Another Storm

My thoughts are with those that are facing evacuation today in anticipation of mudslides in the foothill areas in Southern California. It's hard to believe it will really rain. The sun is shining very bright and it looks like a beautiful day ahead. The weather people say that by this evening the storm will arrive and continue through the night. The fires that consumed the hillside vegetation last summer are to blame for the mudslides. 

Last summer, you couldn't go outside without being very aware that there were huge fires burning.

 

Not just one, but 7 different fires.

  

They burned for weeks.

  This was about 50 miles away from our home.

I can't imagine the stress that the people that live in these burn areas are going through. First, they had the stress last summer while the fires were burning. What would it feel like to pack up only what you can carry in your car, and leave everything else behind? They didn't know if their home would be standing when the fire was over. Many people refused to go. Somehow they felt that they needed to stay behind to protect their property. Evacuations leave a neighborhood vulnerable to thieves and looters. Unfortunately, that can be huge problem. There are always some people waiting to benefit from someone else's crisis. For me, I would probably leave before they asked me to go. As long as I had my husband and Buddy and Lucy, I'd be gone.

 

Buddy and Lucy

In January, when the rains came, we had seven storms in seven days. Many of the same people were told they had to evacuate again. This time to avoid the mudslides. Some of the residents said, "No, we're not leaving!" It's not surprising that the same people said the same thing when the fires threatened. When I see that play out year after year on TV, all I can say is that I just don't get it.  Every time there is a fire, you see firemen trying to convince people to leave their home when you can see the flames less than a block away. They are usually spraying their property with their garden hose. The emergency workers put their lives on the line most days because of the professions they have chosen. But it is not fair that people who fail to follow evacuation orders, can put the emergency personnel at increased risk.

I was glad to see this morning on the news, that finally, they have made some changes. Regarding future fires and flash flooding, if people choose to ignore evacuation orders, there is now a release form they have to sign. They will be acknowledging that they have been warned, and are choosing to ignore the orders given. Then the city, county and/or state, will not be responsible for losses suffered. All I can say is...It's about time! Too many lives have been lost while they were trying to help people that refuse help. 

To those that will leave, I'm sorry that they are in such a stressful situation. If they don't have family or money to stay in a hotel, it means sleeping on cots in gymnasiums and such, for an unknown time. Also, if they have any pets with them, they can't stay at the temporary shelters. I wonder where they go. Maybe they live in their cars. Who could ever leave a beloved pet behind. And then there's the stress of not knowing what you will find when you get back home.

I'm thinking about them today.

Inside My Spice Cupboard

 Here's a peek inside my spice cupboard, and yes, it always looks that organized! I wish!

 I love experimenting with spices. Last year I purged my hold spices and replaced them with new. A few years back, It was hard to keep track of how long you had actually had a spice in your cupboard. I am very happy that now most spices have an expiration date on them. When I went through my spice cupboard last year, I found that some of them had expired over 3 years ago. I was shocked. I felt like yesterday that I had bought them. When I smelled them, they didn't really have much smell and if they don't smell good, they aren't going to add much flavor to your dish!

I have been using Trader Joe's spices for as long as they have been selling them. The only problem, they have a very small selection. The other problem with TJ's is that they get you hooked on a specific product and without any warning, you find out it's been discontinued. I still can't believe that they discontinued their Pasta Seasoning Blend. It was amazingly great! I still have their bottle with the ingredients listed and I plan to concoct my own.

I had heard about Penzy's Spices for several years from different people. I looked at their website but I never bought anything from them. About four months ago I saw that they had a store in Torrance, so we set out one Saturday morning to check it out. I was really on the hunt for Vietnamese Cinnamon. I had read about it and I was intrigued. When I smelled it the first time I was in love!! It was amazing! I bought the largest size and as you can see, it is time for a return trip. It's almost gone and I don't want to be without it. Our morning oatmeal wouldn't be the same without it!

