Things That Can Be Carried On A Bike (#336)

A small electric fan for next to my bed (to replace the one that stopped working in the middle of last night), the book, Healing and the Mind, by Bill Moyers (which I purchased for 50 cents at my favorite used book store), $22.35 in groceries, and Chinese take out.

Tomato Quiche Recipe, and a few other things

Tomatoes are one of my favorite foods, and like most foods they taste best when eaten within the constraints of their season…now, of course, is tomato season. Anyhow, below is a simple recipe for tomato quiche that is part of an article I recently wrote for Artvoice. It’s an exceedingly recipe to prepare and the ingredients–like most recipes–can be changed or altered to suit your taste. Smoked cheddar or Gouda would make an interesting addition to this, as would a couple hot chilies, or a combination of fresh herbs. To read the complete article–which includes more recipes and the history and story about tomatoes–click here.

Tomato Quiche with Parmesan and Basil

Makes 8 pieces

1 10” quiche shell, par-baked and still in its pan
3-4 large ripe tomatoes, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped basil
1 cup heavy cream
8 eggs
1 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat an oven to 325F. Layer the tomatoes in the quiche shell in a circular shingle pattern. Distribute the garlic, cheese, and basil across the tomatoes. Mix together the cream eggs and salt, then pour it over the tomato-cheese mixture, allowing a minute or two for the liquid to settle into the tomatoes and cheese. Bake the quiche for about 30 minutes, or until the eggs are fully cooked and the quiche is firm. If the quiche begins to brown too quickly cover it with foil. Allow it to cool for five minutes before removing it from its pan and slicing.

Tomato Quiche Recipe, and a few other things

Tomatoes are one of my favorite foods, and like most foods they taste best when eaten within the constraints of their season…now, of course, is tomato season. Anyhow, below is a simple recipe for tomato quiche that is part of an article I recently wrote for Artvoice. It’s an exceedingly recipe to prepare and the ingredients–like most recipes–can be changed or altered to suit your taste. Smoked cheddar or Gouda would make an interesting addition to this, as would a couple hot chilies, or a combination of fresh herbs. To read the complete article–which includes more recipes and the history and story about tomatoes–click here.

Tomato Quiche with Parmesan and Basil

Makes 8 pieces

1 10” quiche shell, par-baked and still in its pan
3-4 large ripe tomatoes, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped basil
1 cup heavy cream
8 eggs
1 teaspoon sea salt

Preheat an oven to 325F. Layer the tomatoes in the quiche shell in a circular shingle pattern. Distribute the garlic, cheese, and basil across the tomatoes. Mix together the cream eggs and salt, then pour it over the tomato-cheese mixture, allowing a minute or two for the liquid to settle into the tomatoes and cheese. Bake the quiche for about 30 minutes, or until the eggs are fully cooked and the quiche is firm. If the quiche begins to brown too quickly cover it with foil. Allow it to cool for five minutes before removing it from its pan and slicing.

Two Temperatures Six Months Separated

The above photos are two screen shots from my desktop separated by six months (both are Fahrenheit; they read -22 and 33 in Celsius). The one on the left was from a post this past January (click here) and the one on the right is from today. Both, of course, have their specific difficulties and challenges…and when you ride a bike they are magnified. Still I saw plenty of people on bikes today; sweating. Maybe it was the innocence of youth, but I don’t remember these consistent extreme temperatures when I was a kid. I hope it’s not the new norm.

Two Temperatures Six Months Separated

The above photos are two screen shots from my desktop separated by six months (both are Fahrenheit; they read -22 and 33 in Celsius). The one on the left was from a post this past January (click here) and the one on the right is from today. Both, of course, have their specific difficulties and challenges…and when you ride a bike they are magnified. Still I saw plenty of people on bikes today; sweating. Maybe it was the innocence of youth, but I don’t remember these consistent extreme temperatures when I was a kid. I hope it’s not the new norm.

