Three Photos Looking Skyward

These photos were all taken yesterday but are not in chronological (time-wise) order. The photo above is of last night’s blue moon…did anyone else see this? It was incredible wasn’t it? I couldn’t stop looking at it. Thus I thought I’d post it first. It really taxed the lens of my Canon Power-Shot. The sky this summer at dusk have been incredible. The photo immediately below was taken at the corner of Allen and Elmwood here in Buffalo, which is also where the Bubble Man of Allentown lives (click here or here to see more pics of him); you can see bubbles visible in the photo. And the bottom photo was taken while standing in the parking lot of my bank, looking westward over Lake Erie just before sunset.

Urban Simplicity.

Things That Can be Carried on a Bike (#379, 380 & 381)…plus a couple comments and a recipe

#379 (top photo)…two cardboard boxes containing hundreds of tea sandwiches, which were being transported to a local food pantry.

#380 (middle photo)…a plastic dough rising bucket and a cardboard box containing three large loaves of freshly baked whole-wheat honey-brown rice bread.

#381 (bottom photo)…a Fender Stratocaster guitar.

These photos were all taken today, and they are just another example of how a person can survive (and thrive!) without owning a car. Yesterday, for example, I served a large Victorian Tea Luncheon at work and found myself with a huge amount of sandwiches left over today. After offering them to the staff I boxed them up and carried them over to a food pantry. In the next photo I was on my way home from work…I carried raw dough with me to work (as I often do) and baked it there (as not to heat up my home kitchen) and carried it (the baked bread) home in the afternoon. And tonight–being Thursday–is my son’s guitar lesson, so I meet him with his guitar (after switching bikes to accommodate the guitar), have a beer or two in the bar across the street, then carry it home for him afterwards. All-in-all, I likely pedaled less than ten miles, but it didn’t cost a cent, I burned calories not gas, and I was able to be outside on a beautiful day/evening. Anyhow, here’s a recipe for the bread I made and carried home today; for pictures of it being made see this posting. At the bottom of this post is a picture of one of the hundreds (literally hundreds) of tea sandwiches I carried to the pantry; the one pictured is smoked salmon on marble rye with boursin cheese.

Whole Wheat Brown Rice Bread
Makes 3 loaves
1 cup (6.6oz/187g) brown rice
3 quarts (96floz/2.83L) water
____________
cooked rice
2/3 cup (5.3 oz/157ml) cooking liquid
2 cups (11oz/312g) whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons (.2oz/5.6g) instant yeast
____________
4 cups (21oz/595.3g) whole wheat flour
3 tablespoons (.75oz/21g) vital wheat gluten
2 cups (16fl oz/.47L) cooking liquid
____________
1/4 cup (2fl oz/59.1ml) honey
1/4 cup (2fl oz/59.1ml) olive oil
3 teaspoons (.3oz/8.5g) instant yeast
3 teaspoons (.5oz/14.1g) kosher salt
.
Combine the grain and water in a medium pot and bring to a boil; lower the heat to simmer and cook the rice for about 45 minutes or until very soft. As the grain cooks add more water to the pot as necessary because the cooking liquid, which is full of nutrients, will become part of the recipe. After the grains are cooked allow them to cool in the liquid to room temperature, refrigerating if necessary. Then drain it, squeezing it with your hands or the back of a spoon, reserving the cooking liquid.
Place two bowls side-by-side; one will hold the pre-ferment, the other autolyse. In one bowl combine the cooked and drained 7-grains with 2/3 cup (5.3 oz/157ml) of the cooking liquid, 2 cups (11oz/312g) whole wheat flour, 2 tablespoons (.5oz/14g) vital wheat gluten, and 2 teaspoons (.2oz/5.6g) instant yeast. Stir just until combined then cover it with plastic wrap. In the other bowl combine 4 cups (21oz/595.3g) whole wheat flour and 1 1/3 cups (10.5fl oz/315ml) cooking liquid; stir just until combined then cover it with plastic wrap (take care not to get yeast into this bowl). Allow the bowls to rest at room temperature for about an hour, during which time the preferment will begin it’s job multiplying yeast and fermenting flour, and the autolyse will soak liquid, swelling the gluten. After an hour or so, combine the ingredients from both bowls into the bowl of an upright mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the honey, olive oil, salt, and 3 teaspoons (.3oz/8.5g) of yeast (add the yeast and salt on opposite sides of the bowl). Knead the dough on medium speed for about 8 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly oiled container, cover it loosely, and allow to ferment for 1-2 hours, or until doubled in bulk. Deflate the dough and allow it to ferment an additional 30 minutes. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and cut it into 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. Preheat an oven to 450f (232.2C). 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.
.

