Just wanted to check in and say that I did make a gluten free version of the Garlic Parmesan Herb Bread using 'Bob's Red Mill Homemade Wonderful Bread Mix - Gluten Free'. I made it in a bread pan with the herbs and nutritional yeast in place of the parmesan as I avoid dairy and also no garlic for me. It made a tasty loaf! Perfect for an avocado sandwich. ✨👍😄
I also made a GF 'people version' of the Salmon and Sweet Potato Biscatti. I was attracted to try this because of the sweet potato. My version turned out great! But I made it in the more traditional biscotti way of baking flatten loafs and then slicing and baking in a low heat until crisp. And I made many other changes. I replaced the salmon and catnip with cashew butter and chopped walnuts and raisins. Drizzled them with a simple orange flavored icing. Although it had a lot of changes, it is pretty simple to make. The sweet potato adds to it! Now Cary is insisting I make The Real Biscatti for him!!! Now please! 😺 ✨👍😄
Sounds like an entirely new culinary creation to me, Sandy--and very original! Tell Cary he'll just have to get in line. And control his kitty soul in patience. 😾
Susan, I have you to thank for inspiring me to make the sweet potato biscotti! I will be playing with sweet potato more often in baking recipes now! One good thing about going GF is that after one gets passed the initial panic of ... What am I going to be able to eat!?!? - One finds a new way of viewing and eating food! Flavors begin to bloom in a whole new way. One of the benefits of living in the US is the amazing availability of just about anything that one might want. On the other hand, the longer that one is on a GF diet, the less pleasant it is to accidently ingest some gluten. This said, going GF has been a truly good thing for me.
As to asking Cary to throttle down.... He loves to be The Leader and race me anywhere I go. Luckily, he also truly loves classical music, and it calms him right down. So, I have started to enjoy classical music more, too! The magic of our world! ✨ .... Well as long as I get his Biscatti made! 😅
I admire your commitment, Sandy. Going GF sounds difficult--I'm just glad that I don't hve to cope with that. The older I get, the more of a hassle meal prep becomes. But I can see that it inspires your creativity. Kudos to you. And to Cary, for a gourmet taste in music!
Must tell you that I just read Khat part 5 and really enjoyed the story!!
It was a big change to go GF. But now it has made life better for me. Not having to feed others who are not GF certainly has made it easier. I wish you had a Maria Chabot to help you with meals and such! That would be grand! I wish I had a Maria Chabot!! 😄
I love the bread recipe even though I can't eat it. It sounds wonderful. Some work well with GF flour.
As for Khat, he behaved like several cats I've known that never managed to lose weight. They could convince anyone in the house that they were starving.
Hi Penny, my parents had a cat that had them trained to stir the cat food with their finger whenever they walked by the cat food bowl! Otherwise, the cat would keep bothering them to come and feed him. If they stirred it, he would immediately eat it! LOL Cats!
I like the bread recipe, too! I am thinking of making a version using 'Bob's Red Mill Homemade Wonderful Bread Mix - Gluten Free' which is a yeast rise bread. Yeast is included in the mix. I will make it in a bread pan because I am not sure it will hold its shape otherwise. And of course, add the herbs and a non-dairy cheese of the recipe. This GF bread mix does get a nice crunchy top. Using a countertop oven, I place a strip of foil over it 10 minutes after I put it in the oven to keep the top from burning. I like the texture and flavor of this GF mix and have used it to make a version with walnuts and dried cranberries that I like, too. I can't remember your diet restrictions but hope it will work for you. I keep store bought egg whites on hand to make this bread mix and omelets while keeping my heart healthy! 😄
Sounds good. I usually use cup 4 cup and add yeast. I think Bob's has sorghum flour in it which I can't eat. I've heard that quite a few people who can't eat gluten have a reaction to it much like eating wheat. It took a while before I figured out why I reacted to some brands. I'm also highly allergic to flaxseed which is in many GF and healthy foods. My husband says I'm almost down to rocks for food. LOL
Oh yes you are right. That particular mix does have sorghum flour in it. Good that you know about your allergies to it and to flaxseed. Though I am sorry that you have to be so careful to avoid the foods that bother you. I hope you are making your own recipe book of the recipes that work for you. I know what it is like to be grateful for at least a few easy to make foods that are okay for you!
Re being grateful, Sandy and Penny. It's a huge blessing to have enough information to make good diet choices. I had some serious problems until I identified the lactose issues. Also grateful to the packaging regs that require content labeling. I'm old enough to remember *before,* when there was no way to know the ingredients.
