Clouds Roll in for The Day, Heat Loss, Instant Pot Cheesecake

Elephant Butte Lake State Park, NM

On Thursday, Nov. 21^st I woke at 5:30 and remained curled up in bed for another half hour before slipping out. We didn't get into bed last night until after 10:30, that's more like it! Bill was stirring but didn’t get up right away so I went downstairs and finished the last 2 chapters of my book. When Bill came down, it was light enough outside for me to go for my walk. It was still warm, 53F. No sooner did I step out in my hoodie and vest when I felt light drops on my face and my glasses became speckled.

Looking to the northwest, that black you see is clouds

I put my hood up, slipped my glasses into my pocket and decided it would just be a short walk around the 3 levels. However, the rain stopped before I got to the corner so I did the loop to C (lower than us) and then up across loop A. No one was out at the Francis residence so I figured Higgy had already been out. I wasn’t cold by any means, but I was still glad to have my little mini gloves when my hands were out of the pockets.

the 2nd of 3 rainbows viewed today
I missed the first one

Texting Donna (had to take one glove off to do that) she informed me that back home they were having a mild stretch, +2 and +4C and their snow was gone. She was happy that this ‘heat wave’ was supposed to last through to Monday. With the rain stopped, I walked out the main road and took a left onto the gravel that took me southeast and then further east down to the beach area. I should call it Gourd Alley as that is where the coyote gourds grow.

On my morning walk, a different sunrise 

I gathered 4, 2 for me and 2 for Jo-Anne just for Thanksgiving decorations. Then we can toss them back for the critters. Bill and I were told last week when we asked an American that Thanksgiving was Nov. 21^st so we didn’t check our own calendar. We should have done that as last night Jo-Anne said that it wasn’t until the 28^th. LOL. We were misinformed and weren’t any the wiser so bought a small $8 turkey on Tuesday at Walmart. We planned on sharing it with our friends.

the host on Level C has a following

Aren't they adorable

We can still share it and it is dated to remain in the fridge until Dec. 3. Saves me from finding room in the freezer, which is what we wanted to avoid originally with the purchase of a fresh bird. After returning from my walk, my tea tasted wonderful. I sat with Bill reading blogs and then I searched a recipe on Instant Pot turkey. 😊 It will be either that way or in the convection oven.

I also searched a couple of crocheting patterns and another recipe and jotted some notes. Today will be a day of inside stuff. The wind is not as strong as it has been and with the temperature only rising to 55 and very little sun, it will be cool for us snowbirds.  Jo-Anne and Bob walked by with Higgins so when she stopped to say good morning, I gave her their dvd and her choice of 2 gourds. 

all kinds of trailers, this one is triple axle
and well equipped with propane tanks

After making us toasted omelette sandwiches for brunch and doing the dishes, I washed and brushed my teeth ready for an inside day with my sweetie. That was determined when after a rainbow appeared in the northwest sky of dark clouds, the sky opened up. Did it ever pour for about 10 minutes! Puddles appear and disappear very quickly in the desert as the rains are usually quick demanding bursts in a short period of time.

Big Red's site

Bill sat with his book and I sat at the table to write a few Christmas cards. With family cards finished, addressed and stamped I decided to give it a rest and make New York Cheesecake. I’ve tried cheesecake once before in Madame IP and although it was good, it was messy and I didn’t have proper accessories and had to makeshift a tinfoil pan. Then this morning, I found a cute father doing a tutorial on how to make the Million Dollar N.Y. C. with his young son videotaping. Cutesy!

Another lovely start to the day

I, at least, had an inner pot this time, but not one with a removable bottom so there was still some brainstorming to be done on my part. Hmmm. Worst case scenario, Bill and I will be dishing it up out of this pot or very worst case, eating it right out of the pan if it doesn’t remove easily! 😉 I prepared the crust, placed it in the freezer, made the batter and put it all in Madame IP for 26 minutes. Stay tuned!

The rare blue sky made an appearance

 Bill seems to be hooked on his David Baldacci book, Simple Genius, and it looks like it will be finished today as well. He has a lot of choices for what’s next, at least 10 or 12 books in his cupboard, ones I’ve already read. Outside, the sky has changed numerous times but it has been a light rain for the most part and it isn’t even 1 o’clock yet. If it ever stops, I’d like to get another walk in. With colder days coming, I’m hoping the weather gurus are at least right about all the sunshine in the forecast.

