I Missed Foody Friday

I am so sorry I missed Foody Friday. It wasn't my fault, really! We and over half the state of Maine, woke to no power. Heavy, wet, snow covered the state from top to bottom. No power - no problem for this prepared Mainah. So I thought.

Since I couldn't do the tasks on my list for the day, I headed right out to capture the beauty of an Easter snow storm before it melted. I figured I'd get a quick hike in, come back and cook up something yummy for Foody Friday, then write about it all. Sounded good on paper.

No power isn't usually a problem here. We don't have a generator but we have portable power cells to charge our hand held. It is what I use backpacking to keep my electronics powered when I am out on a trip for a few days. Since I have a hot spot through my cellular carrier and can post from my iPad, laptop, or cell phone, I just knew I would be able to still share with you. And we have a gas stove, so cooking can still be done.

First though, I wanted to capture the snow art Mother Nature left for me. Warning: this post is full of videos and pics. You may find it overwhelming and maybe even a little boring. Not something a writer should confess if they are looking to increase readership, but I like to be honest. I couldn't narrow down the choices, it was all so beautiful. And since I don't have to answer to an editor, I can do what I want.

Enjoy or skip to the bottom for the recipe.

The trail goes through there,

and across there,

and up through there.

Break Time. Mollie's trail end's at the junction of this trail - South Trail. I usually keep going but the snow was much deeper here and the slalom hiking around, under, and over the down trees was quite the workout.

My photography killed my phone. When I got home I went to charge it with my power banks but couldn't find them. That meant I couldn't use my phone's hot spot for my iPad or MacBook to write a post. So much for being prepared. I could still cook though, I just couldn't take pictures of the steps. Just the finished product today when we ate it for leftover lunch.

Nothing warms the belly after a hike, like a bowl of fresh clam-corn chowdah.

Ingredients:

2 medium potatoes - cut into small bite sized pieced

1 can chopped clam

1/2 medium onion - diced

1 cup frozen or canned corn (or cream corn)

1/2 cup frozen peas

1/2 medium carrot - tiny diced

1/2 stalk celery - tiny diced

1 can evaporated milk (or whole milk, or heavy cream)

1/2 stick real butter

salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder

Directions:

Place potatoes, clams, onion, corn, peas, carrot, celery, and seasoning to taste in a 2 quart sauce pan. Add water to just not quite cover veggies. Bring to a boil. Simmer until all veggies are extremely tender and starches release from potatoes. 20 - 30 minutes. Add little amounts of water if necessary. Stir often to keep from sticking.

Once veggies are tender. remove from heat and let set for an hour or so (in frig if you prefer.) About 1/2 an hour from when you want to eat it the soup, reheat. Bring to a boil for a few more minutes til heated through. Only add water if needed. Broth should be thick and limited. Stir to keep from sticking.

When reheated, reduce to a simmer. Add butter and milk. Stir as needed to keep from sticking. DO NOT LET BOIL. When the butter has melted it is ready to eat.

This always tastes better the next day.

I am sorry I wasn't able to post yesterday. This Mainah wasn't as prepared as she thought she was. All my devices are now charged and ready for the next time the lights go out. We didn't get our power back on until last night. At least it came back. Several Mainers are still without it.

Hope you were not too overloaded.

Emily