Progress

 I am extremely grossed out by raw meat. I hate it. Unless it's on some fresh sushi, I want nothing to do with it. That said, I baked a chicken yesterday. And not only did I bake it, I had my hands all over it. My BARE hands. Ew! But I find myself in the tightest financial situation I have ever been, and decided that whole chickens are more cost-effective than boneless, skinless breasts. I still hate raw meat, and am paranoid about salmonella. I washed my hands at least 5 times during the process. Not kidding.

 I looked up in "The Joy of Cooking" (which always just makes me think of "The Joy of Sex" but that's another story) about cooking whole poultry, and read the basic recipe. One method was to preheat the oven to 400 degrees, and then lower it to 350 immediately after putting the bird in. So that's what I did. But first I cut some nice slices off the lemon that gave up its zest for the ugly cookies (bless it) and stuck them under the skin. I sprinkled the cavity and with salt and pepper, quartered an onion and the rest of the lemon and stuffed them into the poor chicken, along with 2 bay leaves. Then I rubbed the outside of the chicken with olive oil and salt and pepper, and some tarragon as an afterthought. I didn't truss it because I didn't feel like it, and didn't have any cooking string. (Can't waste good yarn, either!)

 I was a good girl and basted it every 20-30 minutes while it was cooking, and tented some foil over it to prevent over-browning. Now, "The Joy of Cooking" said to allow about 20 minutes per lb, but after an hour and a half, my not-quite-4-lbs bird registered at only 164.2 on the meat thermometer. (It's supposed to be 165-170.) I decided it was close enough and cut off a wing for Henry, since he had to leave for class soon anyway. But when I cut into the white meat, it looked questionable, so I put it back into the oven for about 20 more minutes. I may have slightly overcooked it that time, but in my opinion, it's better to have slightly overcooked meat than food poisoning. It was still pretty good, and that's coming from a girl who hates eating meat off the bone and doesn't much like skin.

I always feel awkward about my sign-off, so that's why I usually just don't have one. I'm not as witty as Ethel. So, Bye!

On becoming one's mother

 Over the last several years the gifts that I have asked for at gift-receiving occasions have become progressively more and more lame. I never understood why mom would ask for boring things such as, say, a new toaster for her anniversary. Well, now I get it. This coconut bundt cake is proof. As I mentioned before, I had a birthday not too long ago. Well, I asked for a bundt pan and some new house shoes. (Can you say mom?) Henry felt guilty giving me such a stereotypical housewife thing for my birthday, but I told him I really wanted it. He also got me some nice soft slippers that go with my plush bathrobe I got for Mother's Day to "soften the blow." I know it's lame, but I already made 2 cakes in it. The other one was a kosher honey cake. I was afraid the combination of flavors would be weird, but it was pretty tasty. But that's beside the point. Sure, I would love a trip to a day spa, or gorgeous new clothes, or something else that is luxurious and extravagant, but I'm a practical person with a limited budget, so I ask for the practical things I want, but wouldn't normally just go out and buy, and I love them. Even my electric toothbrush I got for Christmas. (I know!)

P.S. I just found out about the New York Sheep and Wool Festival and it's official: I need to move to a colder climate where such epic things take place. Where knitters abound! Or I just need to make a road trip to Rhinebeck, NY. (Even the Yarn Harlot is going!)

Happy knitting!

Fritter Fiesta

Tonight Ethel came over to make pumpkin fritters at my house! You'll have to ask her for the recipe specifics, but they were so simple, and SO good.

Powdered sugar and sweetened condensed milk
are delicious toppings.

They flip themselves over!


The finished product. Drooling yet?



Ethel and Gertrude, my 2 best friends!


Ethel and me.


"Sorry, Stanley, you can't have any."

The Adventures of Knitting in Public

i am not ashamed to be a Knitter. in fact, i knit in public as often as possible. the most amusing thing to me is the way people react to it. most people just quietly stare, and then get embarrassed when they are caught. some try to be cute and make comments about how they're getting cold and can i make them a scarf or something. a lot of people aren't sure whether i'm knitting or crocheting, but feel the need to tell me that their grandma used to do that. i love it when guys come up to me and tell me they are learning how. i love it. But here are a few of my all-time favorite experiences:

• when knitting at a coffee house, i saw a table full of Chinese girls taking pictures of me and giggling. still not sure why it was so funny.
• when knitting in a convenience store waiting for my car to get inspected, an employee called me "very noble" for making a baby blanket for a friend. (but i took forever to finish it and actually still have it. not very noble of me.)
• one guy told me that when he first saw me, he thought i would be really cool because i have piercings (?) and stuff, but then i started knitting, and he couldn't stop talking about how weird it was. he so wanted me. ;)

but my all time favorite thing that happened to me while knitting in public is:

• i met my henry!

i was hanging out in a new place where i didn't know anyone, so i brought my knitting to keep myself busy. I noticed this really cute guy, and saw him staring at me through my needles. i felt like such a dork and started to get really embarrassed, but then he asked me what i was making and told me that it was so cool. and he meant it! then later he asked for my number, and the rest is history.

don't be ashamed of your quirky habits, and DON'T TAKE DRUGS!!!
-a

and so it begins

the first blog.

bear with us as we work out the kinks on this new adventure. agnes and i plan to make this place cheerful, hilarious, educational and perhaps slightly awkward (like us) .... but it may take us a little while to get there. we're new to this, but SO excited. plan to hear about our adventures involving: yarn, baking, inappropriate jokes, new recipes and/or agnes' ever-changing hair color. (oh man. does it ever change) ...
hopefully in the not-too-distant future, we will be launching a line of handmade agnes&ethel goods, but until then, keep up with us here. we promise not to be boring. (well, i promise anyway. agnes just can't help being boring sometimes).

until next time ----

DON'T TAKE DRUGS!

- e