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Monday, January 29, 2018

A Hot Mess and Warm Socks Winner!

First, a riddle.  What does Lovey and a female soccer player have in common?  A torn cranial cruciate ligament!  Yes, that's right - the fun never stops at the Little Lucky Farm.  The snow finally got down to a manageable level and Lovey and PB went out for some air.  Lovey - suffering greatly from cabin fever - tear-assed around the yard for a few minutes until the cold got to her.  Then they both trotted inside, happy as clams.  Later that night (Friday), she could barely get off the couch, cried piteously and her knee was noticeably swollen.  I managed to jerry-rig some ACE bandages and a half-bag of frozen peas into position and by morning the swelling was down, but she couldn't put any weight on it.  Up we zipped to the vet, where we got the news.  With any luck (and mine seems to be predominately bad) pain meds and rest for a couple of weeks should do the trick.  Otherwise, it's surgery.  Whoopee.
My highly technical system to
keep medications straight.
While that can very much be classified as a hot mess, that is not the hot mess to which I alluded in the title.  That would be my breakfast.  I have dubbed my Sunday morning repast as a Hot Mess and I love it. 
Step One - Clean out the fridge.

Step Two - Add two beaten eggs and a
small handful of cheese - always cheese

Step Three - Create a Hot Mess!
It has become my habit on Sunday mornings to clean out bits of things leftover in the fridge.  This particular morning it was a small piece of German bacon, some slightly wrinkly grape tomatoes and a small, slightly wrinkly shallot, sliced thinly.  Then comes the beaten eggs and small handful of whatever cheese there is - mix it all into a Hot Mess!  Delish!


Besides tackling the Craft Room/Office hot mess, I also tried making yogurt in my Instant Pot.  I was not all that hopeful, as the pressure cooking function on my particular Instant Pot does not work.  I continue to go through the onerous and frustrating process of getting someone in the Instant Pot company to fix it.  So far, I have opened a service number and sent multiple photographs and a video, as instructed.  Insert crickets.


How did it go?  Fab!  I love this because I use a lot of yogurt and I like my own homemade best because a) I can use my own milk, b) it is tangier and c) I can make lots!  I got a half gallon from the farm, poured it into the stainless steel inner pot, put the lid on and heated it to a boil.  No circling the stove, keeping a careful eye on it so it won't boil over.  Then I lifted out the pot and cooled it down to about 105*, stirred in my starter (leftover yogurt from the last batch) and put the pot back into the IP.  You program in the number of hours you want and Bob'sYerUncle!  Twelve hours later, I had a lovely batch of thick, tangy yogurt!
This means "yogurt" in InstantPotese.

Creamy, thick goodness!
If it only fully functioned, I would be head-over-heels about my Instant Pot.  I am now only pleased to about knee level.


*****
Who will be enjoying warm tootsies this tail end of winter?


#5 - annie k!


annie, please send your mailing particulars to me at swomersley at gmail dot com.  Thank you, everyone, for your interest and nice comments!


**Updated to say that I heard from Sue - yay!***Also, I have not heard back from Sue, who had wanted the Apples for Jam cookbook.  If you would like it, please email me at the above address and I will send it to the first one who requests it.
















26 comments:

jaz@octoberfarm said...

don't jump into the surgery unless you absolutely have to. i had it done twice on my first chow and it was miserable and super expensive. i have 2 friends that just let their dogs rest and stay off of it for a while and both of them healed. i love homemade yogurt.

Susan said...

Believe me, it is at the bottom of the list! I am lucky that this vet is for doing everything possible before even considering surgery.

Mama Pea said...

How do you manage to keep Lovey resting and off her ailing limb?? I'm envisioning those huge body slings you see to keep horses or cows upright. Not to say sweet Lovey is over-weight . . . just that you can't pick her up and trundle her around as you might PB.

Haven't entered the modern world of an Instant Pot but have a yogurt maker that I've always been very happy with. Only makes one quart at a time, though, but that's okay since hubby much prefers kefir to yogurt.

Theresa Y said...

That hot mess looks pretty darn good to me! Hope Lovey gets well soon.

Ed said...

I make a hot mess for breakfast now and then but generally they start out as omelets that broke apart before completion!

Theresa said...

At our house that hot mess would be dinner! May the cruciate healing force be with you and Lovey

Susan said...

