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As mentioned in my last post (one that will no doubt be stolen by fish and echoed by ZRM), we spied a sign on our trip up North that touted a little diner's "Sandwich of the Month".
(photo correction by ZRM)
The sandwich, as you can clearly see, is the Piggy Bomber. We did not care to stop in on our way there and did not have time on our way back, but we were curious as to what constitutes a "Piggy Bomber"... what amount of pork and what kinds of pork... I was certain that a Piggy Bomber was a relative of the Pork Snorkel...
Well? Any guesses?
Grizzled called for the exact contents, which will be revealed at a later date... that is if fish doesn't steal them first.
Ok, after commentary over at fish's, I decided I was going to have to attempt a Peep Jell-O mold. It was a bust.
First problem... not totally unexpected... Peeps are too buoyant to want to stay immersed in semi-set Jell-O. One way around this would be to pour a thin amount of Jell-O into a bowl, set Peeps in, let set, repeat with more Jell-O, let set, etc, etc, etc. I don't have time for that, but I'm sure at some point in the future, I'll become obsessed with the notion and will try. For now? Not doing it.
I did attempt to keep squawking Peeps submerged with a plate. Problem #2... Jell-O adheres to the plate when removed, thus leaving a direct exit for Peeps.
I settled on semi-immersed and continued to push them farther down as the Jell-O set, but not so far as to cause them to come popping back out at me.
After a few hours of setting, it was time to "unmold"! They were not as well-placed as I would have liked, but they would do. You'd still see a Peep looking as though it was covered in that red slime from Poltergeist.
I turned the bowl over a plate. I slowly released my creation... and what happened? Peeps came shooting out, ripping the Jell-O apart! It was like an alien birth! There was no keeping these Peeps down! They all literally shot free from the gelatinous bonds of the Jell-O. One of the dogs got two that actually launched themselves out far enough to be snagged mid-air or on the ground.
The youngest lamblet asked if she could taste one. Knowing this was going to come up at some point, I had decided to use fresh Peeps instead of the previously "gently used" Peeps. I said, sure. Have at it. She went to grab it and shrieked, "Eeewww!! It feels like fish!!!"
Well, who are we to judge...
I took one, as did the eldest guinea pig... the youngest was correct. They were incredibly slimy with just a hint of remaining sugar on them. The other odd thing? There was a crunchy addition that was not there before... a crunchy thing that was larger than sugar granules, but completely without flavor. What morphed out of my Jell-O or Peep coating to make that odd, occasional crunch?? A crunch that made you feel like the Peep had been dropped on the floor and picked up something else.. like a bit of wax. Maybe it was wax. I'll have to check the Peep package.
Anyhow... the Explaining Voice section of the comments is now open! Have at it!
I've been working on cookies for the past day or so... my painted cookies. They take awhile. It dawned on me yesterday that this is the 25th year I've made them. What started as a lark in college... a new surface to try to paint on, a new way to impress a particular boy, has stuck with me through my life.
There were many years when I used them to supplement my income. During these years, I'd literally crank out hundreds. It became an assembly line of production, even the painting part... paint the rough on all cookies, paint the sky, do the shadows, paint the red, paint the green... etc, etc, etc, until I got to the very end and put the "dimensional snow" on the ones that called for it. One job I had during my younger years was hand-coloring engravings... this was good prep for the cookies. I came to hate the process of hand-coloring engravings... there were also times I hated these cookies, and yet I had to make them. I was always too happy once the snow dots went on and I saw penguins and snowmen smiling back at me.
After the lamblets appeared, I stopped cranking out mass quantities, but would do a few dozen for special things. When the lamblets were old enough, this included making enough to send to school with them. At times I would cringe, but would then hear wails of "But Mommmmmmmm!!! You're the only person who can do this! NO ONE ELSE CAN! Pleeeeeeze!" And I'd make them...
When they were very young, I was perfect in their eyes. I could do anything, know anything, be anything. As they mature, the cracks in my superhero suit have appeared with increasing speed. One day, no doubt, the entire suit will crumble and fall to the floor, revealing the mere human who's been there all along. It's right, it's the way it should be... but I'm not ready to give it all up yet... as far as they believe, no other human or machine can make my cookies... and so I make them again...
As the holiday activities increase, blogging will most likely slow down or stop altogether. Here's wishing everyone a wonderful whatever it is they celebrate... life is good.
This is what Grizzled says I say whenever I'm working on something. I don't like being watched when I work... Not sure why... I guess it's because I know all of the ugly spots you go through before you get to the end. I also know of all of the wonderful spots that get lost along the way... you don't want proof that those existed and someone looking at it midway might remember. I'm getting better though... a little more willing to show the process, or my process.
And yes, if this looks familiar, it should.
Update: Trying to keep it amped up while toning down what needs to be... however, finding I just want to scrub and scumble. I'm not going to though; I'm doing this in a number of ways and am trying to keep each in their own category. Also, just posting this so I can see the difference from the morning... if there is one. While I thought the bowl would be trouble, the ice cream (something I've easily knocked out before) is being problematic. The actual "scoops" weren't pretty, but I'm trying to adjust them a tad. That little bit on the top is way too dog turdish-like... While it was in the original, it may have to go away altogether and I may have to make stereotypical scoops. The reflection from the bowl is still way over the top, but I'm not minding that... it's its own creature. And... I'm loving the stupid strawberries on the bottom right. It's silly, they're pretty much exactly as they were on the tablecloth, but they're working some kind of brain-tickle magic.
Update II: dog-turd-like chunkule on the top has been eradicated. However... IT'S STILL NOT FINISHED... even fish's take on it, is still not finished...
Now see... this is a case where I was thinking vast forward movements had been made between photo one and two, but looking at that movement on the top... apparently... if the painting were at the eye Dr and had heard, "Better #1 or #2?", it would have said, "#1".
Live and learn.
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