Just settled in to finally read installment #4 of Khat's travels. Love that so many townsfolk know him and his favorite bites to eat! Thank you for the CATS audio! I will be humming '🎵 Well I never....' today. I didn't know about the camphor property in lavender oil. Interesting. Camphor is a favorite scent of mine. When it comes to how you construct your stories, I mostly have enjoyed that I don't see the construction. I just glide along the path so to speak and picture what is happening as things change. I don't feel yanked around by a contorted approach or made to keep unmemorable characters straight in my mind. So, you have my vote to play with your new toy and show us what you cook up! 😄👍
Sandy, I just have to *laugh* at your last couple of sentences and love you for them. Thank you--and thank you for recognizing that this new toy is really just that, and a whole lot of fun to play with!
It's true: the best stories are those that pull us deep inside the story and forget that it has edges. But it's also wonderful to have one foot in the story and the other on the edge, both involved with the story and aware of how you got involved--aware of what the author is doing to involve you. More later on this topic. It's a favorite of mine. (Bet you've guessed that already 😌)
Will look forward to hearing more about living on the edge... in and out of your stories! 😄
Will be making the biscotti for humans (I kept eating the ingredients!) tomorrow and maybe a GF version of the bread recipe you gave us with this week's post. Wishing you and Bill a good weekend while you cook up part 5 of Khat's journey. 🥰
Khat's diet made me chuckle. And Lila's scorn for Cass's cooking. Thanks for another delightful episode of Khat's adventures. As well as the reminder about Forget Me Not, which I look forward to eagerly!
Susan, those 2 comic elements are repeated in every scene--which in a serial means every week. I think they were more effective in the single-delivery story. In the serial, I think readers likely forget--and anyway, it's not ringing in their ears. Part of the comedy, of course is the characters' ignorance. China has no idea how many calories that cat is getting on the sly. And the characters who question Cass's cooking don't know much about "foreign" or "gourmet" food.
Just a reminder to myself that what works when a narrative is read in one sitting may not work as well when the readings are spread out over 5 weeks. 🙄
I don't know: just because we may forget the comic elements from scene to scene (week to week) doesn't mean they're not effective. It just means we laugh anew each time!
I think you can trust most of your readers to figure it out, but as we both know, the ones that don't may be the loudest voices. And it's a pain to deal with critical responses.
Well, maybe. But I learned a long time ago, both in the classroom and in working with more editors than I can count, that every variant reading can tell the writer something interesting and potentially useful about the writing. I'm always deeply curious about *how* people read (how it was that someone produced that unexpected/unintended reading).
I'm hopeful that with this kind of open conversation--like the one you and I are having here--will encourage people to pay attention to how they are reading and ask questions about that process. Which leads to questions about how it is written and how it could be written more *effectively.* Just thinking out loud here, don't mean to tie you up all afternoon.
I have a feeling that the new occupant of that house is up to no good, or is about to meet someone who is up to no good. Meanwhile, why is China not at least reassured that Khat has been sighted recently? It's been fun to get a cat's-eye view of the neighborhood.
My own furry companion is parked in her favorite place making typing a challenge. She went walkabout once, when she was about 10 months old, and seems to have learned the value of a safe warm house. She was only gone for about a day. A very worrisome day for her mommas!
Interesting--and a good idea, actually. In a longer story I could have spun that out more, constructed another episode where I used the house as a red herring, even inserted another character to build up its ominous qualities. I'm trying to keep these stories fairly short, though.
China isn't reassured because she wants him *back,* not running loose through the neighborhood. As you say, it's "worrisome" for a momma when her khat has gone AWOL. 🙂
I was also curious as to why China put a poster about Khat in the diner when she knew he had been there that morning. But I think she must have been extra worried about him. A couple of our cats went missing for over a week (at different times). Given our location in the country I assumed coyotes or other predator and was pleasantly surprised at their return. Would have loved to have heard their story!
Knowing where he has been doesn't get him home again, though. And that diner gets a lot of local-folk traffic--a good place to post a "missing cat" poster. Also, it was a good place for China to run into Hark (in the next episode), who points her to Khat's current whereabouts.
Ditto here re: missing cats. The animals who live with Bill and me are family, and we feel responsible for their care and safety--especially true for animals who have been with us for a long time. Molly (our heeler) has lived with us for 16 years. I've spent more time with her than I ever did with my children! 🙄
I'm glad they came back to you! When Smudge disappeared, we had posters up almost immediately. 20+ hours later a neighbor who had seen the poster found her in his garage. He said he'd been in and out of the garage several times during the time she was gone, so we don't know if she was there for 20 hours or 1 hour. She hasn't voluntarily left our property since. Gets outside but immediately stops to eat grass or rub on the rosemary.
