Fresh Pasta

 I very seldom eat pasta but had a hankering for Lasagna today and decided to try my hand at making pasta from scratch.

  I found some videos on You Tube and, after watching them, decided I was ready to go it alone. First thing was to buy some semolina flour and I may not have bought the correct kind as it was rather grainy instead of being smooth like flour.  The dough was hard to roll out and I don't think I got it thin enough. However, I cooked the pasta sheets for a few minutes and then started building the lasagna.

   Now, with the addition of a veggie tomato sauce and a layer of spinach and cottage cheese in between, it may taste OK. Lots of mozzarella cheese on top and between the layers will also improve the taste. It certainly looks like lasagna! 
   As I suspected, the pasta was a bit heavy, but I managed to make a meal of it regardless. In fact, I will be eating it for several more days - it is rather filling!

An Uneventful Day

   Went to a movie yesterday - "The Great Beauty" - Italian with English Subtitles. It had been well reviewed and highly recommended but I found it rather difficult to follow. It was a beautifully shot film, set in Rome, but with a hard-to-follow plot  (really no plot at all, just disjointed vignettes). I would have been less disappointed if I hadn't had to go down town to see it. However, on my way home I stopped off at a sushi take-out which has an end-of-day sale after 6:30 p.m. and got a huge portion of sushi for $9, reduced from $13.99. Quite a good deal, and I ate the whole thing!

   Nothing much of interest today - James here, a visit to the church play group, and picked up some groceries on the way home. I am cooking lamb chops for dinner and have them marinating in lemon juice and olive oil which should render them tender. I will have them with mashed potatoes and brussell sprouts.

   Still very cold today, although sunny. We had a quick walk around the garden and did notice a few shoots coming up, but there is still a lot of ice in the shady spots. Also lots of rabbit pellets - can't think what they are finding to eat unless they are getting into my composter.

Baking

   James and I made scones today. Measuring the ingredients was rather haphazard but he enjoyed kneading the dough and cutting them out with a glass. They turned out quite well, although I substituted yoghurt for the buttermilk that was in the recipe.  It was still too cold for us to go to the park - I am getting very exasperated with being indoors so much - but we did go out to the Early Years Centre and to buy some groceries. However, it's not the same as having him run around in the fresh air.

   Dancing group tonight so an early dinner of leftovers (salad, liver and roast vegetables). I will also probably have another scone when I get home and the rest can go in the freezer.

  

Still wintry

   Chilly day today, although sunny. Steve was over for a couple of hours this morning to help me tidy up after the basement renovation. We took some surplus materials back to Home Depot, stopped in at Starbucks for a coffee and then he moved furniture back into the basement and stapled down some wires that had to be removed before the floor was laid. He is quite useful and handy at times! Luckily, Alison could spare him as she was at the barn for a morning riding Mischief.

   Last weekend Judy and I had a pleasant morning skiing at Brimacombe. The conditions were pretty good, although they started to get a bit slushy as the day progressed,  and it wasn't at all cold. We got in quite a few runs in the morning but I faded very quickly after lunch so we headed home around 1:30. We had car pooled so she drove home, giving me a chance to recoup my energy.

James checking the weather report on Friday.

   On Saturday I had an early start, heading for the West End Workshop in Brampton.  We had two sessions in the morning, a nice lunch and another session in the afternoon. Then some fun dances until 4:30 when we were served afternoon tea (yummy) before heading home. Needless to say, I didn't need dinner!