Asphalt. ASSFAULT.

Supppp my people?! So. You hear it first. Well, second cuz Facebook heard it first. But, word on the street is SNOW DAY TOMORROW! EFF YESS! I have not had one of these babies in over 4 years. Never once did Union cancel classes in the wake of a storm. So, I'm thinking, I've had this a long time coming. So thank you, snow storm. There should be a name for you.

Anyways, moving on. How have you been, my ponderous anonymous readers? Yes, I have been absent for quite a while, not sure how you managed to survive with out me. But alass...here we are. And let me tell you. The last few days/weeks have been quite the trip. Ups, downs. Tears, smiles. Laughs, crys. Road trip to CT to say adios to my BFF since I was 11. Oh boy. I guess it's all part of growing up, eh? Sometimes I like to look up at the sky and find where snowflakes are born. Other times I like to pretend I'm little again. But you know? No one likes being sad but it makes the happy times that much better. I'm gunna miss driving to CT and hanging with Ashley and Sondra but I look forward to roads trips with Sondra up to Maine. I've always wanted a flannel wearing lumberjack bearded scruffy boy friend. Let the fantasies begin...moooovving on!

So, in trying to set new goals and keep my life busy while getting as little sleep as possible, there are several projects I have put on my plate. First, I have reactivated my Peace Corps Application. Yes. Second, I am starting a photo project. Photo project. What is that? Well, in order to take more photo's (and as you may know I am a fan of film photography) and expand my photography knowledge I am going to set a challenge of one roll of film per month for the next year. I'm also going to wait until the end of this one year project before I develop them. I figure it will be cool to look back at a year of my life through film.

On another note, I have purchased a harmonica! Finally time to act on that goal. But now the issue is actually playing the harmonica. To tell you the truth, it's a lot harder then I thought it would be. To say the least, I have a new found appreciation for Billy Joel, Elton John and all those other singer song writers who perform with a harmonica in their mouth.

One final thing before I consider getting dressed and hitting up the BIER GARTEN for some late night fun before a snow day. Two new races on the map. The first is a half-marathon in Long Island May 1st. Yeah Boiiiii. The second is the famous and infamous Boilermaker in Utica, NY that ends at the Saranac Beer Factory. Can I get a WHOOP WHOOP! Interested? Hit me up...I could always use some company. The Boilermaker has become something of a running revolution over here in Albany.

Alright. On that note, I leave you with two things. A note from my harmonica which you cannot hear and a poem from Sir Shel Silverstein, the master of words. Kind of an ode to youth and hard times if you will...and I believe it's called "Where the Sidewalk Ends"

There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.

Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.

Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.

There will be two posts today!

Post one is a list of a few recipes I have tried over the past two weeks. Post two is more dialogue...and I suppose an apology for not having written for nearly two months.

Recipe 1: Rosemary Focaccia Bread

Ingredients:

2 TBSP Rosemary

1 Cup Boiling Water

1 Package (1 TBSP) dry yeast

1 Teaspoon Sugar

***

1 Teaspoon Salt

3 Tablespoons Olive or Rosemary Oil

1 ¼ Cups Whole Wheat Flour

1 – 1 ½ Cups unbleached white bread flour

***

1 TSP Coarse Sea Salt

3-4 Fresh Rosemary Sprigs

Crush the rosemary laves with a pestle or chop them finely. Pour the boiling water over the rosemary leaves in a large mixing bowl. Let the water cool to a temperature comfortable on the inside of your wrist. Add the yeast and Sugar.

After about 5 minutes, when the yeast is bubbling, add the salt and one teaspoon of the olive oil. Stir in the whole wheat flour. Add only as much white bread flour as you need to make the dough pull away from the sides of the bowl. Knead the dough for 5 to 10 minutes until smooth and springy. As you knead the sough add just enough flour to prevent sticking. The dough should remain soft.

Oil a large bowl. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it once to oil both sides. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and set it aside in a warm place for about 1 ½ hrs or until doubled in size.

Punch down the dough and knead it for a minute or two. Oil a large baking sheet with olive oil. Stretch and pat the dough on the baking sheet to roughly form a 12x12 inch square. Cover the pan and let the dough rise again for about 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Make indentations with your fingertips about every two inches, dimpling the dough all over. Sprinkle coarse salt over the top. Lightly press in fresh rosemary sprigs. Drizzle the dough with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Bake for about 25 minutes or until golden. Serve warm, cut or broken into pieces.