I'm happy seeing these guys every day

When the NR of 10 minutes was finished on Madame IP, I removed it and added the topping that the video called for. I put it in the fridge for 4 hours. Then because I couldn’t see raindrops on Black Beauty’s tonneau cover, I slipped out for a walk. I swear I’m being spied upon and the valve gets turned the minute my feet hit the pavement. The rain started almost immediately. Anyway, I kept going around Loop C and back home again. Maybe about ½ mile.

Our neighbours have a leak at the tap and the
Gambel quail were thirsty

I felt restless and I wasn’t keen on starting a new book yet. Looking for something worthy to do I got the vacuum out and cleaned the floors top to bottom. There is a lot of sandy gravel here so it gets tracked in no matter how careful we are. I felt better with that done, got some water from the fridge and ‘then’ sat to start my book. First four chapters have encouraged me, now I know it will be a good book.

Christmas cards for addressing

For a while today, this was our view

And this rainbow ends up in the lake

Jo-Anne texted about the 3^rd rainbow of the day and I got up to take pictures. I’m only getting partials though but very pretty ‘ends of the rainbow’. Then she invited us over for Happy Hour around 3:30. Bill made a hot chocolate and I made a tea and we walked up the hill. Higgins, as always, was full of love and Jo-Anne holds him back until we get seated on their couch. I do enjoy the little guy, he fills a bit of the gap left from our own little bum. We had a nice visit and covered various subjects.

In the bottom of the inner pot (on the right) I flattened a small pie plate
covered it in wax paper and greased it with lard before adding the crumbs

With the sling under the tin foil plate, I added the batter on the crust
1 cup of water, trivet and inner pot

I noticed Jo had her Instant Pot out and a beef roast sitting on the counter so I clapped my hands and said ‘yay, you’re cooking with the IP tonight’. She has tried it once before, on the rice setting, with no success so has been timid ever since. With some encouragement and a few basic instructions before we left at 4:45, I felt confident they would have a great supper. Back home, we watched some tv, separately for about an hour and a half.

Bill's book cupboard

The old program House with Hugh Laurie was on CTV and I watched it continuously. We used to watch it but I don’t recall any of these episodes. As Bill says, it doesn’t mean I haven’t seen them. Ha ha. At 6, I started with supper. It was his choice tonight because it gives me a break from coming up with a menu. He wanted fish and chips so I fried tilapia loins and air fried the last of the French fries for Bill. I had Caesar salad with my fish.

Speedy roadrunner came through for a visit

And when he slowed down for his photo session
he appeared a bit fluffed up

Out of the oven, topping added and refrigerated for 4 hours

After dishes, he helped me lift the cheesecake out of the inner pot, using the wax paper sling. It worked! This cheesecake was wonderful – capital W. I will definitely make it again and in the meantime, I will look for the correct pot so it will be even that much easier to make in the future. 

Happy Hour 

Higgins plays with his toys

Oh my goodness
As he sits on my lap, he gives me the 'Clemson' look

I heard from Jo-Anne that with a little extra time on their IP, their supper was successful. that was good to hear, hopefully she will be comfortable using it in the future and not afraid to experiment.

Tilapia loins and salad

And my sling worked, we got it out of the pan
in one piece

Bill went upstairs with a movie and I sat downstairs to finish my post. This has been an inside day but I’m pleased with the things I took care of. We’ll need some heat on tonight as it will be a low 36F/3C. Brrr. I hope you’ve had a good day.

Success!
Good night from Elephant Butte, NM

Thank you for dropping in. Your comments are welcome.

Sun Returns, Drive into Town, Digging Our Toes In, Quiet Times x 2

When I woke up on Tuesday, Jan. 9^th, it was 6:30 am. Still dark and Clemson made his adjustment from beside me to under Bill’s covers. It is so cute how he snuggles so close to us. He is a lovable little warm bundle whether we need warmth or not. At 7:30 I got up as there was no point in waiting for a sunrise to lighten things up. Or so I thought.

This is the way the morning started

It was registering 59F on the thermometer so with just a single hoody and my runners, I retrieved the garbage bag from our ‘garage’ and took the ¾ mile walk to the dumpsters. I remembered this time to bring along my CamRah toy in case I found a spot to set it up. It was a beautiful walk under what turned into a stunning sky, yet again. One thing for sure, I will not be disappointed here in our ‘above horizon’ views, nor will you be if I can help it. So, enjoy this morning's performance.

"POP"!!

After depositing my bag, I walked a bit further down towards the entrance before turning around for home. It was part way back that I decided to try my camera phone on the tripod with the remote. It connects to Bluetooth so I don’t have to set it up and run to get into position.

This was one of the perks that I liked about it. So, I set it on the ground, spread the little legs and paced towards the sunrise. I like the result.

