Orca Bay and Chicken Salad

I sat at my sewing machine most of yesterday afternoon, trying to put together at least a few of the red string blocks for the Orca Bay mystery quilt. I sewed a total of 20 blocks, each cut into triangles. Here are some pictures.

Do your blocks curl like this?

For some reason, even after pressing the fabric open, the strips won't lay flat and I sometimes get "bubbles" in some of the strips, so I always remove the paper first before pressing and cutting to size so I don't have to press and cut a second time.

That's quite a pile of paper! And 5 blocks had not even been de-papered at this point! Removing the paper is easy, especially if there is something good to watch/listen to on TV.

All nice and pressed. See, the curl is gone!

These are the boys, Mike, Max, and Maurice, who thought they had to play at my feet while I was ironing.

Now to cut. First to square, then to triangle.

And yes, these really are red even though the photo looks pink-ish.

Hmmm, I wonder how all of these are going to fit together?

The above photos shows blocks from all four steps. Try as I might, I just can't seem to get them to work together. Patience! Four more steps (at least) and Bonnie's design will be revealed. :-)
I still have a lot of the smallest black/white squares (called half square triangles or HSTs for short) to finish, as well as the red string blocks. I doubt I'll be caught up by the time the next step is revealed, but it isn't a race, and I am making some progress.

I kind of like this design, even though it only incorporates two of the four blocks:

If you are reading about Orca Bay for the first time, and would like to join in on all the fun, please visit quiltville.blogspot.com and click on the Orca Bay tab!

While sewing, I kept thinking I really should stop and prepare something to eat. But the more I sewed on the red string blocks, the less I wanted to break away, thinking all the while that my stomach was growling and if I'd only stop for a few minutes... but I'd already had plenty of interruptions and my day of sewing wasn't producing results. My mind just wouldn't shut off! I kept thinking about food, glorious food! I needed something that would be quick, filling, and delicious. Low in calories would also be nice, but I'd settle for just the first three requirements.

A couple of recipes came to mind while I sewed, but I didn't stop to make anything. So today, still thinking about something easy and delicious, I ended up making chicken salad which is really similar to a recipe shared by Michael McLean for Egg Salad. Michael McLean composed The Forgotten Carols What? You haven't seen it, or maybe never heard of it? It's a wonderful show. The story is about a woman who is too practical to be bothered by Christmas. She is a nurse who is assigned to care for an older gentleman with alleged psychiatric tendencies over the holidays. This unlikely patient, John, is nothing like the "senile crazy person" she expected. Instead John’s warmth and spunky kindness break through Constance's iron-clad exterior as he walks her through the untold carols of the more "forgotten" characters in the Christmas story and guides the nurse to the Christmas carol waiting to be sung inside her own heart. If it comes to your area, you should buy tickets and go. It will leave you feeling fabulous, plus you'll have a few new favaorite Christmas carols!

Back to the recipes. First, the chicken salad:

Heavenly Chicken Salad:
about 4 cups chopped cooked chicken (can also use turkey)
1/2 pound bacon
2 cups grapes
2 stalks celery
2 green onions
2 apples (optional)
1 cup walnuts or pecans (optional)
1 cup mayonnaise (do NOT use Miracle Whip - it won't taste right)
1 cup Cool Whip (yes, Cool Whip!!!)
1 tsp. curry powder
salt and pepper to taste

Slice raw bacon into small pieces, then fry until crisp. Remove bacon to paper towels to drain. Slice grapes into halves. Chop celery and onion. Chop apples and nuts if you are using them (I love them, but omitted them today). Stir together mayonnaise, Cool Whip, and curry powder. Then add chicken and other ingredients. Salt and pepper to taste. Chill until ready to serve. Good on a bed of greens or use as a sandwich filling.

Here's the recipe Michael McLean shared; it is his mother's recipe and it is DELICIOUS (and see how similar the dressing is to my chicken salad?).

Forgotten Carols Egg Salad:

1 dozen hard-boiled eggs
2 cups celery, chopped
1 cup radishes, chopped
1/2 cup bacon bits
1/2 cup green onion, chopped
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup Cool Whip or whipped cream
1 Tb. mustard
1 tsp. curry power
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. salt

Chop eggs or mash them with a potato masher. Add radishes, bacon bits, green onion, and celery. Stir to combine. In a separate bowl, stir together mayonnaise, Cool Whip, and mustard. Then add curry powder, salt, and pepper. Combine with eggs & vegies; stir until mixed. Keep in the fridge until ready to use. Serve on sturdy bread. They recommended sour dough. I think homemade wheat or white is great, too!