[Photos coming soon]
It began when I didn't feel like paying quilting store prices for white fabric (about $8-$9 per yard) that I wanted to dye. I found that I could get great, soft and oh so pre-washed white fabric by purchasing pillow cases, the ones made of 100% cotton, at the thrift store for $.99. That started a trend. Since then I have been back at least three times this summer. I seem to always have cloth in the dye bucket ready to go. Even as I write this there is a full size flat sheet that I imagine will become a quilt backing at some point.
And so I have had some thrifty fun of late as I dye fabric. The first batch consisted of mostly colors blending into each other. Ellie, Christy and Connie did a bunch of clothing as well. The next round was mostly dyeing solids for a quilt I am working on. This week it was some solids, some blends in specific combinations I need for the quilt and two sets of gradations. One goes from Bright Orange to Fushia. The other is a blend of blues to purples as I had to mix in more than the usual two colors. Even though I have done enough dyeing that I know what to expect, it still feels a little bit like magic to take a tired, plain white pillow case and turn it into a vibrant cloth full of possibility. Washing out the pieces that have multiple colors is always a little like opening a present since you never know for sure how it will come out.
In between bouts of dyeing fabric, I took the time to whip up a frittata that was inspired by the one that Mike made for us last week. I am offering her recipe as she made it and my own changes. Mike says that the beauty of the recipe is that you can really just use what ever you happen to have around. I found that was very true.
Today Ellie and I are prepping for a small road trip. We will travel down to Salida for a set of three races. They are her favorite races of the year. We usually stay in the house our friends own and make it into a small family vacation. However, this year the boys are staying home. We will take Davis and Skylar, two siblings from our team, down to Salida with us so that they can race, too. We will stay in a hotel with them. I like staying in the house because it is flexible and I can cook our meals. However, the hotel will be fun, too. It has free breakfast, a swimming pool, a hot tub, air conditioning and cable t.v. That will be nice, but we will miss Larr and Ethan. Davis and Skylar will go home with their dad and Ellie and I will head out to Snowmass so that Ellie can go to art camp at Anderson Ranch. I am super excited for her to have this opportunity. I am certain she will have a blast. I will spend some of the time exploring the mountains and working on my photography. I will also see if there are volunteer items that I could do to help out the folks at the ranch.
Mike's Flexible Frittata
via Mike Rathbun
12 eggs, large
1/2 cup Milk
1/2 cup Cream
1 1/2 tea. Dry Mustard
2 TBL. Oregano (fresh is best, but dried will do)
Salt and Pepper - just a bit
4 Potatoes, large Russets *
2 TBL. Butter or Olive Oil
1 tea. Italian Seasoning
1 c. Spinach (clean and stems removed)*
3-4 Roma Tomatoes, large, sliced *
1 1/2 c. Pepper Jack Cheese, shredded
* Note: I did not have these items so I substituted 3/4 # Italian Sausage, cooked, 1 c. Zucchini, shredded and Grape Tomatoes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Oil your pan well. Mike used a lovely Calphalon Dutch Oven pan with high sides. This caused her frittata to dome. I had to use a 9" x 13" pan. It worked, but the frittata was much more dense.
Begin by prepping the potatoes if you are using them. This involves scrubbing them and then microwaving each one on high for 5 minutes. Once cooled, slice them. Saute' them until they are brown in a small bit of olive oil or butter with a bit of Italian seasoning as well as salt and pepper.
In a bowl mix the eggs, milk, cream, dry mustard, salt, pepper and oregano. Fluff it up using a whisk to incorporate some air.
Gently pour in about half of the egg mixture into the pan. Next, layer the potatoes (or sausage), followed by spinach (or zucchini) and then the tomatoes. Sprinkle about half of the cheese on top of this. Next, whip up the remaining egg mixture and gently pour it over the ingredients in the pan. Top with remaining cheese. Bake for 45 minutes - 1 hour, or until it is done. let it sit for a few minutes before serving. Mike likes to offer creme' fresh or sour cream on the side. The frittata reheats nicely.
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