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SOLERA DIAMOND VALLEY | AUGUST 2020 11 By Theresa Rossetti, Resident Over the last few months we've given you a number of articles on books to read and binge-worthy TV to watch. Now let's change the focus a bit. What have you been cooking or baking in the last few months that you hadn't been willing to try before these very unusual times? Many people went back to basics, using what they had in the house instead of buying processed foods or dining out. If you were looking for new recipes, perhaps you turned to some of the many cooking shows on TV. Michael Symon (Chef known to many from The Chew) took to filming from his house, making dinners and grilling from his backyard. Martha Stewart filmed a new show from her upstate New York home. Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa, went viral with a post on an absolutely enormous cocktail. Valerie Bertinelli of One Day at a Time fame cooked from her kitchen. Amy Schumer's husband, a famous chef in his own right, somewhat successfully tried to teach Amy how to cook in a delightfully cramped vacation house kitchen. Others decided now was the perfect time to bake bread. Although yeast and bread flour flew off the shelves early on, they are easier to obtain now. Dealing with dough can be a soothing experience, kneading it to take out aggressions, and then having the satisfaction of that phenomenal smell emanating from the oven. Those of us who were already bakers might have had both items on hand but wanted to expand our repertoire. As time passes, and more people are taking this unprecedented pandemic seriously, hopefully we are seeing an improvement in the overall health of our nation and the re-opening of our restaurants, gyms, stores, etc. For my part, I did enjoy baking bread again and trying some new recipes while staying inside. In case anyone is wondering, the pics attached are my pretzel and Italian rolls. I've still got plenty of yeast! Pssst! Got Yeast? By Cindy Ponce de Leon, Resident When the old lobby furniture went up for bid I really wanted one of the three drawer chests. I bid five tickets hoping to win just one! As it turned out, I won the chest of drawers from the coffee and tea area. The top was badly damaged from spills and, believe it or not, a name carved into it! The piece in general was badly worn. I had envisioned the chest in our sunroom under a mirror from our former home which did not fit our current decor. I had already refinished a coffee cart that was in our former man cave and wanted to tie in both the chest and mirror to match our gray washed entertainment unit and the turquoise coffee cart. It took me a few weeks to come up with the inspiration. Then my husband underwent surgery, so it was another five weeks of tying up the garage before it was time to get to the refurbishing project. Being a perfectionist, I might have taken months to complete it, but one day, after I went to work, my husband got out the stripper I intended to use. He quickly opted for a sander instead. Within two days he had sanded and spray painted the entire chest. Sadly, I had to inform him that the Krylon Bahama Sea spray paint I chose was just a base color. Then I dry brushed Valspar "Deep Twilight Blue" over the chest, not completely covering the base coat. Lastly, I dry brushed on a Black Shimmer metallic luster cream to highlight the details of the trim. In actuality the project from start to finish for both the chest and mirror took just five days. What you see here is our combined labor and vision for this chest. We can't wait to enjoy many years of serving from this retired Lodge piece! What's Old is New Again Before After