Sunset walk

We usually miss the sunsets... as we are at work by that time.
We took a sunset walk on our day off.  It was absolutely beautiful. 

 

 

Storms and Sunshine

We have been VERY fortunate to have one of the best summers (weather-wise).  We got our first fall storm over the weekend.  It was the kind of stormy day where you want to curl up with a good book under a warm blanket.  But alas..... we had to work.  And it was busy!

Today it is sunny and absolutely GORGEOUS outside.  We plan on taking a long beachcombing walk later on this evening.

We finished painting the fence.  My bulb order arrived so as soon as the temps dip a little more, I can get those put in and hopefully have some color next spring and summer.

Before we moved in

pressure washing

Finished.  We color matched it to the tree, and in reality, it is more
 of a deeper color like the leaves on the tree. 

We also got the trellis built and painted.  Planted three fragrant honeysuckle.  I'm excited to see what it looks like next year after filling out a bit.

(Ignore the neighbors hideous lawn behind it)

Cracked Wheat Fried Rice

I got on this kick where I was making my own granola cereal for awhile.  Thanks to the Amish markets, I could buy gigantic bags of cracked wheat, wheat germ, etc at crazy low prices.  All well and good until two scoops into what seems like a 5 lb bag of cracked wheat, I got burned out and stopped eating granola.

I am a firm believer that the "guidelines" printed inside the lid of your freezer are just friendly suggestions. -clearly not meant for someone like myself who stashes a big bag of cracked wheat at the bottom and forgets about it.  The good? sad? scary? thing about moving is you have a pretty definitive idea of how long you have had something in your freezer, pantry, etc.  For example, I purchased my cracked wheat at an Amish market in Wisconsin, meaning it is at least a year old (and if I really probe, I seem to recall buying it while I was still attending college.).  Really?  Seems as if I just bought it yesterday....

I saw a recipe on foodgawker where a lady made an indian fried rice using cracked wheat instead of rice.  I was intrigued.  Yesterday I got brave and gave it a go

It turned out really good!  It was really close texturally, more like a short grain rice, but still good.  And the flavor was spot-on.

So, for those of you with giant bags of cracked wheat in their freezers, here is my (vague) recipe:

Start out by lightly scrambling your eggs.  I used 4 eggs and seasoned them with granulated garlic, a little hot curry, and some mesquite seasoning.  Don't cook them too long, and try to leave them in bigger chunks. Set aside.

In a fry pan, I diced 1/2 onion and chopped up about 4 smoked garlic cloves.  I fried them together with a generous amount of olive oil until onions were translucent.

Turn heat down to a medium low and add your seasonings.  I added:
2 Tblsp. garlic chili paste
2 Tblsp. Hoisin Sauce (thicker version of teriyaki sauce basically)
dash of Mongolian fire oil
2 Tblsp. Sesame oil
dash of liquid smoke

I realize that these aren't exactly common ingredients.  I would say it is critical you have atleast a teriyaki or hoisin, garlic, soy sauce (if you prefer), and either sesame seeds or sesame oil.

Once you have seasonings blended into your oil/onion/garlic mixture, add cracked wheat and water.  I added cracked wheat first, then slowly added in water.  I did almost equal ratios and ended up using 2 cups cracked wheat and 2 1/2 cups water.  Take into consideration the amount of water your veggies will have in them.  Turn up heat to at least a medium, cover pan with a lid and stir fairly often (but not constantly).  Once cracked wheat has softened, add veggies.  I just threw in a bag of frozen mixed vegetables.  You can add ham or bacon at this point to, if you wish. Then add your eggs.  Cook until veggies are soft.

I served mine with fresh chopped tomato and a sprinkle of sesame seeds.

Now, if I can only figure out how to use the equally huge bag of wheat germ.....

It started with a simple google search....

Skott and I both bought eggs on the same day while running our various errands.  So I decided to boil a dozen to have as snacks, etc.  I wasn't sure how long to boil them (hahaha don't laugh).  Normally I just boil the crap out of them until I'm sure they're done.  But this time I had limited time and wanted to try and get them done before work.

*cue google search*
(I must mention something very creepy though -I went to google on my phone and started to type "How long to..." at which point it auto-filled "...boil eggs".  I'm not kidding!  It creeped me out.  Even stranger, later on in the day when I was talking to Skott about something completely unrelated, I went to my trusty google search again and it auto-filled the correct question again.)

Who knew there was so much information about boiling eggs?  I found this link fascinating:

http://whatscookingamerica.net/Eggs/BoiledEggs.htm

I liked the part about overboiling and cooking all the proteins to a rubbery consistency.  Hmmmm, that would be me.
And a grey ring around your yolks?  That's not supposed to be there?  Ooops!

I especially liked the hint about turning eggs on their sides a couple days before making deviled eggs to "center" the yolks.  Fascinating!  Who thinks of these things?

And speaking of eggs, Skott is making Popovers for breakfast :)  Yum!