She is a tripod at the moment, but it isn't comfortable, so she is self-resting. Thank goodness she is a reasonable dog! I love kefir, too - that is more my summer time fermented drink. I like that this has replaced my crock pot and my yogurt maker - a little more room in the pantry!

Susan said...

It's one of those things that tastes better than it looks. I have had some interesting 'fusion' messes. Thanks for the good wishes to my girl.

Susan said...

This is my way of lowering my expectations vis a vis omelets.

Susan said...

A hot mess is good any time of day or night! Thank you, Theresa. I'm glad it's the time of year it is. She's not that interested in running around in the cold.

coffeeontheporchwithme said...

Anything that cleans out the crisper / fridge is a good thing! I hope your doggy is able to rest and heal. I'm feeling a lot of peer pressure to buy an instant pot. Is it basically just a less scary pressure cooker? -Jenn

Sandy Livesay said...

Susan,

Poor Lovey, having to rest and heal....that's hard work MOM!!! I just can't sit still while everyone else is out having fun.

I have to agree with Jaz, if you can keep Lovey laying low, and relaxing the paw will heal. Surgery will be expensive....and may not work.

Sending hugs, and love your way. I pray Lovey heals real soon!!!
Sandy

tpals said...

You are lucky in vets then, mine was a surgery-first always. Hope she heals up well.

Hmmm, I have cheese, ham and lots of eggs...a dash of fresh kale might make it a hot mess of a supper tonight.

I'm not familiar with Instant Pot, though the outside looks very similar to my rice cooker. Differences?

farm buddy said...

I make yogurt every day with milk from my Ayrshire cow, Jane. I take a half-gallon of fresh milk, heat it to 110 degrees, put in a half-gallon container and dump some starter in. Then I put this in a cooler which I fill with jars of hot water. I close the cooler and let it sit for about ten hours. Presto! Beautiful, delicious yogurt! I eat one-half gallon every day!! I think it comes out thicker if you heat it to a higher temp and then cool, but I don't want to kill all the goodness in the raw milk by heating it too much. Plus it is too much bother!

Rain said...

Oh dear, poor Lovey. Susan....I hope she gets better soon. And I do LOVE your hot mess....CHEESE!!! :) Congrats to Annie! :)

Nancy In Boise said...

Poor Lovey! Hope things will get back to "normal". How do you like you instant pot? I see they're all the rage, but don't know if I would use it that much, and another thing to store.

AnnieK said...

whoops, sorry, not reading instruction about sending via email, so sorry too excited, delete my address, thanks

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

Congrats to the sock winner! I love homemade yogurt too, as it is preservative free and no added nasty sugars. I sure hope your knee feels better soon. Golly, it sounds painful.

Susan said...

Jenn, it's a rice cooker, slow cooker, pressure cooker, yogurt maker and it can sauté things. I do like mine, other than the pressure function doesn't. I have used the other functions quite often. The inner pot is stainless steel, which I like better than the other brands. Those tend to be coated with...?

Susan said...

Thank you, Sandy. She just loves to race around, so it's very frustrating for her. That's why I am glad that - if this had to happen - it's during a time of snow and cold. She doesn't mind being inside. Hugs back to you!

Susan said...

That I am. This vet balances his views between the animals and their people. He is kind, skilled and has a great sense of humor. I just love him. Oooh. Kale. Mine is just a memory. The Instant Pot has a rice cooking function, but also is a slow cooker, pressure cooker, steamer, sautés, and I am sure more functions that I am forgetting.

Susan said...

Holey cow! A half-gallon of yogurt a day? It sure helps to have your own cow. I agree on the heating - but I consume raw milk cold, so I get the best of both worlds. I also make a lot of kefir in the spring and summer, which is really my favorite.

Susan said...

Yes, CHEESE! Don't we love it? :)

Susan said...

Nancy, I do like the Instant Pot. It has replaced two other small appliances, so that is a plus. If the pressure cooking function worked, I would rehome my stovetop version, too. I have used it a lot - I make bone broth in the slow cooker, cook rice, sauté, use it as a crock pot, and now have made yogurt.

Susan said...

LOL! I deleted your address and I have received your email. The socks will be in the post tomorrow! I hope you like them!!!

Michelle said...

I don't think I consume two quarts of food and beverage TOTAL in a day (except for water)! That's a LOT of food!