My kids have realized that if they insult newbie chef mom’s dessert skills, she will attempt to prove them wrong. This is an eggnog crème brûlée. (And I *can* execute desserts. I just don’t particularly like to eat them. So I don’t make them much.)

Rest in peace, Olive pup. 2008-2022. She came to us one Christmas and she left us this one. A great and awful dog. With a heart full of love for her people, a general hatred of almost all other living creatures, and for a time, a desire to escape any fence that rivaled the velociraptors of Jurassic Park. In her later years, she decided to stick with us, and was our anxious kid’s personal emotional support dog. We will love her forever.

Do you think he thinks they are all for him?

I feel like it was suboptimal to try to get plugged in here during my last month of culinary school—I barely have time to read and post. Two weeks left and then I will have a lot more time. In the meantime, here’s Tinycat and Pablo chilling on my bed.

A late-night #caturday posting, with bonus sleeping dog. This cuddle crew gives me so much happiness.

In today’s #farming trip with my culinary school Farm to Table class, we got to see these happy piggies. They were rooting around in spent Cabernet grapes from a local winery, and spent grains from a local brewery. It turns out that their breed, the mule foot hog, is from the same place as me: where the Arkansas River meets the Mighty Mississippi. And now we all find ourselves in Colorado. #farm #food #farmtotable

Made a quick pear tarte tatin. I topped it with vanilla yogurt to serve. I always have yogurt and rarely have cream. Sweetinening it and adding vanilla, cinnamon, or maple can turn it into a lovely dessert accoutrement.

Yesterday at culinary school I made something I am really proud of. This is a kampachi crudo with cucumber, honeydew melon, chile-pickled beets and radishes, a honeydew herb emulsion, chive sprouts, and furikake. You know you did good when your instructor tells you to plate up portions to take to the instructors in neighboring kitchens. #foodtoot #cooking #seafood #culinaryschool

Realized today is the day we adopted our dog Pablo. He was 7 lbs and we thought he was a border collie mix. He kept getting larger and I started to panic that he was actually a giant breed, so we did the DNA tests. Turns out our bestest boy is half Labrador retriever, half Siberian husky. He now weighs closer to 80 lbs, but stil thinks he is a tiny baby, definitely the same size as the cat. #dogs #mastodog #RescueDogs

When the time changed but your tummy says it’s treato time anyway. #dogs #mastodogs