Of Recipe Boxes and Cheesy Crisps

Just to update on Peari, we took her to the vet yesterday and she got a completely clean bill of health. She’s a perfect weight and has no problems at all that can be seen. We’ve scheduled her booster and rabies shot for a couple of weeks from now and she’ll be getting spayed at the end of January (we want to give her a chance to get used to us and the apartment before taking her for a big surgery). So yay!

Now, Kay over at Mason-Dixon Knitting is asking people for their recipe boxes and favourite recipes. I have one recipe box, but it was inherited from my Mother-in-Law and is currently rather boring on the outside.

I’m going to have to get some stickers or something to make it a much cooler looking box. However I like the fact that I can look through the top at the dividers.. not sure why that’s so important to me, but it is. It does have a nice separator section so that you can find the type of recipes you’re looking for really quick.

This however is more of the “starting out in your own place beginner recipes” type of recipe box with a few extra recipes thrown in from magazines.

My personal recipe storage is on the fridge…

This way my most used and favourite recipes are at my fingertips when I need them. I’m thinking I need to get a binder soon like the Heathen Housewife because I’m very quickly running out of fridge space.

The recipe I’m going to share is one of my favourites. It’s a recipe I got from my Step-mother (she of the nifty knitting bag), and she makes it every time I go over to visit her. These Easy Peasy Cheese Crisps are a wonderful way to use up Rice Krispies when you get sick of making the dessert snacks. These are delicious and perfect for entertaining.

I made a half batch of these today and got about 30 crisps, when my Step-Mom makes it she gets close to 90.

Easy Peasy Cheese Crisps

1 tub Imperial Cheese (like margarine only it’s spreadable cheese)
1 C Butter
Dash Salt
1/4 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 1/2 C Flour
4 C Rice Krispies

Preheat oven to 350 F

Allow butter and cheese to reach room temperature (or put them in the microwave on defrost for about 45 seconds). Mix together with a fork. Add Salt and Worcestershire Sauce, then slowly add flour and Rice Krispies.

When well mixed, put a small dollop on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Press down with a fork. Repeat until all of the mixture is used. (These crisps don’t rise or grow so you can place them fairly close together).

Bake in the oven for up to 15 minutes. (Ovens may vary, I usually start with 8 minutes, then go 11, then up to 15. You want the crisps to start looking a tiny bit brown around the edges).

Pull out of oven and let cool, they’re really delicious while warm with a bit of red pepper jelly.

It almost sounds harder than it is. These seriously take about 5 minutes to mix up and the 15 to cook. Totally a last minute entertaining specialty for me.

Peari however is a bit miffed with me.

“Mom won’t let me on the counter when she’s baking.”

Till next time.

Meet Peari the new star of the Blog

I hope everyone had a good holiday, Christmas was great for us (all 7 of them >.<), I’ll get to a post about that some other day, but right now we will interrupt the knitting fun with the tale of how Peari came home.

C’s mom recently had to put down her dog (about a month ago), and had gotten lonely without him around. She went to the SPCA, wanting to adopt an adult cat (knowing that kittens get adopted really easily), and was playing with a lovely orange tabby named Alicia. However when she mentioned that she travels up north 3 hours and back once a week, the adoption agency said it’d be too hard on Alicia and that she’d be better to go with a kitten instead so that the kitten could get used to the traveling.

For the next week or so, C’s mom was trying to get someone, anyone to adopt Alicia, seeing as the cat had been there for 4 months. We went and checked Alicia out on Boxing Day, and she was a wonderful cat, she was quite fat, but really affectionate and lovely. However, our apartment was still in a state of Christmas chaos and we wanted to have a chance to clean it up before bringing the cat home.

When we went into the adoption center the next day, Alicia was gone. The poor cat was sitting at the adoption agency for 4 months, and then on the same day, 3 different families (us included) all wanted her. At least she’s in a loving home.

The next day we decided we wanted to go back to check out the other cats, and I checked online to see what cats were available. My first view of Peari was her picture on the website, it wasn’t exactly the best pic.

It’s kind of a little kitty mugshot.

When we went into the adoption agency, there were two cats, Pear, and Banana. When I went up to the cages, Pear (who is 2.5-3 years old) hopped up and was right at the edge to come see me and get pet, while Banana hid. They were both from the same home. This home had 3 cats and a dog all taken from it. Pear and Banana were both really skinny. Pear however had decided that she wanted to come home with us and pretty much latched onto me. (She’s still got her claws which is fine).

When we got her home (complete with toys, carrying case, food, and treats) and let her out of her carrying case. Now the adoption agency told us that most cats hide for a good couple of hours until they get comfortable. Pear however (who was still Pear at this point) pretty much made herself at home.

“This carpet is mine.. and isn’t my tummy oh so soft and pettable?”

After a little while, we were trying to decide on names, C kept throwing out ideas and when he said “Peariwinkle” because she’s been “Pear” for a bit and we can call her “Peari”, it stuck.

“I love my people and I’m totally a Daddy’s girl”

She is very people oriented, she checks things out and likes to lie beneath the futon and the bed but especially likes to make sure we’re here. If she hasn’t seen us for a while she will meowl for us until we call her and she finds us.

However we both agree that we think in her other home she had to fight the other cats and maybe the dog for her food because she doesn’t really eat unless we’re sitting by her, and actually likes us to have our hands by the food bowl to protect it, and even then she’s looks around for any other animals. She gets distracted by any noise and needs to check it out before she comes back to eat. We’re hoping she calms down and realizes all her food and toys are hers and hers alone.

At least in our home she’s going to get tons of love, and all the petting she needs.

Now I need to get started on a Wendyknits cat bed and some Feline Dim Sum from knitty. We also need to get her a bigger cat toy, she can totally stretch to the top of the one we got her without even trying.

“Give me a few hours and I’ll have these humans in the palms of my paws.. next up.. THE WORLD!”

Till next time.

I think I may be crossing a line….

I realized something today… I may be getting a little too obsessed with this knitting thing. Not so much with the yarn or the act of knitting or what but well… let me explain.

I ride the bus everywhere, I don’t have my driver’s license at this time, and though I intend on getting it, it’s not on the top of my list right now. Today I was sitting at the front of the bus, trying desperately to fight off a bout of car sickness that was creeping up on me, when a woman stepped on the bus. I was looking at the floor and noticed her scarf.

It took about 2 seconds while she was paying for me to go… hey, I recognize that stripe pattern. It was in different shades, but as I followed the scarf up to her neck, I knew for certain that it was a Dr. Who Scarf, much like the one I recently finished.

As I was formulating a very suave comment to say to her about it however, she walked past me and sat down somewhere behind me. I debated moving seats so I could ask about her scarf, if she knit it.. how she found slogging through the 11 feet of garter stitch, but I thought it might seem rude or presumptuous. So I stayed where I was, hoping that she’d be getting off at the station where I was so that I could then strike up a conversation about it.

Oh believe me, the conversations we had in my head were wonderful! Comparing experiences, talking about Dr. Who and knitting in general. I’d mention that I was part of the local knitter’s guild, and I’d find someone who could relate to my love of knitting.

And then she got off 3 stops early. This is where I think I completely lost my mind.

I very nearly got up and walked off the bus to follow her and strike up the conversation. I debated very vehemently with myself about how I could go shopping at the grocery store there and just happen to notice her scarf.. after all.. tomatoes with dinner would be lovely.

Then the sane part of my brain spoke up and mentioned that not only was I late getting home, but I was becoming a stalker of knitting and that the woman probably saw my crazed look as she walked past and fled. Sanity won out in this instance.
I just hope I spot her on the bus again soon…

Till next time.