A Couple Things…

Firstly…it is hot. Of course many know that much of North America is gripped in what is being called the Heat Wave of 2011. 94F/34C today in Buffalo and super humid…that’s the tough part, the humidity. And I do not have air conditioning anywhere in my life…none at home (fans) and none at work (which is like an oven); my place of business actually closed early today because of the heat, the first time I’ve seen that in the 11 years that I’ve worked there. Anyhow, promptly after getting home from work I suggested we go for a swim at one of my favorite place…Windmill Quarry in Fort Erie, ON. That’s a picture of my son jumping off one of the small cliffs (to see a very short video of him jumping off click here for an earlier post). The water was beautiful. The quarry is only about 10 miles from my house (including crossing the Peace Bridge) and I usually take the Friendship Trail. But today, because of the heat and that my son wanted to bring a friend, we drove. It’s actually only the second or third time I drove my truck in the past 4 weeks, not bad I thought…it’s easy to do this during the summer. This brings me to the other thing on my mind, and this is odd seeing that I drove today.
I was browsing through Katie Alvord‘s book, Divorce Your Car, and came across the below outline called the The Circle Game: How To Reduce Your Driving. I couldn’t help but think that this is the very first reason (or at least one of them) that I started this blog nearly four years ago (click here to read that post), and also that it is easy to make your own circle online using a free app at Cliff Bar…simply type in your address and it will show you a map with a two mile circle around your house (click here). The rest, I suppose, is easy. Well, more or less. If it’s not the snow and rain it’s the oppressive heat. Nonetheless, when I was waiting in line at the US/Canada border this evening–in the baking sun and in a truck without air conditioning–I really wished I was on a bike.  

Excerpt from “Divorce your Car!” by Katie Alvord (cut-and-paste from this site)
The Circle Game: How to Reduce your Driving
Thanks to John Schubert, who devised the original version of this game when working with an EcoTeam in Bend, Oregon.

1. Find your neighborhood on the map.
2. Place the point of a divider compass on the approximate location of your home.
3. Draw a circle with a two-mile radius with the compass.
4. Now, find the places you regularly visit and circle them or mark them with a highlighter. Include your workplace, bank, grocery store, gym, school, place of worship, movie theaters, parks, the library and any other places you visit at least once every two weeks.
5. Note how many of these places fall within the circle.
6. Choose one of the places that falls within the circle and commit to walking, biking or taking transit to it instead of driving every time you go.
7. Every week, every two weeks or every month (depending on how fast you want to go) commit to walking, biking or taking transit to another location from within the circle. Continue adding locations until you routinely use alternatives to the auto for getting to every location within a two mile radius of your home or workplace.
8. Choose one of the places that falls outside the two mile radius, and commit to finding a closer alternative. Example: if your grocery store is outside the two mile radius, change to a grocery store that is inside the radius.
9. See how many of the places outside the two mile radius from your home you can replace with an alternative closer to home, ideally within your circle.
10. Experiment with expanding your circle or using concentric circles to determine places within walking distance and biking distance from your home. For example, if you decide to walk to all places within a mile, and bike to all places within four miles, draw circles with those radii on your map and identify all walkable and bikable destinations within them.
11. When you move, draw a two mile circle around potential new homes to help you find a new location based on its proximity to services, work and school.
12. When looking for new services or a new job, use the circle technique to help you find services or jobs closest to your home.

A Couple Things…

Firstly…it is hot. Of course many know that much of North America is gripped in what is being called the Heat Wave of 2011. 94F/34C today in Buffalo and super humid…that’s the tough part, the humidity. And I do not have air conditioning anywhere in my life…none at home (fans) and none at work (which is like an oven); my place of business actually closed early today because of the heat, the first time I’ve seen that in the 11 years that I’ve worked there. Anyhow, promptly after getting home from work I suggested we go for a swim at one of my favorite place…Windmill Quarry in Fort Erie, ON. That’s a picture of my son jumping off one of the small cliffs (to see a very short video of him jumping off click here for an earlier post). The water was beautiful. The quarry is only about 10 miles from my house (including crossing the Peace Bridge) and I usually take the Friendship Trail. But today, because of the heat and that my son wanted to bring a friend, we drove. It’s actually only the second or third time I drove my truck in the past 4 weeks, not bad I thought…it’s easy to do this during the summer. This brings me to the other thing on my mind, and this is odd seeing that I drove today.
I was browsing through Katie Alvord‘s book, Divorce Your Car, and came across the below outline called the The Circle Game: How To Reduce Your Driving. I couldn’t help but think that this is the very first reason (or at least one of them) that I started this blog nearly four years ago (click here to read that post), and also that it is easy to make your own circle online using a free app at Cliff Bar…simply type in your address and it will show you a map with a two mile circle around your house (click here). The rest, I suppose, is easy. Well, more or less. If it’s not the snow and rain it’s the oppressive heat. Nonetheless, when I was waiting in line at the US/Canada border this evening–in the baking sun and in a truck without air conditioning–I really wished I was on a bike.  

