Flannel

We get some folks coming to ask for a soft material to make a baby blanket.  They see it at a store, but they want to make it themselves.  Those baby blankets sold at a fancy boutique are often backed with a material called chenille.  I know they are soft and smooth, and many expecting mothers want it.  But, what they don't know is chenille fabric you see at most chain stores is synthetic, not natural fibers like cotton or linen.  Personally I much prefer natural fibers.  Especially for a baby.  So we carry cotton flannel instead.  They are soft, smooth, and give you a much warmer feeling.  It is just different from those made of plastic fibers.  There are not many prints available at Peapod, but what we have is cute, just the right amount of kiddy cuteness that even grown-ups can use for their pajamas.  We tend to stock more basic flannel like plain or dots so you can combine it with a fun print in the regular cotton.

From the giraffe print down are a few of the new comers in the regular medium weight cotton...

Echo Scrappy Log Cabin Pillow

I wasn't just cooking, but I was diligently sewing too.  Here is my new pillow.  I have to make a few more. 

Pizza Al Pesto

pizza again?  no, for the sake of the creator of the no-knead pizza dough, i just had to revise my review on this.  it is gooood.  i said that it could've been a bit crunchier for my liking, but the first pizza was simply under baked.  see, my oven is pretty old and it tends to overcook everything i bake.  so i usually set the timer five minutes shorter than the recipes say.  it felt a bit chewy because of that.  and batch after batch, it only got better and better.  last night i baked one with marinara for the boy's lunch.  this morning i baked one for my lunch with pesto.  and tonight i baked one with half pesto and half marinara.  it had the best crust of all. 

i couldn't believe what happened.  uh oh...can i help to clean the floor, mama? 

our last batch of dough half pesto, half marinara.  the best...

Mother's Day

the flowers from our backyard...

apricots are back on the market. these will be gone by tomorrow i'm sure.  the boy loves them.  the cherries from bakersfield were so sweet.  also basil, snow peas, broccoli, japanese cucumbers, sweet potatoes, kale, and carrots came home with us.  i am dying to see tomatoes back on the market.

we made this pizza dough last night.  left at the warmest place in the house...

yup, on the top of the heater...

resting time...

i just wanted to use damp cloths instead of plastic so i felt like i was a real home baker :-)

nicely rested and doubled in size...

i wasn't sure it could be this successful when i was making the dough last night but it turned out to be delicious.  just a tiny bit crunchier would've been nice for my liking, but the boy prefers a chewy crust, so it was perfect for him.  i spread some olive oil and marinara sauce, salt and black pepper with canadian bacon, tomatoes, and basil as the toppings. 

happy mother's day, mom!

the spring salad mix is from the farmers market...

simple pizza and a simple salad, a perfect combo...

this is the second one i baked for the boy's lunch tomorrow.

i swear i tried to shape it into a disk, but the dough just didn't want to be round.  it is totally a happy accident that it shaped in heart by itself...

Happy Monday

dash totally melting in the morning sun...

I was so jealous of you guys who were able to enjoy the gorgeous weekend outdoors. But the weather continued onto my day off. Yay! So dash and i enjoyed this beautiful Monday together 100 %. 

My original plan for dinner was pasta with homemade pesto, but the weather was too hot and it was perfect for Japanese cold udon.  A very common dish on a dog summer day or night in Japan.  I made a few small side dishes including enoki and shitake mushroom sauteed with snow peas, a cucumber and seaweed sweet vinegar marinated salad called sunomono, and a fried egg on a bed of spinach.  Yes, I cleaned my refrigerator and it was a good thing.  Because the cold udon dish is so light, it goes well with some protein prepared in oil. It would have been better if we had tempura to go with it, but tempura?  Just too much work.  And believe me this is pretty good for me to prepare a complete Japanese meal. 

Petite Pom Pom

just wanted to let you know that these petite pom poms are so fun to embellish your project.

(omg, this new editor is totally killing me.  i'm afraid i have to ditch this site. i have no idea what i'm doing).