Vegetarian hundred (two hundred..)

This is from http://www.tigersandstrawberries.com/2008/09/04/the-vegetarian-hundred/

1. Real macaroni and cheese, made from scratch and baked
2. Tabouleh
3. Freshly baked bread, straight from the oven (preferably with homemade strawberry jam)
4. Fresh figs
5. Fresh pomegranate
6. Indian dal of any sort
7. Imam bayildi
8. Pressed spiced Chinese tofu
9. Freshly made hummus
10. Tahini
11. Kimchi
12. Miso
13. Falafel
14. Potato and pea filled samosas
15. Homemade yogurt
16. Muhammara
17. Brie en croute
18. Spanikopita
19. Fresh, vine-ripened heirloom tomatoes
20. Insalata caprese
21. Stir-fried greens (gai lan, bok choi, pea shoots, kale, chard or collards)
22. Freshly made salsa
23. Freshly made guacamole
24. Creme brulee
25. Fava beans
26. Chinese cold sesame peanut noodles
27. Fattoush
28. New potatoes
29. Coleslaw
30. Ratatouille
31. Baba ganoush
32. Winter squash
33. Roasted beets
34. Baked sweet potatoes
35. Plantains
36. Chocolate truffles
37. Garlic mashed potatoes
38. Fresh water chestnuts
39. Steel cut oats
40. Quinoa
41. Grilled portabello mushrooms
42. Chipotle en adobo
43. Stone ground whole grain cornmeal
44. Freshly made corn or wheat tortillas
45. Frittata
46. Basil pesto
47. Roasted garlic
48. Raita of any type
49. Mango lassi
50. Jasmine rice (white or brown)
51. Thai vegetarian coconut milk curry (dont really like coconut or lemongrass so I avoid Thai)
52. Pumpkin in any form other than pie
53. Fresh apple pear or plum gallette
54. Quince in any form
55. Escarole, endive or arugula
56. Sprouts other than mung bean
57. Naturally brewed soy sauce
58. Dried shiitake mushrooms
59. Unusually colored vegetables (purple cauliflower, blue potatoes, chocolate bell peppers…)
60. Fresh peach ice cream
61. Chevre
62. Medjool dates
63. Kheer
64. Flourless chocolate cake
65. Grilled corn on the cob (straight from the allotment!)
66. Black bean (or any other bean) vegetarian chili
67. Tempeh
68. Seitan or wheat gluten
69. Gorgonzola or any other blue veined cheese
70. Sweet potato fries
71. Homemade au gratin potatoes
72. Cream of asparagus soup
73. Artichoke-Parmesan dip
74. Mushroom risotto
75. Fermented black beans
76. Garlic scapes
77. Fresh new baby peas
78. Kalamata olives
79. Preserved lemons
80. Fried green tomatoes
81. Chinese scallion pancakes
82. Cheese souffle
83. Fried apples
84. Homemade frijoles refritos
85. Pasta fagiole
86. Macadamia nuts in any form
87. Paw paw in any form
88. Grilled cheese sandwich of any kind
89. Paneer cheese
90. Ma Po Tofu (vegetarian style–no pork!)
91. Fresh pasta in any form
92. Grilled leeks, scallions or ramps
93. Green papaya salad
94. Baked grain and vegetable stuffed tomatoes
95. Pickled ginger
96. Methi greens
97. Aloo paratha
98. Kedgeree (the original Indian version without the smoked fish, not the British version with fish)
99. Okra
100. Roasted brussels sprouts
---------------------------------------------------------
Now to add the other main one (but I will exclude any duplicates)
Feel free to play along. Rules are the same as the Omnivore's Hundred, bold the ones you've had and cross off the ones you aren't interested in trying. Feel free to leave a comment over at Feeding Maybelle with your results! Note: "?" links to what it is in case you need to know.

