Coydog and Cookies

Hello!

The other day, while coming back to the house from the quarry, I spotted what I thought was a coyote near my house.  Do you see him out there in the middle of the pic?

Here is a zoomed in, close -up:

When I got home, I emailed the pic to someone who knows a bunch about wildlife and he told me he thought it was a coydog; part coyote, part domestic dog.

Well, the quarry is all open now!!  YAY!  The fish have not moved in yet though.

 
I decided to go hunt down some other fish and donned my neoprenes to wade the White River. 

The water was fairly clear, and seemed to be at a normal level, as the current was mild.

I'm looking forward to getting me some bass.  This seems like Easter Egg hunting, but for lucky fish instead of eggs.  How FUN!

So, I get out there-- I'm trying my darnedest to enjoy some Spring fishing, and it begins to snow.  My flyrod eyes are iced up, my waders have a slow leak in em, and my toes begin to get cold.  Sigh.

This was the before pic:

 I went back to the house and made "healthy" cookies.
 

Oats and chia seeds are mixed with fruit to create a yummy, and healthy snack.

Hey-- it's my first time cooking with coconut oil.

These cookies are not real sweet, made according to the recipe, but yummy with a light lemony taste.

The blueberries are supposed to get mixed in, but I liked em better as a topping.

 

Blueberry Lemon Cookies

Makes 14 breakfast cookies
Adapted from Gluten Free on a Shoestring
Ingredients
3-3/4 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chia seeds
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup mashed very ripe banana (about 2 medium bananas)
1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons honey
1/4 cup  coconut oil, melted
1 Tablespoon lemon zest
1/4 cup lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
1lb blueberries, rinsed then patted dry
Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees then line a baking sheet with a silpat or parchment paper and set aside.
2. Add oats baking soda, salt, and chia seeds to a large bowl then mix to combine. Add applesauce, banana, honey, coconut oil, lemon zest, and lemon juice then mix until just combined. Carefully fold in blackberries then let batter sit for 10 minutes to thicken.
3. Scoop 1/4 cup batter (I used an ice cream scoop) onto prepared baking sheet then wet hand with water and press down to flatten slightly (cookies will not spread.) Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until cookies are golden brown around the edges and set on top. Cool completely then store in an airtight container for up to 2 days, in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, or wrap individually in plastic wrap then freeze in a freezer bag. Wrap in a paper towel then microwave for 20 seconds to thaw.

R.I.P. Fishes

Ahh, beautiful Fall's Park pond! 

Well, at least from a distance it's pretty.   A closer look revealed a bunch of dead fish; so sad.

Some of the fish were HUGE too.  I'm not even sure what kind of fish this was, but it was really big:

 

The dead fish I noticed most were catfish and a few bass.  It's such a shame.

  

The town of Pendleton stocked the pond and used to have the fountains working.

It's too bad the winter was so harsh on all these poor dead fishes. 

 

 

I had some errands to run, and while I was out, I stopped at Saxony Lake to check it out.

 No dead fish were spotted, but the lake had an iced glaze over most of it.

A few spots were thawed and I was hoping to see fish swimming around-- no such luck.

Later in the day, Sophie and I did some more hiking at the quarry.  

I didn't see any fish there either, dead or otherwise.

In other news, Troy bleached our cat, Dustball.  JK :)  He held a kitty at Pet Smart.  The salesman asked me if it was okay, I hesitated and agreed.  Then Troy put the kitty, Marshmallow, down inside the little room and Marshmallow crawled underneath all the cages.  The salesman tried to get Marshmallow (who was having a hissy fit), but the kitty was stuck.  A manager came in, along with three other sales associates, and after 40 minutes+ of rearranging, they got Marshmallow back in the cage.  Troy looked at the salespeople and said, "May I hold another kitty!".  The manager looked at his watch and replied, "We will be closing in 6 hours.".   :)

We have a vacancy in our back yard bird box.  I'm eager to see who will be moving in this year.  Kinda hoping for a flying squirrel family.

The little crick in the yard has a heart in it.  :)
 

 Happy Spring Everyone!

St. Patty's Day Pies!

Good ole Snoopy says it all:

 

If Sophie woulda been a boy, and if I got to name her, (she was a shelter doggie and already knew her name) then I could see her being a Snoopy!  Maybe that's what I'll name her future husband, not that I have plans for that or anything.  :)

Speaking of plans, do Ya'all remember a few months ago when I had planned to be able to do 4 chin-ups in a row by mid-March?  Yeah, that isn't happening.  I can still only do one, and almost two.  I feel like I made a little progress despite having sore hands for a month or so.  :(  Oh well, I'll keep working at it and see if I can get closer to my goal by the end of summer.

Us Irish Gals, O'Jeanelly" and I, made authentic Irish fare for supper last night-- Shepard's Pie.  We started this dish, by searing a beef chuck roast. You're going to want a nice crust to form on the meat (known as the Milliard reaction).  This is created by not moving the meat around much while searing.  The crust will create the deep caramelized flavor that helps to make this dish so yummy. 

