This coming weekend

Here we are in mid-March, and everything is coming to life outdoors.  Soon flowers will bloom, and weeds will try to take over and will promptly be chopped out of the ground by every gardener who notices them, and hummingbirds will return from the their southern migration.  Longer days and shorter nights will make perfect weather for cooking over a firepit with wood that has come down in the winter storms from trees which have been growing for decades.

I love the winter.  But I also love the end of winter and the beginning of spring.

This coming weekend we have two items on the weekly menu.  One is a cookie dip, and the other is a brownie.  Is the cookie dip meant to be eaten with the brownie?  It wasn't designed that way, but I imagine it would taste great.  So if you plan to order both, let me know how you like them if you combine them together.  The next weekend's menu hasn't been put up yet, but by the end of today it will be there.

This past week, I did some tweaks on a couple recipes, and I did some interior painting as well.  That painting took longer than I expected.  (Isn't that the way these things always go?)  So I didn't get around to doing all the cooking that I had hoped to do during this past spring break week.  Nonetheless, I am happy with how the week has gone.

Someone asked me about whipped cream recently.  Here's how I always make it:

For each cup of heavy cream, I always add 1/3 cup of powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla.  And I always chill the whisk and the bowl before starting.  It helps the cream whip up more easily and in less time.  And I never whisk it on the highest mixer setting.  If you have 12 settings, I'd put it on 8 or 9 rather than the fastest at 12.  Doing it at a slower speed makes for a better end-result.  It takes a little longer but it's worth it.  You can also do it by hand with a good sturdy whisk.  It takes patience and time and a strong wrist and forearm.  But I think it's pretty cool that it can be done by hand.

That's all for today.  Have a great first week of spring, everyone!