1. Edamame (?) (my favourite thing to eat in the world)
   
2. Cha Soba (?)
3. Arame(?)
   
4. Earth Balance Buttercream
   
5. "Homemade" sprouts
   
6. Green Bamboo Rice (?)
   
7. Absinthe
   
8. Eat at a raw restaurant
   
9. Fresh (real) wasabi (can't get it easily over here)
   
10. Deep fried pickle
    
11. Fiddleheads (?)
    
12. Garlic stuffed olives
    
13. Smen (?)
    
14. Goji Berries (?)
    
15. Shiso or Perilla (?) /
    
16. Amaranth (?)
    
17. Pomegranate molasses (?)
    
18. Water convulvulus (Water Spinach) (?)
    
19. Pea eggplant, Thai eggplant, green eggplant, Japanese eggplant, Indian eggplant, Sicilian eggplant...
    
20. A Zen Buddhist Vegan Meal (?)
    
21. Kohya Dofu (?)
    
22. Wild Asparagus (?)
    
23. Elderberry (?)
    
24. Candlenuts (kemiri) (?)
    
25. Salsify (?)
    
26. Nutritional Yeast (?)
    
27. Pandan (?)
    
28. Roman cauliflower(?)
    
29. Anything with acorn flour (?)
    
30. Poi (?)
    
31. Chaya (tree spinach) (?)
32. Pitahaya (dragon fruit) (?)
    
33. Asafoetida (?)
    
34. Fried plantains
    
35. Basil seeds (?)
    
36. Cardoon(?)
    
37. Durian (?)
    
38. Ground Cherry or cape gooseberry (?)
    
39. Fresh waterchestnut (?)
    
40. Cashewnut cheese
    
41. Nettles (?)
    
42. Fake duck from a can, tofurky, or any prepared vegetarian product to resemble meat
    
43. Kimchi (?)
    
44. Masala Dosa (?)
    
45. Lotus Seed (?)
    
46. Matcha (?)
    
47. Loubie Bzeit (?)
    
48. Quince (?)
    
49. Blue Potatoes (?)
    
50. Injera (?)
    
51. Nasturtium (?)
    
52. Turkish Delight or Lokum (?)
    
53. Spruce tips (?)
    
54. Breadfruit (?)
    
55. Mangosteen (?)
    
56. Swede or Rutabaga (?)
    
57. Garlic Scapes (?)
    
58. Lavash (?)
    
59. Candied Angelica (?) (But I am growing some)
    
60. Rambutan (?)
    
61. Sambal (?)
    
62. Bhutanes Red Rice (?)
    
63. Candy-cane or Chioggia beets (?)
    
64. Mango
    
65. Ras el Hanout(?)
    
66. Vegan marshmallow (?)
    
67. Umeboshi (?)
    
68. Red Currants (?)
    
69. Puy or French lentils (?)
    
70. Millet (?) (I have some in the cupboard)
    
71. Fresh Bamboo shoot (?)
    
72. Jerusalem artichoke (?)
    
73. Wild strawberry (?)
    
74. Jambool (?)
    
75. Po cha or Yak butter Tea (?)
    
76. Adzuki beans (?)
    
77. Shirataki (?)
    
78. Manioc, yuca, cassava (?)
    
79. Quinoa (?)
    
80. Ramps (?)
    
81. Chufa (?)
    
82. Purslane (?)
    
83. Curry Leaves (Kadipatta) (?)
    
84. Sorrel (?)
    
85. Sumac (?)
    
86. Vegan cupcake
    
87. Montreal bagel (?)
    
88. Peri-peri (?)
    
89. Syllabub (?)
    
90. Chartreuse (?) (*gasp* I luuuurve Chartreuse...still)
    
91. Kamut berries (?)
    
92. Kalamansi Lime (?)
    
93. Aloe (?)
    
94. Morels (?)
    
95. Raw “bread”
    
96. Dandelion wine
    
97. Rosti (?)
    
98. Loomi(?)
    
99. Stinky tofu (?)
    
100. Something grown by you

Hmmm. I need to work on some of these...

Foodie meme, stolen from Heather :)

If you have questions about the list go here for answers.

Here’s the rules:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment at www.verygoodtaste.co.uk (the origin of the meme) linking to your results.

Clairefun's Omnivore’s Hundred:

1. Venison (not now I'm vegetarian)
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile (n.n.i.v.)
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush (will have to look this up..?)
11. Calamari
12. Pho (mmmm, Pho...aw man I need some Pho now)
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi (often)
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses (to look up)
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras (veggie!)
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper (no thank you!)
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda (?)
31. Wasabi Peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac (with a cigar)
37. Clotted cream tea (I was born in the west country so this one goes without saying...)
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects</p>

43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer (I even made it, once)
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

I don't know what half of these are, and most of the rest I wouldn't eat any more 'cause I'm vegetarian. Hmm, I wonder...?

