Happy birthday, Sarah!
Today is Sarah’s birthday, so if you can leave her a birthday greeting in the comments, I’d be much obliged.
I’m feeling more than a little sad because Sarah (and my parents) were supposed to be here today—and earlier this week for Thanksgiving—but low-grade tragedy struck when both Alex and I got a bad case of viral bronchitis and were deemed “unsuited to host and roast” by the medical authorities.
It’s no joke, dudes. There is something powerful wrong with my monkeys.
Even more tragically, our last foray into the outer world involved buying a 16-lb. turkey in anticipation of a feast which never happened. In the event, we actually cooked the bird lest it go bad, producing—since neither of us has any appetite whatsoever—nearly 16 lbs. of leftovers.
If you have any great recipes for leftover turkey, bring ’em on!
In knitting news, I have finished Rogue (remember Rogue, from, oh, a year and a half ago or so?), but I am waiting to model her on the blog until such time as I feel more spry. In spite of our bronchial woes, I am delighted with the sweater, which is all the more special because my sister spun the yarn for it.
This is big bananas, people. Stay tuned for photos.
And did I mention that this sweater fits and is attractive? Unlike, ahem, some creations.
Meanwhile, I have been knitting what we officially refer to as The Sick Socks:
This is about all I can handle right now. Trekking. Stockinette. Watching the colors change. Fun for the feeble-minded.
Oh, and since we’re discussing socks, I also made an elegant pair for Nasser from a lovely charcoal grey skein of Alpaca Sox, but he came and got them before I could snap a photo and whisked them away to London where he is wearing them today to do a reading in a friend’s wedding. I am quite honored to know that one of my creations is a world traveller and the chosen sock for a special occasion.
Here in the Commonwealth, meanwhile, we’ve got bronchitis and a frozen birdbath. So much to be thankful for!
Some of you have expressed concern that the blog posts have been mighty scarce these past few weeks. Thank you for you notes, all of you. There is an explanation for this: Sarah is very involved with some family issues that are consuming of her time and energy and I am increasingly in what I call Dissertation Mole Mode.
What this means is that on all days when my lungs aren’t kicking me to the curb, I get up very early, walk the dog, and then for the next seven to eight hours, I employ the secret strategy used by successful writers everywhere.
I put my butt in a chair.
And I write. This is very satisfying work, but I have to admit that at the end of it, I am not generally inclined to write more. Even about knitting. And life. In fact, at the end of the day, I got nothing left. Nothing left for nothing. Everything else has gotten pared back to get this sucker done—social life, knitting, blogging… I have gone to ground; I am the Dissertation Mole.
So bear with us. We’ll do what we can in the meantime.
For all of our American readers, we hope you had a lovely Thanksgiving.
And now, about those turkey recipes… Whaddya got for me?
November 24th, 2007 at 9:04 pm
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SARAH!
Now, about those turkey recipes . . . How about turkey and dumplings? Or creamed turkey over biscuits? Or turkey salad sandwiches and tomato soup? Or make a shepard’s pie with stuffing crust and a layer of turkey, veggies, gravy, and topped with mashed potatoes? Or, good ole’ turkey on white bread with Miracle Whip? Heck, you could even make a layered Jello salad, and be a real midwesterner!
Hope you and Alex are over your plague soon.
November 24th, 2007 at 10:50 pm
Happy Birthday, Sarah! 🙂
Oooh, hope you 2 feel better soon.
Bobbie’s ideas are excellent. Especially the Jello one. Because we all know about the healing powers of Jello. As for me, I’ve been thinking about making turkey enchiladas with Trader Joe’s mole sauce. But I’ve got leftover potatoes too, which definitely says shepherd’s pie.
After having my sister and her boyfriend here, I seem to have a lot of leftover Shiraz. Have any ideas … oh, wait, never mind.
November 25th, 2007 at 12:54 am
Happy Birthday! Hope you’ve had a great, viral-free day! 😉
November 25th, 2007 at 12:54 am
Happy Birthday, Sarah!
Sorry, but I’m not going to be of much assistance in the turkey area. I liked Bobbie’s ideas (though I’m a little queasy thinking about the jello… but as a native Minnesotan, I can see it happening) The only thing I can think of is a Turkey Terrific sandwich — basically, you heap turkey, stuffing, and a little mayo on a bun, then dip the whole thing in gravy. It’s a turkey dinner in a bun! My husband gets them at a sandwich shop in Waltham year-round and loves them.
I also wanted to say that you’ve both been missed! I’m sending good and happy thoughts your way.
November 25th, 2007 at 2:00 am
Happy Birthday Sarah! I hope the both of you were able to find some time for knitting this weekend. Good luck with your various distractions.
November 25th, 2007 at 2:28 am
Happy birthday, Sarah!
