Monthly Archives: December 2009

A poem to share

I read it in A Child’s Book of Poems (illustrated by Gyo Fujikawa, so great!!) awhile back and it feels like today.
It’s by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

THE DAY IS DONE

The day is done, and the darkness
Falls from the wings of Night,
As a feather is wafted downward
From an eagle in his flight

I see the lights of the village
Gleam through the rain and the mist,
And a feeling of sadness comes o’er me
That my soul cannot resist:

A feeling of sadness and longing,
That is not akin to pain,
And resembles sorrow only
As the mist resembles the rain.

Come, read to me some poem,
Some simple and heartfelt lay,
That shall soothe this restless feeling,
And banish the thoughts of the day.

Not from the grand old masters,
Not from the bards sublime,
Whose distant footsteps echo
Through the corridors of Time.

For, like strains of martial music,
Their mighty thoughts suggest
Life’s endless toil and endeavor;
And tonight I long for rest.

Read from some humbler poet,
Whose songs gushed from his heart,
As showers from the clouds of summer,
Or tears from the eyelids start;

Who, through long days of labor,
And nights devoid of ease,
Still heard in his soul the music
Of wonderful melodies.

Such songs have power to quiet
The restless pulse of care,
And come like a benediction
That follows after prayer.

Then read from the treasured volume
The poem of thy choice,
And lend to the rhyme of the poet
The beauty of thy voice.

And the night shall be filled with music,
And the cares that infest the day,
Shall fold their tents, like the Arabs,
And as silently steal away.
sun

misty morning out back

misty morning

the recipe that changed my life

Artisan Breads in 5 Minutes a Day is a book I do not own, but am forever indebted to. From that book, a recipe was featured within an issue of Mother Earth News that I happened to buy. The summation of this wonderful recipe is: You mix flour, yeast, salt and warm water to make 4 pounds of dough. After it rises for about 3 hours you refrigerate it and it’ll keep, in its risen form, for up to two weeks. During this time you can lop off a pound at a time and make it into all sorts of yumminess. I’ve personally made pizza, caramel sticky buns and French boules. Here’s a link to the mag article and then some photos of my fun with the recipe.
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Here's the dough in the bowl I mix and store it in, it has fallen, but rises again during the resting and baking

Here's the dough in the bowl I mix and store it in, it has fallen, but rises again during the resting and baking


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This is the lid I use when the dough is stored since it cannot be stored airtightly

This is the lid I use when the dough is stored since it cannot be stored airtightly


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One pound of dough, shaped and resting for 40 minuted before baking

One pound of dough, shaped and resting for 40 minuted before baking


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The dough after the resting period, with the cute slashes in the top to allow for the rising that occurs during baking

The dough after the resting period, with the cute slashes in the top to allow for the rising that occurs during baking


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Going from the pizza peel (where it rested upon a bed of cornmeal to make this step easier) with a quick flick of the wrist, onto the pizza stone for baking

Going from the pizza peel (where it rested upon a bed of cornmeal to make this step easier) with a quick flick of the wrist, onto the pizza stone for baking


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The broiler pan goes on the bottom rack and is filled with hot water just after the dough is flung onto the stone above.  The steam makes for a crispy, "singing" crust
The broiler pan goes on the bottom rack and is filled with hot water just after the dough is flung onto the stone. The steam makes for a crispy, “singing” crust
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Isn't it cute in there, baking at 450º for 30 minutes?

Isn't it cute in there, baking at 450º for 30 minutes?


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Done!  So pretty.

Done! So pretty.


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My friend Jeanine loves the crust, that piece would have been for her :)

My friend Jeanine loves the crust, that piece would have been for her :)


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I enjoyed it in her honor, mmmmm

I enjoyed it in her honor, mmmmm


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I put honey on my next piece and held it up to see the beautiful rainy day on which it was born, and eaten

I put honey on my next piece and held it up to see the beautiful rainy day on which it was born, and eaten

even more handmade x-mas

Here’re some photos of my lip balm operation. This is my 3rd year making lip balm to give away for x-mas. I haven’t tried this year’s recipe yet, cause I’m afraid if I use one, later I’ll wish I hadn’t because there’ll be someone I want to give it to. But I am optimistic that it’s my best batch yet.

My recipe is 4 oz of beeswax, 6 oz of grapeseed oil and 6 oz of sweet almond oil (though in the pics, it’s doubled).

If you would like to try it at home, you’ll first want to set out your open containers . . .
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melt the beeswax slowly, in a pot . . .
bees
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add the oils . . .
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stir . . .
stir
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pour from pot into a vessel with a pour spout, from that, pour the melted balm into desired containers . . .
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allow them to cool/harden . . .
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before trying any fancy tricks like this!

POW!

POW!


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If you would like to incorporate a bit of arithmetic, find the sum of ounces of the ingredients to figure how many containers you’ll need. For instance, the above recipe will yield 16 ounces of balm, so you’ll either need 16 one-ounce containers or 32 half-ounce containers (again, in the pictures, I doubled the recipe). I skipped this step last year and the year before and found relief in exercising more precision this year, ie. it was nice not having to run around the house searching for more containers (not really) suitable for lip balm as the remnants of the batch cooled/hardened in the vessel with the pour spout. Heh, heh.

Happy x-mas making!

more handmade x-mas

Recently my sewing machine was commandeered by Captain Scar Booty (this has been Jonny’s pirate alias ever since a certain unfortunate accident that befell him when he was about 3), most menacing pirate of the seven seams. He has watched me sew enough, so when he sat down at the helm, he felt he knew what to do. A scrap of fabric for his sea, he practiced “beating” a course into the wind (zig-zag stitching), as well as sailing a straight course with the wind in his sails (straight stitching). He soon decided he would like to make use of his new skill and create Christmas presents for his cousins! He did such a good job! He soon made the declaration that sewing is just as fun as video games . . . Wow! I never thought he would bestow that honor upon anything!
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