 

 

They had many spices that I had never heard of, and of course, I had to buy those and look for recipes to use them in. I'm still not sure how I'm going to use the Horseradish Powder. The good news was that they are very reasonably priced, and they have several sizes to choose from. I bought the smallest sizes for those I was not familiar with, because most of them were under $3 each. We walked around for over an hour, smelling every spice that they had. That was the first time that we every experienced that; being able to smell a spice before you buy! Now I am ruined. I will never be able to buy a spice that I can't smell first.

If you have a store near you, I would encourage you to go as soon as you can. If not, buying online can be a great option. I bought a lot of spices and I can tell you, they are great and fresh.

Check them out!

http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/shophome.html

Pancakes

I realize that I am a day late, but I heard that IHOP was serving free pancakes yesterday for National Pancake Day. Here is my contribution for NPD. Our family has always loved pancakes for breakfast or dinner. This first recipe is one that I have been using for over 25 years. This is definitely one of our favorites.



 Our favorite place to get them is The Original Hot Cake House on Powell in Portland, OR. Don't call them pancakes there because the aren't pancakes. They are Hot Cakes. There is a huge difference. Trust me, I made that mistake years ago and it won't happen again. Because it isn't an option for us to have theirs, I have looked for recipes that might create an illusion that we are actually eating at the hot cake house, minus the booths and jukebox.

This next recipe comes the closest to what you get at the Original Hot Cake House. It would put it over the top if I had their special buttermilk and their well seasoned grill.



Enjoy!

Strawberries in Winter

We grew up Portland, loving Oregon strawberries. There was that short time starting sometime in June and ending the first week of July (if it was a good year), when those beautiful berries were available. That is if all the conditions were just right. If there was too much rain, they rotted on the vine. If there was just enough rain, just enough sun, they were perfect! When we were kids, our Mom would take all seven of us kids out to pick our own berries. We would pick at least a dozen crates, which of course, also meant lots of work, making freezer jam and prepping for freezer containers.

I remember one summer I begged to go to the Teeny Farm to pick strawberries for cash! I'm guessing that I was about 12 or 13 years old. Actually, I only went because we knew that cute boys were going to be there!! A few in particular! I'm sure I never made more than a dollar or two. Not much for a week of "work". I was only there to have some fun and just goofed off most of the time. Sorry Edna! I know we got scolded a lot!

Anyway, once the strawberry season was over, it was over!! I think it was in the early 80's that we started getting "California Berries" during the off season in the Northwest. They were usually hard, very large, an orangish color and they were hollow and white inside. They definitely didn't go over well. Sometimes during the winter, we wanted a fresh strawberry so bad, that we would buy the darkest ones we could find, trim off the reddest part and throw away the white part inside. It wasn't great, but what else could you do.

When we moved to SoCal most of the berries you would see in the stores were exactly like the ones they shipped up north and around the country. About 14 years ago, we happened to pass by a stand that was selling beautiful looking fresh strawberries. They were calling our name, so we turned around to check them out. They looked absolutely amazing! They were deep red, shiny and piled up high in their baskets. We bought 3 baskets and took them home. I was planning everything I was going to do with them; make a batch of freezer jam, slice and sugar some for the freezer and the rest for Strawberry Shortcake. While we were cleaning them up we shared a bite. Yuck!!! They tasted like dirt!! Really, the kind of dirt that you walk on. It was so bad, we actually spit it out! We wanted to take them back and get our money back but it wasn't worth the 40+ mile round trip.

We stayed away from the strawberries for a long time after that experience. That dirt flavor left a taste memory we could not forget. But we are getting closer to a happy strawberry ending. Several years ago we found this place in Costa Mesa that has really good berries most of the year. It is several acres of land covered with strawberries, right in the middle of a business/residential area. We usually plan a stop by their little stand when we head south on the 405. Two weeks ago we stopped by to see if they were open yet and if they had any winter berries. They did and they looked great in the basket. Out of the basket, not so great. They didn't even smell like strawberries! It's just wrong when they put the nice looking berries on top and underneath they are white, hard and rotten. That was a huge disappointment. I ended up throwing most of those away. That is the first time that happened to us at that stand. Note to self: If they don't smell like strawberries, they won't taste like strawberries!

