Onions and things

Here I am still playing with watercolors. This one is for Everyday Matters drawing challenge #179, Draw an onion. It is in my small hand.book journal.

And while I was doing that, Laurel Neustadter of An Artist's Journey gave me this award. Thank you Laurel! The rules of accepting are as follows:

1. Put the logo on your blog.
2. Add a link to the person who awarded you.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Add links to those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message for your nominees on their blogs.

These are a fun way to share links to blogs. I enjoy reading through many artists' blogs for there is always inspiration to be found and encouragement to be shared. But to choose only seven to pass along the award to is tough. Here is my list of seven, out of the many wonderful blogs I enjoy.
1. Cindy - Color On!
2. Christie - from the Labyrinth
3. Margaret - MaggieArt
4. Linda - Quotidian Curiosities
5. Kathleen - My Creative Spot Blog
6. Rachel - The Jacobite Rose
7. Barbara - One Happy Fool

And here is what became of the onion that I drew in watercolor. I purchased some lovely summer squash and juicy red tomatoes at the local farmers' market this morning. When I didn't find a recipe for the squash to suit my mood today, I created one myself. It turned out pretty well, and we enjoyed it with our grilled fish this evening. So here is what I did:
I beat two eggs with about 1/2 cup sour cream, some pepper, oregano, and thyme. Then I added around 1/2 cup of grated cheddar, 1/2 cup breadcrumbs, 1/2 cup or so of finely chopped onion, two squash very thinly sliced and mixed that all together. (Now my measurements aren't exact because I was making this up as I went along, and not bothering to measure what I put in.) Then I sprayed my small casserole dish with cooking spray and placed a layer of thin tomato slices on the bottom, added the squash mixture, and another layer of tomatoes on top. I sprinkled more cheddar cheese on top and baked uncovered at 375 for about 40 minutes. Sorry for the poor photo, (bad lighting) and it was prettier in real life! It turned out to be the perfect summery dish and a great way to enjoy our market fresh squash. Enjoy!

What Do Bears Eat?

Is it Wednesday already!! I am really off schedule this week. Hopefully things will settle down into a regular routine soon. In the meantime, I have a yummy muffin recipe to share. My daughter made these muffins this past weekend and I quickly got a photograph before they disappeared. This was her first attempt at solo baking. Well, I did coach her a little, she is only 8, and she used a recipe I made up several years ago and always turns out well. And there is an "art" to cooking!

Kiddo was inspired to do some cooking because nutrition is part of her studies in science at the moment. She got the idea to relate her culinary experiments to the theme of her movie of choice for our movie night. When she finishes a row on her reading log she gets rewarded by choosing a movie to rent. Last weekend it was Brother Bear 2. So what do bears eat? Blueberries, of course.

Blueberry Citrus Muffins - makes 12

With whisk mix:
1 egg
1 cup orange juice
1/4 cup melted butter (cooled)
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

With spoon stir in:
2 cups flour
1 cup blueberries
*do not over mix*

Bake in greased or paper lined muffin pan at 400F for 25 minutes

I was really proud of her not only for coming up with a great idea but also for her enthusiasm for baking. Because of her food allergy, learning to cook and bake for herself will go a long way to empower her all her life, more than just being self sufficient. She already knows more about nutrition and reading food labels than most kids her age should know. She knows that the complete information isn't always on the label and that sometimes you have to call the company to find out exactly what is or isn't in a product. She knows that peanut is overly prevalent in the food industry - even to the point of being in some kinds of orange juice - so that you can't take anything for granted. And she is very aware of issues with cross-contamination in manufacturing processes.

The hardest part for her is when she is singled out because of her food allergy. Everyone gets the same treat at the party except her, she gets the special "safe" treat. If you know of a child with a food allergy please keep this in mind. The parents are not exaggerating and they are always correct in their requests and should be respected. Class or party treats should be the same and safe for everyone. These kids with food allergies know what they face in the world of processed food, restaurants and baked goods and really don't need any more "this is real life" lessons. How would you want your child treated? Okay. Done with my rant now. Please enjoy the muffins while I get back to making art now.