Spring was Squashed!

As you know, I was super excited about all the signs of spring around my garden this past weekend. It was a glorious weekend and most definitely whet my whistle for a true taste of spring. 

But, alas, it is not to be. 

Not yet. 

It was about 10 degrees when I awoke to a winter wonderland this morning. We got a few inches of fluffy, powdery snow....perfect for skiing, not so much for gardening. 

I knew it was too good to be true. 

The sunshine. The blue skies. The warm temps. 

The Prosecco on the garden swing. 

And that's not the worst of it. I don't mind a little of the white fluffy stuff. 

After all, it is early February. We expect it at this time of year. 

But this winter has been such a tease!

Winter...spring....winter....make up your mind!

The worst part is....we are in for a true arctic blast. 

Just look at that forecast for Saturday. Are you kidding me? Negative 10?

Nothing will survive in the garden. Or the garden cottage. 

That's the end of it all. 

Daisy (AKA The Monkey) has the right idea. This is the kind of white fluffy stuff I want to spend time in at this point. 

Did I ever tell you one of Daisy's many, many nicknames is Squish? 

I don't remember why, it's been so long now....perhaps because she squishes every single pillow in the house into her own cozy little warm nest. 

Squish says that Spring has been Squashed. 

Thanks for nothing, Squish. 

Bold brat. 

Potato Soup....and Playtime for the Puppies!

I showed you the start of my broth the other night during the storm....well, after about 30 hours on low in the crockpot I came home to this last night:

Just look at all that depth of flavor in there! A chef taught me that tip ages ago....low and slow for broth, let it simmer ever so slightly for at least 24 hours for all the flavors to develop. He's so right, it makes such a difference!

See how rich that is? It's so much deeper and more flavorful than any broth you can buy in the store. 

It was time to make my potato soup!

Such a simple recipe, but so incredibly yummy. 

I gathered my ingredients - 8 potatoes, 2 large onions, one head of garlic. 

Rough chop on the onions and into the pot with a bit of olive oil. I let them saute for a bit until they were good and soft while I got the garlic peeled and minced. 

I made a hole in the center of the onions, dropped in a pat of butter, and browned the garlic in the center. Just until golden, to release the flavors. 

In went the broth and the peeled and quartered potatoes. 

The lid went on, and it needed about a half hour to simmer, until the potatoes were really tender. 

Meanwhile, while I was slaving away in the kitchen (ha ha) it was playtime in the living room:

Every time my sweetie goes off the mountain he comes back with "be-prizes" for the babies. He spoils them rotten!!

This time he brought back a little fuzzy squeaky football and a fuzzy squeaky dumbell.

Because of the Superbowl, of course! 

The Monkey got the football and Tubs got the dumbell. 

Before you knew it, the Monkey had stolen the dumbell....and Tubs had the football. 

They were playing so happily with their new toys, running around, squeaking them....ripping off bits of fuzz and leaving it all over my house. The usual!

Meanwhile, the potatoes were tender and I gave the soup a whiz around with my immersion blender. 

I added about a half cup of half & half, as the soup was a bit thick. 

I also added about a cup of grated cheddar. 

Just because....hello? Cheese!

Ready to serve - let's call the troops in for dinner!

And then I found this. The Monkey had managed to steal the football back from Tubs and now she had both toys. And she would grumble any time poor Tubs went anywhere near her. Bold little cheeky brat, she is!

Dinner is served!  Hot sandwiches with a bowl of creamy potato soup. I topped the soup with about a tbs of chopped lower sodium bacon (I pre-cook the bacon and keep it in the freezer) and some chopped scallions. 

The soup was absolutely delicious! Guess what's for lunch today? 

After her belly was full the little bold Monkey took a nap in front of the fire with both toys beside her. 

Poor Tubs doesn't stand a chance!

~~~~~~~~~~~

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