Excerpt from “Divorce your Car!” by Katie Alvord (cut-and-paste from this site)
The Circle Game: How to Reduce your Driving
Thanks to John Schubert, who devised the original version of this game when working with an EcoTeam in Bend, Oregon.

1. Find your neighborhood on the map.
2. Place the point of a divider compass on the approximate location of your home.
3. Draw a circle with a two-mile radius with the compass.
4. Now, find the places you regularly visit and circle them or mark them with a highlighter. Include your workplace, bank, grocery store, gym, school, place of worship, movie theaters, parks, the library and any other places you visit at least once every two weeks.
5. Note how many of these places fall within the circle.
6. Choose one of the places that falls within the circle and commit to walking, biking or taking transit to it instead of driving every time you go.
7. Every week, every two weeks or every month (depending on how fast you want to go) commit to walking, biking or taking transit to another location from within the circle. Continue adding locations until you routinely use alternatives to the auto for getting to every location within a two mile radius of your home or workplace.
8. Choose one of the places that falls outside the two mile radius, and commit to finding a closer alternative. Example: if your grocery store is outside the two mile radius, change to a grocery store that is inside the radius.
9. See how many of the places outside the two mile radius from your home you can replace with an alternative closer to home, ideally within your circle.
10. Experiment with expanding your circle or using concentric circles to determine places within walking distance and biking distance from your home. For example, if you decide to walk to all places within a mile, and bike to all places within four miles, draw circles with those radii on your map and identify all walkable and bikable destinations within them.
11. When you move, draw a two mile circle around potential new homes to help you find a new location based on its proximity to services, work and school.
12. When looking for new services or a new job, use the circle technique to help you find services or jobs closest to your home.

Luxury Made Real

I am immensely interested in the history of the bicycle (among other things) and how it has helped transport people–literally and other ways–so for that reason it is only natural that I also find old bicycle advertisements of interest. Many people are aware that many of the major auto manufactures of today began as bicycle producers, and that the original car mechanics were bicycle mechanics (indeed even the Wright Brothers were auto mechanics before they built airplanes). But what some people may not be aware of–especially my fellow Buffalonians–is that at one time Buffalo was a large producer of bicycles (By 1900 the Buffalo City Directory listed 79 [bicycle] manufacturers, 136 dealers and repairers…from Buffalo Bicycles, by Carl F. Burgwardt), and that our little darling and one time claim to auto fame, the Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Company, began as a manufacture of state-of-the-art progressive bicycles of their day (click here, here, or here). Anyhow, I came across these two advertisements (here) from 1902 and thought they were interesting enough to share. Actually, what really caught my eye was the slogan on the advert above…The Luxury of Cycling Made Real. Nice.

Luxury Made Real

I am immensely interested in the history of the bicycle (among other things) and how it has helped transport people–literally and other ways–so for that reason it is only natural that I also find old bicycle advertisements of interest. Many people are aware that many of the major auto manufactures of today began as bicycle producers, and that the original car mechanics were bicycle mechanics (indeed even the Wright Brothers were auto mechanics before they built airplanes). But what some people may not be aware of–especially my fellow Buffalonians–is that at one time Buffalo was a large producer of bicycles (By 1900 the Buffalo City Directory listed 79 [bicycle] manufacturers, 136 dealers and repairers…from Buffalo Bicycles, by Carl F. Burgwardt), and that our little darling and one time claim to auto fame, the Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Company, began as a manufacture of state-of-the-art progressive bicycles of their day (click here, here, or here). Anyhow, I came across these two advertisements (here) from 1902 and thought they were interesting enough to share. Actually, what really caught my eye was the slogan on the advert above…The Luxury of Cycling Made Real. Nice.

Five Quotes from Nelson Mandela

 Image found at the Wall of Inspiration.
Mr. Mandela was born 93 years ago today and the world is a better place because of him. To read a previous post quoting him click here. 

“I am fundamentally an optimist. Whether that comes from nature or nurture, I cannot say. Part of being optimistic is keeping one’s head pointed toward the sun, one’s feet moving forward. There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested, but I would not and could not give myself up to despair. That way lays defeat and death.”

“No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.”

“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”

“For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.”

Five Quotes from Nelson Mandela

 Image found at the Wall of Inspiration.
Mr. Mandela was born 93 years ago today and the world is a better place because of him. To read a previous post quoting him click here. 

