All posts by Nichole

Flotsam / Jetsam

Wings

I was sort of wrong about the wasps’ nest outside our window. I thought it was the beginnings of a nest of the nasty sort of wasps. The maintenance guy, though, tells me that it was a mud daubers’ nest, and he assured me that mud daubers don’t sting. (But they are a type of wasp! So I was a little bit right!) He flicked the nest of the windowsill with his finger. I felt mildly silly.

After solving the nest-on-the-window problem, we uncovered a mystery.

Marsha had cut down another winged invader just before the maintenance guy arrived. I showed the carcass to him, and it apparently wasn’t a mud dauber. Nor was it a hornet. It looked wasp-like to me, but it didn’t appear to have a stinger. Not that I looked very closely. Whatever it was, I don’t like these flying nuisances buzzing around in the house. But the only nest visible was the mud daubers’, so the maintenance guy left without looking into it further.

Which leaves only Marsha to defend us. That’s not a comforting thought.

Domestic Blitz, Flotsam / Jetsam

Rain, insect invasions and sewing

  1. I’ve been hearing distant thunder all afternoon. The storm finally made its way here, and it’s a good one. It’s raining so hard, the trees across the river are hazy. Poppy has been napping for almost two hours now. That’s usually her limit, but with the rain falling on the metal roof, she might be down for another half hour or so.
  2. There’s a wasps’ nest outside one of our windows, and the little beasts have been slowly infiltrating the apartment. Marsha T. Cat has done a valiant job dispatching them — she’s on the prowl as we speak — but I still think I’m going to have maintenance take care of the nest.
  3. I read over the sewing machine manual today and was left quite overwhelmed. So I looked up basic sewing classes in the area. If one of them fits into Rockford’s schedule (so he can be home with Pi), I think I’ll sign up for one.
Eating

There's never a bad time for pie


Lemon Meringue Pie and ice cream might not seem like a natural match, at first. But then the weather gets steamy, you spend all day chasing a toddler on the lawn and popping in and out of the pool and you end your day with a hefty slice of Bon Appetit’s Lemon Meringue Ice Cream Pie. And everything good about summer is right there on your plate.

(Yeah, I really like this pie.)

Lemon Meringue Ice Cream Pie
Lemon curd
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel
Pinch of salt

Crust
1 1/2 cups finely chopped pecans
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted

3 cups vanilla ice cream, slightly softened, divided

Meringue
4 large egg whites, room temperature
Pinch of cream of tartar
6 tablespoons sugar

For lemon curd:
Whisk eggs and egg yolks in medium bowl. Melt butter in medium metal bowl set over large saucepan of simmering water. Whisk in sugar, lemon juice, lemon peel, and salt; gradually whisk in egg mixture. Whisk until thick and thermometer inserted into curd registers 178°F to 180°F, about 8 minutes. Transfer to small bowl. Press plastic wrap on top of curd; chill 4 hours. DO AHEAD Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled.

for crust: Preheat oven to 400°F. Mix pecans, sugar, and butter in medium bowl until moistened. Press pecan mixture onto bottom and up sides of 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish (mixture will be crumbly). Bake until crust is lightly toasted, about 12 minutes (crust will slip down sides of dish). Use back of spoon to press crust back into place. Cool crust on rack. Freeze crust 30 minutes.

Dollop 1 1/2 cups ice cream over crust; spread into even layer. Spread lemon curd over ice cream; freeze until firm, about 2 hours. Dollop 1 1/2 cups softened ice cream over lemon curd; spread into even layer. Cover and freeze until firm, about 2 hours.

For meringue:
Using electric mixer, beat egg whites in medium bowl until frothy. Beat in cream of tartar. With mixer running, gradually add sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Spoon meringue over pie, spreading to seal at edges and swirling decoratively. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Freeze pie. Using kitchen butane torch, toast meringue until golden in spots or place pie in a preheated 500°F oven until meringue is golden in spots, watching to prevent burning, about 3 minutes. Cut pie into wedges; serve immediately.

Bon Appétit, April 2007