Holiday

Jeff and I may not get a three day weekend to celebrate Memorial Day, but we still get in the spirit of the holiday. The last two days were spent prepping pots to fire a bisque in the gas kiln. Jeff finished the loading last night while I started the process of grilling pizza. 

I have dubbed this weekend, "Grill-a-Palooza."

Fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, pepperoni, vidalia onion... drizzled with balsamic vinegar glaze

We kicked off the weekend with bbq chicken, corn on the cob, and salad. We ate so late that I never thought about taking a photo. Chicken isn't that exciting to photograph anyway!

Jeff is going to be the cooking star tonight. He is making samgyeopsal, which is a Korean recipe for grilled pork belly. We will have lettuce leaves to wrap it in and the other sides have yet to be determined. I am sure jasmine rice will be involved. Sadly, we are all out of kimchi (GASP). 

Memorial Day has now become the kick-off of summer, but I still remember what this day is really about... honoring the men and women who lost their lives while serving this country. 

Peace to All

Making Work For Raku

I am still making things for a raku firing. Switching to hand building is an adjustment for me. It seems like it takes for ever to finish things. I am sure if I had a slab roller, and hand built more often, I would become more efficient.

For now I continue to slog along. I will roll more slabs out tomorrow and there are always piggy banks to assemble while waiting.

On the home front, Jeff and I decided to take advantage of the warm weather and grill pizza. The crust came out amazing! I decided to finally take other baker's advice and buy King Arthur bread flour. Why didn't I listen to them years ago? It's more expensive, but not outrageuos, and definitely worth it. Now I can't wait to bake some more bread.

cooking for one

Last night I had to head to the big city of Asheboro in search of a couple of 8"x 8" boxes and some fresh mozzarella for a grilled pizza. It was late by the time I got out the door and as I walked past the freezer aisle at the grocery store I thought about how much easier, and quicker, it would be to buy a frozen pizza. After about 2 seconds of thought, I reminded myself about how much better a fresh grilled pizza would taste.
Jeff and I usually grill pizza together. I make the dough and get the toppings together, he does the grilling. Last night I was on my own and managed to time everything just right. I made two small pizzas and will have leftovers for a couple more meals. It's so hard to cook for one. It's too tempting to reach for something easy. I am so glad that I am on my own for just a couple of weeks. It's no wonder that my Dad's biggest struggle since losing my Mum is cooking for himself.

Everything is easier with two.

Girl Time!

 Danielle is here for the weekend! Last night we grilled pizza and Jeff made us Omija Berry Martinis. Omija berries are native to Korea and I think China. He brought back a bottle of the juice in a concentrated form. The martinis were delicious, as was the pizza. 

We finished the evening with yummy cupcakes from Cake J'adore in Greensboro. Today we are off to Southern Pines for a shopping and lunch. It feels so good to take some time off and spend it with my girl.