Urban Simplicity.

Things That Can be Carried on a Bike (#478)

A canvas bag containing–among other things–a book, a magazine, a small Bible, a cell phone, and a camera. A cardboard box containing a pound of instant yeast, five pounds of whole wheat flour, and a dozen fresh beets.

Urban Simplicity.

Whole-Wheat Chickpea-Turmeric Bread, an interesting Ezekiel Bread variation…sort of

Beautiful, isn’t it? This is just another example that you can make bread out of nearly anything you like. I happen to like chickpeas, and try to put turmeric in a lot of things because of the yellow hue it offers, but mostly because turmeric is so good for you. While the dough looks really yellow when it is raw, most of the color cooks out when it bakes. And the chickpeas add a really interesting sort of softness to the bread’s texture. I mention that this is a variation of Ezekiel Bread because I used the same method as when making that bread but simply substituted the grains, legumes, and beans with chickpeas. As someone who eats a lot of bread I am always trying different ways to make it healthy. This is a nice variation. The recipe is below, but if you’d like to see how to make my recipe for Ezekiel Bread, click here. And if you’d like to read about my views on Ezekiel Bread, click here.

Whole Wheat Chickpea-Turmeric Bread
Makes 2 or 3 loaves
12 cups water
1 cup dried chickpeas
___________________
cooked beans
½ cup cooking water
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons instant yeast
___________________

4 cups whole wheat flour

3 tablespoons vital wheat gluten
1 tablespoon turmeric
2 cups cooking liquid
___________________
¼ cup honey
¼ cup olive oil
3 teaspoons kosher
3 teaspoons instant yeast

Boil the beans in the water for 60-90 minutes, or until thoroughly cooked. As the bean 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 beans 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. Mash the chickpeas a little with a kitchen mallet or a heavy whisk.

Place two bowls side-by-side; one will hold the pre-ferment, the other autolyse. In one bowl combine the cooked, drained, and mashed beans with ½ cup of the cooking liquid, 2 cups whole wheat flour, and 2 teaspoons instant yeast. Stir it just until combined then cover it with plastic wrap. In the other bowl combine 4 cups whole wheat flour, 3 tablespoons vital wheat gluten, one tablespoon turmeric and 2 cups cooking liquid; stir it just until combined then cover it with plastic wrap (take care not to get yeast into this bowl). Allow the bowls to rest at room temperature for about an hour, during which time the preferment will begin it’s job multiplying yeast and fermenting flour, and the autolyse will soak liquid, swelling the gluten.
After an hour or so, combine the ingredients from both bowls into the bowl of an upright mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the honey, olive oil, salt, and 3 teaspoons of yeast (add the yeast and salt on opposite sides of the bowl. Knead the dough on medium speed for about 8 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly oiled container, cover it loosely, and allow to ferment for 1-2 hours, or until doubled in bulk. Deflate the dough and allow it to ferment an additional 30 minutes.

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.

 

Urban Simplicity.

Carmageddon!

Ok, firstly…none of the above photos are from the small city in which I live (nor am I speaking of the video game with the same title as this post)…but we still have our share of traffic jams. I’ve been thinking about the amount of cars on the road a lot lately. Actually for recent years, but specifically in the last few months. There are so many angry drivers on the road and I can’t help but think it is simply because there are way too many cars in use. Think about it (if you are of a certain age)…when I was a kid families had a car…one single car. Some didn’t own any. My parents didn’t get a car until they were in their forties, when I was a mere lad of 12. We lived in the city and walked or took public transport. But today every person in a household who is above driving age seems to “need” their own car. How often, for example, do you see cars that are carrying more than the driver (and maybe one passenger)…not very often. I don’t anyway. Anyhow, this is what I was thinking about as I was on a bike at a busy intersection tonight watching all the cars pass by with only the driver in them, and then one of them honked at me to get off the road. But the best part was that it was raining lightly and I was content to straddle my bike in the drizzle and wait for the light to change (it has not rained in so long that it felt really good)…and then I was honked at. Sorry for the brief rant; I’ll get off my little soapbox now. If you find this topic interesting you may be interested in these articles: here, here, or here.

Urban Simplicity.

Things That Can be Carried on a Bike (#476)

A canvas bag containing–among other things–a cell phone, an extra camera, and a small Bible; two boxes of vital wheat gluten, four small picture frames, and four new stickers (which now reside on the bike pictured).

Urban Simplicity.

Five Quotes from Albert Camus

Photo found here.
7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960

“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.”

“The purpose of a writer is to keep civilization from destroying itself.”

“There are causes worth dying for, but none worth killing for.”

“Man is the only creature who refuses to be what he is.”

