Random Thoughts On Cooking, Bike Riding, and The Sacred Journey of Everyday Life
A jug of laundry detergent, a full-sized camera tripod, a new pair of jeans, a package of boxer briefs, a package of t-shirts, two bottles of contact solution, four live cabbage plants, four live broccoli plants, four live tomato plants, six live pea plants, two bottles of weed killer, two packages of meal moth traps, a fresh tuna steak, a cup of coffee, and a new pitch-fork/garden spade.
A gym bag full of wet clothes, a half-gallon of milk, a dozen eggs, a pint of strawberry jam, and a double portion of Chinese take-out food.
If this is true, then the person who wrote this doesn’t know me very well.
More fortune cookie philosophies.
If you’ve followed any of the recipes on this blog you know that two of my favorite ingredients are olive oil and garlic. I made this for staff lunch today…whole wheat spaghetti with broccoli, garlic, olive oil, and hot peppers. For pictures and recipes on how to cook nearly anything aglio e olio scroll through this link.
“I wanted to be successful, not famous.”
“The biggest break in my career was getting into the Beatles in 1962. The second biggest break since then is getting out of them.”
“Try to realize it’s all within yourself no one else can make you change, and to see you’re only very small and life flows on within you and without you.”
“When you’ve seen beyond yourself, then you may find, peace of mind is waiting there.”
“You’ve got as many lives as you like, and more, even ones you don’t want.”
Here’s one more, and it is supposedly the last words George Harrison said.
It was–and still is–a beautiful spring day as I rode to work earlier this morning. And as the weather gets more pleasant I am seeing more and more people on bikes (not all are crazy enough to ride year round). On my short commute there was one cyclist in front of me (pictured) and two behind me…it’s nice not being a lone cyclist on an early morning ride.
On the bike…
A gym bag full of wet clothes, and two slices of pizza (I really think my life is fueled by carbs)
The brief conversation….
I see a guy I vaguely know at the health club tonight. He asks if I rode a bike today. Yes, I told him, actually I’m thinking about going car-free…I’m pretty much there already. Blank stare. Deer-in-the-headlights-look. Then…You can do that? Sure, why not. Well…well…a bit more stammering. Then we just talked about the weather and what a nice day it was outside.
I rode past this tall bike today and did a u-turn to come back and take it’s picture…that is one tall bike. I’ve profiled a tall bike builder previously on this blog, but haven’t seen many of them around lately. As I was taking the bike’s picture a young woman rode up. I commented on how tall the bike was, she smiled and rolled her eyes slightly and said that it was her boyfriend’s bike, that he didn’t build this one but he does build them. She told me his name but it escapes me at present. But it is a pretty interesting bike and I thought I’d share it…it sure is tall.
Well, first of all, while I’m not entirely car-free yet, I don’t specifically have one to drive. What I mean by this is that my truck is officially off the road (no longer legal as the inspection has not been renewed) and is sitting in the driveway of my son’s mom’s house, but I still own it. It’s also officially for sale. If you want to see it or it’s description, here’s the sale page.
Interestingly, while I was getting information together in order to sell it I noticed that since I purchased it about 3 years ago I only drove it about 8000 miles (2666 miles a year)…according to the US Department of Transportation at this page, the “average male” in my age group drives about 18,858 miles a year…I’ve never been one to be average.
But with that said…
Today, being Monday, is one of the two days a week I would move the truck from one side of the street to the other lest I receive a parking ticket. And today it was also raining…hard. I wanted to go to the health club–which I did–but I have to be honest in that if the truck was there and I had to get in it anyhow I likely would have driven to the health club. But it wasn’t there. And I still went. And I didn’t melt.
This is just a test.
I’m still getting used to my somewhat new (used) camera. I had some time yesterday and went for a walk and shot a few photos. The above is of one of my dogs, Maxwell…how could you not love that face. The image first below is the rear of Kleinhans Music Hall. And the bottom three I really enjoy, not because they are really spectacular but because of their clarity. I’ve been experimenting with the camera’s zoom. The bird was taken in my backyard, and likely 50 feet up (you can even see it’s claws gripping the wire and the actual texture of the electric wire), but the cross and the tiger were both easily hundreds of feet up and away. The cross was on the roof of a church and the tiger on an old mansion.
Firstly, this post is not about how to make Ezekiel Bread, per se, but more about how to incorporate bread making into the rhythm of your daily life rather than upsetting it. I have always thought, and still do, that the bread mostly makes itself, we simply provide the correct conditions and guide it along. And while this can be applied to any of the bread recipes on this blog it just happens that I was making Ezekiel bread. There is a recipe for Ezekiel bread below, but if you’d like more detailed instructions with additional photos–and to read about my views on this bread–click here and here.
Anyhow, the reason it took me 48 hours to make this bread is not that it is any more difficult to make than other breads, it’s just that, well…sometimes life gets in the way of your plans. Here’s a quick story and an example of what I mean.
