use real butter

On Saturday, I did something odd and decided to ditch kayaking in favor of exploring Seattle. I don’t typically enjoy urban exploration, but when you’re in a lovely setting with great character and even better hosts, then it is hard to pass up. Erin and Caroline are the perfect tour guides, much like Jerad and Kell of Sydney. Here’s my tour of Seattle in pictures. Unfortunately, it doesn’t capture everything we did!

**Jump for more butter**

Recipe: tea jellies

When thunderstorms rage overhead, I try not to work on the computer. So this afternoon I busied myself in the kitchen cleaning the dishes listening to the sound of hail pounding on the deck and roof of the house. It lasted a little longer than anticipated and I wound up digging through the cupboards, looking for something to trigger an idea.

Summer calls for refreshing food, which is why I love salads, fruits, cold dishes, iced drinks, and jellies. A child of the 70s, I actually ate a lot of Jello&trade, not jellies. Although I did eat almond gelatin with fruit, grass jelly, and lemon agar jelly – all Chinese desserts, I didn’t get the full scope of Asian jellies available to the masses until I began frequenting Asian grocery stores in college. These days you’ll find an assortment of tiny jelly cups with a piece of jackfruit suspended in the matrix. They are delicious and apparently deadly if swallowed incorrectly. I imagine that would apply to almost anything though.

**Jump for more butter**

It’s a good thing that I don’t particularly care for the taste of white chocolate because I find I like working with white chocolate even less. I tried out my new sheet mold today, just so I could see what it turns out and maybe even play with some luster dust.