“Always go too far, because that’s where you’ll find the truth”

Two more…

“I would rather live my life as if there is a god and die to find out there isn’t, than live my life as if there isn’t and die to find out there is.”

“Peace is the only battle worth waging.”

To read more in the five quotes series, click here.

Urban Simplicity. 

Thoughts on the Varying Degrees of Coincidence and Synchronicity

So here’s a brief story. I was at work today and not in a very good mood for a few reasons. One of the reasons was an on-going strained relationship between a co-worker and I (and no, if we work together and you are reading this I of course am not referring to you). It’s nothing too bad, but I tend to internalize things which of course hurt me in the long run. Anyhow, this was troubling me and at my lunch break I thought I’d read some from a new book I recently purchased by Paramahansa Yogananda. I love his writing and thought it would be good for me. I took a couple bites of my lunch and flip open the book. Yup, you likely guessed it, the chapter that I opened to–the very first page that I opened to–is pictured above…Getting Along With Others. I muttered aloud, “Are you freakin’ kidding me.” All I could do was laugh. I–like most people, I suppose–have coincidences or experience synchronicity somewhat frequently. But it’s only in recent years that I’ve taken them seriously, or at least have given them serious thought. I personally do not think they are random events. Some have studied these occurrences their entire lives (Carl Jung for one). And some also believe that they happen because you are on the same vibrational level of the event that is about to occur. I’m not sure what I believe, but I do know that they happen all the time and at various degrees of intensity. I also find the subject very interesting. And just for laughs I included the below clip from one of my favorite Seinfeld episodes (I couldn’t help myself). So the next time something seems a little strange…think about it for a minute; it may not be strange or random at all…you may, in fact, at that very moment, be in sync with the Universe.

Urban Simplicity.

Macaroni and Four Cheeses

This is a variation of the classic American dish, Macaroni-and-Cheese. The variation from the classic recipe in this one is that I used four cheeses…cheddar, Parmesan, Fontinella, and Gorgonzola. It is–if I do say so myself–mouthwatering delicious. And while this may not be the heart-healthiest meal you can eat it is easy to make, versatile, and delicious (did I mention how delicious it is). The recipe is really simple. It’s basically a Bechamel sauce (milk sauce thickened with roux) into which one or more cheeses are added, and then it’s folded into cooked macaroni (or other pasta). It’s usually topped with something–I use a bit more cheese and breadcrumbs, but crushed crackers, potato chips, and even corn flakes are not uncommon–then the whole concoction is baked in the oven until browned and bubbly. This is most often served as a side dish, but other ingredients can be added to make it more of a main meal. Vegetables will lighten it up a bit (fresh spinach and chopped broccoli are good choices), and more decadent options include–but are not limited to–foods such as ham, sausage, crab, shrimp, or even lobster. And if you want to reduce the artery-clogging cholesterol level of the recipe, some or all of the milk/cream may be replaced with chicken broth. Anyhow, this is really easy to make and way better than the all-to-common boxed variety…and you can make it in bulk and freeze it in increments (as pictured below).

Macaroni-and-Cheese
(with four cheeses)
Makes about four servings
8 ounces elbow macaroni
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
1 cup cream
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
½ cup shredded cheddar
¼ cup crumbled Gorgonzola
¼ cup grated Parmesan
¼ cup grated Fontinella
¾ cup breadcrumbs
Preheat and oven to 350F. Boil the macaroni in salted water, drain, and set aside. Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan then add the flour, stirring to form a roux. Cook the roux over medium heat—while stirring—for a few minutes, then add the milk, cream, salt, and pepper. Using a wire whisk, stir the sauce over medium-high heat until smooth. Continue stirring until it is heated and thick. Cook the sauce for a minute or two then remove from the heat. Add the cheeses and stir until smooth. Add the cooked macaroni to the pot and gently fold into the cheese sauce. Transfer to a lightly oiled skillet or other oven-proof baking dish and sprinkle with the breadcrumbs. Bake the macaroni-and-cheese for about 20 minutes, or until it is hot throughout, bubbling, and golden.

Things That Can be Carried on a Bike (#475)

Groceries, dog food, sundries, wine, vitamins, a double portion of Chinese take out, and bag containing wet gym clothes in a cardboard box and a Bike Rev trailer from four separate stores.

Urban Simplicity.

Things That Can be Carried on a Bike (#474)

A cardboard box containing five pounds of whole wheat flour, a box of latex gloves (100 count), 3 pints of spicy lentil soup/stew (click here for the recipe), and three pints of chopped beef (for the pugs).

Urban Simplicity.

