A grand slam...

The photos really do not show that today's cooking really was a grand slam.  There is no justice in them.  We had gyros, two appetizers, two desserts, and two homemade breads (pita and gyro)!  I will admit that I am most proud of the fact that I made the Gyro Flatbread myself and it was bloody fantastic!  Absolutely no different than in a restaurant!  Me!  Yeast bread!!!!

I know mine might look a bit plain, since I care not for onions and tomato.  However, if you look in the bottom center, you can see the Tzatziki Sauce peaking out.  Oh, my!

The bowl on the left is the Baba Ganoush and the one on the right is the Labneh.  I forgot to take a photo of our pita bread, but I am also not posting the recipe.  It was not up to par with our cooking efforts and I wish to figure out either what went wrong or a find a better recipe.  I just loved the look on Marie's face when she tasted the labneh.  She got a yogurt maker ... so I foresee much labneh in our future!

I really liked our back-up dessert, though Marie and Michelle thought it was merely okay.  Mostly, it is not really a dessert, so expectations might have colored our impressions.  The Peanut Butter Honey Truffles Michelle whipped up are not really dessert—something I discovered after lunch—but I found them to be satisfying.  I think that these were supposed to be smaller ... but they were just fine in my opinion.

Tonight, after the dishwasher was emptied, with Michelle's help, I planned on rewarding myself with another truffle.  I took a bite whilst walking to the GREEN chair.  Then, I set it down for a moment to settle myself beneath the quilt.  A moment is all Amos needed.  SIGH.

While I believe the Cooking Queen Crown should go to me for not only conquering my fear of yeast, but for also making bloody fantastic gyro flatbread ... Marie absolutely deserves her own tiara.  She made her first soufflé!  I was very, very, very impressed with her courage and her outcome.

 

When I get to cook with Marie, one of my favorite parts is when we dance.  Each of us is moving about the kitchen.  Each of us is paying attention to the other.  Each is doing her own work.  Each helping the other.  For this rather uncoordinated oaf, it is a magical time.

Today, there was a time when all three of us were dancing!  SIGH.

We cooked from about 9:30 AM until about 1:00 PM.  Then we chowed down for a good while, cooked the soufflé, and chowed down some more.  After that came round 57 of dishes.  Frankly, if we are going to have more complete meals like this, I need more mixing bowls!

For the first time in eons, Marie did not have a student to rush of to tutor. That meant I ended up with a clean kitchen and some extra Marie time.  I thought that since she reads the Living Word to me so willingly, that I would read to her.  First, I read her Psalm 66:


Shout joyfully to God, all the earth;
Sing the glory of His name;
Say to God, “How awesome are Thy works!
Because of the greatness of Thy power Thine enemies will give feigned obedience to Thee.
All the earth will worship Thee,
And will sing praises to Thee;
They will sing praises to Thy name.”

Come and see the works of God,
Who is awesome in His deeds toward the sons of men.
He turned the sea into dry land;
They passed through the river on foot;
There let us rejoice in Him!
He rules by His might forever;
His eyes keep watch on the nations;
Let not the rebellious exalt themselves.

Bless our God, O peoples,
And sound His praise abroad,
Who keeps us in life,
And does not allow our feet to slip.
For Thou hast tried us, O God;
Thou hast refined us as silver is refined.
Thou didst lay an oppressive burden upon our loins.
We went through fire and through water;
Yet Thou didst bring us out into a place of abundance.

I shall come into Thy house with burnt offerings;
I shall pay Thee my vows,
Which my lips uttered
And my mouth spoke when I was in distress,
I shall offer to Thee burnt offerings of fat beasts,
With the smoke of rams;
I shall make an offering of bulls with male goats.
Come and hear, all who fear God,
And I will tell of what He has done for my soul.
I cried to Him with my mouth,
And He was extolled with my tongue.
If I regard wickedness in my heart,
The Lord will not hear;
But certainly God has heard;
He has given heed to the voice of my prayer.
Blessed be God,
Who has not turned away my prayer,
Nor His lovingkindness from me.

Then, thinking how much I love it when someone reads me an epistle all at once, I read Marie Galatians.  Thinking about her, Philippians might have been more for her than for me, which Galatians turned out to be ...  I think.  Such a caring, passionate letter our Triune God had Paul pen.

Marie and Michelle headed off to a social function at the Seminary, and I headed off to a nap.  Amos was happy to have some puppy momma time.  He is all exhausted from his social time, especially since the electrician popped by install the return vent in the basement living space.  I am exhausted from all that cooking.  And digesting....


I am Yours, Lord.  Save me!