Another Month Commences

I've been working on my curry cookie recipe.  I received some positive feedback at the picnic I attended on Saturday with Kat.  One attendee, David, was very encouraging, and asked me if I'd made up the recipe myself.  Well, yes, I answered, since I had, in essence, taken a basic cookie recipe and massaged it to suit my taste for a savory snack.

Peter met us there later, after he finished cleaning up his kitchen.  He'd experienced a blockage in the drain from his kitchen sink, and had managed to root it out, but the kitchen was still a mess when he left on Friday night to come to ours for dinner and the night.  We snacked, mostly, at the picnic.  There was an Easy-Up set up, which was nice, even though it was overcast while we were there, to both mark our place in the sand and to provide a little shade.  I had worn my hat, but discovered that I didn't really need it, though Peter said that seeing the hat was how he'd found us amongst lots of other Easy-Ups on the beach.  There was an ongoing series of card games being played, and it was limited to a four-person hand, with different players rotating in (and out).  I played a couple of games.  We played a card game which begins with the 3 of Clubs.  The first person to play sets up a pattern, and then each subsequent player has to "beat" the number(s) played by using a similar play.  For instance, if the first person played three 3's, then the next person would need to play three of a number that is higher than 3.  The highest number is 2 (I guess they didn't want to use aces).  For a couple of hands, the first player started with a straight of so many cards (minimum of three, and I think a maximum of five).  I was able to follow the pattern a couple of times.  Sometimes, it was really funny that someone just slapped down some tremendous straight, and, having finished off the cards in his hand, claimed victory over that deal.

We didn't stay too long, because Kat needed to meet Elanor to go to the library, where Elanor was going to return her library book and Kat would take it out immediately.  It's a book they're reading for school titled The Power of One.  When I asked Elanor (who is named after a Tolkien character) how she liked the book, she answered that it ended too abruptly.  Perhaps when Kat finishes reading it, I will take a stab at reading it, as well.  It's been a while since I've read fiction.

Anyway, Charlie is coming over for lunch today, and to have a slice of the cherry pie that I made the other night.  I must admit, now that I have a cherry pitter, I'm much more inclined to look for cherries when I'm at Sprouts.  I'm sure I'll think of other things to make with fresh cherries, but for now, I like baking pies.  

As we head into another calendar week, I am going over, in my head, the things I want to get done tomorrow morning:
1.  phone my former property management company to tell them that they really need to send me the deposit from the current tenant, which they've been holding on to, before I'm going to send them any payment for the work that they supposedly had done on the place between tenants.  In fact, I know that they left at least a few things undone, for the were items that were listed in the current tenant's list of things that still needed attention when they moved in.
2.  mail a certified letter to the tenant, replying to their letter, which I received on Saturday, regarding payment of rent and the fact that they're late in making their payment as of the 5th of the month (Tuesday).
3.  get my ass on the next bus to go to UTC to get in a workout at the gym.

I have some leftover curry cookies from the picnic, but I think I'll eat them soon enough, since I like curry and I like the cookies.  Well, as long as it's taken as long as it has, here is the current recipe:

Curry Cookies-c

this recipe produces approximately fifty cookies

1 ½ c.	whole wheat flour
¼ c.	coconut powder or flour
1 t.	kosher salt
1 T.	baking powder
¼ c.	flax meal
2 ½ T.	water
1 t.	ground cumin
½ t.	ground turmeric
¼ t.	ground ginger
dash	ground cloves
dash	asafoetida
½ c.	butter
½ c.	coconut oil
1	jumbo egg (about ¼ c.), beaten
1 ½ c.	chopped golden raisins
1 c.	finely chopped onion

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Sauté onion in 1 T coconut oil until fragrant but not yet browned.

Mix 1 T. flax meal with water and allow to sit to form gel, about 5 minutes.

Mix flour, salt, spices, and baking powder in medium bowl.

In large bowl, beat butter and remaining coconut oil until light. Add flax gel, egg, remaining flax meal, coconut powder or flour, and stir to combine. Allow to sit for about five minutes. Stir in flour mixture, then stir in raisins and onion.

Drop cookies by tablespoonfuls onto silicone mat-lined cookie sheet, and bake for about 12-13 minutes, until they no longer look moist. Cool for one minute on cookie sheet, then completely on rack. Store in an airtight container.

I hope people try these and like them.  They're not for everybody (certainly not for people who don't like curry!), but I think they're pretty good, overall.