Did I mention this beef is braised in wine?  After searing, add in veggies, then pour in two cups of Cabernet red wine, plus beef broth, and simmer for a couple of hours.  Meanwhile finish off remaining wine...  noooo wait, at least put something green on and pretend to be Irish first.  ;) 

Take care to keep your kitchen windows closed while cooking this, or anyone that gets a delightful whiff will be attracted to your house like leprechauns to gold. 

When the meat is done cooking it should fall apart easily.

Next, I made a mistake and poured everything into a baking dish.  I don't know why I did that-- must have been the wine.  I could have just added the mashed potatoes directly to the pot the rest of this was in, and topped it with cheese.

Whoever had dish night last night is probably cursing me right now.  Anyways, neatly top with mashed potatoes, (oops-- wine again), and cook until the cheese is all melted.

Yumm, this cheesy, bubbly, beefy dish was so delicious!  Even though I was sloppy with the taters, it still got ohhhs and ahhs from the family.

This Irish dish was a winner!

Shepard's Pie

Ingredients:
2-3lb chuck roast, cut into big hunks
salt and pepper
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 clove minced garlic
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 large onion
2 Tablespoons flour
2 cups red wine (I used Cabernet)
15oz  beef broth
1-1/2 cups mixed veggies (I used frozen)
For the cheesy mashed potatoes: 
2lbs potatoes, peeled and chopped (about 3 medium-sized potatoes)
4 Tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup milk (may need more)
salt and pepper
Cheddar Cheese (however much you'd like)
Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Season beef on all sides liberally with salt and pepper then place inside Dutch Oven and sear for 3-4 minutes on the top and bottom, until a golden brown crust has formed. Add garlic, celery, and onion then cook until vegetables are tender, 6-8 minutes. Sprinkle in flour then stir and cook for 1 more minute.
2. Pour in wine and beef broth, then bring to a boil. Place a lid on top then turn heat down to medium-low and simmer for 2 – 2-1/2 hours, or until beef can be easily shredded, turning beef over halfway through. Remove meat then shred. Add veggies and cook till tender.
3. Add potatoes to a large pot of cold water then bring to a boil and cook until fork-tender. Drain then mash with butter milk, salt and pepper. Spread on top of meat and veggie mixture then top with cheese.  Cook for 8-10 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

But wait-- there's more!  Dessert!

I made a St. Patrick's Day Grasshopper Pie!!!

It's super easy to make and low in fat-- Yay!  

All I did was poured chocolate pudding made with lowfat milk, mixed with !/2 a brick fat free cream cheese, into an Oreo pie crust.  Bottom layer completed!

The top layer is marshmallow fluff mixed with the other half of fat free cream cheese.  Plus, some Andes mints chopped up, and a few drops of food coloring.  Top layer completed!

 
I garnished it with grated Andes candies and a sprinkle of green sugar.

They ate it up like no body's business!

Try saying Irish Wrist Watch!  :)

Dog Party & Skating

The quarry is still mostly covered with ice, but it's not stable enough to ice fish.

I went out there to see how it was and did some hiking.

Lately, I've had a houseful of kids, natch.  :)

Jean had Mic over.

Troy had Hayden over.

 I had the neighbors doggie's over.  I enjoy looking after them.  Their little legs are so short!
 

Sophie and Fatz are in love, but I think it's just Puppy Love.  Bah HA!

 Lola is cuddled next to Mic.  Everyone enjoyed the dog party in the basement!

In other news, the pontoon is out of the barn; a lovely sign of Spring!  I have a few kinks to work out with the motor before it's travel ready though.

The dogs and kids played at Fall's park.

Gladys had her friend, Bella, met her at the park. 

Sophie stayed right at my side the entire time.

We went to Geist Marina to see if they had what the pontoon needed.  While we were there, the kids explored the floor models.  I have a feeling I get super quick service by walking in there with an army of kids. JK  ;)

The kids toured the empty docks most of the time.

And unsuccessful fished for dead fish with a stick.

Geist was still 90% covered with ice.

After we left the Marina, the kids spotted a Play Place!  Troy is almost getting to be too big for it.

For some unknown reason, play places are almost non-existent in this part of Indiana.

They had a blast and supper!

Sunday, I thought my in-laws were coming for a visit, but do to health issues, they didn't make it.  So, Jean and I shopped for a new pair of waders at Dunham's. 

Then we all went to the roller rink.  It was freezing and windy outside.

I skated and skated and got totally wore out-- good exercise though.  Especially the speed races.

I'm not a fast skater compared to the little kids that zip all over the place, but I did okay (and I didn't break anything).  It was a little weird that I was the only person over the age of 20 skating.  Oh well.  Do what ya enjoy-- Right?

Keep ON Rollin!