Life on the road

Fun With Bread

I was feeling a little down in the dumps today. I don’t know how everyone else copes with the blues, but for me, baking has always been the answer. I have talked about before how living at a high altitude can make baking difficult, but lordy! The bread monster I produced today is beyond anything I have done in the past!

I read a few web pages about high altitude baking before I started today. For gluten free baking at high altitudes, it is recommended that you:

1. increase the heat by 25 degrees.

2. Add 1 tablespoon of flour for each 1,000 feet over 3,500 feet altitude.

3. Decrease liquid by 1 tablespoon per 1,000 feet over 3,000 feet altitude.

And so I began. I can only wonder how much this stuff would have grown if I had used the directions printed on the bag! For more on this wonder loaf, click here.

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Homemade Bagels From The RV? Yes…

Karen · 6 Comments

Before I found out I have to eat a gluten free diet, I really enjoyed a good bagel with my coffee for breakfast. Now that I can’t have a “real” bagel, I really miss them. I have found some good frozen ready made ones, but since I live 85 miles from the nearest place to buy them, I don’t always have them on hand.

I decided today to try making some at home. Yes, Linda, I did burn them a bit, but you have to remember, 1. I live in an RV and the oven is quite tiny and the thermostat on it is not exact and 2. I live at an elevation of almost 9000 feet. Baking anything is trial and error. For the baking conditions I have, this first attempt at homemade bagels turned out pretty good. To see more, click here.

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Black Bart’s Steak House, Saloon, and RV Park

Karen · 9 Comments

We escaped the North Rim today and headed down to Flagstaff for a doctor’s appointment on Tuesday. We decided to make it a mini vacation, and treat ourselves to a dinner out. We asked at the front desk of the motel for the name of a good steak house, and they referred us to Black Bart’s. We haven’t been eating much beef in the last few years, but occasionally we do like a good steak. And boy, I have to tell you, if you want a good steak in Flagstaff, Black Bart’s is the place to go!

From the outside, it doesn’t look like much. It is at the rear of an RV park, which by the way, has some nice, level sites, and can accommodate long rigs. We were wondering if we were in the right place, because it didn’t look like your every day steak house. But, we went inside anyway and took a seat in the corner of the dining room.

The cover of the menu says it is a Steakhouse, Saloon, & Musical Revue. It didn’t take long to figure out they meant what they said, as the wait staff doubles as entertainment. Our waitress, Rae, said they all attend Northern Arizona University there in Flagstaff, and have to audition for their jobs at Black Bart’s. She is pursuing a minor in music while she sings and waits tables to earn her keep.

A first look at the menu let us know it is a high dollar place, but what the heck, we were out on the town for the first time in months. FabGrandpa ordered the 24 oz Porterhouse, while I opted for the 12 oz prime rib. We started out with a tossed salad and some potato skins. When my salad came, I realized immediately that I forgot to say “no crouton, please” when I ordered, but Rae was very pleasant and brought me a new one quickly. And OMG, those potato skins were delish! They were soft, and had just the right amount of cheese and real bacon on them, along with some green stuff that was probably chilies, and mmmm, mmmmm, mmmm.

The dining room is decorated in an old west motif, and has trophy animal heads hanging on the walls. Wooden tables have no tablecloths, which is fine because I would have just made a mess of it. The place was pretty crowded for a Sunday night.

The kids did a great job of singing a variety of broadway tunes, some of which I recognized, and some I didn’t. I especially enjoyed “Be Our Guest” and “All That Jazz.”

When dinner was served, Rae brought out a pan of sourdough biscuits with cinnamon honey butter. My mouth was watering from the smell of them, but of course I was not able to eat them, because they were made with the enemy, wheat! FabGrandpa said they were heavenly, and the honey butter divine!

My prime rib was perfectly pink, just the way I asked for it, and barely needed a knife. The horseradish sauce could have had a bit more heat, the au jous was just right. Looking at the picutre makes me hungry all over again.

FabGrandpa’s porterhouse was almost as big as his plate. He said it was delicious. His came with fries, which I tasted and wished I had ordered them instead of my baked potato. He said whoever the cook was has cooked a steak or two in his day, because his was perfect.

These portions were way too big–we wound up getting a “to go” box. It is the first time since I have known my husband that he has asked for one. He said he couldn’t eat it all, and it would be a crime to leave any of it behind. The leftovers will make a good breakfast for two days!

Our bill was not too bad, considering that we ordered an appetizer, we each received huge portions, and there was fabulous entertainment all throughout the meal. Rae was very attentive, and made sure we had everything we needed and wanted.

(me and Rae at Black Bart’s)

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In The Mail Today

Karen · 4 Comments

I’m sure you remember the sad, sad story of my Big White Bowl. I was really missing it, because I didn’t have another bowl big enough for mixing things like that gluten free brownie mix. I bought the mix about three weeks ago–it has been sitting there in the cupboard since then.

This morning, I received a package in the mail from my sister. I have to say, I am so happy first that she thought of me, and second that she sent me this bowl. I live in a very remote area, and have been to all the stores and thrift shops in town and there was just no bowl to buy, anywhere. Now I can make those brownies, probably tomorrow. Thank you, my seester!

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Remember Whensday

Karen · 8 Comments

This week’s rememberance is not from long ago–it is a memory made just yesterday. My cousin Susan and her husband came to visit me. It was the first time we met, I think, but she says she remembers me and my family coming to Detroit when I was seven, and going to the Detroit Zoo with her family. I don’t remember much about that trip, and certainly don’t remember Susan or the zoo. I wish I did, because she told me a funny story about my Mom and Dad wearing straw hats that looked like Chinese coolie hats. That would be a funny site to me, for sure.

