Friday, April 26, 2013

variety of stuff... preying mantis, aphids, kalitsounia, fabric art



i've been waiting impatiently for the blessed event in the greenhouse.  a couple of weeks ago, i put a preying mantis egg case strategically placed in the midst of aphid infected arugula and spinach in there.  this is my next hope after the lady bugs betrayed me and jumped ship, leaving all those tasting bugs behind.  i have no idea where the little buggers went, but they deserted easy meals and are gone!  it has been really warm in there this week, so is ideal environment for them.  i probably look like a real nut case... out there a couple of times a day closely inspecting every plant near where the case is hanging.  nothing so far........
 

this is what a newly hatched nymph will look like.












 

and back in the kitchen... i decided to make kalitsounia, one of my fave Greek eats, last weekend.  they are little cheese pies (sometimes with spinach in them, too).  a bit time-consuming to make, but pretty easy.  you make a dough, roll it thin, cut circles, put cheese mix in the middle, fold one edge over, mash the edge with a fork and then either fry in olive oil or bake.  for the cheese mixture i used mysithra, feta, eggs, minced up fresh mint and seasonings.  i'll post the recipe if anyone wants it.






















i've made some more small banners/hanging/prayer flags for gifts.  they are really fun to make.... using the fabric fusing technique then hand stitching, maybe some beads...  The one on the left is almost finished... just needing some leaves on the flower stems.  the one on the right is still a work in progress. there is a third one in progress... still early in its development.


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