Random Thoughts On Cooking, Bike Riding, and The Sacred Journey of Everyday Life
….what a world without hate would be like.
I came across this short clip (80 seconds) and watched it a few times…it still makes tears well up in my eyes. It’s was put out by the Anti-Defamation League and is very moving. I hope you watch it.
“You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us. And the world will live as one.“
–John Lennon
Okay. So let me first qualify these photos by saying that I never thought I’d be one of those people…you know the type, the ones that post nothing but cats all over Facebook. But I find that sometimes I can’t help it. I do post pictures of the pugs that own me every once in a while. If you’ve been here before then you know that is Maxwell above (the boss) and Franklin below, who wants nothing more in the world than to be pet. Anyhow, I was in my backyard this evening and had my DSLR camera, and what’s different with this is that I have to look through a view finder (of course) to take a photo (opposed to just holding up a camera and looking at a screen). The pugs didn’t know what to make of this…me with this contraption up to my face. So I just sort of squatted down, not saying a word, and took a bunch of photos while they came up and sniffed at it. These are two of my favorites. They crack me up. Don’t let their serious looks fool you…it’s just a disguise.
These are so easy to make. They take just a few minutes and you will add the “wow” factor to a salad. The only ingredient you need is the Parmesan cheese, and only three basic tools are required: a pan (I used non-stick, but steel or cast iron would work as well), a spatula (either metal or a latex spatula that is designed for high heat), and a mold (I used a roll of aluminum foil, but an inverted cup or glass works just as well).
So here’s how to make them. Heat the skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle a liberal amount of cheese into the pan and wait until it melts, bubbles, and the bottom begins to brown. Then gently slide it out of the pan and onto the mold. After the cheese cools it will retain the shape of the mold and can be filled with salad. Simple as that.
On the bike…A cardboard box containing an empty dough rising bucket, and three freshly baked loaves of Ezekiel Bread.
The recipe…Ezekiel Bread (to read my interpretation and philosophy of this bread click here; For pictures and directions of it being made, click here).
The view from my handlebars (bottom of post)…On Allen Street here in Buffalo on my way home from work; the beginning of yet another late winter’s snow.
4 cups whole wheat flour
Boil the grains in the water in logical succession according to cooking times: first the white and red beans (about 60 minutes), when they are soft add the, spelt berries, lentils, and barley (about 30 minutes); lastly, add the millet and bulgar (about 10 minutes). The key is that after each addition the previous grain must be soft enough so that when all of the grains are in the pot they will all be equally soft; undercooked grains (especially the beans) can really ruin this bread. And as the grains cook add more water to the pot as necessary because the cooking liquid, which is full of nutrients, will become part of the recipe (keeping a lid on the pot will slow it’s evaporation). After the grains are cooked allow them to cool in the liquid to room temperature, refrigerating if necessary. After the grains are cooled drain them, squeezing them with your hands or the back of a spoon, reserving the cooking liquid.
Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and cut it into 2 or 3 pieces. Shape into loaves and place into lightly oiled pans. Loosely cover the loaves with plastic wrap and allow to ferment for 30-60 minutes, or until double in size and when gently touched with a fingertip an indentation remains.
Bake the breads for about 30-40 minutes, adding steam to the oven a few times (either with ice cubes or a spray bottle) and rotating the breads every ten minutes. The breads are done when they are dark brown and sound hollow when tapped upon. Remove the breads from their pans and allow them to cook on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes before slicing.
A gym bag full of wet clothes, and about $40 worth of groceries (either the food is getting smaller or my basket is getting bigger because I never used to be able to fit $40 worth of groceries in there…ahh, but of course it is getting more expensive; by the day).
Is it just me or are foods that are ground, seasoned, and then shaped into balls or patties really delicious. Versatile, too. These are a play on the classic fish meatballs found in Mediterranean countries; in this recipe I substituted half the amount of fish with chickpeas. And I have to say the outcome was/is delicious. These are so easy to make–put all the ingredients in a food processor–and you don’t necessarily have to cook them in tomato sauce (as I did); I was eating them straight from the skillet. They would also be delicious as an appetizer with a yogurt, lemon sauce, or spicy rouille. Anyhow for variations on this recipe (fish or poultry) click here. For a Lebanese variation (kibbeh), click here. And for a vegan version, click here.