Two evenings ago I thought I’d start a batch of this bread and let it ferment overnight, so I boiled the grains and beans in the evening. After they were boiled I shut them off on the stove to let them cool and forgot about them. Literally. So I just put a plate over the pot and went to bed for the evening. I had to work yesterday evening but thought I’d make the bread prior to going to work so I started the preferment and autolysis first thing in the morning. Well, you guessed it, time slipped away from me and I never even mixed the dough let alone baked the bread. So I covered the bowls of preferment and autolysis and placed them both in the refrigerator, and then went to work. This morning when I initially woke, I took the bowls out of the fridge to let them come to room temp for about an hour or so. Then–finally–I combined the two bowls and mixed the dough. After placing the dough in a rising bucket I returned it to the fridge and went to church. When I came home the dough had risen so I pushed it down and replaced it into the fridge while I did some yard work. Later, I removed the dough from the fridge, cut it into three pieces–two for bread and one for pizza–and panned all of them up. After allowing them to warm a bit again, I returned them to the fridge while I did some errands and stopped at the grocery store. When I returned, I removed the doughs from the fridge for the last time and preheated the oven while I made the pizza. By the time I put together the pizza the oven and pizza stone was hot enough so I baked the pizza. After removing it, and allowing it to cool for about 5 minutes, I baked the bread while I ate the pizza. All-in-all, it was about 48 hours from boiling the beans until the bread came out of the oven and–while the above text may make it sound complex–it barely disrupted my life. One can postpone the dough from rising and fermenting it by refrigerating it, thus controlling how it progresses.
This recipe in general is delicious, but because of the long slow fermentation it tastes especially full-flavored. And yes the pizza was/is delicious as well. Now if you’ll excuse me I think I’ll go grab another slice.
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.
Lao Tzu at wikipedia.
Tao Te Ching at wikipedia.
Read the Tao Te Ching online.
“A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.”
“Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.”
“At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want.”
“By letting it go it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try. The world is beyond the winning.”
“He who conquers others is strong; He who conquers himself is mighty.”
OK, so I said five, but here’s two more…I could’ve easily added another hundred.
“He who knows himself is enlightened.”
“He who knows others is wise. He who knows himself is enlightened.”
To read more in the Five Quote Series, click here
A cardboard box containing $22.36 in groceries, a gym bag containing wet clothes, a smaller bag containing an extra camera and batteries, five high tension hex bolts, nuts, and washers (more parts for the truck repair), and 3 liters of red wine.
This is something I made for staff lunch today. It’s really just a variation of a basic rice pilaf that includes salmon. If you prefer not to use fish (which would be a shame because this is delicious), chicken or lamb would be good substitutes but they would have to be cooked longer (in the recipe below the fish is cooked for a mere five minutes, then allowed to rest for another five). I also used chicken broth in the dish rather than fish broth; this sort of neutralizes the flavors and keeps the dish from tasting too fishy. And if you’d like to make this vegetarian/vegan simply replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth and whatever vegetables and/or soy protein you prefer (tofu or tempeh would be delicious options). Anyhow, as are most of the recipes that I post, this is really delicious, healthy, and simple to make. The recipe is below.
I realize I’ve posted a fair amount of flower pictures lately but I can’t help myself. They are incredible to look at with a naked eye but when zoomed and seen through a lense of a camera they can seem almost other-worldly. The season for these will be over soon enough and you’ll begin to see images of my vegetable garden. But here’s a few more flowers for now; click either for a larger view.
Before I get to mentioning the decision let me first explain the above image. That is a new rear spring bracket I purchased today for $80 for my truck. I’ve mentioned many times on this blog that I am not car-free but am car-lite. Anyhow, the above bracket has to replace the rotted one on my late model truck by this Monday before the month ends and my annual inspection runs out. But before it can be replaced a section of the frame–which has rotted–has to have metal plates welded on for support. I’m not sure how much this will cost, but likely more than I’m guessing.
Anyhow, to get to the decision. Once I have the truck repaired I plan on selling it and….drum-roll please….finally go car-free once and for all. I’ve done it in the past (but not for some years) and will do it again; I’m nearly there already. I’ll do a test run of being car-free through the summer months and see how it goes. The aggravation and true cost of car ownership has finally outweighed the value–to me–of owning one. I’ll bike, walk, take public transportation (as I do now, only more), and likely join our local car share so I’ll be able to use one if I need to get somewhere quickly or out of bike range.
It’s interesting, that when I first found that I needed this work done on the truck I was stressed about it (and still am, actually), but in a way it is also freeing…it is what finally pushed me to make the decision. Everything, some say, happens for a reason.
“I have a notion that if you are going to be spiritually curious, you better not get cluttered up with too many material things.”
The Summer Day
Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean-
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down-
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don’t know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?
Yup…you read it correct; grilled watermelon. It may sound a bit odd but it’s really rather good (and actually quite popular). I served this for staff lunch a few days ago on lettuce with slivered red onion, feta cheese, and grilled chicken breast. It is also delicious with this vinaigrette. Simply brush the melon with olive oil and briefly grill it over a medium-hot fire. It will warm the melon and give it a slight smoky flavor which pairs well with the cheese. It can easily be kept vegetarian by omitting the chicken. Either way…delicious!
Urban Simplicty