“I am fundamentally an optimist. Whether that comes from nature or nurture, I cannot say. Part of being optimistic is keeping one’s head pointed toward the sun, one’s feet moving forward. There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested, but I would not and could not give myself up to despair. That way lays defeat and death.”

“No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.”

“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”

“For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.”

Saj, Marqouq, and Fatoush…Delicious Recipes to Keep the Kitchen (and the cook) Cool

As many of you know I cook for a living. And as many people around the country and the world currently know: it is hot outside, really hot. So on my day off today the last thing I wanted to do, like any cook–professional or not–is heat up the kitchen. But, on the other hand, I love to cook and I truly enjoy good food, so the challenge is to make good food–including bread–and not heat up the kitchen. And this is easier than you may think.

As many of you also know about me, though I am born-and-bred American, by heritage I am half Lebanese-American. My Dad’s family was from “the old country,” specifically this village. Anyhow, for me to cook a meal like this I delved into my roots not only because I enjoy this food and think that the food of Lebanon is one of the great cuisines of the world, but also because on a hot day like this it makes the most sense to me. Many of the ingredients for the salad, but not all, were from my garden and still warm from the sun. And the bread was rolled flat and cooked in a cast iron skillet outside. But I’m jumping ahead.

Saj is not a recipe per se, but a style of cooking bread and also a piece of cooking equipment (click here or here for pictures). It’s a sort of inverted wok, or domed griddle set over a fire on which the bread is baked. This can also be replicated in an oven with an inverted baking sheet. But I didn’t want to turn on the oven and I didn’t have a saj so I cooked it in a cast iron skillet on a propane burner in the backyard under the grapevines while I sipped wine. I used the simplest and most basic recipe for whole wheat bread (click here for a recipe). When I rolled the dough out I used a rolling pin that I inherited from my sitti (grandmother), who supposedly brought it with her through Ellis Island. The basic recipe makes a lot of flat bread–more than I needed–so I froze 2/3 of the dough raw (after it’s first rising) for future use. The name of this flat bread in Lebanese Arabic is marqouq (or markook); still other times it may be referred to as khubz, which is simply an Arabic word for bread. Unfortunately I am not fluent and know only a smattering of words, but I’m pretty sure its name denotes the bread’s flat shape (if there are any Arabic speakers reading this and you know please inform us).

The salad is really a variation of fattoush, or a Middle Eastern bread salad (not unlike the Italian panzanella, I suppose). The salad’s name–fatoush–is derived from the Arabic word, fattah (or fatteh) meaning crumb or crushed, making reference to their being torn pieces of bread in the salad. The variation I used for my meal tonight was that I ate the bread on the side (rather than part of the salad) and, of course, used it as a utensil for which to eat the salad. You can really put whatever you like into the salad; I used ingredients that were ripe in the garden and also so items I had in the fridge. Generally this is a vegetarian meal (as it was tonight), but it is also delicious with chicken or lamb. One of the distinguishing flavor characteristics about this salad is the na’na’ or mint dressing. In the old days this was undoubtedly made by pounding the mint and garlic in a mortar and pestle (in the same way one would make pesto), but with the advent of the blender this dressing can be made with the push of a button. I planted mint a few years ago, and if you’ve ever done this you know that it grows–literally–like a weed. Needless to say I make this dressing frequently (the recipe is at the end of this post). While this dressing is of course excellent on salads, it is also delicious as a marinade or drizzled over grilled meat and fish.

Garlic-Mint Vinaigrette
Makes about a cup

1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
2 cloves garlic
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/3 cup lemon juice
2/3 cups virgin olive oil

Combine all of the ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth and emulsified.

If you are interested in reading more on the cuisine of Lebanon, click here to read an article I wrote for Sally’s Place many years ago. It’s easy to see how long ago I wrote the article…not only does the picture of my bio show me with hair, and it states that I’m still married, but my son–who is 16 now–was an infant (he was so cute…gets his good looks from his mom, no doubt).

Saj, Marqouq, and Fatoush…Delicious Recipes to Keep the Kitchen (and the cook) Cool

As many of you know I cook for a living. And as many people around the country and the world currently know: it is hot outside, really hot. So on my day off today the last thing I wanted to do, like any cook–professional or not–is heat up the kitchen. But, on the other hand, I love to cook and I truly enjoy good food, so the challenge is to make good food–including bread–and not heat up the kitchen. And this is easier than you may think.