It's autumn and no mistake

I've just got back from walking the boy to school and brrrr, I've got that cheeks-been-slapped look to my face (oh yes, always a stylish look for me...). Luckily, I have the knitting to keep me warm! (and the tea, which hubby made this morning as we *think* I'm coming down with the boys cold...). I've finished the twisted drop stitch blanket and it's very cosy and rather lovely - I'll add the pattern as soon as my ravelry user is merged with my ravelry designer profiles - and now I'm making the boy a hat - again, couldn't find the exact pattern I was after so I'm making it myself - dk in the round with a ribbed brim and loads of teeny little stripes - he chose the colours he wanted, and I shall bust my stash to use them! (well, at very least the little odds and ends left over from other things).

My other works in progress are Christmas knits - socks for Uncle Peter, Rose's wristwarmers for my sister, a jute 'gardening bag' for my mum, a knitted police tape scarf for one cousin, a more grown-up cabled scarf for another cousin and for my nephew, a scarf for my mother-in-law...that's all I've started so far but obviously I have more I need to do. Waiting for some wool to arrive for my sister-in-laws bag, and I still don't know what to do for the boy or his 4 year old cousin. I need to add the ears / bow to the Hello Kitty hat for my 5 year sister-in-law and I need to crochet 2 bears, one for Nana and one for baby-brother-in-law. Hats for the father-in-law and the mother-in-laws boyfriend, and I'm not sure what to do for hubbys grandma either. Still, it's mid-to-late September and overall I don't think I'm doing too bad.

Other stuff to do today? Finish placing a Tesco order (boo, hiss, there goes all my green credentials), play about on 'Lil Green Patch' - yes, the facebook application, have a problem with that? - browse about on Ravelry just for the joy of it, and this afternoon do some more tidying of lounge and kitchen, as Ant is coming over to see us tonight and we'd really rather he didn't think we live in a hellhole. Even if we do.

Photographs tomorrow of the hat-in-progress and maybe something else...betcha can't wait,, huh?

Link / Legend of Zelda gloves

I was desperate to knit something 'cool' for my 15 year old nephew's birthday, and one thing we share is that we like to cosplay - I tend to do anime characters, and he does Link, from the Legend of Zelda games (and is pretty good!). He had 'gauntlet issues' once and decided he wouldn't be wearing them, so I came up with these - gloves he could wear while cosplaying, but that also would not look out of place at school or on a 'normal' day with his friends, whilst still showing his love of Link. After a few dry runs, I decided that knitting flat and duplicate stitching on after was my preferred way, though obviously this is a fairly simple and extremely adaptable pattern, and you should be able to convert it to knitting in the round easily enough.

I used KellesBelle's triforce chart for the duplicate stitched pattern. She's kindly allowed me to link to it, and if you like the Linky goodness here, you should also check out her Link scarf and hat pattern (I wonder if my nephew would like the hat...?). They're entirely made of awesome.

I used Sirdar Click Chunky with wool (2 skeins, but it didn't use all of it) and size 6.5mm needles (US size 10 1/2). The Click chunky is an acrylic and wool blend, so washable, but still soft. For the tri-force itself I used a cheap acrylic dk weight! The colour was more important than anything else...but sadly I don't have the details anymore. (If I can hunt them down I'll edit this post, pesky ball bands!)

THE PATTERN (wait for it...it's *really* complex...)
Cast on 40 st and work in 2x2 rib for 8 rows.
Work in st st until desired length, and finish with 8 rows of 2x2 ribbing again. Cast off in pattern.
Sew the sides together, leaving a thumbhole.
Duplicate stitch THIS chart onto the back.
Weave in ends!

Tricky, huh? Though, if you have any problems, please give us a shout, I'll be happy to help.
Hope you enjoy it and please show me any you do! Oh and - DON'T SELL THIS PATTERN OR ANYTHING MADE WITH IT, thank you very much.

Keeping track of the obsession, 10 months in...

I am currently knitting :

• Rose's Wristwarmers (about half way through 1st glove)
• Regia Kaffe Fassett socks (done about 1/3 of one sock)
• Wish Scarf (Roughly halfway)
• Hello Kitty Hat (Only just cast on today)
• Yo Drop It scarf (Only cast on today)
• Police tape scarf (as far as 'police lin')
• Grace shawl (enough to know it's beautiful, enough to know it will take me forever...)
• Frankie bear (well alright, that one's crochet).

