A finished Cambio(!) with bonus soup recipe
Here she is:
I can tell that this is later in the photo shoot because I look really exasperated (and weirdly cross-eyed). I need to start organizing things so that I'm ready to take pictures when other people are home. Or take the camera on the road--show up at friends' places and make them take pictures for me. That would help disguise the fact that I'm not even tidying up anymore.
And a blurry shot of the back. Believe it or not, this was the best of the lot.
The pattern is Cambio by Libby, knit in silver Glitterspun. The beaded parts at the bottom and on the sleeves were entertaining to knit and really make this sweater something special. The weight of them makes it swing and sway and they feel delightfully cool against the skin. The yoke and finishing were a drag, but that's my fault for storing it last year without making notes on my modifications and then having to reinvent the wheel.
I decided not to sew ribbon around the inside, mainly out of laziness. It's not something I keep around the house and I didn't feel like trekking out to Hyman Hendler in time to post this today. I could still add it later if I find some I like. Ditto on putting a hook and eye closure at the three needle bind off ridge. I like the 'coat hook' size on knitwear but all I haveat home right now are a dark metal that would stand out too much.
Nailing down an edge treatment I'm happy with took some doing, let me tell you. I was going to knit hem facings around the neck and on both front edges, but it was just too clunky to have all of those layers of fabric. I toyed with the idea of applied i-cord but I was afraid it wouldn't be enough to stop it rolling. Same with one round of single crochet. I did two rounds of single crochet and it was too bulky for such a delicate little flower of a cardigan. As I was ripping it out, I realized that one round looked great--neat and clean enough to make the edge look finished without calling attention to itself. A judicious application of steam seems to have cured it of any rolling tendencies.
Hooray!
Since it was coolish and cloudy today and I wanted vegetables, I made potage. As I use the word, potage is a pretty elastic concept rather than an actual recipe: a thick, pureed soup of vegetables. I usually add cheese, being that kind of girl.
Today's potage was made as follows:
1 large onion
garlic (six cloves? seven?)
low-salt chicken broth, one large resealable carton
medium potato
head of cauliflower
two big bunches broccoli
package frozen spinach
8 oz. cheese (I usually use Cheddar if I don't have scraps I want to use up; pretty much anything is good. I tried the Cracker Barrel reduced fat extra sharp cheddar today. I was
pleasantly surprised by how well it melted--walking home from the
grocery store, it occured to me that I might wind up with tiny, rubbery
bits in the soup--but really shocked at how unsalty it was. I never
salt the pot when I'm going to be putting so much cheese in, but it
needs a lot of salt added in the bowl.)
Chop the onion coarsely and soften in butter. Chop the garlic. Since garlic cooks so quickly, I hold off and add it when the onion has already browned, but it won't really change anything if you put it all in together. While that's cooking, peel and chop the potato. [note: I've seen a few recipes recently that use rice instead of a potato to add body to a soup like this. I'm intrigued, but can't quite bring myself to do it. The potato seems more homely and wholesome in a way that suits the soup.*]
I add enough broth to the pot to stop the onion from sizzling and toss the veggies in as I chop them. Today I used a full head of cauliflower** and two big bunches of broccoli including the peeled stems. Add the rest of the broth and leave to cook on medium heat. When everything is close to tender, add the spinach. I don't bother defrosting it. Let it cook until the spinach is defrosted and all of the veggies are really pretty soft. I like to turn off the heat and let it cool down before I puree it, but cook's choice. I use an immersion blender, but you can take the soup out of the pot and puree it in a blender or food processor if that works better for you. Then it's a simple matter of grating the cheese and stirring it in gradually and reheating the soup slowly to melt it.
It's not a beautiful soup, but it's delicious and easy and makes a huge quantity.
*Thinking about how it might change the flavor reminds me that I read
something a while ago about a place that serves rice ice cream--that
is, ice cream flavored to taste like rice, not made with rice milk. It
was a rave review. I wonder where that was...
**You know that scene in the beginning of Amelie where they show everyone's small, secret pleasures? I think that using a sharp paring knife to excise the stem of a head of cauliflower would be one of mine.
