The Keep Yourself Warm Scarf

A few days ago we had a couple of friends over for lunch. They had just returned from a year in South Africa and were preparing to do a post-doc in Nova Scotia, so this was their going away meal. On the menu was:

- Mushroom and vermicelli soup (featuring Cloud Ear, Shitake, Enoki, King Oyster and Oyster type mushrooms in a clear chicken broth)

- Turkey meatballs (flavored with Bai Krapow, or Thai Holy Basil, Ginger, Garlic, Shallots, and Nam Pla, or Fish Sauce)

- Thai red curry (with Kabocha squash, button mushrooms, zucchini, and snap peas)

- Cucumber, Tomato and Mint salad

- Steamed Thai Jasmine rice

- Marlborough Apple Pie

- Lemon Pound cake (they had brought this from Solly’s Bagelry in Kits)

I hadn’t cooked this much food in a long time, so it was pretty good to exercise those culinary muscles. Everything turned out well. I especially like the addition of the squash to the curry, because it lent the spicy sauce a mellow sweetness. And while the Bai Krapow is usually used stir-fried with a meat (like Pad Krapow, a really popular Thai dish), it worked well in the meatballs. I just wish the Bai Krapow is more readily available in the Van area!

For our friends' going away presents I gave them two wool scarves, as they were heading east to harsher winters. T. got the Noro scarf, M. got a blue-green scarf that I had just finished knitting that very day (so no blocking for this one).

Details:

Yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca (50% Super Fine Alpaca, 50% Peruvian Highland Wool) This one is soft and thick and easy on the hands. Very durable too—I must have done this scarf 2-3 times over. The scarf look 1 ¼ balls, so I have enough left over for a hat or something….

Pattern: This is a really good stitch with beautiful drape. Slip first stitch, yo & k2tog, repeat, knit last stitch. It creates a uniform mesh-like pattern with lots of movement and drape.

Result: A soft scarf to wrap yourself in on cold blustery days. I would recommend garter stitch ends as the bottom part ended up curling a bit. I made a huge mistake in this one (a BIG hole in the stitch), but I used extra wool to patch it up when I was done.