A First for BMT

In all the years I've been going to baseball games, I'd never before gotten hold of a game ball. Several years ago, Amy managed to snag a ball used in batting practice before an Indians game, but that's as close as I'd gotten until last night. My friends, Carl and Sally, had been comped a game in a loge at an Akron Aeros game, and they invited me to join them. Late in the game, a foul ball was lined back our way, and I got my hand on it. No, I didn't catch it outright, it was going about 90MPH at the time, and the bugger stung! Fortunately for me, a nice person in the loge next to me flipped the ball back to me. So, yay! I'm in a possession of a game ball!

What's the Bald Man Up To?

Yeah, I kinda went dark there again, didn't I? Well, I've been busy with my work for Brand Thunder, working on something very, very exciting that I couldn't talk about. I think I can now, so have a look at what we've been working on. I am super, super excited about this! Not only did I get a chance to work on a set of themes for something I love dearly, this is a HUGE opportunity for Brand Thunder. Good times!

Oh, and if that set of themes isn't to your liking, check out some of our other themes, and if you still don't see anything you like, create one for yourself!

Simple White Bread

I mentioned a while ago that I've got a bit of free time, and have been trying things in the kitchen. Bread seems to be the constant thing for me. I make a lot, and don't buy from the store any more. In addition to the two loaves I mentioned previously, I bake a third that is ridiculously easy. Here's my recipe.

The Ingredients

• 2-1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1-1/4 c luke-warm water
• 3 c flour, plus additional flour for dusting and kneading
• 1-1/2 tsp kosher salt (or 1-1/4 tsp table salt)
• 1 tbsp vegetable or olive oil
• 2 1tsp pats of butter

The Hardware

• 1 or 2 large bowls
• 1 tea towel
• large-ish wooden or plastic spoon
• 1 bread pan
• a nice flat surface for kneading
• a wire cooling rack

The Method

Add the active dry yeast, sugar and water to a large bowl, stir to dissolve the yeast and sugar, then let sit for 5 minutes. Then add 3 c flour and the salt, and stir to combine. Once everything comes together, dust your hands and work surface with flour, dump the dough onto the dusted surface, and knead for 2-3 minutes. Dust additional flour on your hands or work surface if the dough sticks. After kneading, form the dough into a ball. Spread the oil thinly around the inside of a large bowl (or wash your original bowl in really hot water and dry thoroughly, the heat will help with the bread rising), removing excess with a napkin or paper towel. Put the dough ball in the oiled bowl, roll the ball around a few times to coat, then cover the bowl with the tea towel and park in a warm place for an hour. After the hour has passed, uncover the dough, punch it down a little, then cover and place back in a warm spot for another 30 minutes.

Now, use 1 tbsp butter to grease the inside of your bread pan. Dust your hands and work surface once again, and dump out the now-risen dough. Using your hands, stretch the dough into roughly a rectangle as wide as your pan, and 1-1/2 times as long, trying to keep the thickness of the dough as even as you can. Starting with the near end, roll the dough into a log, crimp both ends, then put the dough log into the bread pan. Cover and place in a warm spot for another 30 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Place your oven rack about in the middle of your oven. Bake your loaf for 40 minutes. After you pull out your loaf, immediately take the bread out of the pan and place on a cooling rack. Spread the remaning 1 tbsp butter over your piping hot loaf and allow to cool.

Notes

I never said it’d be quick, but it really isn’t hard. The hard part is resisting the temptation to immediately cut your bread. The interior needs time to set, so be patient. It’d be best to give it an hour before cutting, but you might be able to get away with 45 minutes. Whatever you do, make sure your loaf is completely cool before storing, especially if you’re storing in a plastic bag.

Remember that fresh bread will not keep as long as store-bought bread, since you’re not adding a bunch of preservatives. It usually doesn’t last more than a day or two around here, anyway. Oh, and if you’re not a fan of eating the bread heels, pop them into a plastic bag and freeze them. Then when you come across a recipe that calls for bread crumbs, grab them and run them through your food processor. You’ll never need to bread crumbs from the store again.

Oh, and the best thing to put on the bread is your own homemade butter. Yum....

My Son, the Gourmand

Our kids love to pretend cook. Ever since Poet could walk, she'd bring us stuff from her little kitchen to "eat," be it "soup" or "noodles" or "milk" or whatnot. When Happy got big enough and learned enough words, he joined in, offering "beef stew" or "cold peas" or "hot dog sammiches." Which brings me to today's story.