As many of you also know about me, though I am born-and-bred American, by heritage I am half Lebanese-American. My Dad’s family was from “the old country,” specifically this village. Anyhow, for me to cook a meal like this I delved into my roots not only because I enjoy this food and think that the food of Lebanon is one of the great cuisines of the world, but also because on a hot day like this it makes the most sense to me. Many of the ingredients for the salad, but not all, were from my garden and still warm from the sun. And the bread was rolled flat and cooked in a cast iron skillet outside. But I’m jumping ahead.

Saj is not a recipe per se, but a style of cooking bread and also a piece of cooking equipment (click here or here for pictures). It’s a sort of inverted wok, or domed griddle set over a fire on which the bread is baked. This can also be replicated in an oven with an inverted baking sheet. But I didn’t want to turn on the oven and I didn’t have a saj so I cooked it in a cast iron skillet on a propane burner in the backyard under the grapevines while I sipped wine. I used the simplest and most basic recipe for whole wheat bread (click here for a recipe). When I rolled the dough out I used a rolling pin that I inherited from my sitti (grandmother), who supposedly brought it with her through Ellis Island. The basic recipe makes a lot of flat bread–more than I needed–so I froze 2/3 of the dough raw (after it’s first rising) for future use. The name of this flat bread in Lebanese Arabic is marqouq (or markook); still other times it may be referred to as khubz, which is simply an Arabic word for bread. Unfortunately I am not fluent and know only a smattering of words, but I’m pretty sure its name denotes the bread’s flat shape (if there are any Arabic speakers reading this and you know please inform us).

The salad is really a variation of fattoush, or a Middle Eastern bread salad (not unlike the Italian panzanella, I suppose). The salad’s name–fatoush–is derived from the Arabic word, fattah (or fatteh) meaning crumb or crushed, making reference to their being torn pieces of bread in the salad. The variation I used for my meal tonight was that I ate the bread on the side (rather than part of the salad) and, of course, used it as a utensil for which to eat the salad. You can really put whatever you like into the salad; I used ingredients that were ripe in the garden and also so items I had in the fridge. Generally this is a vegetarian meal (as it was tonight), but it is also delicious with chicken or lamb. One of the distinguishing flavor characteristics about this salad is the na’na’ or mint dressing. In the old days this was undoubtedly made by pounding the mint and garlic in a mortar and pestle (in the same way one would make pesto), but with the advent of the blender this dressing can be made with the push of a button. I planted mint a few years ago, and if you’ve ever done this you know that it grows–literally–like a weed. Needless to say I make this dressing frequently (the recipe is at the end of this post). While this dressing is of course excellent on salads, it is also delicious as a marinade or drizzled over grilled meat and fish.

Garlic-Mint Vinaigrette
Makes about a cup

1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
2 cloves garlic
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/3 cup lemon juice
2/3 cups virgin olive oil

Combine all of the ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth and emulsified.

If you are interested in reading more on the cuisine of Lebanon, click here to read an article I wrote for Sally’s Place many years ago. It’s easy to see how long ago I wrote the article…not only does the picture of my bio show me with hair, and it states that I’m still married, but my son–who is 16 now–was an infant (he was so cute…gets his good looks from his mom, no doubt).

The Dog Days of Summer…

Today is hot in Western New York…there’s no two ways around it. Close to 90F / 32C and very humid. The weather forecast is for much of the same for the next week. I had off work today–which is unusual for a Saturday–and for that I am thankful. The last thing I want to do is face a stove on a day like this…but I’ll get plenty of chances to do just that in the coming weeks. At any rate, I’ve made the personal commitment not to complain about the heat (which I and many tend to do) because the opposite of this is the dead of winter. I love the winter but the heat and humidity is much easier to deal with in my opinion, especially as I get older. Click here to see some posts on winter. It seems so far away when I look at those pictures but at the same time very recent…I can still feel the bite of the wind on my face as I pedal into it (opposed to the sweat on my back this time of year). The post that I really found interesting, and a juxtapostion to today’s weather, was this one…-8f / -22C (yikes, that’s harsh). I had yard work to do today; I chose not to. I had planned a long-ish ride to do errands; I didn’t. Instead I stayed around the house most of the day with fans on…read some, and then finished an article. This evening when the sun was low I went for a walk, snapped a few photos (and stopped in an air conditioned bar for a glass of wine) mainly to enjoy such a beautiful and somewhat thick summer’s evening. I hope to remember this evening this coming January when the temperatures dip into the negative.