Lawn Surfing…or parking lot surfing, or road surfing, or…

Okay, this takes the tiny house movement to a whole new level. That’s Alexander Main in the above photo in the midst of building his bicycle RV, which he now lives in. When he parks it at night he refers to it as “lawn surfing” (nice). Here’s a picture of the finished RV below.

While I am always trying to simplify and downsize I am not sure I am ready for this…but I am really interested in it. I’ve often thought that if I were homeless (and maybe I will be someday) I would want to own a bike for easy transport, but it would be even better if I had one of these mobile shelters (a tent on a trailer by Tony’s Trailers). They are inexpensive and could carry all your stuff. Anyhow, for examples of more deluxe options of mobile shelters (most of which are made by the people who occupy them) click here, here, here, here, or here.

To visit Alexander’s Bicycle RV website, click here; if you’d like to donate to or support his project, click here. Here’s a short video explaining his trailer.

Urban Simplicity.

Four Photos of Bees…and a bit about the camera I used to take them

Okay, so before you look at the photos (if you haven’t already) I wanted to show you the camera I shot them with. Yup. That’s it. A little palm-sized point-and-shoot Sony Cyber-shot. 12.1 megapixels. This camera, in fact, is what I use for most of my close ups and much of the food photography on this blog. It can be carried in my pocket, and–worst case scenario–if I broke it, it could be replaced rather easily (but I hope it doesn’t as I really enjoy it). I do have two other “better” cameras (neither of which are DSLR and one I purchased used) but this is the one I use for close ups. And while I am in the market for a DSLR camera (a used one that would fit my budget) I get by fine without one. The reason I mention this is that I really believe it is not necessarily the camera (or at least not always the camera) that takes the good photo, but the person viewing what’s in front of them through it. I’m just saying…

This camera not having a great zoom–and when I zoom from a distance it gets blurry–I have to be right on the subject at hand for a crystal clear photo. Thus, for these photos I was, without exaggeration, just a few inches from the bees. Anyhow, here they are.


Urban Simplicity.

The Reward…

As summer begins to wind down the tomatoes and peppers are coming to full fruition. And one of the rewards each summer is tomato sauce. I make it a few times throughout the season and then usually one bigger pot…which was today. I made about 3 gallons of sauce “hillbilly style” (cooked it outside as not to heat up the kitchen). And I’ve mentioned before that for me cooking things from the garden outside is extra special (does it taste better or am I imagining it) because when I cook it outside it is being cooked just a few feet from where it grew. As the sauce was simmering I sauteed a couple pieces of fish then braised it in the tomato sauce and ate it (tossed with pasta) under grapevines while listening to NPR (and yelling at my pugs to stop jumping up at the table). Anyhow, the sauce is presently cooling in my fridge. In the next day or two I’ll package it in increments and freeze it for the off-season. And eating sauce in the middle of winter–which I made from scratch using tomatoes and peppers that grew in the front/back yards–that is the real reward for the time and care it takes to grow (some of) my own food.

Urban Simplicity.

Five Quotes from Dietrich Bonhoeffer

4 February 1906 – 9 April 1945

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was of course a German theologian and pastor who was anti-war and anti-Nazi and ultimately was executed by the Nazis for his involvement in the group known as Abwehr. I’ve read that in a last act of humiliation he was forced to walk entirely naked to the gallows, which was nearly a mile away. Here’s a moving account of his last hours as recorded by the doctor who was present:

The camp doctor who witnessed the execution wrote: “I saw Pastor Bonhoeffer… kneeling on the floor praying fervently to God. I was most deeply moved by the way this lovable man prayed, so devout and so certain that God heard his prayer. At the place of execution, he again said a short prayer and then climbed the few steps to the gallows, brave and composed. His death ensued after a few seconds. In the almost fifty years that I worked as a doctor, I have hardly ever seen a man die so entirely submissive to the will of God.”
(source)

“The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves to its children.” 

“Judging others makes us blind, whereas love is illuminating. By judging others we blind ourselves to our own evil and to the grace which others are just as entitled to as we are.” 

“We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel itself.”

“In normal life we hardly realize how much more we receive than we give, and life cannot be rich without such gratitude. It is so easy to overestimate the importance of our own achievements compared with what we owe to the help of others.” 

“Action springs not from thought, but from a readiness for responsibility.” 

One More…

“Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.” 

To read more in the Five Quotes series, click here.

Urban Simplicity.

The View from My Handlebars…

It’s starting to get dark earlier as the season progresses. I worked a split shift today. The kitchen was hot but not crazy-hot. But still it felt good to get out and hop on a bike in the fresh air for my short commute home. On my ride, and when I took these photos, it was just about 8:30pm…that magical time when the light turns to night; when everything seems to glow with the last of the light in the sky.
What a lovely summer evening.

Urban Simplicity.