Of NOT doing what every one else *thought* I should be doing.
They wanted me to show up to their event (that I didn't want them to do anyway) and work all day for nothing. Uh, no. Besides, I avoid those types as much as possible so I would rather not be involved in being "seen" if you know what I mean!
Instead, I stayed home and worked for MYSELF! Oh, the humanity!
Saturday morning I got up early and went to the farm to buy more un-preserved apple cider and honey. YUM! (The first cider batch was nearly complete - the fermentation had ceased and it was good so it became imperative to make MORE before the apple season is over for the year).
Then I went to the local farmer's market to buy up any "out dated" produce (I get dad bananas and the like for cheap) and bread.
I made a serious haul of green beans, broccoli, potatoes, apples, bananas, strawberries, French bread, pitas and dark chocolate chunks. YUM!
After unloading the car, I started cooking. See, this weekend was all about ME and my BELLY and my LIVER getting what they wanted. If I'm going to work my butt off, I'm going to get something out of it. 'Cause I'm selfish like that. (But at least I'm self-aware enough to admit it! hehehehe!)
First, I sanitized everything - buckets, carbouys, bottles, caps, bubbler, hoses - the whole she-bang to finish and bottle off one batch of cider then start the next one.
The finished cider (that had stopped fermenting and I had added the K sorbate to) went into the bucket and I back-sweetened it with 2 lbs of brown sugar and 2 lbs of honey. I also added more cinnamon. This batch is good but I over-added cloves at the beginning so it has quite a bit of a bite to it. (I affectionately call it "mule cider" since it bites you THEN kicks you.)
I bottled that off and started pasturizing the next 5 gallons (I had to pasturize 2.5 gallons at a time because my stainless steel pot isn't big enough to hold 5 gallons at once. Oh, well!)
As the cider was pasturizing, I started cooking some brownies for the 'rents. Just because I wanted to lick the bowl. (That is the best part, anyway!)
Then I called mom to ask her if she still had that hambone I'd bought her earlier because I wanted it for the potatoes and beans on Sunday. She had it and she also told me dad had more than enough apples! Ack! And I had just bought 5 more pounds! (But they were cheap, right? So it wasn't like I was out much.)
So I decided to make a pie. An apple pie. Like totally from scratch (we don't mess around - and if you're going to cook then COOK!)
I start peeling, coring and slicing the apples then I have to clean off the table to make and roll out the crust. I followed mom's recipe. She had scrawled "this pie is DELICIOUS!" across the top of it so I figured she'd eat it (I don't like the consistency of the cooked apples so I won't eat it - yeah, I'm weird like that).
During the crust-rolling out part, the first batch of cider was done pasturizing so I poured it into the 5-gallon bucket and put a lid on it as I pasturized the second half of the cider.
By the time midnight rolled around, I had accomplished much more than I would have at that other "thing". I had baked brownies and a homemade apple pie (which really WAS delicious as I found out the next day). I had bottled up 3 gallons of hard cider and a half gallon of mead. I pasturized and started the fermentation process for another 5 gallons of cider, cooked a pound of bacon (because it was in the fridge and needed to be cooked before it went bad) and made French toast (because I had to have something to eat with the bacon, right?)
I was pretty damned tired and slept like a rock. But before I tottered off to bed, I lit some incense and gave thanks for the GREAT HARVEST this year! Especially for apples! Be thankful for the earth's bounty.
On Sunday I loaded up the car and took the cooked booty home. I made mom try the pie so I could have a taste of it - damn, it was good! I mean, really good! Almost good enough to get me over that whole consistency thing (but not quite). The crust was a little thick so I'll make a note to roll it out thinner the next time (it's been so long since I've rolled out a pie crust I can't really tell when it's too thick anymore!) I'll post the recipe when I can get home and get around to it.
After I got back to my place on Sunday, I began the massive clean up - oh, man, it was like some nuclear waste-dump. The floor was sticky from the spilled cider and honey. EWWWW! Rugs were filthy. The dishes were all done, tho, because I tend to do them as I'm working - just keep hot water in the sink and wash the dishes and countertops as I go. It works for me.
All the rugs went into the wash, then I scrubbed the floor with bleach. I still need to clean the oven but I might do that tonight or whenever I get around to it.
Then I ran the vacuum and did the rest of the laundry. I had a very busy weekend and now I'm tired as hell. Sad, isn't it? I need a day off from my weekend activities!
This weekend is going to be worse I think. I have a skating competition on Saturday and when I'm not skating I'll be working. Then Sunday is the test session. I'm not testing but I'll probably work that, too. So next Monday I'll be tired as well. There is no rest for the wicked, truly.
The Rogue Goddess saw shadows dancing at 11:01 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home