Sourdough in Action

My first loaf of sourdough, and it turned out better than expected with my young starter.  The crumb was a little more uniform and fine than I would prefer, but it was a good start.  I also made it with half white and half whole wheat flour.  However, I think the whole wheat over powered the tang in the sourdough, so next time it's all white flour in the recipe.  Hopefully, this will be something I can perfect (at least for my taste) fairly quickly so I can get another recipe up on the blog.  Very pleased though with the initial result.

I'll try to make a few more loaves by the weekend, in hopes to also put up the recipe for one of my top 3 favorite sandwiches of all time...using sourdough, of course.  Any guesses??

Day 26 Double Duty

Wow, I never thought I'd do two posts in the same day, but I had to.  I just read the most recent post from a blog that I follow called "The Delicious Truth", which I've spoken of before.  It is run by a chef in New York City named Rob Endelman and it's a great resource for the downfall of our food supply here in America -- from pesticides, to non-food additives, to crafty marketing tag lines given by big food companies and supported by our USDA and FDA.  He really does a great job.

His post this morning was very interesting.  He was amazed at how radish seeds can go from tiny seeds to sprouting seedlings in a matter of a few days and then be mature plants for harvest in a few weeks.  I too am amazed at this process.  But then he said something that rang the bell inside me:

"Despite knowing the science behind it [growing process], I'm still at a loss for deeper understanding."

While I can't claim that I understand it fully, I do believe that it is God who causes all things to grow and have their being.  Who else could think this up:  that from one seed you get a plant, in which there are many more seeds than when you first started?  What man could understand this or comprehend it well enough to make it up?  Blows my mind...

"He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate — bringing forth food from the earth:  wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread that sustains his heart."
- Psalm 104 : 14, 15

It seems like God has been talking about grass-fed beef a lot longer than we have.  He knew all along.

Day 26 - Halfway There

We are officially halfway to Lime Green Salad ripeness and yesterday was the first sign of a tomato that I've been able to see. Now granted, it's about the size of a pea, but it turns out that it wasn't blossom drop after all. The flowers are supposed to wither and turn brown, revealing the fruit within.

What a great picture of life in Christ: We die to ourselves, to our old nature, to the part of us that wanted nothing to do with God, and reveal the fruit that He is growing inside us by His Spirit to the rest of the world. What a wonderful God we serve, who shows us how to live in the smallest things.

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness."
- Lamentations 3 : 22, 23

What I'm looking for...

This video is an example of what I'm looking for in my area of Montgomery County here in southeast Texas and the kind of change I desire to make in what we eat and our support of local growers.  I know this has been going on for years and years in New York City (of which, I have to say, I am very jealous), but I also believe I may have found our local answer in St. Fairsted Farms.  They support a local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program that supplies any who participate with weekly baskets of fresh, local produce for a weekly fee and they also run a farm stand for those who would rather just pick what they want.  Now, I haven't visited the farm yet, nor talked to their owner, Angela, but everything I've read or heard seems like it's just what I've been looking for in the way of fresh fruits and vegetables, locally and organically grown.

The farm stand opens May 5th and I plan on being there opening day to sample what they have to offer and hopefully begin the process of making the switch from megamart mush to fresh, local goodness.

Chocolate Cake Makes A Happy Boy Indeed

Just look at it.  I mean, what about this could not make you happy?  Deep, rich, moist chocolate cake layers separated by thin layers of not-to-sweet mocha buttercream frosting.......there are few things that top this on my list.  I have a theory that coffee and chocolate were fraternal twins that were separated at birth, only to be blissfully reunited in this cake.  It's a family reunion every time I make it.  They were meant to be together.

Charlie's 2nd birthday was earlier this month, but due to varying schedules, the only time we could get both sets of grandparents together was today (minus his Papi, who is out in Georgia.  We miss you, Papi!!).  We wanted to have a small party -- nothing grand with a lot of guests, just our parents and some good food.  The menu included chicken and beef skewers loaded with veggies in an orange-balsamic glaze, fresh grilled corn and some brown rice laced with basil...

...and then came the cake made to look like one of Charlie's favorite things...drums (which he calls "bubbas" because they go "bubba, bubba, bubba, bubba...").  I'm not a professional cake decorator, so it's not the best looking cake in the world, but, as with many things in life, it's what's inside that counts.  And, oh, does it ever count here.  I wish I could email you all a piece.  The funny thing is this:  this is probably one of the most used chocolate cakes ever, since it came off the back of a well known box of cocoa.  Ordinarily, I would not consider doing this, as I have trouble trusting "big food company" recipes, but I am okay with it in this case.  Why?  Not only do I recognize each ingredient as natural, actual food (unlike partially hydrogenated oils, Propylene Glycol Mono and Diesters of Fatty Acids, Sodium Searoyl Lactylate, etc.), but it's the best chocolate cake I've ever had**.  So, I won't bother putting the recipe for the cake up here, as you should have no problem finding it at your local grocery store or online, or perhaps in your kitchen cabinets.