Last weekend, we decided we really wanted some GOOD strawberries so we headed to this little berry stand owned by a Japanese family that we found two years ago on Euclid. Last year we noticed that some people were being handed strawberries that were under the table rather than the ones that were on the table. We asked what they were and were told that they are a very special original heirloom line of strawberries that the family developed in the 50's and have grown ever since then. They are so special, you have to be a local to even know about them or else get lucky like us. They gave us some and whispered, "Just ask for the Cammies." To think that we went there a whole year before we even found out that secret! 

Here they are...

  

They had Cammies. Aren't they beauties! You can't believe how good they smell! Maybe if you put your nose right on the screen you can catch a whiff!

  Today I decided to make some 

Strawberry Oat Muffins

 

First, I mixed the oats and buttermilk
and let them sit for 5 minutes.

 Next I mixed the dry ingredients.

Then I mixed the egg, oil, brown sugar and vanilla.

I folded it all together and added the strawberries.

I used "Muffin Top" papers on  a cookie sheet
and filled them using a #19 scoop

 

Before baking

 I baked them and look at that, it's a Muffin!

They are very easy and quick and turned out perfect. Enjoy!

Now for the rest of the story that no one ever tells you:

*I chopped the strawberries a little too big. 

*The muffin tops papers aren't a good idea for a muffin with large chunks of fruit

*I doubled the vanilla. I usually double the vanilla on every recipe I make 

*I used 1/2 cup of brown sugar instead of the 3/4 cup in the recipe

*I used white whole wheat flour - I use it for everything

*I didn't have buttermilk, but I put 1 tbsp of vinegar in 1 cup of fat free milk      and let it sit for 5 minutes. I'm not kidding, that is a real substitution for buttermilk, I promise!

*I sprinkled a little turbinado sugar on top for a little extra crunch

*Because the pieces of strawberry were so large, I baked them for 25 minutes instead of the 15-20 minutes on the recipe

* And...

this is what they looked like when I took them out of the oven. They were not all perfectly sized and shaped like they always show you. I barely found one good looking one to use for the picture! I just want to be real here. Not everything that gets baked in this oven always looks perfect. Sometimes the magic just isn't there!

They were quick, easy and they are tasty!

Another Dose of Cuteness

Nothing makes me smile like my grandsons!

 

Ivan at 3 months

  

  

 Ivan now at 11 months

 

Ivan

  

 Look at all the personality

 Wiley 8 months ago

  

 Wiley Now

 

Wiley at his 2nd Birthday Party in June

  

 Wiley the Silly Boy

Don't tell Mommy, but...

 

 

 The party really starts after she leaves!

Just Kidding!

Alan and Family

A few more family pictures for Alan's birthday

 

Grandma Wolfe, Auntie Debra, Auntie Cheryl and Auntie Lori meeting you for the first time

 

Auntie Cheryl getting some one on one time with you

  

Grandma Lytle/Hansen

  

Auntie Dee and cousins Cindy, Marsha and Julie

 Cousin Cindy holding Alan for the first time

 

A couple weeks old

 

4 weeks old

  

Category - Happy Faces

Black and White photos

Dad won a silver medal for this photo in an Oregon Journal Photo Contest

November 25, 1975

  

Watch out Alan, there's a monster behind you!

  

30th and Alder 

  

Alan started entertaining before he turned 2

This was written in his baby book when he just turned 2

 

Great Grandma Letha with Alan and Christy

  

Alan and Christy

  

We have a theme going here

  

 You were always holding hands 

 

Always in the same position

 

Always the same faces 

 

 Alan at the Piano

 

 All dressed up

  

Still together

 

 Not sure when this was taken

  

I think this picture was taken at the 10th street exit off the 205, Christy heading back to Seattle, Alan heading back to Monmouth and Dad and I heading back to Walla Walla