Pineapple Quiche

I finished knitting my pineapple bag and finally finished finishing it!  In this case, I had to weave in all the loose ends of thread which can be a tedious and hateful job.  That little pile of thread is all that's left of those beginnings and endings of thread skeins.  Had I been thinking, I would have taken a "before" picture with all the threads hanging out.  The bag is inside out in this picture and is quite pretty even on the wrong side.

Finishing also involves blocking which is something I never fully appreciated until recent years.  When you knit anything, it is a lump of yarn until you block it into shape.  Blocking is very similar to what we do when we wash and set our own hair.  The item is thoroughly soaked to fully saturate the fibers and then layed out and pinned into shape so it dries and "sets" the way you want it.  I had to get a little creative and stretch this over a canister and then thread tiny knitting needles through the leaf tips to bring out the points.

I wanted to line it since it is lacy with openings in the stitches.  I did some measuring and math (pi and all that) to assemble an inner bag with a circular bottom.  That is some bronze colored acetate fabric I had in my stash.  It is beautiful and shiny but very slippery and it frays if you look at it wrong.  I just hope no frayed edges show or poke through the open areas of the knitting.

I impressed even myself with the nice fit of the lining.  I hand stitched it to the knitted bag while Marek was napping yesterday.

Here is a shot looking down into the bag at the lining.  I'm still trying to decide how and where I want to thread the cording for the drawstring.

Finally here is my glamour shot of the pineapple next to the real thing.  Dave stood against the wall to hold the bag while I took the picture.  It has been cloudy and raining all day and this is the most lit area of the house at the moment.

Here is a closer up shot.  I was so worried the bits of green in the thread would be too overpowering but it gets quite lost in the variegation.  It really is more yellow than anything.  There are gold beads on the tip of each nub but they don't really stand out.  If I ever make another one of these, I might skip them altogether, or at least I wouldn't be heart broken if I did.  And again, I'm not totally happy with how I have the drawstring at the moment.  I like drawing the base of the leaves together but then the tops flop over.  I could draw it together towards the tops of the leaves but then I don't like the shape of the fruit.  I'll have to tinker with it.

And now for the quiche!  I got to take an unexpected but totally welcome vacation day today owing to a utility failure in my department at work.  While Marek was napping today, I decided to fire up the oven on a terribly humid and warm day!  I've been suggesting a quiche to David for some time and he always says no.  I decided to just make one to show him what he was missing!  Quiche is basically a baked omelet in a crust.

I used this recipe as a guide/inspiration and basically cleaned out the fridge.  I love hiding as many vegetables as possible in our food.  In this case there is sauteed red pepper, red onion, mushrooms, asparagus and chopped spinach in here.  I also put a little diced ham and some grated cheese in it.  When I was growing up and learning to cook, I'd make quiche with hash browns, cheese and bacon only.  Is it any wonder I got fat?  I partially blame it on my upbringing because in my rural and isolated hometown, you just plain could not purchase fresh vegetables locally.  My parents still live there and their nearest grocery store is now 11 miles away.  Growing up we could get fresh potatoes and onions, apples, oranges and maybe bananas.  Vegetables came frozen and fruit came in a can.  I've been so spoiled ever since moving to "the city" because I can buy whatever I want or need at the supermarkets.

Marek and I went to his well baby appointment yesterday and he got more shots.  He was such a good boy though and flirted and smiled with everyone he encountered.  He is such a happy kid!  I'm always amazed when I take him out in public because people stop left and right to wave and interact with him.  He must get his charm from his mother!  ;)