Note: I top mine with sundried tomatoes, red onion, olives, sea salt, rosemary, and olive oil.

Recipe 2: Rosemary Shortbread

2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon plus 1 pinch kosher salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted cold butter, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 to 2 teaspoons rosemary, chestnut or other dark, full-flavored honey (optional).

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees. In a food processor, pulse together flour, sugar, rosemary and salt. Add butter, and honey if desired, and pulse to fine crumbs. Pulse a few more times until some crumbs start to come together, but don't overprocess. Dough should not be smooth.

2. Press dough into an ungreased 8- or 9-inch-square baking pan or 9-inch pie pan. Prick dough all over with a fork. Bake until golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes for 9-inch pan, 45 to 50 minutes for 8-inch. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Cut into squares, bars or wedges while still warm.

Note: I used 1/3 c sugar and 1/3 c brown sugar and I added finely crushed walnuts.

Recipe 3: Maple Balsamic Vinigrette (Courtsey of LANA!)

‎1 small Shallot, finely diced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 teaspoons Maple Syrup
...Kosher Salt
Freshly ground Black Pepper
-------------------------------------
Combine the chopped shallot, Dijon and Balsamic Vinegar in a mixing bowl. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while you whisk to emulsify. Add the maple syrup and season, to taste, with salt and pepper.



That will be all for today. I have other recipes but they will be added in good time. Yum.

Chalupa in Solitude

What is uuuuuppp anonymous readers. Sorry for the two month hiatus but did I not warn you at the beginning that I would probably fail with the upkeep of this venture? I know, this does nothing but reflect poorly on my ability to follow through on, well, anything. But alas, that is why I am here. I followed through. On what you may ask? I'll get to that in a moment. But first, a side story on follow through: I've been bad at it since childhood. In dance, I lacked the follow through in sticking my leg straight up behind me. My dance teacher said I had froggy legs. In piano, I lacked follow through in practice. I never practiced. It wasn't that I didn't care....well, it was. Piano was one of those things my mom made me do and because she did I hated it and my revenge was to never practice. Now, of course, I regret it because I would love to be able to sit at a Piano and knock out Beethoven's 9th by memory. I lacked follow through in soccer. I could never kick the ball properly. I was tall enough as a kid to make a good basketball player but I lacked follow through in making a shot. I lacked follow through in throwing a soft ball and in swimming the breast stroke. See what I mean? I am prone to lacking follow through.

Well...to be honest, I began this post like two days ago...so once again my lack of follow through SHINES. But at least I am aiming to finish this post...without distraction. Maybe. Hopefully. We'll see. Anyways. The topic of this post. Follow through. So I am approaching the 6 month mark in my year of service. Half way through. And boy oh boy have I been struggling. Both in my current job and in my future. I am not going to go into the details of my struggles at work...mainly because if you are close to me, you know what they are, and if you're not, well then you don't know the issues for a reason. Not to mention you never know who could be reading this blog.

However, my concerns about my future I have no concerns about revealing to you. In fact, I welcome any and all suggestions from you, anonymous readers. Not that there are many of you. But hey. One can hope.

Well anyways I suppose I'll save that for another day mainly because talking about my (lack of a) future depresses me. But moving on. The reason for this post was. Follow through. Right. So the other night I was feeling really down and wondering if I had accomplished much of anything this year. Then I remembered the post I wrote nearly 6 months ago when I first started my year as a VISTA. I'm sure you, anonymous reader, recall it? It listed 20 goals I wanted to achieve this year. And I am happy to report that at the 6 month mark I have accomplished 10 of these goals. When I realized this...well lets just say it made me feel grrreeat. Like Tony the Tiger. Yes. I have accomplished something and I will accomplish more. From biking to cooking to running a half marathon. Yup.

Next on my list will be to purchase and learn the harmonica. Even if I don;t actually "learn" it I will at least have a new, grounded, portable source of entertainment that will last me well beyond the end of the earth. Hopefully I'll remember to update you on that when I d purchase one.

And now, anonymous readers, I am sick of typing. And sick of expressing my thoughts. It's your turn. So speak up friends.

