Off To A Good Start

Hello July! My blogging is off to a good start. Lets see if I can beat last month and write more than two posts. That should be an attainable goal.

 Blogging may be off to a good start, but we are nearly a week behind in getting this kiln fired. Between the heat and humidity, and Jeff nursing an extremely sore foot, it's been tough to stay on top of things. Yesterday I glazed all of the student pots (these are students that come for a one time throwing experience) and under glazed all of the piggy banks that needed it. Today will be glazing day. Last week the heat made it brutal to prep the pots and load the kiln for a bisque firing. We had to come in every hour or so to cool off and hydrate. Once all the textured pots were sanded down, Jeff did most of the loading in the evening. The temperatures today aren't any better, but the work needs to get done.

And now on to FOOD!

Last night I made green lentil curry for the first time. It was really easy to put together and was delicious. I think we will be adding this one to our dinner rotation. We are trying to incorporate more meatless meals into our diet.

Green lentil curry - bowl by Tom White

I chose this recipe because it also included fresh green beans, kale, and carrots. We served it over jasmine rice that was cooked with cumin seeds and kaffir lime leaves. A dollop of yogurt topped it off. This is the recipe I used - Green Lentil Curry Recipe. The only tweaks I made to it was the addition of a teaspoon of garam masala and six crushed cardamom pods. 
If it is hot where you are, try to stay cool and hydrated. If you don't hear from me before, have a happy Independence Day.

Spicy Goodness

We ended the long weekend with one last night of grill-a-pa-looza. This time I did all the cooking, even manning the grill in a light rain. This is my favorite recipe for chicken tikka masala, if you want to give it a try, the recipe is here. The only thing that I did differently this time, was cook the chicken on the grill instead of under the broiler. I can't take credit for the naan. It came from the grocery store. It is on my to-make list, because it should be an easy bread.

There was no fancy table setting last night. We carried our plates to the living room and streamed a little TV.

I will leave you today with this little pig. Not a great photo, but the glaze on this guy came out great. I will list him in the Etsy shop later, where there will be some better photos. Have a great week!