I'm In Love!!

No, silly, I'm not talking about my iPhone however let it be known that I will never fall out of love with it!

Unfortunately, I am also not talking about a man, as much as I wish that were the case!

I am talking about butter!! Fresh, homemade butter! I came across a recipe to make homemade butter today that I had to try out. It is quite simply, the easiest recipe you'll ever try. Here it is:

2 C. Heavy Cream
Pinch Kosher Salt

Whip heavy cream in food processor, adding pinch of kosher salt. Continuing whipping 6-10 minutes. The cream will soon begin looking like very thick whipped cream. Then it will begin to form a ball and the liquid will separate. Remove excess liquid and place butter in a dish. You can save the (buttermilk) liquid to use in pancakes or baked "fried" chicken. Most awesome.

And, of course, homemade butter is the perfect accompaniment to homemade buttermilk biscuits!

Buttermilk Biscuits

4 Cups all-purpose or flour (White Lilly or cake flour)
2 Tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
8 Tablespoons unsalted butter
2 Cups buttermilk

Mix dry ingredients. Using a pastry cutter, cut butter into dry mixture until it resembles coarse meal. Add buttermilk and mix gently until combined. Roll out on floured surface 1/2-inch thick. Cut with round cutter. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes until golden brown.

Enjoy with your fresh butter!!

Success!!

I adopted my dear Sami (formerly Oakland Scarboro) back in June of 2009. In the beginning, I tried to teach her to sit using the "tuck" method. She was totally against me trying to tuck her, instead acting as if I were about to cut off her back legs. I tried backing her into a corner, but that didn't work. I tried backing her into a hill and that didn't work. I temporarily gave up thinking she might just be one of those dogs who would NEVER sit!!

Some time had passed and I thought I would try again. This time, oddly enough, she was amenable to me tucking her back legs to position her in a sit. It took about two weeks of nightly training and then we were at a Meet and Greet two weekends ago and like magic, she just sat!! All on her own (and on command) and for a stranger who happened to be there with treats!! It wasn't even with me!! I stood there screaming and jumping in excitement. I was afraid I had scared her to death with my antics and she would never do it again, but alas, while we were sitting at a restaurant down the street from the M&G grabbing a late lunch she surprised me again. Lo and behold, out of the corner of my eye, I see this most beautiful sight!!

Now, as you can imagine, I can hardly get her butt off the ground. She has definitely made the association with her sitting and her getting a treat, and of course, with the "sit" command! I am so very proud of my girl. She really is a smart cookie!

This past weekend we were lure coursing in Cartersville . This was the first trial since Sami's toe amputation in January. She did fairly well, however, I could tell she did have some difficulty managing the turns and she was not nearly as fast as she had been. The sluggishness I can chaulk up to not being in shape and the turning thing is definitely her getting used to not having all of that toe and the nail that she might otherwise use to plant in the ground when turning.

Although she placed last in her category (took NBQ out of five entries) and Lucy placed 2nd out of two entries in her category, I cannot say that the coursing day was all that successful as far as placements go, however, neither sustained any injuries and both had a marvelous time running the course! And I had a grand time hanging with my coursing buddies. All in all, it was a VERY successful day.

Couple that with Sami's success with sitting plus Second Chance Greyhounds sent six new Greyhounds to the prison program last week and we adopted three this past weekend - I have to say the last few weeks have been very successful!

I am very grateful for all that I have! Life is good!!