Backseat Adventure - Cowboy Trail

A few weeks back, with Hubby out of town and the weather not quite warm enough for picnics, the girls and I headed out on an adventure. We left the house unsure of where to go. We followed the sunshine to the Cowboy Trail. 

Taking in the towns of Millarville, Turney Valley, Black Diamond and Longview the Cowboy Trail snakes South of Calgary through the foothills alongside Peter Lougheed Provincial Park. To the West you have the Rocky Mountains. To the East you have Prairies and ranchland. In front of you there is entertainment, small town love, and plenty to make you smile.

What we found that day...

A phenomenal breakfast, just incredible, at the Chuckwagon Cafe in Turner Valley. Also discovered there was meat off sales. Not booze, but meat, sold over the counter. And it was damn good meat.

Something else discovered in Turner Valley - sumo wrestling.

Found in Longview - quite possibly the world's best beef jerky. I haven't tried all the world's beef jerky, but this place may indeed live up to their advertised claims.

Also realized on the Cowboy Trail is the proliferation of these lame cowboy cutouts.  We get it folks.

While we did pass a number of working ranches along the way, the only horse we rode was this one.

I particularly enjoy matching garbage and scenery.

Limited access to the Sheep River in Black Diamond, at least as far as crutches go. But we did get a little walk and the girls weren't too disappointed that they couldn't throw rocks.

An old fashioned soda shop in Black Diamond, Marv's. A bit disappointing that the ice cream was Nestle or some general brand and their carbonated ice cream machine was being cleaned, but my saskatoon berry sundae was still good. And as far as kids are concerned, all ice cream is good.

That despite the apparent challenges of parenting with limited mobility and a travelling Hubby, it isn't that hard to get out of the house and have an adventure with your kids.

Calgary Meet-up?

The internet is an interesting place. It allows us to be more open and honest with, perhaps ourselves, and others. We make friendships we might never have started or maintained in the 'real world'. And it allows us a chance to create a community without ever needing to borrow a cup of sugar.

One of the reasons I volunteered for the Local Organizing Committee of Quilt Canada was to meet more local quilters and become engaged in the real world community here in Calgary. And for that it has been fantastic.

As time moves on, however, I find that there are more and more quilters in Calgary that aren't a part of the real world community, rather they are engaged in the on-line world. And that is awesome too.

So, I've decided to host a little get together/meet-up for my readers that are local. I'm also inviting the newly formed Calgary Modern Quilt Guild.

These are my two suggested times.  Sorry, but I do have to work around my Quilt Canada obligations.

Thursday April 29 6:30 pm Drinks

Friday April 30 1:00 Desserts

Once I have an idea of who is interested I will confirm location, but it will be somewhere really close to the Telus Convention Centre, site of the Merchant Mall and shows.

So, grab your horse and come down to meet up. Who's in?

Workshop in Progress - April 21

So, in the Workshop this week I wanted to talk scraps. This is the bag of brand new scraps left over from piecing my Dad's quilt. I'll be honest, it makes me kind of giddy to look at it. I almost wish there were more!

My question for you is about selvages. I never used to keep them, but I do now. For those of you that collect, do you like partials, or does the entire row of text and dots need to be there? And how much of the actual fabric is necessary to cut off with the selvage?

Now, on to the rest of you.

Elle is back at her original WIP project. Her Wind and Water piece seems softer to me now. I love watching it evolve.

Somehow I missed the naming of this quilt, but remember we helped Felicity on the name game. Check out this post to see what she went with.

Next week I will be well and truly insane with all the goings on for Quilt Canada. If you are around next week, find me - I'm the one on the crutches with the long black hair. I am chairing the Professional Development Conference and helping out at all evening events. I hope to see you!

Because I will be away, I've asked Lesly at Pickle Dish to host the workshop. Make sure to check in with her next Wednesday. And if you have any posts get them up there in the blogosphere and let her know. 

Mmm, Pizza

One of the first things I got off my butt to make after my knee injury was pizza dough. I was facing a deadline and needed to work my hands a little. Mostly I needed to work my hands. It is amazing what forced exile from the kitchen can do to a cook. I might have gone through a bit of withdrawal, shakes and all.

Yes, I know you can make pizza dough in a food processor, or easily in that 5 minutes a day way. But sometimes you need to pile up flour, make a well for your liquids, then scream for your husband to clean it up when the walls break and floury liquid is running down the front of the counter. With the next batch I used a bowl.

This dough is totally inspired by David Rocco. I watched a lot of Food Network when I was laid up. But I couldn't remember the recipe exactly, but I loved that he made pizzas and calzones with it. So I made it up in my head when I did get to the kitchen. Turns out it is pretty damn close to his recipe. So, thanks David. Now go kiss those adorable twins of yours. (Seriously, could you make the Italian countryside more beautiful?)

An easy dinner in our house is now calzones made with this dough. All that means is you fold over the dough, roll the edges, and bake at high heat. Homemade pizza pocket. And when you do make it as a pizza, it is a lovely, thin crust. But calzones now rule because, according to The Monster, the Pizza Man makes the pizza, not Mama. I need to rectify that situation ASAP.

Pizza Dough

Makes 8 hearty calzones or 8 individual pizzas*

2 cups warm water

1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)

4 cups flour

1 tsp salt

3 tbsp olive oil

1. Stir together water and yeast. Let sit for a few minutes until it is foamy, or the yeast has bloomed.

2. Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. Create a well in the center of the flour. Pour the water, yeast, and olive oil into the well. Start incorporating the liquids, using a wooden spoon or sturdy spatula. You will likely have to switch to mixing with your hands. Once it has come together as a dough, dump it out on a floured countertop. Knead for just a few minutes until the dough is smooth.

3. Divide into four equal portions. Cover lightly with a lightly damp tea towel and let rest for an hour.

4. Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.

For calzones:

5. One portion at a time roll into a rectangle about 8 by 6 inches. Cut in half at the 4 inch mark.

6. Top each half with a tablespoon of tomato sauce, leaving an inch without sauce all around the edges. Add a half cup of shredded cheese and toppings of choice.

7. Fold each calzone in half, pinching and rolling over the edges to seal. Brush the tops with a beaten egg.

8. Bake for 10 minutes. Let cool completely before eating as fillings will be very hot.

For pizzas:

5. Roll each portion into a rough circle about 8 inches around.

6. Thinly cover with toppings of choice.

7. Bake for 8-10 minutes until cheese is bubbly and crust is golden.

*I usually freeze half the dough for another day. After the dough has rested, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in a  freezer bag. Let thaw completely and use according to recipe.