Combine all of the ingredients in a food processor and process until a somewhat smooth paste. Transfer the paste to a bowl and refrigerate for about 20 minutes, then shape into balls. Heat a cast iron or non-stick skillet with a few tablespoons olive oil over medium high heat. Sautéthe fish balls on all sides until lightly browned and cooked through, or finish cooking them in sauce.
Today is the day of Einstein’s birth. And yes, I know this series is based on “five quotes” but I included a few extra.
“When you are courting a nice girl an hour seems like a second. When you sit on a red-hot cinder a second seems like an hour. That’s relativity.”
“Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.”
“Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.”
“Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is to not stop questioning.”
“A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”
“Try not to become a man of success. Rather become a man of value.”
“The search for truth is more precious than its possession.”
“Energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only be changed from one form to another.”
“Everything is determined, the beginning as well as the end, by forces over which we have no control. It is determined for the insect, as well as for the star. Human beings, vegetables, or cosmic dust, we all dance to a mysterious tune, intoned in the distance by an invisible piper.”
“Solitude is painful when one is young, but delightful when one is more mature. ”
More in this series.
On the bike…a gym bag containing wet clothes, and two bottles of red wine.
A brief story…I coasted up to the community center at my usual time (and before I had the wine on the bike and wet clothes in the bag), which is also the time that parents often pick up their kids from their after school program. A few minutes prior–as I was pedaling my way there, it started to snow a little, then a little harder, then really hard. It only lasted a few minutes, and we’ve had a few of these brief snow squalls today. Anyhow it was snowing pretty heavy as I was locking up the bike near the rear door of the building. And as I did this two men came out with a small group of kids (5 or 6 of them, and they couldn’t have been more than 7 years old). The kids burst through the door when they saw the snow and two of them–simultaneously–yelled, “Daddy, it’s snowing!” To which the one man replied with furrowed brow, “Ugh! Yes…it is snowing.” Another kid, without saying anything, simply put his head back and stuck out his tongue to catch the big fat flakes in his mouth. Seeing this, two other kids followed suit, smiling. Their enthusiasm was contagious…it made me smile.
A few comments…And as I walked into the community center I not only wondered when (and why) we as adults loose that sense of child’s wonder and amazement, but I also thought of this scripture passage…
And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 18:3
I’ve mentioned on a few occasions on this blog that I don’t believe in hell; I believe that it is a man-made concept (can’t control people without fear) and that we create our own hell here on earth. And inversely, while I do believe in some sort of afterlife–a different level of consciousness–I don’t necessarily believe in heaven either, at least not the “traditional” one that one may think of…I also believe that we can create our own heaven right here and now, and on this earth and in this lifetime. But then adult life gets in the way. And maybe this is what this scripture passage is trying to say, at least to me…that we, as adults, should not lose that sense of wonder and amazement about everyday life (such as a sudden snow storm) because it truly is all wonderful and amazing. But, alas, it is–as an American adult–so difficult to remember. I do though, get glimpses of heaven-on-earth. And at the sake of sounding hokey, riding a bike is one way I can achieve this. In a word: freedom. Anyhow, this is what I was thinking about as I swam and then when I pedaled my way home.
Then, as I was pedaling and coasting home (the snow had stopped) I noticed a rather large murder of crows overhead. It was windy and they were flying from leafless tree to leafless tree doing crazy swoops and “caw cawing” loudly while they did it. It was a sort of acrobat, I thought. Rather than crashing my bike–because I was looking up at them as I coasted down a city street–I pulled over and watched them for a few minutes. It was beautiful. I had only my little pocket point-and-shoot camera with me, and I knew they were out of range, but it was so beautiful I took a few photos. Here is one of my favorite. As people passed in their cars I must have looked a bit childish on the side of the road looking up at the sky, but that’s ok with me…because I was in my own little two-minute window of heaven.
Okay. By now–if you’ve been to this blog before–you know that I like things cooked with olive oil and garlic. A lot. I could eat it in variation nearly every day…and I almost do. I posted a similar recipe about a month ago but this combo was too good not to share…whole wheat penne with broccoli aglio e olio, layered with spaghetti squash cooked in the same fashion. I also used extra garlic and hot pepper in the recipe and a liberal dousing of Parmesan to finish it. Yum. I just ate but I salivate at it’s remembrance. Anyhow, the recipe for the penne and broccoli is below (substitute penne for the spaghetti, and vegetable broth for the chicken broth if you want to keep it vegetarian). To see how to cook, shred, and saute a butternut squash in this fashion (with pics and step-by-step instructions), see this post. For multiple recipes on cooking nearly anything aglio e olio, click here.
