A Change in the Weather

   I managed tennis on Sunday and again this morning but the rain has since set in and, in fact, was quite torrential this afternoon. Bridge class started today and by the time it finished the temperature had dropped several degrees. I went to a movie later in the afternoon ("The Intern" - quite funny) and was quite chilled by the time I got home.

    Finally finished the kale rolls I made last week! Hope I don't get sick as they really were well past their 'best before" date. The grandkids were here on Monday for a couple of hours and decorated a slab of chocolate cake for my birthday tomorrow. So I have been nibbling away at it since then. At least I will be back to exercise class on Wednesdays and Fridays and I also got into the Thursday Yoga class. Yippee!!

Pool Finished for this Year

    The pool guys were here bright and early today and drained and covered the pool. I asked them about the bubbles coming out of the return which I figured meant air was getting into the system. They agreed that was probably the case and a repair will be required when they re-open the pool next Spring. So I will have to budget for an added expense then!

    Some catchup to do - Thursday was lunch with the Probus ladies at Nova Restaurant. I had lasagna and Caesar salad and a glass of wine. With the tip it was $25 but quite worth it. Friday was the Don Mills Banquet which was lots of fun. It was held at Donalda Club - very posh! The buffet was delicious and we were seated right by the dessert table so, of course, I over-indulged. We left after the prizes and awards so it wasn't too late a night.

   On Saturday I was out at Lehman Crescent to babysit the grandkids. We had a delicious Shepherd's Pie with salad so I was well fed again. So it was Sunday before I had to cook again.

First Day of Fall

  Another beautiful day with clear blue skies and a cooling breeze. Slept in this morning until 9:15 and, after a light breakfast, pottered until it was time to leave for the Senior's Centre. It was "Volunteer Appreciation" Day and as I had put in a few shifts in the coffee bar, I was invited for lunch. There were almost 100 folk there and the lunch was superb, so no dinner (except a salad) for me tonight!

    We also had prize draws (I didn't win anything) and entertainment (very spiffy ballroom dancers), then the floor was cleared and the music jacked up. I left at that point for a well-earned nap before cutting both the front and back lawns. All nice and tidy again although there are still some brown patches. Off to fix my salad and then my nightly walk before retiring to the couch to watch TV. A very busy day for the first day of Fall!

A New Recipe Using My Home Grown Kale

     I was busy in the kitchen this afternoon and now have a mountain of dishes to clean! First step was to pick some of the large leaves on the kale plants and rinse and blanch them. While they were cooling, I got some bread started in the bread machine. I used the "dough" setting as I wanted to make baguettes which need to rise and then bake in the oven. While that was happening I cooked some rice and defrosted four breakfast sausages. This was in preparation for making kale rolls (along the lines of cabbage rolls).

   Once the kale had cooled and drained, I mixed the sausage meat, rice and some chopped onion and mushrooms. I added some chopped sage from the garden and a sprinkle of garlic powder. I then spooned this onto the kale leaves, rolled them up and packed them into a baking dish. I covered it all with tomato sauce and topped the whole thing with grated parmesan. Once the bread was out of the oven, I baked the casserole for about 40 minutes and ate it with a few slices of the bread. It was very tasty  (and, I hope, healthy!) and will do me a couple of more meals.

    It was an excellent morning for tennis, sunny but comfortably cool. I didn't rush over, arriving around 9:30, but stayed until 11:45, and played three good sets. There was quite a crowd but I had only a short wait between sets. I also managed a good walk after dinner tonight so have certainly had enough exercise for one day!