I did, however, alter the frosting recipe on the back of the same cocoa box (see the end of the post for the recipe), so that I could bring those two long lost siblings, chocolate and coffee, back together again.  Plus, I thought the sugar to butter ratio was far too high --- much too sweet in my opinion, which tends to over-power the cake.  And as you can see, this does make for a happy boy.

Happy Birthday, Charlie!  Daddy loves you.


**Three tips to this being the best chocolate cake you have ever eaten:

• I make these cakes in two 8" round, heavy aluminum pans, not 9" like the recipe calls for.  I prefer the added height since I slice both cakes in half to make 4 layers, which I find distributes the cake and frosting flavors better across the width of the slice than a 2 layer cake.
• Take the cakes out when the cake still slighty clings to a toothpick stuck into the center.  You don't want a completely clean toothpick.
• Make the frosting layers very thin, almost to where you can see the cake underneath it.  Not quite that far, but almost.  A little really does go a long way. 

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Mocha Buttercream Frosting

• 3 sticks butter, softened to room temperature
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 14 Tbs cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup whole milk or half & half
• 1/2 to 1 1/2 tsp ground coffee beans

- Grind a small handful of coffee beans to a fine powder, resembling espresso powder.  Set aside.
- In stand mixer, add butter to a bowl and beat with a paddle attachment on lowest speed.
- Whisk the sugar and cocoa together in a bowl.  Then slowly add to the butter in small installments until fully incorporated
- Add vanilla and then just enough milk to reach the desired consistency for spreading or piping.
- Add the coffee grounds, starting with 1/2 tsp and then adding more to taste.

Day 22 - Blossom Drop???

This is what happens to a beautiful tomato bloom when it doesn't get enough sun light, too much nitrogen, or it could be one of a number of factors.  It's called "blossom drop", and I think it's starting to happen to Lime Green Salad.  We've had some cloudy and unusually cool weather here the past few days and the forecast doesn't look too good either.  We're supposed to get thunderstorms today and tomorrow.  If I'm wrong, please someone correct me, because I hope it's not so.  One thing I am learning about growing your own food:  There are some things only God can do, and making a tomato grow is one of them.  If only I could live my whole life in such surrender to Him.

I'll be starting a new weekly weekend series tomorrow here on GFGS in which I give the recipe of the week.  It could be anything from desserts to salads to entrees to drinks, but I would like to start sharing some of my ideas with you all and let you enjoy them (or trash them if you think they're rubbish) and experiment with them yourselves.  A bit of a warning though:  I use a recipe about once every thousand times I cook, so most of these recipes are going to have some wiggle room incorporated in them.  Most of them I've never actually measured, so amounts will probably not be exact, but I am an engineer, and I can make a very educated guess.

Coming up tomorrow...can you guess what we're making?

Sourdough Starter

So, here it is.  This wonderful, soupy concoction is the beginning of one of my favorite breads ever - sourdough.  I never really thought of having a starter (which in itself is dead simple to make), but my dear mother made one back at the end of March and I became intrigued.

Me:  "You mean it's that easy?!"
Mom:  "Yep."
Me:  "All you do is mix flour and water together and let it sit there on the counter?  And that's it??!"
Mom:  "Yep."
Me:  "How does it rise?"
Mom:  "From the natural yeast spores in the air."

And this I thought was just fascinating.  There is bread-making ability in the air all around me and I didn't even know it.  I mean, how easy did God make it for us with this one?  Plus, this starter will have a flavor and texture characteristic all its own, since it's being fed by water and flour and air from my area down here in southeast Texas.  So, I've jumped on the starter bandwagon and followed the footsteps of thousands and thousands of people before me - I took some of my parents' starter and started my own.  And it's this process that I think is the most special about this bread.  It's just another way that we get to share with each side of our families, those older and younger than us, the wonderful tradition of making good food together.  God surely does know what He is doing.

Going Local

This past weekend, my wife, Bethany, took Charlie on a trip with a group of friends to a local farm to pick strawberries.  They had a great time, and the strawberries were soft, juicy, sweet...just beautiful.  Leaps and bounds beyond anything we would find in our local megamart.

Scoping out the scene and tasting his first pick...

Showing mom his spoils and then getting it all over his face...

We've been recently trying to find local sources of fruits, vegetables and meats and I've been pretty surprised by what we've found.  There is a local ranch in Montgomery, TX, Olde World Farms, that sells all grass-fed beef, as well as pork, lamb and chicken all given healthy and proper diets as well as kept in clean, natural conditions.  We haven't gone yet to see the farm or purchase any product, but the more and more we become aware of the benefits (not only to our bodies and our health, but to our economy too) of grass-fed beef and other organic products, the more I think we're going to make the switch.  There will be a visit to Olde World Farms in the near future, but that's for another blog.

But looking at these pictures, it reminds me of one of the reasons I'm growing tomatoes:  to learn that our food doesn't come from a box or a warehouse, it comes from the ground and people work hard to make that happen.  But the product, taken care of correctly, is well worth the effort.

Tomorrow, one of my favorites...

...sourdough.