After picking up the kids from daycare, Amy and I took them to one of our many local parks. Beneath the main playset is a little shelf which is reminiscent of a counter in a restaraunt, think McDonalds or Skyline or something along that order. When we go to this playground, the kids will invariably catch sight of this shelf and strike up a rousing game of "food service." Today, Happy emerged from behind the shelf to take my order:

Happy: Daddy! What can I make you?

Me: Hmmm... I think I'll have a hot dog sammich.

Happy: <turns to go> OK, I'll be right back!

Me: Oh, can I get some mustard on it?

Happy: Yeah! What kinda mustard do you want?

Yep, that's right. Happy was concerned about the kind of mustard I wanted. How many three year olds know more than plain ol' yellow mustard? Happy and Poet both know and enjoy yellow, spicy brown and dijon. They also know that I eat "hot" mustard at our local greasy wok. I might let them try it, then I might get offered hot mustard for my hot dog, too!

Homemade Butter

Since it was requested, here's how to make homemade butter:

The Ingredients:

• 1 pint heavy whipping cream
• 1 tsp kosher salt (or to taste)

The Equipment:

• Food processor or blender
• A largish bowl filled with ice water
• Something in which your butter will be stored

The Method:

Dump the cream and salt into your food processor or blender, and turn it on. Keep watch over it as it turns from cream to whipped cream, to stiff whipped cream. Eventually it'll start to fold in on itself and get slightly yellow. Hang tight, you're almost there! At some point, the liquid will begin to separate from the solids. You'll see a bunch of little globs (the butter) and a lot of liquid (buttermilk). Kill the power and let things settle for a minute, then drain off the buttermilk, mush all the solids into a ball and drop into the ice water. Knead with one hand for a few moments to get as much buttermilk out of the butter as you can. Then transfer your butter to the storage vessel of your choice.

Notes

See, it's simple, isn't it? It actually took me less time to make it than to type this all up. There are a few things you'll want to keep in mind. First, don't overwhip the butter. I did the first time and my butter ended up with a chunky, crumbly texture that didn't spread even when warmed to room temperature. If your butter comes together in a big solid ball while you're still whipping it in your food processor, it's overbeaten. You can still eat it, but the texture will be off. Second, the reason for the ice water bath is to remove buttermilk, which can cause your butter to go rancid when left out for a while at room temperature. I always refrigerate my butter and only get out what I'll need for a meal, and let it warm up for a few minutes before serving. Finally, the amount of salt you use is really up to you. I wrote 1 tsp into the recipe above because it seems reasonable. I like mine a little saltier, I actually use closer to 1-1/2 tsp or even 2. If I have my mom over, I'll use less, since salt and her don't really get along.

Oh, and one final note: homemade butter is just begging for additions. Try herbs or garlic. Yummmm...

Thank You, AEP!

We used 15% less electricity this billing period, compared to the previous. Your bill was 7% higher. Keep up the good work AEP, soon you'll be in the same class as Ohio American Water.

Crappy Kitchen Day

Inside of an hour today, I managed to burn a hole through the bottom of our flour container, and break our large food processor. I should go back to bed...

Trouble With Happy

Oooooooh boy, my son is going to be trouble. To wit:

Happy is starting his transition to the next daycare room up, for 3's and 4's (Poet's current class). Today we got a note from the teacher in Happy's old class. Evidently when Happy left, one little girl was very upset, saying that she wanted to go with Happy because he is her "best friend." Another little girl heard that and piped up, "no, he's my husband!" They then started yelling back and forth at each other, "HE'S MINE!" "NO, HE'S MINE!" They had to be separated.

Yikes.

Free Time

Lately, work hasn't been keeping me as busy as I'd like, so I've had time to do other things. Some things are less pleasant than others (like cleaning up the basement to turn into a play area, that wasn't a lot of fun). But the fun parts have been around trying new things in the kithcen. I've gotten back to baking bread again. In addition to baking bread from a book my sister got me for Christmas last year, I've found a great recipe for Italian bread which I've made twice and has been gone in under 24 hours both times. I've also started making fresh ricotta, which is so stupidly easy I can't believe I haven't done it before. And today, I made my first batch of homemade butter, which is even more stupidly easy. I think that the next item on my list of things to try making is mozzarella, which seems slightly more complicated, but well within my ability to not screw things up. Yay for free time!

This Makes My Blood Boil

A Facebook friend posted this link, and the story makes my blood boil. I'm not sure what can be done, but posting it for a wider audience can't hurt as a start. Boost the signal.

