Chirping, Chipping And Cooking

The spring bird migrations are finally occurring. We have had flocks of geese flying overhead. Last week a flock of crows had briefly graced our yard. There are lots of sparrows, juncos, and at least one pair of red polls visiting the feeders. They're singing outside the windows. They've drawn in a hawk that's patrolling the trees. Several flocks of robins have used our yard as a way station on their way farther north. It's so nice to see those sparks of bright red against the snowy-white backdrop of the yard. (Yes, we're still really white up here, way beyond the Middle of Nowhere.)

This morning we were thrilled to see a large bluejay flitting about. He sounded like a cat, going mew-mew. He sat on the feeder that usually holds larger seeds. I'm afraid it's empty now since there's an expanse of deep, wet, melting snow between it and my back door. Soon it should be such that the snow won't be deeper than my muck boots and I can refill it. I know he was looking for sunflower seeds. We also saw our first meadowlark of the season out in front of the house.

The ice chipping in front of the walk-in door of the garage was successfully competed Saturday afternoon. That door is now fully operational again. It's just too bad that we again have snow in the forecast! There's also the possibility of rain, which would certainly help speed up the melting of the snow that's still here. One of these days I'll be able to actually see the dirt of my garden space.

One of my Missouri nieces had sent me a mushroom growing kit so I'm doing a bit more indoor gardening now. (She also sent one to each of my siblings.) It arrived around the 19th. I should have dated the box when I started it. I think that happened a couple days later. We're so busy with the social distancing, you know. I'm harvesting my first crop today, so we'll enjoy them with my heated up pork loin. (Yes, Dennis does eat mushrooms!) I'll cook some green peas to liven up my plate. I'll use this recipe for the 'shrooms.

Oyster Mushrooms

2 Tbl olive oil

12 oz oyster mushrooms

3 cloves garlic, crushed

5 sprigs thyme

2 Tbl ghee OR butter

Salt & pepper to taste

Cut mushrooms into bite-sized pieces, discarding tough stems. Heat oil in large skillet over medium high heat. Spread 'shrooms out in a single layer. Cook, undisturbed, 3-5 minutes, until they start to brown. Stir and cook another 3-5 minutes, until browned all over. Add ghee/butter, garlic, and thyme to skillet. Reduce hear to low, spooning the ghee/butter over the 'shrooms, until dark brown and crispy. Remove thyme, and add salt and pepper to taste.

I'd used a new recipe for the pork loin, but cooked it in the Instant Pot rather than the oven. It was a warm day, so didn't want to heat up the kitchen. I messed up the pineapple sauce royally by mistakenly using baking soda instead of cornstarch. It foamed up all over the stovetop. The taste was horrid, and I wasted a can of pineapple. Don't do that, please. I skipped the strawberries, so at least those didn't get ruined. The meat was nice and tender. I'm sure the sauce will be great the next time I try this. We'll use Sam & Jeff's BBQ sauce on what I heat up today to go with the 'shrooms.

Fresno Pork Roast

3 pounds boneless pork loin roast

1 1/2 tsp rosemary, crushed

1/2 tsp coarsely ground pepper

1 1/2 tsp salt, DIVIDED

1 1/2 Tbl sugar

2 1/2 Tbl cornstarch

1 1/4 C canned pineapple

1 1/4 C orange juice

1/8 tsp ground cloves

2 1/2 Tbl lemon juice

1 pint strawberries

Heat oven to 350°. Rub roast with rosemary, pepper, and 1 tsp salt. Place in shallow roaster and cook 60-70 minutes. Meat thermometer should read 150°. Remove from oven, cover, and let stand 10 minutes. While resting, combine sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Stir in pineapple and juice. Cook, stirring, over medium-high heat until mixture bubbles and thickens. Remove from heat and stir in cloves, lemon juice, and 1/2 tsp salt. Slice meat and serve with sauce. Garnish with strawberries.

Serves 12