I hope both of your various responsibilities go well. 🙂
November 25th, 2007 at 5:20 am
Happy birthday, Sarah, even though we haven’t met. I’ve enjoyed your posts! Ellen, feel better. Rotten timing. Turkey with mole sauce is great and really easy — just heat up the sauce and eat it with tortillas. Turkey would also go well in soup. Beware of falling into the trap my father once did. Figuring that turkey tetrazzini was good, but he didn’t know how to make it, he decided to put the leftover turkey into spaghetti sauce. Wrong! The ‘horrible turketti incident’ is still discussed in my family to this day.
Good luck to you both with family stuff and writing.
November 25th, 2007 at 6:59 am
Happy Birthday to Ewe Sarah.
Since I do not cook (anymore) I present you with this
Individual Cranberry Tiramisu
Ingredients:
2½ cups leftover cranberry sauce
2½ cups granola
16 ounces mascarpone cheese
1/3 cup plus a pinch of white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup heavy cream
Four tall highball glasses
Directions:
In the mixing bowl of a standing electric mixer, combine the mascarpone cheese, heavy cream, sugar and vanilla extract. Using the whip attachment, beat the ingredients together for 1-2 minutes. Reserve on side.
In a tall highball glass, begin alternating layers of cranberry sauce, granola, and mascarpone mixture.
Repeat this step until you have reached the rim of the glass.
Finish with a dollop of mascarpone.
here is the link. This is what you see when your off on a Friday
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/ChristmasCountdown/Story?id=3902764&page=1
Ellen-I hope you and Alex feel better soon. Have been missing you both
November 25th, 2007 at 8:55 am
Hope you’re feeling better! And, Happy birthday Sarah!
Big fan of turkey shepherd’s pie, No real recipe, turkey, celery, carrots, stuffing…throw everything together…gravy a must! Top with mashed potatoes or better yet, mashed squash or sweet potatoes, top with cheddar bake until heated through.
Easy and tasty!
Hope you feel better soon!
November 25th, 2007 at 1:21 pm
Okay. Not healthy, but hearty and heart-filling. Brown a chopped onion in a skillet (cast iron, if you got it). Throw in cubes of turkey, let them brown a little (not get too dry). Drain the water off a can of hominy and pour the hominy in the skillet. When it’s all hot through and through, toss about a cup of grated cheddar on top and let it melt. This stuff is awesome.
November 25th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
Happy Belated Birthday Sarah!
I use turkey leftovers anywhere I’d use browned chicken. Just throw the leftovers in a pan on high heat to brown them.
November 25th, 2007 at 2:29 pm
Happy Belated Birthday Sarah!
I’m sorry you and Alex are so ill. I don’t have much in the way of turkey leftovers. I’ve just been eating turkey sandwiches with cranberry relish, cheese and a bit of stuffing. I hope you feel better soon.
November 25th, 2007 at 3:39 pm
Happt Birthday Sarah!
November 25th, 2007 at 8:40 pm
Happy Birthday Sarah – hope it was a splendid day and full of good things and quiet joy.
And Ellen – may the plague pass quickly for you and yours.
The Bowl of the Wife of Kit Carson Soup is excellent eattin’ AND has the best name ever. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/1246173
November 26th, 2007 at 1:50 pm
HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY. I hope you got something you really wanted.
I do hope that the eastcoastplague ends for Alex and Ellen.
Wooooof
November 26th, 2007 at 4:40 pm
When I was in college that was my favorite quote from my creative writing class. Each day, I put my butt in a chair. I love that. I can’t remember for the life of me who said it. This is what happens to a 23yo brain after a day of teaching 9th and 10th graders from hell. 😛 Funny. That’s all I can remember.
November 26th, 2007 at 7:46 pm
Happy (belated) birthday, Sarah! And I hope the viral woes are more or less behind you, Ellen! I love the quote from Shelley.
And I’m very glad to see you back again. For an entry or two anywhere. Dissertation mole time is sacred, we know!
November 27th, 2007 at 12:04 pm
Happy birthday Sarah. The day after Thanksgiving was the birthday of my best friend’s daughter (she turned 32). I made her a quilt. It is a simple pattern, but the richness of the fabric is what makes it. Quilting is much like knitting in that it is very tactile and you never know exactly what the finished product is going to look like until it’s done. This one suggests Christmas, with elaborate paisleys and hints of pointsettia. But the great thing is, I know it will “fit” unlike knitted garments! I send you a virtual quilt to sleep under or curl up with on the sofa.
Ellen, I would love to get an idea of what your dissertation is about. Your references are tantalizing (College Station??? That means The Cult of Texas A&M, in my book.)
November 28th, 2007 at 1:20 pm
Happy birthday, Sarah! (Belated)
I know what you mean by “dissertation mode,” I’m tackling a similar issue myself. After 2 months of blog posts that were both sparse and sloppy (no editing, just slap something in there and click Post), I finally had to admit that this was becoming A Problem. My solution is to write up the blog post first thing in the day, before I start in on anything else. As a bonus, I find it’s a nice warm-up for “real” writing.