More Casserole-y Goodness

I love lasagna (well, I love my mom's lasagna, no other, including my own, measures up). However, I'm lazy. The big lasagna noodles are clunky to work with, and all the layers is just too much work. So what's a lasagna lovin' guy supposed to do? He cheats, of course. This recipe is pretty close to my lasagna, I just switch up the noodles.

Baked Ziti

The Ingredients:

• 8 oz ziti
• 1 lb ground sausage
• 1/2 c finely chopped onions
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 c tomato sauce
• 12 oz ricotta
• 1 egg
• 1/4 c parmesan cheese, grated
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 2 c mozzarella cheese, shredded

The Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook the pasta as per directions on the box.

Brown the sausage over medium-high heat in a 12" frying pan. Once browned, add the onions and garlic and cook until the onions are soft. Drain if necessary and return to the pan. Add the tomato sauce and cook over low heat for about 10 minutes. Combine this mixture thoroughly with the pasta, set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, egg, parmesan cheese and oregano.

Scoop about half of the pasta/sausage/sauce mixture into an 8x8" pan. Add the cheese mixture by the spoonful on top of the pasta and smooth out. Scoop the remaining pasta/sausage/sauce mixture on top, then top with mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil and bake for an hour at 350 degrees, removing the foil for the last 15 minutes.

Serves 4-6

Notes:

I didn't actually use ziti for my baked ziti, since it was literally double the price of mostaccioli. Since it was roughly the same size and shape, I didn't figure it mattered. I used sweet italian sausage, because Amy isn't a big fan of spicy sausage. I also made my own ricotta, but I'll post about that the next time I make it. All in all, this turned out well. Happy had seconds! Come to think of it, he had seconds the last time I made a casserole, too. Hrm, I'm sensing a pattern...

What's for Dinner?

I haven't posted a recipe in a loooooong time, so here's one that I've been working on for a while. I think I've got it down pretty well now, so I've stopped fiddling. Let me know how it comes out if you give it a try.

Chicken Soup Casserole á la Bald Man Tom

The Ingredients

• 2 large, boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and diced or cubed (around 2 cups)
• 4 tbsp butter
• 4 oz frozen mirepoix mix (carrots, onions, celery)
• pinch of salt
• 4 tbsp flour
• 2-1/2 c milk
• 3-1/2 tsp chicken bouillon
• 2 tbsp poultry seasoning
• 1 tbsp garlic powder (not garlic salt!)
• 6 oz noodles, cooked
• water (for cooking the noodles)
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• 1 tbsp poultry seasoning
• 1 tsp olive oil

The Method

Preheat the oven to 375.

Place a skillet over medium-high heat and melt the butter. When melted, add the mirepoix mix and a pinch of salt and cook until softened, about 5 min. Lower the heat to medium, then add the flour and stir, cooking about another 2 min. Lower the heat to low. Add the milk, bouillon, garlic powder and 2 tbsp poultry seasoning to the pan and stir constantly while it thickens. Add the noodles and chicken, stir to combine everything. Transfer the mixture to a 9x9 or 8x8 baking dish. In a small bowl, combine the bread crumbs, 1 tbsp poultry seasoning and olive oil, then sprinkle over the casserole mixture. Bake for 45 minutes, let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Serves 4

This goes over pretty well at our house. Happy even had seconds tonight!

Cold and Snowy Day in Central OH

One of the great things about living in the Central Ohio area is the Columbus Zoo. This is our second year with a family subscription, and I can say that it is easily the best money we spend each year. The zoo itself is awesome, one of the best in the country, but for those inclement days when you just have got to get the family out of the house before complete insanity sets in, there's an aquarium and manatee rehabilitation center. During the winter, both are nearly deserted, so there's plenty of room for the family to wander and explore.

Today, we got to the manatees at feeding time. Poet and Happy were more interested in the diver than the manatees. Especially Happy, since the diver who was anchoring the lettuce was a young woman. Sigh. He's going to be trouble...

Three Items

Item the first: my kids asked for mashed potatoes for dinner tonight. OK, that's not quite true, I offered them rice, noodles or mashed potatoes, and they chose mashed potatoes. This is significant because until a month ago, neither would touch a potato if it wasn't julienned and deep fried. Color me happy, that means we can re-introduce potatoes to the menu.

Item the second: my parents got me one of these for Christmas. I've used it pretty extensively for the last week, and I think I like it. This is my first ceramic knife, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect. It's nice and sharp, and the handle on this one is a nice fit for my oversized hand. It's a little light for my preference, but I'm getting used to it. I have to use a little more force to get through things like potatoes and carrots, but that might just be that I'm used to using an 8" blade. Anyhow, I like it well enough that I'm half tempted to get a larger ceramic knife for my knife block.