I would love nothing more than to curl up under some lavender and take a nap on a warm afternoon...Khat and I must be kindred spirits in that regard! I recently stopped at a small community feed and seed to pick up a few items and couldn't resist buying some lavender plants. They smell so wonderful! There is always room to tuck a plant or two somewhere in the yard...
Lovely, Judy! Glad you were able to get plants. But lavender likes it drier than most of our other garden favorites, so it may need a corner to itself. I've lost lavender from overwatering.
When I saw the owl’s name, the first thing I thought of was Hedwig and the Angry Inch - a stage play first and then a movie. It’s the only other time I’ve heard the name. It’s a kinda dark story, been ages since I saw it. I have a musician friend who performed in it several times in Atlanta. Anyway, the bread does sound great. I may make it for a friend coming to visit this weekend.
Interesting, Debbie, and a reminder that names in fiction are evocative--and that they won't evoke the same response in every reader. 🙄 For me, Hedwig is Harry Potter's owl (so it has supernatural connotations) and also a medieval German saint (sort of mystical). Let us know how the bread turns out!
Yay 🎉 Would certainly welcome more Khat 😻 More anything Pecan Springs 😁 We too have to consider floors but my heart quails at all the upheaval involved. Not this year…
What fun, Susan, so easy to see Khat patrolling Pecan Springs enjoying his rightful homage. Love visiting the diner and Cavette’s. As we struggle through week five of renovations, this is a delightful oasis to visit for some welcome calm. I’m becoming addicted to the serial format! Can’t wait for the next episode - but will miss the anticipation when it’s all over 😏
Oh, renovations! Kudos to you for getting it done. I have a kitchen floor problem but just don't want the mess of fixing it, moving the fridge/washer/dryer etc. China and I are glad that Khat's story is providing a little distraction. And when it's done, there'll be another, if all goes well. 😌
Just wanted to check in and say that I did make a gluten free version of the Garlic Parmesan Herb Bread using 'Bob's Red Mill Homemade Wonderful Bread Mix - Gluten Free'. I made it in a bread pan with the herbs and nutritional yeast in place of the parmesan as I avoid dairy and also no garlic for me. It made a tasty loaf! Perfect for an avocado sandwich. ✨👍😄
Thanks, Sandy! Good news, especially for GF folks.
I also made a GF 'people version' of the Salmon and Sweet Potato Biscatti. I was attracted to try this because of the sweet potato. My version turned out great! But I made it in the more traditional biscotti way of baking flatten loafs and then slicing and baking in a low heat until crisp. And I made many other changes. I replaced the salmon and catnip with cashew butter and chopped walnuts and raisins. Drizzled them with a simple orange flavored icing. Although it had a lot of changes, it is pretty simple to make. The sweet potato adds to it! Now Cary is insisting I make The Real Biscatti for him!!! Now please! 😺 ✨👍😄
Sounds like an entirely new culinary creation to me, Sandy--and very original! Tell Cary he'll just have to get in line. And control his kitty soul in patience. 😾
Susan, I have you to thank for inspiring me to make the sweet potato biscotti! I will be playing with sweet potato more often in baking recipes now! One good thing about going GF is that after one gets passed the initial panic of ... What am I going to be able to eat!?!? - One finds a new way of viewing and eating food! Flavors begin to bloom in a whole new way. One of the benefits of living in the US is the amazing availability of just about anything that one might want. On the other hand, the longer that one is on a GF diet, the less pleasant it is to accidently ingest some gluten. This said, going GF has been a truly good thing for me.
As to asking Cary to throttle down.... He loves to be The Leader and race me anywhere I go. Luckily, he also truly loves classical music, and it calms him right down. So, I have started to enjoy classical music more, too! The magic of our world! ✨ .... Well as long as I get his Biscatti made! 😅
I admire your commitment, Sandy. Going GF sounds difficult--I'm just glad that I don't hve to cope with that. The older I get, the more of a hassle meal prep becomes. But I can see that it inspires your creativity. Kudos to you. And to Cary, for a gourmet taste in music!
Must tell you that I just read Khat part 5 and really enjoyed the story!!
It was a big change to go GF. But now it has made life better for me. Not having to feed others who are not GF certainly has made it easier. I wish you had a Maria Chabot to help you with meals and such! That would be grand! I wish I had a Maria Chabot!! 😄
I love the bread recipe even though I can't eat it. It sounds wonderful. Some work well with GF flour.
