Clear Air

September 1 and the air is crystal clear!

The temperature briefly hit 80F at my house but with the dry, clear air and a nice breeze, it had that feeling of Autumn or almost Autumn.

Tonight is a full moon and I read that it is called a Corn Moon. Usually September’s full moon is the Harvest Moon, but since the October 1 full moon is the closest full moon to the Autumnal Equinox … that moon is the Harvest moon and tonight’s is a Corn Moon.

Thus ends today’s trivia lesson :)

If anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think on those things

Phillipians 4:8-9: (NIV) Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

A most favorite Bible verse…

Lovely, lovely rain this morning…

My dear boys.

Upside to the whole bug bite or hives or whatever … after my steam clean and purge of 20 plus year old pillows/shams/dried flower wall hanging … new stuff for my bedroom: same color scheme, but freshened up.

And the wall hanging is “metal art” so easy to bring down, dust/clean … vs the dried flower thing which had a tendency to look like something out of the Addam’s family (cobwebs, dust webs, etc.)

Happy day full of loveliness and peace :)

Friday Fun: baking and sun

This is actually Thursday morning … far less smoke and much clearer air. Today is even better!

And it is Friday!!

An early morning baking project. I have been making Romel Bruno’s (youtube link at the end) recipe for Sweet Potato Buns, for the past couple of months. The original recipe is a yeast recipe, but I adapted for my sourdough (natural leaven) starter and it has become my favorite of all time bun recipe as well as a brioche loaf.

Yesterday, I mixed the dough, let it puff a bit and then refrigerated overnight. Actually I mixed a double batch as my plan was for hamburger buns, hot dog buns AND a pesto-feta babka.

This morning: shape and bake!

So, the dough gets rolled like a sweet roll, then sliced lengthwise and kind of braided to make the babka.

Yikes! I missed taking a photo of the braid bit … oops, but above in the pan is the result … and in the white bowl are the bits for buns.

While things were doing their final rise, we went for our morning walk…

Lovely, lovely morning!

Back to the kitchen.

The babka and the buns :)

I call this a snacking bread … it is not really practical for a sandwich, but sliced for a nibble or sliced with some yummy tomatoes, a sprinkle of parmesan and a bit under the broiler …

Ultimately, it is both fun and delicious and a bit different.

As promised: Romel Bruno on YouTube. I’ve not only made the sweet potato buns, but also the fried chicken and the tarragon aioli. The recipes are in the description area of the video. Romel uses some unique spices and the result is a wonderful mix of flavors.

The snuggle brothers

Not the first time. It doesn’t happen a lot, though and I am always surprised … there are 3 actual dog beds, 1 cat bed and numerous chairs, etc. that have cushy throws. But, this morning, they decided they both wanted the kitchen dog bed!

Smoky … and the plumber came a day early!

Good news first … yes, the plumber called Monday, late morning … they were freed up and wanted to know if they could get my leak fixed right then … YES!! It was actually fairly minor, fixed quickly and I’m back to normal kitchen sink operations.

Meanwhile …

Wildfire smoke from southern Montana fires is stuck in the valley. There is a good chance it will clear this afternoon/overnight as a cool front with moisture is due.

Smoky red sunrise.

Thankfully, there is no smoky smell and no falling ash.

The smoke makes for an odd, kind of glowing light in the woods and I will be glad when it clears, but it did keep things from getting as hot as forecast yesterday.

Returning from the after breakfast walk.

Front porch flowers are hanging in. The begonias have not been 100% happy. I thought last week, that they were goners, but they have rallied a bit after a trim and feed. Next year, I will return to fuschia hopefully.

Here we go, Tuesday :)