I also plan to make in the next 3 months :

• - skull & crossbones wristband (a birthday gift)
  
• - Mighty Boosh wristband to wear when I see them live
  
• - Mary Mary jute gardening bag
• - 2x quick and easy cabled scarf
• - a blanket
• - knitting bag
• - fuzzy dice
• - another crochet bear
• - photo frames or tea cosy or something grandmotherly
• - a hat for the boy
• - something fun for my 4 year old nephew
• - another pair of Regia socks
• – Helping hat
• - very warm hat

In the last 10 months (that's as long as I've been knitting!) I have finished :

• 2 x pairs baby booties
• 2 x garter stitch scarves
• 1 x kitsch kerchief
• 2 x Instant Gratification scarves
  
• 3x Yo! Drop It scarves
• 1 x skull & crossbones wristband
• 1 x 'geek' wristband
• 1 x stormtrooper wristband
• 1 x 'foxy' wristband
• 1 x Miyavi wristband
• 1 x pr fingerless gloves a la Sweeney Todd
• 1 x pair fingerless gloves a la Link / Legend of Zelda
• 1 x Banana Republic Hat
• 1 x Pro Bono hat
• 1 x neckwarmer
• 1 x bear
• 1 x slippers
• 1 x skull & crossbones tote bag
• 1 x tie
• 1 x headband
• 1 x Branching Out scarf
• 1 x Bride & Groom dolls
• 2 x chainmail armours
• 1 x chainmail helmet

And to make as soon as I can :

• a school jumper for the boy.
• more Rose's Wristwarmers
• a baby apple hat
• a baby yoda hat
• 2 x pairs baby socks
• 1 x baby kimono
• 1 x baby cardigan?
• lots of baby bibs
• a music/guitary wristband
• a Jack Skellington wristband
• a topsy turvy cinderella doll
• a grocery bag holder
• a loo roll holder
• a beret
• a husbandy satchel
• a set of coasters & placemats
• a husbandy jumper
• a cat bed.

I can't think about anything else. I hope this will help...

Knitting Meme

Knitting Meme

Here’s what the formatting stands for:

Bold = have already tried this
Italicized = Plan to try this
Unemphasized = Have no desire to try this

• Afghan
• I-cord
• Garter stitch
• Knitting with metal wire
• Shawl
• Stockinette stitch
• Socks: top-down
• Socks: toe-up
• Knitting with camel yarn
• Mittens: Cuff-up
• Mittens: Top to Cuff
• Hat
• Knitting with silk
• Moebius band knitting
• Participating in a KAL
• Sweater
• Drop Stitch Pattern
• Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
• Slip stitch patterns
• Knitting with banana fibre yarn
• Domino knitting
• Twisted stitch patterns
• Knitting with bamboo yarn
• Two end knitting
• Charity knitting
• Knitting with soy yarn
• Cardigan
• Toy/doll clothing
• Knitting with circular needles
• Baby items
• Knitting with your own handspun
• Slippers
• Graffiti knitting
• Continental knitting
• Designing knitted garments
• Cable stitch patterns
• Lace patterns
• Publishing a knitting book
• Scarf
• Teaching a child to knit
• American/English knitting
• Knitting to make money
• Buttonholes
• Knitting with alpaca
• Fair Isle knitting
• Norweigan Knitting
• Dyeing with plant colors
• Knitting items for a wedding
• Household items
• Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on two circulars
• Olympic knitting
• Knitting with someone else’s handspun yarn
• Knitting with dpns
• Holiday-related knitting
• Teaching a male how to knit
• Bobbles
• Knitting for a living
• Knitting with cotton
• Knitting smocking
• Dyeing yarn
• Steeks
• Knitting art
• Fulling/felting
• Knitting with wool
• Textured knitting
• Kitchener BO
• Purses/bags
• Knitting with beads
• Swatching
• Long Tail CO
• Entrelac
• Knitting and purling backwards
• Machine knitting
• Knitting with self patterning/self striping/variegating yarn
• Stuffed toys
• Knitting with cashmere
• Darning
• Jewelry
• Knitting with synthetic yarn
• Writing a pattern
• Gloves
• Intarsia
• Knitting with linen
• Knitting for preemies
• Tubular CO
• Freeform knitting
• Short rows
• Cuffs/fingerless mitts/armwarmers
• Pillows
• Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine (Knitty.com)
• Rug
• Knitting on a loom
• Knitting a gift
• Knitting for pets
• Shrug/bolero/poncho
• Knitting with dog/cat hair
• Hair accessories
• Knitting in public