As for Khat, he behaved like several cats I've known that never managed to lose weight. They could convince anyone in the house that they were starving.
Exactly! They know which little tricks to play with each person, too. Clever beasties!
Hi Penny, my parents had a cat that had them trained to stir the cat food with their finger whenever they walked by the cat food bowl! Otherwise, the cat would keep bothering them to come and feed him. If they stirred it, he would immediately eat it! LOL Cats!
I like the bread recipe, too! I am thinking of making a version using 'Bob's Red Mill Homemade Wonderful Bread Mix - Gluten Free' which is a yeast rise bread. Yeast is included in the mix. I will make it in a bread pan because I am not sure it will hold its shape otherwise. And of course, add the herbs and a non-dairy cheese of the recipe. This GF bread mix does get a nice crunchy top. Using a countertop oven, I place a strip of foil over it 10 minutes after I put it in the oven to keep the top from burning. I like the texture and flavor of this GF mix and have used it to make a version with walnuts and dried cranberries that I like, too. I can't remember your diet restrictions but hope it will work for you. I keep store bought egg whites on hand to make this bread mix and omelets while keeping my heart healthy! 😄
Walnuts and cranberries--sounds wonderful, Sandy!
Makes great toast, too! 👍
Sounds good. I usually use cup 4 cup and add yeast. I think Bob's has sorghum flour in it which I can't eat. I've heard that quite a few people who can't eat gluten have a reaction to it much like eating wheat. It took a while before I figured out why I reacted to some brands. I'm also highly allergic to flaxseed which is in many GF and healthy foods. My husband says I'm almost down to rocks for food. LOL
Oh yes you are right. That particular mix does have sorghum flour in it. Good that you know about your allergies to it and to flaxseed. Though I am sorry that you have to be so careful to avoid the foods that bother you. I hope you are making your own recipe book of the recipes that work for you. I know what it is like to be grateful for at least a few easy to make foods that are okay for you!
Re being grateful, Sandy and Penny. It's a huge blessing to have enough information to make good diet choices. I had some serious problems until I identified the lactose issues. Also grateful to the packaging regs that require content labeling. I'm old enough to remember *before,* when there was no way to know the ingredients.
So true about labeling!!! Now, if they just had to fess-up about downsizing the volume while still charging more!
Just settled in to finally read installment #4 of Khat's travels. Love that so many townsfolk know him and his favorite bites to eat! Thank you for the CATS audio! I will be humming '🎵 Well I never....' today. I didn't know about the camphor property in lavender oil. Interesting. Camphor is a favorite scent of mine. When it comes to how you construct your stories, I mostly have enjoyed that I don't see the construction. I just glide along the path so to speak and picture what is happening as things change. I don't feel yanked around by a contorted approach or made to keep unmemorable characters straight in my mind. So, you have my vote to play with your new toy and show us what you cook up! 😄👍
Sandy, I just have to *laugh* at your last couple of sentences and love you for them. Thank you--and thank you for recognizing that this new toy is really just that, and a whole lot of fun to play with!
It's true: the best stories are those that pull us deep inside the story and forget that it has edges. But it's also wonderful to have one foot in the story and the other on the edge, both involved with the story and aware of how you got involved--aware of what the author is doing to involve you. More later on this topic. It's a favorite of mine. (Bet you've guessed that already 😌)
Will look forward to hearing more about living on the edge... in and out of your stories! 😄
Will be making the biscotti for humans (I kept eating the ingredients!) tomorrow and maybe a GF version of the bread recipe you gave us with this week's post. Wishing you and Bill a good weekend while you cook up part 5 of Khat's journey. 🥰
Khat's diet made me chuckle. And Lila's scorn for Cass's cooking. Thanks for another delightful episode of Khat's adventures. As well as the reminder about Forget Me Not, which I look forward to eagerly!
Susan, those 2 comic elements are repeated in every scene--which in a serial means every week. I think they were more effective in the single-delivery story. In the serial, I think readers likely forget--and anyway, it's not ringing in their ears. Part of the comedy, of course is the characters' ignorance. China has no idea how many calories that cat is getting on the sly. And the characters who question Cass's cooking don't know much about "foreign" or "gourmet" food.
Just a reminder to myself that what works when a narrative is read in one sitting may not work as well when the readings are spread out over 5 weeks. 🙄
I don't know: just because we may forget the comic elements from scene to scene (week to week) doesn't mean they're not effective. It just means we laugh anew each time!
That would work too, as long as readers aren't puzzled (rather than amused). I probably overthink such things. 😗
I think you can trust most of your readers to figure it out, but as we both know, the ones that don't may be the loudest voices. And it's a pain to deal with critical responses.
