Admiral Ackbar yam soup

I bought a yam. It was big. It was cheap. After a while I realised it also looked like Admiral Ackbar ... Which didn't stop me chopping him into tiny tiny pieces for an overly feisty soup. 

ACKBAR SOUP

1 x Ackbar head sized yam ($2, bargain!), peeled and chopped into wee tiny pieces

5 cups veggie stock

1/2 Tbs sea salt

1 tsp cayenne pepper (yes, this was too much. Halve it next time)

1 tsp paprika

1 x can coconut cream

METHOD

Put on some good tunes and comfy shoes. Spend a leisurely hour peeling and chopping Admiral Ackbar's head. I sliced it into as fine pieces as I could manage, so I could try and fit the entire yam in the pot. I succeeded. 

Omit the onion: it won't fit and will have to wait for another day. 

Add everything else into the pot gently. 

Simmer over medium ish heat, stirring frequently ... And gently. 

When Ackbar bits are cooked to softness, remove from heat. 

Blend when it has cooled enough. 

Stir in the can of coconut cream. 

Serve yourself a nice big bowl, and marvel that 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper carries more kick than expected. 

My sinuses are very clear. 

If you aren't vegan, I think some feta cheese would go well sprinkled on at serving time. 

Due to the yam being on sale (0.49c/lb), this was incredibly good value soup. 

$2 yam

$2.70 coconut cream

$0.50 stock cube 

~$0.25 spices from the cupboard

I used all organic ingredients, because I prefer that where possible. Clearly that's your choice though! 

I think I'll get 7-8 serves from this pot, so that's about $0.75 per serve. Win! Good for carbs and healthy fats, so remember to balance your protein for the day accordingly. 

And don't get too excited with the cayenne. My sinuses are really very clear. 

Preserving for the first time

Preserving has never been part of my history or heritage ... Most likely due to the fact that when the yummy things are available to preserve in Perth the weather is too obscenely hot to want the stove on all day. But Kaedra and Larissa had planned a Canstravaganza with their spouses and invited me along. I helped. 

This was all new to me! Riss had an amazing book that provided not only recipes and canning instructions, but included serving ideas - very smart. 

We ploughed through 8 recipes in two days, all of them successful:

Spicy dilly beans

Curried summer stone fruit

Blueberry compote

Blackberry ginger marmalade

Peaches in simple syrup

Rhubarb orange chutney

Strawberry jam

Garlic dill pickles

So ... How many do I store in the cupboard and how many do I start eating NOW?

Ha!

I remembered my password, and downloaded the app! 

Artistic April

SOx has dubbed this month "Artistic April", and I wholeheartedly concur!

I plan to practice my singing, guitar, finish my steampunk costume and steampunk up my stilts. I am also slowly working through my fabric collection, but that takes time :)

I'll put up photos as I get things completed!

- Steampunk stilt costume (but one that shows off the stilts anyway, so it could also be my normal steampunk costume)
- Finish off the special stilt costume I started a couple of years ago
- There's also the heavy stilt costume that I need to revisit and finish to perfection

One of the fabrics I was going to sew into a work suit is currently being a backdrop for a video shoot in our home. That's fine, as I have steampunk deadlines to work towards now! Focus there first!

Oooh! Another one ...

Hrm, I made more than I thought lately ... must keep on top of these entries ...

These photos are by the awesome Larissa Sayer!

Sean didn't have a costume for the Sci Fi night at Sanctuary. One leftover piece of foam, a stocking, some red fabric and some white vinyl later ...

Coming up ...

Projects for 2010:

Being organised and making a whole bunch of gift bags out of fabric! Main sizes will be for dvds, books, and a cd-sized thing for other little trinkets. I'm tired of wrapping paper. I'm also not very good at Furoshiki.

Steampunk costume - both stilted and not. I want to get back into stilting this year, I miss the fun, randomness and fitness!

Various office clothes requirements: hemming, altering, darts, etc. I am not to buy anything new until I have dealt with all the existing fabrics in the house!

At the very least, I must maintain a system where all the pending fabrics fit in one suitcase. At the moment, it's one suitcase, a drawer, and a pile. This will not do.

I am planning to hand-make most of my gifts this year. Specifically chosen with love and the recipient in mind. Do they need storage space? Cat toys? Something that won't clutter up their home? Something edible? Drinkable? Recipes? I could go on. I'm not guaranteeing they will all be USEFUL, but I hope they'll all be welcomed in the spirit they are offered :)

Star Trek

Oh yeah: made these too:

http://www.vancouversun.com/Entertainment/Fans+flock+latest+Star+Trek+movie/1574449/story.html

Well, Riss fixed hers and Paddy's! And yes, I DID get Alisma's and my Communicator/insignia things on back to front. Thanks for noticing. I lost some geek points right there for NOT being aware of that.