I'm still impressed with some camping setups

Back home Bill and Clemson were still in bed but I could hear movement up there in the bedroom. Clemson went out for his piddle and then we joined Bill inside. The panels were already working and we turned the Keurig on for our coffee and tea. I started to prepare my soup, after the beans soaking overnight. I added 8 cups of fresh water, ground beef and onion and let it simmer for 1.5 hours. Immediately, the aroma filled the Suite.

Long tall Patsy again
I wanted to show you the hard packed rocky roads

Bill hopped in the shower and when he was almost finished, I began making eggs for breakfast. Neither of us felt like having bacon today which meant less mess inside too. It was just enough to fill us and tide us over until lunchtime. The 15 Bean Soup calls for smoked sausage or ham hocks but I work with what I’ve got and I like hamburger soup too.

Our Suite with a nice backdrop

When it was ready, we were ready to go into town to mail the birthday cards, and I stopped at Roadrunner Market for a few groceries. Lo and behold, they had a 3-pack of pork hocks on sale so I picked them up for next time. I know that some things were pricier than what I should pay but for the small amount of salad fixins’ I wanted, I wasn’t about to do the grocery-store-hop.

The morning was a great time for a kite

From there we drove to the post office or the other way around and then to Quiet Times. I wasn’t expecting to be able to pick my parcel up yet but wanted to check on one for Gayle and what was required to get it for her. After finding that information out, we drove home. The winds have picked up tremendously and the dust blowing in Quartzsite is explanation enough why the town isn’t too busy.

I wasn't kidding about the dust blowing around today

Back at the ranch, yes, it was so plenty warm but toooo windy to be comfortable sitting out. It was almost noon hour so I was looking forward to a bowl of my soup. We were listening to our Sirius radio and California is certainly getting dumped on. Overnight they got a lot of rain and today it is continuing. As the announcer said, why not when they were getting the fires? Some things just make you shake your head, no rhyme or reason.

My bowl of bean soup is almost gone
I took too much, it is so filling!

The rain is supposedly coming east but we’ve heard about forecasted rain in a few spots and it so far hasn’t amounted to anything. Maybe this time and perhaps it will settle some of the dust at the same time. So, I scooped up some soup for each of us and it tasted pretty good. Even Bill liked it. He likes beans and chili so maybe that is why. Then, I sat down with my book to get a few chapters in.

The wash behind us actually was being useful

So, sure enough at 12:40, after listening to the powerful 50 mph winds gusting for a couple of hours, the rain started. Believe it or not, a day inside was a blessing. Egads! Not because it was productive, no, it was anything but. But we actually had a nice Quite Time to ourselves with Clemson and our books. 

Clemson agrees and is just waiting for Mom to sit back down again

We do get a lot of reading done but this day, was designed for people to stay indoors, with a blanket and a book and maybe even a tea.

It sure was a different type of day here in the desert

Quite a lot of rain fell today

The blanket wasn’t necessary because it was so warm inside with windows closed but you get what I mean. With a window open, the dust was taking that as an invitation so we kept one on the east side open for air only. We got some steady rain for 3 hours and then off and on through the rest of the early evening.

Bill walked out in between the rain showers and chatted with George about the puddles laying around and in the wash behind us. Then as the rain started again, he started the generator and came in. I took that opportunity to snap a few photos. Yay! No dust! The temperature has plunged to a cool 55F at 5 o’clock.  It was as we were preparing supper Bill noticed a beautiful rainbow behind the Suite so I had to grab a camera to capture what I could. It was huge and hard to get it all in especially after we realized it was a double one from left, up over the arch and down to the right.

During the late afternoon, there was something else going on at a different section of La Posa South. We noticed numerous Sheriff vehicles, some with lights flashing and some without travelling quite quickly down the road. It is puzzling when you don’t know what is going on and of course, has us very curious. I just hope nothing terrible has happened.

Can you see that it is double?

What did we decide on for supper? Well, since the genny was running, we made up bacon cheese buns to cook in the convection oven. This meal requires both of us to participate too even though it is simple. I butter the buns, cut and precook the bacon and Bill slices the cheddar. They are filling and I always add sliced green olives to my portion.

We cleaned up the dishes and watched the new episode of NCIS and then Bull. This is Tuesday night after all, our favourite night for television. I sat at the laptop and worked away during commercials to finish posting my blog for today. It was a good day but I still didn’t get my freezer ‘inventoried’. Tomorrow for sure.

Good night from Quartzsite

I hope you’ve had a good day as well. Thank you for reading today and I love to hear from you.