Flowers and Buds

On a walk in our Tucson neighborhood this afternoon, I enjoyed seeing flowers and buds 

on various cacti and other plants.  The freshness of the flower petals juxtaposed with 

the thorns of so many desert plants is beautiful.  I love spring!

Marbleized Easter Eggs

Colter dropped Madilyn at our house at 9 this morning.  We were busy, making coconut cupcakes, cutting out and framing handprints from magazines, and we dyed Easter eggs.  We did two batches of eggs, dying each egg of the first batch in a different color:  purple, turquoise, red, yellow, blue, and green.  Then I mixed a tablespoon of olive oil into each color.  We again dipped each of the eggs into various colors.  The egg first dipped in yellow marbleized the prettiest.  

We had fun marbleizing Easter eggs!

Thank You Dinner

Last Friday, Colter and his Dad helped Papa install steel "eyebrows" on several of our windows.  We are hopeful the eyebrows will help keep the windows from leaking when we get rain and wind over 50 mph.

I spent much of today making dinner for Carly and Colter and Colter's parents, as a "thank you."  I prepared Mansion on Turtle Creek Beef (flavored with garlic, chilies, lime juice, and cilantro), macaroni and cheese, squash souffle, cornbread, and derby pie.  The squash souffle recipe is a favorite recipe from Aunt Rhea.
It makes any meal special. 

Squash Souffle

3 cups cooked butternut squash (or sweet potatoes)
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Topping:  (optional)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 tablespoons softened butter
1/2 - 1 cup crushed cereal (I use Honey Bunches of Oats)
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Bake squash at 400 until soft enough to split.  Then lay cut sides down and bake until soft, 1 to 1.5 hours total.  Scoop out seeds and strings and discard.  Scoop squash pulp into a mixing bowl.

Combine squash, sugar, butter, eggs, salt, milk, and vanilla.  Mix well.  Spoon into greased 2 quart casserole.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.  Remove from oven and add topping.

Topping:  Mix ingredients together until crumbly.  Pour on top of squash.  Bake an additional 15-20 minutes or until firm and lightly browned.  Enjoy! 

Snow Day

As predicted we had a lot of wind overnight, a bit of rain in the morning, then snow started falling.  By 10 this morning, we lost electric power.  The temperature hovered around 32, so Papa put some of our food outside in a cooler.  We were without power for five hours, as snow continued to fall.  We are grateful for the precipitation!  More grass, more wildflowers, and happy cows!

Poppies

Mary is visiting us at the ranch this weekend.  We took the Jeep to the west end of the ranch this morning to hike.  Poppies are blooming!  They are delicate, bright, sunny little flowers.

First Spring Wildflowers

Papa and I hiked this afternoon and saw some of this spring's first wildflowers.

Most Exciting Thing

For much of Audrey's life, she has said, "the most exciting thing happened..."  What follows 

can be a variety of things.  As in most families, we mimic Audrey at times, in a fun way.

The most exciting thing really happened to Papa and me this morning while on a video call with Claire and Emerson.  Emerson came over and sat on Claire's lap after she saw Papa sit next to me.  She started saying "Papa, Papa, Papa."  Then she said spontaneously, "I wooo Papa.  I wooo WuWu."  Translated, "I love you Papa.  I love you Lulu."  She melted our hearts!  The most exciting thing!

Going to the Mailbox

Our mailbox is 10 miles from our house.  It is at the crossroads, where Airport Road meets Muleshoe Road and Cascabel Road.  Given the distance, one of us goes to the mailbox once every 7-10 days, on our way to or from another destination. 

Apple Tarte Tatin

Papa and I are still enjoying leftovers from our dinner on Friday night.  We particularly love the Apple Tarte Tatin.  I used a recipe from Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics cookbook.  Even the author, Ina Garten, says "this just might be my all-time favorite dessert."

For the pastry:  (or use defrosted frozen puff pastry)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon sugar
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced
1/2 cup ice water

For the apples:
4 Granny Smith apples
1/2 cup sugar
4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, small diced
1/2 cup apricot jelly or warm sieved apricot jam
2 tablespoons Calvados or water

For the pastry, place the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade.  Pulse for a few seconds to combine.  Add the butter and pulse 10 to 12 times, until the butter is in small bits the size of peas.  With the motor running, pour the ice water down the feed tube and pulse just until the dough starts to come together.  Dump onto a floured board and knead quickly in a ball.  Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. 

Roll the dough slightly larger than 10x14 inches.  Trim the edges.  Place the dough on the prepared sheet pan and refrigerate while you prepare the apples.  For a faster apple tart, use one sheet of frozen puff pastry, defrosted.  Roll out to 10x10 inches and then proceed with the apples. 

Peel the apples and cut them in half through the stem.  Remove the stems and cores with a sharp knife and melon baller.  Slice the apples crosswise in 1/4 inch thick slices.  Place overlapping slices of apples diagonally down the middle of the tart and continue making diagonal rows on both sides of the first row until the pastry is covered with apple slices.  Sprinkle with 1/2 cup sugar and dot with butter.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the pastry is browned and the edges of the apples start to brown.  Rotate the pan once during cooking.  When the tart's done, heat the apricot jelly together with the Calvados or water and brush the apples and the pastry completely with the jelly mixture.  Loosen the tart with a metal spatula so it doesn't stick to the paper.  Allow to cool and serve warm or at room temperature. 

Delicious! 

Close to a Saguaro

The saguaro is associated with Tucson and the southwest, probably more than any other plant.  We have several saguaros in our Tucson yard.  I had fun taking several close up photos.  The thought of getting too close and falling into the saguaro is quite painful.  Such a beautiful and majestic cactus.