there himself.
ReplyDeleteI dread dealing with garlic.
ReplyDeleteThank you for answering my nosy question :) But see, that rounds out the post! I do love that pumpkin bowl.
ReplyDeleteI buy minced garlic in a jar. No bruises but it is not easy to open. I try to find the easiest way to do things and buying it minced is easier than chopping a small clove and depending on my eyesight and accuracy. I want to keep my fingers as long as possible.
ReplyDeleteI also buy my garlic minced and in a jar with oil. Sometimes I'll just use a bit of the oil instead of the minced garlic. It works and is sooo much easier to deal with!
DeleteUsually I twist the clove and the outer layer just pops off, I try to not buy the Chinese imported garlic, It is not as nice as plump organic. Your digs are looking pretty cool! Congrats on a successful move.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a full day to me.
ReplyDeleteI often use a huge machete to peel garlic, well I don't really peel it, I just crush the garlic and smack it then throw the skin away. But I like the shake method more!
ReplyDeleteYou can easily peel garlic by slicing off the ends and then just taking off whatever peel is left with your fingers. Do you have a garlic press? They work well. Sounds like you had a full day. I hope you get good rest tonight and maybe some more tomorrow. Why not?
ReplyDeleteWhy not?
My hubby cuts most items, to be honest my knife skills are horrible.
ReplyDeleteCoffee is on
The pod bowl is a good idea. I am all about easy access.
ReplyDeleteWhen I am making hummus with canned chickpeas, I usually mash the cloves under can before opening it. Seems to help get them out of their skins and reading for mincing. Your method seemed to work well as you now have a jar o' cloves. :)
I love garlic and use it in almost everything. I even like it raw... good for a sore throat too! But I usually just give the pods a pop with the flat side of a knife and the skin falls off. And I too think Toby is thinking that pantry looks like a good place for a nap.
ReplyDeleteAlways good to see you in my inbox! I love your glass dancing lady -- beautiful.
ReplyDeleteAlberta lived a good long life; I'm sure she'll be remembered often and dearly forgotten.
ReplyDeleteWe get the minced garlic; no patience for anything else.
Your new life seems to be going okay!
betty
The pumpkin bowl is a really good buy, it is very beautiful.
ReplyDeleteIt will be good to see how the garden develops. Garlic is very useful.
ReplyDeleteI seem to have lost any sese of urgency these days. If I put something edible on the table and I like it, I'm satisfied … the odd piece of garlic peel just enriches one's diet!
ReplyDeleteI love the dancing glass lady :)
ReplyDeleteWhen I get to the point I can't separate a bulb of garlic I'll just buy packs of cloves instead. So far I'm still able to whack the cloves with the flat of a knife to separate the skins, it crushes the cloves a bit but I want them chopped anyway. I find it works better if I slice off the root end of each clove first.
I buy little glass jars of minced garlic at the grocery store and just keep it in my fridge. Much easier than mincing my own when I need it.
ReplyDeleteseparate the cloves,trim off the root end,squash with whatever...a can , a jar, the blade of a large knife...no big bashing. The skin then peels off easily and you can chop it as fine as you like
ReplyDeletemy only advice about garlic is make sure the bulb has some roots on it. if it doesn't it's probably chinese garlic and they treat it with some heinous chemical.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about your friend.
ReplyDeleteI often have days when my plans are bigger than I can manage.
Deepest sympathy on your friend. One of my old buddies (94) is in hospice at the moment. I just wrote to her.
ReplyDeleteIt is so hard to pace ourselves, one of my biggest challenges. All out or collapse.
PS the flat side of a large chef's knife pressed down on the bulb very little strength, put in a jar and shake the paper off the cloves.
Then again, there's chopped in a jar (me)
XO
WWW
I am sorry to hear of your friend...Sometimes I feel as if I am just remembering people I cared about who are no longer here. And I won't be here that long either, most likely. That sounds wayyyyy tooo morbid! Meanwhile, life is good, garlic and all.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry to read about your loss. I've had many myself in the last few years and I'm not quite sixty. Like you, I sometimes aim for things that don't work out as expected. Keeps life interesting though. Best to you.
ReplyDeleteGarlic? I can't seem to use it up before it turns into dust. So, I buy already minced fresh garlic packed in water in a bottle. Use it a spoonful as needed. Keeps in the fridgie. Smells like garlic, tastes like garlic.
ReplyDeleteThe good thing about being retired and living alone is we can do as we damn well please!!
ReplyDeleteJenny and I love garlic and Jenny adds loads of it to all sorts of recipes. My mum hated garlic, but then she hated just about anything except traditional English food!
ReplyDeleteI planted a variety of garlic that separates very easily - too bad I don't remember the name of it. Your friend, Alberta, must have been quite a woman. I couldn't believe she was in her 90s in the earlier post! It's such a treasure, having known someone like that.
ReplyDelete