Yarn Along: Finished!

Up On Top boot toppers are complete!  Woot!  I'm going to see my sister this weekend and made myself stop procrastinating finishing them this week so I could give them to her.

Now I just need to get going on that felting business that I've been procrastinating.  Hrmm.

I've found myself in a weird spot.  I'm not sure what to cast on next.  Crazy, right?  I have bunch of things in Ravelry queue and favorites, but since I'm still getting back up on my feet since the job change I've been trying to not buy yarn and use the yarn that's in my stash.  What I really want to cast on is this.  A hoodie and a cowl?  Sign me up!  I think it looks adorable and could really help me in my quest for finding a knit hat that I would actually wear and looks good on me.  I know, technically not a hat.  But it would keep my head warm in the winter and I would totally wear a hoodie!  Unfortunately, I do not have the necessary yarn and need to decide if I buy some yarn or cast on something else that I actually have the yarn for. 

I also have been itching to cast on a sweater.  I've gotten some great recommendations, however, again I would need to purchase yarn.  If I'm debating if I have enough extra cash to buy yarn for the Portland Hoodie Cowl, I certainly don't have enough extra cash for a sweaters worth of yarn.  My mom tipped me off to a yarn sale that's happening this weekend, I may just go and see what they have and if they have what I would want to used for the hoodie cowl, may just end up purchasing yarn for it.  We'll see.

Good Eats.

Curried Fish, Cucumber Salad & Naan.

One of the really nice things about my roommate (besides that I've known her for years and years and has always been a good friend) is that we both like to both make and eat good food.  When I live by myself I get into food slumps where I just eat whats easy, quick and the same couple of things over and over.  In the last month and a half since she has moved in, I have gone back to cooking a larger variety of foods and enjoying a much bigger variety of foods because she is also doing quite a bit of cooking for us as well.

This past Thursday I made something for her that she was skeptical about, but ended up loving it as much as I do:  Curried Fish.  I discovered the curry recipe a few years ago on this food blog when I had a lot of delicious salmon in the freezer and went to the internets in search of new ways of making salmon.  It's become one of my go to curry sauces that I use in a variety of ways.  I like to lay a nice bed of rice, add a variety of steamed or stir fried vegetables (I used carrots, cauliflower, snap peas, mushrooms and water chestnuts in Thursdays dinner), lay the fish on top of the rice/veg and then pour the curry sauce over the top. Garnish with chopped peanuts and cilantro.  Yum!

A previous version, with salmon, of the same meal.

The cucumber salad recipe I also found by combing the internets and it is a lovely accompaniment to the curry.  I try to make the salad either the night before or the morning of to allow the cucumbers to let the flavors mingle. 

This last item on the menu was garlic naan.  Oh, naan, how I love you.  So very lovely and always so surprising how easy you are to make.  The recipe that I make was given to me by a family friend.  The first time that I made it, it was with the very lovely Elly.  I share with you the recipe that Elly and her mom were so generous in sharing with me.

Nann rising.

Garlic Naan

Prep Time:
30 Min

Cook Time:
7 Min

Ready In:
 3 Hrs Calculate

Original Recipe Yield 14 servings

Ingredients

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast

1 cup warm water

1/4 cup white sugar

3 tablespoons milk

1 egg, beaten

2 teaspoons salt

4 1/2 cups bread flour

2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)

1/4 cup butter, melted

Directions

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.

Punch down dough, and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

During the second rising, preheat grill to high heat.

At grill side, roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil grill. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared.

Enjoy!