Friday, August 8, 2008

Luck of the Draw

So, how is everyone's day of luck going? If you don't know why I ask that, today - 08/08/08 - is supposed to be the marker of one of the luckiest number sets in Chinese tradition. The number eight is already considered a bearer of luck, and three in a row... well, you can see why Bejing's Olympics opened today! Not only did the Olympics open today, but many Chinese couples booked this date for their weddings several years ago - according to this paper, over 8000 in the capital!

As for me, well, my lucky day has been full of all kinds of luck - and it didn't start with the good kind! I had to go to our city college's bookstore today (after putting it off for... oh... 3 weeks!) to buy my lab coat that I need in September (let the geekdom begin!), but apparently oh so helpful MapQuest neglected to indicate that the campus address was on the north end of the street, not the south. Needless to say (especially for those who know me and my lack of directional ability) I wound up driving 20 minutes down a very long, winding road to be rewarded with, not an industrial-looking building, but a gorgeous lakefront view! I didn't have my camera, obviously, otherwise I would have taken a photo to show you all! So, a turn-around and 35 minutes of city traffic driving in the pouring rain later I finally got to my destination. Bad luck: 1, Sarah: 0.

Once I got to the college though, I decided to dare parking without paying the ridiculous minimum $4 pay/display fee for parking since I would be in the building for maybe 15 minutes. In and out of the building went I, and lo and behold I made it without a ticket! Score one for me.

Home through the rain again (this time not getting lost!), and by the time I got into the house the sun had come out and was warming up the patio, so I went out to take some photos for Flickr's 888 group event. Want to know what I found?


A single busy honeybee buzzing around my dill plants! I know a lot of people are afraid of bees, but I love them... they're so colourful! And given that everyone from The New York Times to Haagen Dazs is reporting on their disappearance, I'd say that the sight of even one is worthy of a point to luck! I also got a gorgeous shot of my stepdad's gypsum weed, our crop of which was in jeopardy earlier this year due to the frost. As for the veggies, well, I'll tell you about those tomorrow!

For now, here's my tribute to the little buzzing bees in my garden: honey-sweetened ice cream studded with another Summer garden favourite of mine (that was sadly stolen from me this year... damn beetles!) - cherries! It's egg-free but still a creamy yellow from the rich honey, and it doesn't need an ice cream maker... Hallelujiah! Can you tell I still haven't found my wish-list Cuisinart yet?

Honey Cherry Ice Cream
Makes 2 cups - about 4 servings
Don't use maraschinos in syrup for this recipe... they're too moist. Look for glacé cherries instead, they're the solid candied ones you usually find around Christmastime (but they are available year-round).
1/2 cup alfalfa honey
1 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup 18% cream
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 cup glacé (candied) cherries, halved
  1. Warm honey slightly in microwave or over stovetop until very runny.
  2. Stir the milk, cream and vanilla extract together, then stir in the liquefied honey.
  3. Pour into a bowl (I recommend ceramic) and cool completely.
  4. Freeze 4 hours, beating mixture well every hour to aerate (alternatively, use an ice cream maker according to directions).
  5. After 2 hours of the freezing process (or at the end of the ice cream maker's cycle) add the cherries, folding in well. Freeze completely.
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 377.8
Total Fat: 7.0 g
Cholesterol: 24.7 mg
Sodium: 77.7 mg
Total Carbs: 78.9 g
Dietary Fiber: 0.1 g
Protein: 3.0 g

1 comment :

  1. Yum! Not a bee, but better that you didn't know that or you'd have been tempted to kill that hornet. ;)

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