And I suppose in the spirit of my blog, I should leave you with a funny quote.

Did someone say Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?

"Not that I condone fascism, or any -ism for that matter. -Ism's in my opinion are not good. A person should not believe in an -ism, he should believe in himself. I quote John Lennon, "I don't believe in Beatles, I just believe in me." Good point there. After all, he was the walrus. I could be the walrus. I'd still have to bum rides off people."

Thank you sir.

Baked for GOOODDDD

cool. Cool. COOL.

Yes....

1. http://www.townpedaler.com/

2. http://www.spotlightnews.com/news/view_news.php?news_id=1286815604

3. http://www.javajazzdelmar.com/index.php?go=menu

4. http://allgoodbakers.weebly.com/

Now go!

A couple tasty things...

1. Pumpkin Cookiessss

Ingredients

* 1 cup canned pumpkin (I just used the whole can cuz I didnt want leftovers)
* 1 cup white sugar (I used 1/2 cup white and 1/2 cup brown sugar)
* 1/2 cup vegetable oil
* 1 egg
* 2 cups all-purpose flour *(I used 1 1/2 cups white flour, 1/2 cup whole wheat flour, and 1/2 cup rolled oats)
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (I also added powdered ginger, nutmeg, and cloves)
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 teaspoon milk
* 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
* 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (I used the whole bag...)
* 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions

1. Combine pumpkin, sugar, vegetable oil, and egg. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt. Dissolve the baking soda with the milk and stir in. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix well.
2. Add vanilla, chocolate chips and nuts.
3. Drop by spoonful on greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for approximately 10 minutes or until lightly brown and firm.

2. Butternut Squash and Brown Rice Risotto

Butternut Squash and Brown Rice Risotto – makes 3 main course servings

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbs. olive oil (divided)
• 4 cloves garlic
• ½ butternut squash (2 lb)
• 1 Tbs. butter
• 3 shakes chile flakes
• ½ tsp. cumin seed
• 1 cippolini onion
• 1 c. short grain brown rice
• 5 c. broth
• 14 dried sage leaves
• ½ c. white wine
• 1 Tbs. heavy cream
• ½ tsp. fresh thyme
• 1 tsp. lemon zest
• ½ c. parmigiano reggiano

Instructions:

1. Cut squash in half, remove seeds and strings to a sauce pan. Add water and bouillon (if using, other wise, add broth of your choice) to sauce pan and bring to a very low simmer. (Make sure your broth is not overly salty, as it will be a very dominant seasoning.)
2. Reserve half the squash for another use. Trim and skin the remaining half and cut into 1 centimeter cubes.
3. Heat 1 Tbs. olive oil (lemon infused if you have it), add garlic and fry for 30 seconds, then add squash cubes. Cook covered, over medium heat until just soft. You may wish to add a ladle-full of broth to speed the cooking process.
4. While squash is cooking, heat remaining 1 Tbs. olive oil and 1 Tbs. butter. Add cumin seeds and chile flakes and let sizzle 15-30 seconds. Add onion and cook until it is translucent. Then add the rice and cook until rice begins to whiten.
5. Add broth to cover the rice (1-3 ladles full). Cook at a brisk simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally. When the squash is ready, add 1/3 of the cubes to the rice.
6. Let rice cook until it absorbs almost all the broth, then add 1-2 ladles-full until rice is just covered. Continue this way, simmering, adding broth, stirring occasionally until the rice is almost to your desired texture. Using brown rice, this may take an hour. (You do not have to stir constantly, just check every couple minutes until the rice is close to done, then stir more frequently).
7. While rice is cooking, chop thyme, lemon zest, grate cheese and prepare a salad. Fry the sage leaves in olive oil for a garnish.
8. When rice is nearly done, add wine and let cook down, stirring constantly. Add remaining broth, if desired, along with reserved squash, cream, lemon zest, thyme and parmesan. Stir until the risotto reaches your desired consistency. It should be creamy and a lovely orange color with the rice still somewhat firm to the tooth. Serve and garnish with sage leaves!

3. Sweet website/article!

http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/dec2009/sb20091217_914398.htm

http://www.themediaconsortium.org/2010/10/01/weekly-mulch-why-building-a-bike-safe-city-is-key-to-a-clean-energy-future/

Til next time...