I shot this on my way to work this morning. Those clouds looked (and still do look) incredible…sort of like a painting; like the sky was covered with a layer of cotton balls.
Urban Simplicity
#459 (above)…various home repair supplies.
#460 (below)…$99.00 in groceries and sundries.
So if you’ve been to this blog before you know that I like bread. A lot. I enjoy eating it, of course, but I also enjoy making it. I’ve often said that bread makes itself, that we merely provide the correct conditions and guide it along; I am really fascinated by its process. I’m also really interested in the history of bread and roles it has played throughout civilization and especially religion. Bread is in fact mentioned hundreds of times in the old and new testaments. But what I’d like to touch on here is the Parable of the Leaven (sometimes called the Parable of the Yeast). This is mentioned in both the Gospel of Matthew 13:33, and in the Gospel of Luke 13:20-21.
He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty poundsof flour until it worked all through the dough.”
But before I go any further let me say this (as I’ve said on a few occasions)…I read the bible as almost entirely metaphor. I believe there are stories and teachings in it that can aid us even today in 2013 if we look close enough, but sometimes it is a difficult process…I know it is for me. I am not here to try to preach or tell you what this means, just simply to say what I feel (because I can guess, but I do not know what it means…I can only guess and translate it to my life).
This said, lets look at the word parable. It comes from the Greek, parabolē, which we’ve interpreted as a sort of story or analogy. But it’s original meaning is a bit different. The word parabolē is actually a phrase; two words, meaning to “throw” or “toss” (bolē) “next to” (para), so loosely this can be taken as the story or meaning is next to or within the story. Hmmm…
Now lets look at the leaven itself (this is where it gets really interesting). But first I have to say a few things about yeast. It is a naturally occurring living organism; a form of fungus, actually. It is relatively dormant until provided the correct conditions. Mainly, the correct temperature, moisture, and food (the carbs and sugars in flour). When it has these three conditions it eats. More specifically it feasts, and on a biblical scale (yes, I see the pun here). As it feasts it gives off gases (don’t we all), mainly carbon dioxide but also ethyl alcohol. As these are released they form pockets of air or gas in the dough, and as the yeast continues to eat and give off gas these pockets or bubbles grow, sort of inflating the bread. This is how it rises. But ok, enough about the science of it, back to the leavan…the biblical kind.
Mmm…Quiche Lorraine. Incredibly decadent and delicious; simple to make, too. The beauty of this is that you can have all of the ingredients ready (including the pre-baked shell) and put it together and bake it a half hour before serving. Heck, you can pre-bake and slice the entire thing–if you think you’ll be pressed for time later–and re-heat it when needed. The cheeses and other ingredients are, of course, interchangeable to your liking as well. And contrary to what some may think…real men do eat quiche. I’m jus’ sayin’…
“Please, no matter how we advance in technology please don’t abandon the book-there is nothing in our material world more beautiful than a book.”
“Freedom is…the right to write the wrong words.”
“For life is the best thing we have in this existence. And if we should desire to believe in something, it should be a beacon within. This beacon being the sun, sea, and sky, our children, our work, our companions and, most simply put, the embodiment of love.”
“I refuse to believe that Hendrix had the last possessed hand, that Joplin had the last drunken throat,
that Morrison had the last enlightened mind.”
“I believe that we, that this planet, hasn’t seen its Golden Age. Everybody says its finished … art’s finished, rock and roll is dead, God is dead. Fuck that! This is my chance in the world. I didn’t live back there in Mesopotamia, I wasn’t there in the Garden of Eden, I wasn’t there with Emperor Han, I’m right here right now and I want now to be the Golden Age …if only each generation would realise that the time for greatness is right now when they’re alive … the time to flower is now.”
One More…
“The artist seeks contact with his intuitive sense of the gods, but in order to create his work, he cannot stay in this seductive and incorporeal realm. He must return to the material world in order to do his work. It’s the artist’s responsibility to balance mystical communication and the labor of creation.”
More Five Quotes.
Urban Simplicty 