Preparation Part Two

Still in the grips of the mind-numbing prescription drugs (and dragging Andy along with me), the garden plots now have dirt
and what we think will work for a cold frame.

Sunday we got a few sprinklings of snow, so obviously this year isn't going to be a straight shot into spring, so an unprotected garden before May might be tempting Mother Nature a bit too far.

We have no intention of trying to grow all our own food--being adventurous but stopping just short of stupid--but we are hoping for large harvests of tomatoes and peppers to roast/dry/freeze/can as we head into 2009. Andy is also hoping for large amounts of pea pods and cucumbers--mostly so he'll get some of them. If he can steal covers every night, I feel no remorse at all over eating all the pea pods. Sharing can only go so far.

And in a very surrealistic turn--or maybe it's that decongestant again--I actually bought this

tonight. Corn syrup--that bane of my existence all of February. This weekend after making more Rice Krispie treats for our Appalachian Trail hiker, "Bananas," I just couldn't stand it any longer and decided to invent a healthy trail snack using the theory behind Rice Krispie treats. Believe me, the pictures would have been SERIOUSLY blog-worthy, but sometimes disasters happen a little too quickly for pictures. Let's just say, Sunday was very educational. I now know

* Even if you have successfully melted them in the past, marshmallows may decide to toast in the pan instead of melting

* Butter and peanut butter are NOT interchangeable

* There is a limit to how much wheat bran you can add to something before altering the taste

* Boiling a pan with a little soapy water can remove scorch marks

* Add enough peanut butter, and almost anything will taste good

* If I'm ever going to publish a cookbook, I'll have to start coming up with better names than "Toni's Peanut Butter Blobs"
* I am not above saving the more questionable foods for the times when Bananas will be on the trail for longer periods between breaks.

* Corn syrup really does help keep foods stable & stuck together, though it still doesn't explain what it is doing in diced tomatoes.

* It really is okay if someone ELSE eats Pop Tarts and candy bars every day--let it go.