Item the third: we gave Poet and Happy their first introduction to Star Wars tonight. They didn't watch much, just enough to see C3PO and R2D2, which they know from a t-shirt Happy had over the summer. They were completely rapt during their few minutes with one of my favorite movies. I'm eagerly anticipating them getting a little older so we can watch it and the rest of the series all the way through.

A Brief Moment of Happy-ness

Life with Happy has been less than happy for the last few months. His "two" started pretty mild, but picked up around 2-1/2 and has intensified into a pretty attitudinal start to "three". There's mischievous taunting of Poet, punctuated by a lot of "NO!!!" shouted at Mommy and Daddy, all wrapped around lots of crying when he doesn't get his way.

But through all that, there are some small glimmers of the wonderful little boy who normally inhabits our house. For instance, today we were driving home from visiting Amy's folks. While flitting through one of a dozen small towns on our back-roads trip, Happy woke from his nap:

• Happy: DADDY, DADDY!!! (because sometimes shouting "DADDY" only once isn't enough to wake everyone in the car)
Me, while adjusting the rear view mirror so I could see him: Yeah buddy?
• Happy, smiling that sweet, beautiful smile that will someday get him in a WHOLE LOT of trouble: I love you very much!

He's never said that to me before, and certainly never unbidden. Made me want to grab him out of his seat and give him a big hug and kiss right there. Of course by night's end, he'd done something that again made me want to leave him with Grandma for a few years, but there, in that moment, he was my wonderful Happy boy again.

Merry Christmas, After All

Following yesterday's adventure, I got a phone call from the mechanic this morning. The initial guess from the shop was that I'd destroyed my car's clutch, which was the repair that was to have cost $1300. As luck would have it, it wasn't the clutch, but the CV shaft which bought the big one. And happily, the estimated cost for this repair is more in the $400 neigborhood.

Cue MAJOR sigh of relief :)

Blended Family

You may or may not know this, but ours is a blended family. That's right: Amy's car is automatic, mine is manual. Hers is a little bigger and more family-friendly, so we usually take it when we go places as a family. Since I work from home, mine doesn't get driven all that much.

Having a blended family does occasionally cause problems. Most often, the problems stem from me remembering which car I'm currently driving. I'll often try to downshift in Amy's car when I'm turning a corner, or I forget to put the car in park before shutting off the engine, which a) makes Amy nuts and b) causes the doors to remain locked (her car has this fancy feature that unlocks the doors when the car is shifted into park, but it only works, for whatever reason, if the engine is on). Once in a while, I'll forget that I'm driving my own car, and after putting on the parking brake I'll simply take my foot off the clutch, stalling the car. Today, I did a little worse than stall the car, I blew out my clutch. As I was backing into the drive today, I noticed the neighbors trash cans in the drive, so I wanted to be sporting and move them rather than run them over. When I took my foot off the clutch, instead of the usual lurch and then silence, there was a very loud WHA-BAAM! and the engine kept running. When I put the car into gear and tried driving, the engine revved, but the car didn't move.

Whoops...

So, Merry Christmas, Mr. Mechanic, as you are the beneficiary of my estimated $1300 repair.

Question For the Masses

Can someone please explain to me why everyone is in such a lather about Yuengling? I bought some of their lager today. I can't say I think it's all that exceptional. Yes, it's better than the mass produced swill that's out there, but I'd much prefer Great Lakes Brewery Dortmunder Gold. Heck, I think Sam Adams is better. What am I missing?

Family Time

We participated in a family tradition today: we took the kids bowling for the very first time. I know that many of you may scoff about bowling, but I have many fond memories of bowling while growing up. My first league was an adult/junior league in which I bowled with my dad, and I bowled in leagues nearly every year through high school. It's a big part of my family. So today, we introduced Poet and Happy. They were very excited and really had a blast. As a bonus, they behaved well enough that we want to do it again!

Thoughts in Space

(I know, I know... this poor blog has been neglected.)

Just a small post but one that I have been thinking about all day. This morning during our wake up snuggle Happy was babbling and kept mentioning we were on a space ship. Where he came up with that I don't know but it was fun pretending with him. It also made me think of the cartoon I saw earlier this week. The shuttle program is ending and there goes my boy's dream of space ships. I am sad that he (or his sister) will not get to experience the joy and pride of remembering a shuttle launch. I could go on but it is bedtime and this a just a random post.