Before they got here, I was worried that we wouldn’t have anything to talk about, or that it would be awkard, since we are both, ahem, in our late 50’s. But, I have to say, it was like I had known her all my life, and had just seen her a week or so ago. We talked all afternoon! We have a lot in common, and enjoy a lot of the same things. I was showing her my quilting project, and she showed me her rug hooking project, which was gorgeous! And as you can see from the photo above, we have the same idea of F-U-N! I think we could have been close like sisters if we had grown up together.

And because I want to remember yesterday for a very long time, I am sharing two pictures instead of one. I hope we can get together again soon!

For more Remember Whensday photos, click here.

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In The Company Of Friends and Relatives

Karen · 6 Comments

This weekend the only thing I had planned to do was a dinner party for about 10 people. Yeah, I’m sorta crazy like that, who in their right mind would plan a dinner for 10 when they live in a travel trailer??? The menu included Mexican Seafood Soup, avocado slices, corn tortillas, and cantaloupe and honey dew melon. My friend, Kathie, brought home cooked mini bread loaves for those who eat wheat.

(ready to go outside to the picnic table)

I spent the day on Saturday doing nothing, and I do mean nothing. I laid on the sofa and read a book, one by Debbie Macomber, which is like junk food for the brain. Chatted with some friends on Facebook. Went out to sit by the campfire with my neighbors for a bit right before dark.

(a huge pot of soup)

This morning, I got up, wrote down my recipe (it’s on my hard drive but I didn’t feel like messing with my printer). It is a wireless and sometimes it won’t talk to my computer, so writing down the recipe was faster. After that, I gathered up all the indredients and put them on the counter, ready to go. Chopped jalapenos, celery, onions, garlic. Peeled carrots and potatoes. Everything was ready. I made a HUGE pot of soup.

(mmmm, smell that soup!)

In between the gathering and chopping, I went out to do laundry. Got everything washed, dried, folded and hung up, in less than two hours. When I got back to the trailer, the phone rang, and it was my cousin, Susan. I have never met her, but I have talked to her on the phone several times. She is coming to visit me tomorrow. I am very excited about that! Susan’s mother, my mother’s sister, died when Susan was 12 and she was sent to live with her paternal grandparents in Oklahoma. She never saw her mother’s family again until the last year.

In December of 2007, I was invited to be a guest blogger on a blog that is no longer in existence. During the time that I was trying to figure out what to write, I went to my mother’s 80th birthday party. So, I decided to write about my mother’s life. I started out talking about my mother’s parents, and mentioned her maiden name in the article.

That maiden name is not a common name, and my grandfather’s last name was the only last name Susan knew to search for after so many years. She and her husband had googled and searched for that last name many times over the years, with no results at all. The weekend after I posted my blog post at that other site, they googled again, and were very surprised and excited to finally get a hit on that last name.

The article included some pictures of my mother when she was young, and in the picture I chose, she looked very much like her sister, Susan’s mother. There was a link from that article back here to FabGrandma, which Susan clicked on and found enough information to find my mother’s telephone number in Georgia. The rest is history. Susan and her husband travelled from Missouri to Georgia to meet my mother last summer.

So, now, after all these years, I will meet my cousin tomorrow here at the Grand Canyon. I am very much looking forward to getting to know her a little bit. She credits me with finding her family and is very happy that I wrote that article. I’m sure I will have some pictures to post tomorrow.

The party tonight was so much fun, hanging out with the folks I work with, laughing, talking, having a beer or two. We stayed outside at the picnic table until after sunset, just enjoying each other’s company. Ahhhhh, isn’t life Grand?

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Dinner On Hold

Karen · 5 Comments

I have been planning a dinner party for 10 people for the last month or so. When we went to Flagstaff, I bought 3 pounds of tilapia and 2 pounds of shrimp, so I could make a large pot of my Mexican Seafood Soup. Yesterday, we went to Kanab, and I bought six avocados and some corn tortillas. My neighbor, Mark, bought fresh pineapple, cantaloupe, and mangos for his contribution to the party.

And then, this morning, my supervisor, who was also invited to the party, called to tell me she just remembered we have a mandatory staff meeting for our department tomorrow night at 6 p.m. One hour after my party was to have started. She apologized to me for not letting me know when she was invited, but hey, we ALL got the memo in April with all the dates of all our staff meetings for the year. Oh well, we are still having the party, but is has been rescheduled for next Sunday.

Because the party was postponed, I have to figure out what to do with those avocados. I bought some frozen avocados from Schwan’s a couple months ago, and they turned out pretty good. I was surprised at how good the guacamole was that I made with them, because, to be honest, I really didn’t think frozen avocados would be all that good. So, I am going to try freezing them, and them mash them up next week and make guacamole out of them. I usually serve avocado slices with my soup, but I have also put guac on the top of the soup before, and it was good. I just can’t stand the thought of wasting $9 worth of avocados.

So, no party this week. And I was so looking forward to the company of friends…..

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The View From My Cubicle

Karen · 9 Comments

On the days that I work the morning shift at the entrance station, it can be pretty slow in the early hours of the day. On those days, I like to watch the flowers grow.

These little asters are in reality, only about four inches tall. But, they can seem like towering plants, depending on your perspective.

Yes, I was practically lying on the ground, in my spiffy uniform, hat and all, trying to get a good shot of them. And while most of them are pathetically out of focus, I still like the feel of the photos enough to share them.

I can only imagine that this is the what a bug or a ground squirrel would see on their little journey through that patch of weeds.

And while there is no picture of him, one of those little ground squirrels did come by, and peek his head in my door that day. I just wasn’t fast enough to capture him. The view from my cubicle is great!

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