Friday, February 5, 2016

Weeks 4 & 5: Project 365, the 2016 Edition

Saturday, January 23

Love these ladies! Marcela and her daughters came over for lunch. It was the first time we'd seen them all at one time in two years since the oldest lives in Europe and the youngest was in Canada for a year and a half.
We had build-your-own-taco-salad for lunch and homemade chocolate pudding with whipped cream for dessert. The pudding is super simple and quick to make, which is even more appealing in the summer -- no one wants to spend any more time than necessary over a hot stove! I make it in winter, too, but it's my go-to dessert for summer. I actually shared the recipe on the blog last January.

Tuesday, January 26

Had to run errands in town this morning and stopped at McDonald's for a little treat. We discovered that their vanilla soft serve ice cream is gluten free! It was such a gorgeous morning we ate it on the rooftop where they've set up tables with umbrellas.

Wednesday, January 27

I worked on a gift for a dear friend. It folds out to hold colored pencils, a notebook, and also has a zippered pouch on the end for little things like a pencil sharpener, small ruler and eraser. Her favorite color is yellow and I've had this fabric forever and it's gone into multiple projects, including a shower curtain we used for years. I bought yards of it the first time I went to the quilt show in Paducah, back in 1989, and I still have some left!

Thursday, January 28

Finally made some seeded gluten free bread, using this recipe. One change I made was to add cooked quinoa. I liked the added texture and heartiness, but will need to reduce some of the liquid next time to account for the added moisture of the quinoa. The recipe calls for making the bread in a cast iron skillet, which I did, but I think that's spreading the dough too thin so it rose less than 2 inches. Next time I'm going to use a pan with a smaller footprint and see if that helps. I'll also let it rise longer.

But overall we were pleased with this first attempt. We used the bread for several kinds of sandwiches, plain and grilled, and it worked out well.

Friday, January 29

We traveled to Venado Tuerto to visit friends, stopping on the way to have lunch with other friends in Sta. Rosa. He owns a tire store, and was getting ready to make a delivery to another store he supplies.

Saturday, January 30

Our friends in Venado Tuerto have a lovely home, and a gorgeous yard. We stayed in the study/guest house you spy in the lower right hand photo, that sits in the corner of the property.

That evening we spent a couple of hours with Dora, a contemporary of Ivan's mom. In fact, the Nuñez' cared for dad and mom's house in Sta. Rosa for those many years when there were no Hoyts in Argentina. The two families go way back. Although she's had six operatons since she broke her hip over a year ago and is now in a wheelchair, she's in good spirits and continues to paint each day in the bedroom she turned into an art studio.

Sunday, January 31

We enjoyed a wonderful asado with Jorge and Pola and mutual friends from Tancacha, Gabriel and Silvia. Gabriel is one of the elders in the Grace Brethren Church in Tancacha and is also heading up the task force regarding stewardship for the national church in Argentina.
The meat you see on charcoal warming rack was the first of many; the meat just kept coming and coming! The time together was such an encouragement and blessing.

Wednesday, February 3

I put together a little collage of our kitchen. I took these not too long ago.
It is rarely this clean in real life.

Friday, February 5

Woke up to a thunderstorm and it has rained most of the day.
Perfect weather for soup! I happened to cook a chicken in the crockpot yesterday so had ingredients on hand for a yummy chicken tortilla soup that we topped with chopped avocado, shredded cheese, fresh salsa, and homemade plain yogurt for lunch. This is a picture of the soup before we added the tortilla chips.

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It's been a rough week. I wasn't feeling very good at the beginning of the week, and then Ivan put his back out three days ago, about as bad as it gets. This evening he'll go just before the pharmacy closes for an injection, and hopefully that will allow him to sleep. Plus he's had hiccups almost constantly since about 11 a.m. today. Praying he gets some relief soon!  

2 comments:

The Bug said...

Oh no! So sorry that you guys aren't well. Hope you both feel MUCH better soon.

That soup looks fabulous. I think I might have to do something like that in the crock pot. But I'd better put Mike on the case because whatever I cook in that dang crock pot never turns out how I imagine it will - and then we're stuck eating some weird thing all week :)

riTa Koch said...

Praying you both feel better soon.
That gift pouch is b.e.a.U.tiful!
I love your casita-kitchen! So bright, clean, fresh, cute!!!