Well, maybe. But I learned a long time ago, both in the classroom and in working with more editors than I can count, that every variant reading can tell the writer something interesting and potentially useful about the writing. I'm always deeply curious about *how* people read (how it was that someone produced that unexpected/unintended reading).
I'm hopeful that with this kind of open conversation--like the one you and I are having here--will encourage people to pay attention to how they are reading and ask questions about that process. Which leads to questions about how it is written and how it could be written more *effectively.* Just thinking out loud here, don't mean to tie you up all afternoon.
I have a feeling that the new occupant of that house is up to no good, or is about to meet someone who is up to no good. Meanwhile, why is China not at least reassured that Khat has been sighted recently? It's been fun to get a cat's-eye view of the neighborhood.
My own furry companion is parked in her favorite place making typing a challenge. She went walkabout once, when she was about 10 months old, and seems to have learned the value of a safe warm house. She was only gone for about a day. A very worrisome day for her mommas!
Interesting--and a good idea, actually. In a longer story I could have spun that out more, constructed another episode where I used the house as a red herring, even inserted another character to build up its ominous qualities. I'm trying to keep these stories fairly short, though.
China isn't reassured because she wants him *back,* not running loose through the neighborhood. As you say, it's "worrisome" for a momma when her khat has gone AWOL. 🙂
I was also curious as to why China put a poster about Khat in the diner when she knew he had been there that morning. But I think she must have been extra worried about him. A couple of our cats went missing for over a week (at different times). Given our location in the country I assumed coyotes or other predator and was pleasantly surprised at their return. Would have loved to have heard their story!
Knowing where he has been doesn't get him home again, though. And that diner gets a lot of local-folk traffic--a good place to post a "missing cat" poster. Also, it was a good place for China to run into Hark (in the next episode), who points her to Khat's current whereabouts.
Ditto here re: missing cats. The animals who live with Bill and me are family, and we feel responsible for their care and safety--especially true for animals who have been with us for a long time. Molly (our heeler) has lived with us for 16 years. I've spent more time with her than I ever did with my children! 🙄
I'm glad they came back to you! When Smudge disappeared, we had posters up almost immediately. 20+ hours later a neighbor who had seen the poster found her in his garage. He said he'd been in and out of the garage several times during the time she was gone, so we don't know if she was there for 20 hours or 1 hour. She hasn't voluntarily left our property since. Gets outside but immediately stops to eat grass or rub on the rosemary.
Sounds like Smudge learned her lesson! 💕
Love these stories. Love ALL of Susan's stories!!
Thank you, Carolyn!
I would love nothing more than to curl up under some lavender and take a nap on a warm afternoon...Khat and I must be kindred spirits in that regard! I recently stopped at a small community feed and seed to pick up a few items and couldn't resist buying some lavender plants. They smell so wonderful! There is always room to tuck a plant or two somewhere in the yard...
Lovely, Judy! Glad you were able to get plants. But lavender likes it drier than most of our other garden favorites, so it may need a corner to itself. I've lost lavender from overwatering.
When I saw the owl’s name, the first thing I thought of was Hedwig and the Angry Inch - a stage play first and then a movie. It’s the only other time I’ve heard the name. It’s a kinda dark story, been ages since I saw it. I have a musician friend who performed in it several times in Atlanta. Anyway, the bread does sound great. I may make it for a friend coming to visit this weekend.
Interesting, Debbie, and a reminder that names in fiction are evocative--and that they won't evoke the same response in every reader. 🙄 For me, Hedwig is Harry Potter's owl (so it has supernatural connotations) and also a medieval German saint (sort of mystical). Let us know how the bread turns out!
Yay 🎉 Would certainly welcome more Khat 😻 More anything Pecan Springs 😁 We too have to consider floors but my heart quails at all the upheaval involved. Not this year…
What fun, Susan, so easy to see Khat patrolling Pecan Springs enjoying his rightful homage. Love visiting the diner and Cavette’s. As we struggle through week five of renovations, this is a delightful oasis to visit for some welcome calm. I’m becoming addicted to the serial format! Can’t wait for the next episode - but will miss the anticipation when it’s all over 😏
Oh, renovations! Kudos to you for getting it done. I have a kitchen floor problem but just don't want the mess of fixing it, moving the fridge/washer/dryer etc. China and I are glad that Khat's story is providing a little distraction. And when it's done, there'll be another, if all goes well. 😌
P.S. definitely trying the garlic cheese bread - sounds just right for the family 😁