Hmm, yesterday I received an email from Google, informing me that my AdSense account has been disabled. Weird. I tried to find out why, but evidently it is the policy of the great Google to NOT tell a blogger why the account was disabled. All I've been able to find out is that 'invalid click activity' was detected. So now I've sent in the appeal form, which according to the information in the follow up email, does not guarantee a reinstatement of my account. Not that I planned on being able to retire in luxury, thanks to my AdSense revenue, but still, every little bit helps. Sheesh.
* update* Google has decided that I may not be a part of AdSense, because I pose a "significant risk" to their advertisers. who knew me and my whopping 3 followers were so dangerous?
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Saturday, November 7, 2009
I'll admit it
I'm a yogurt fancier. I love good yogurt, and have been eating it most of my life. The day I discovered Greek yogurt was one of the best days EVER! So naturally, I have decided to start making my own yogurt. It plays into my fantasy of living on a small farm and leading a low stress 'back to nature' lifestyle. I'll spare you all my whimsical plans for keeping chickens and tending a big organic garden, and get to my first attempt at making yogurt.
Firstly, it's not hard. And you don't need a fancy electric yogurt maker appliance. You also don't have to buy freeze dried gourmet yogurt starter. I just used the yogurt I had in the fridge. I used my biggest stock pot as a sterilizer and bottom half of a jury rigged double boiler. I used my second biggest pot to hold the milk.
So here's how I did it....
Filled my big pot with water and brought it to the boil. Then I dropped in my metal spoon and jars and lids. I let them stay in there about five minutes, and pulled them out with tongs.
Filled the smaller pot with whole organic milk ( I used about a half gallon), and placed into the makeshift water bath. Heated the milk to 180 degrees fahrenheit and then cooled to 110. This kills off any bacteria that might compete with the yogurt starter bacteria. Once the milk had cooled down, stirred in about a half cup of organic commercial yogurt--plain. Then I covered the pot with plastic wrap and placed it on a heating pad set to medium. Covered the whole thing with a towel and left it alone for 8 hours. And voila! I had yogurt!
After that I poured the yogurt into glass canning jars and popped them into the fridge.
I like my yogurt fairly thick, and this is a bit runny for me, so I'm draining some of it to have a consistency more like Greek yogurt. The taste is great, not too sour, but very rich and creamy.
Considering the cost of commercial yogurt, and the waste of the non recyclable containers- at least where I live- I think yogurt making will be a part of our weekly routine. We'll be saving money and making less impact on the environment. Hmm, maybe I'll have to add a cow or two into my farm fantasy plans.....
Firstly, it's not hard. And you don't need a fancy electric yogurt maker appliance. You also don't have to buy freeze dried gourmet yogurt starter. I just used the yogurt I had in the fridge. I used my biggest stock pot as a sterilizer and bottom half of a jury rigged double boiler. I used my second biggest pot to hold the milk.
So here's how I did it....
Filled my big pot with water and brought it to the boil. Then I dropped in my metal spoon and jars and lids. I let them stay in there about five minutes, and pulled them out with tongs.
Filled the smaller pot with whole organic milk ( I used about a half gallon), and placed into the makeshift water bath. Heated the milk to 180 degrees fahrenheit and then cooled to 110. This kills off any bacteria that might compete with the yogurt starter bacteria. Once the milk had cooled down, stirred in about a half cup of organic commercial yogurt--plain. Then I covered the pot with plastic wrap and placed it on a heating pad set to medium. Covered the whole thing with a towel and left it alone for 8 hours. And voila! I had yogurt!
After that I poured the yogurt into glass canning jars and popped them into the fridge.
I like my yogurt fairly thick, and this is a bit runny for me, so I'm draining some of it to have a consistency more like Greek yogurt. The taste is great, not too sour, but very rich and creamy.
Considering the cost of commercial yogurt, and the waste of the non recyclable containers- at least where I live- I think yogurt making will be a part of our weekly routine. We'll be saving money and making less impact on the environment. Hmm, maybe I'll have to add a cow or two into my farm fantasy plans.....
Friday, November 6, 2009
Pumpkin....
I love it! As far back as I can remember (which these days sometimes doesn't reach back to breakfast!), I have loved, adored, and craved the delicious taste of pumpkin. It started with pumpkin pie, then moved to pumpkin ice cream, followed by pumpkin bread, pancakes, beer, chili, and soup. I'm sure there's even more delightful things to do with pumpkin, but the following recipe is one I came up with the other night...still tweaking it so I haven't included any amounts. If you decide to try it, just wing it and then adjust accordingly.
Pumpkin Bisque
pureed pumpkin (fresh roasted or canned)
onion diced
garlic chopped
curry powder
garam masala
paprika
black pepper
all spice
ground cloves
ground mace
salt
vegetable stock
coconut milk
apple cider
saute the onion, garlic, and spices in olive oil or butter (or coconut oil), until soft and fragrant. Add in the pumpkin and cook until pumpkin is richly colored. Add in stock, cider and coconut milk....stir well. Bring to high simmer and then lower heat. Allow to gently simmer for about 30 minutes. Using an immersion blender (or food processor) blend to a smooth consistency. Serve garnished with any of the following: grated sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, creme fraiche, toasted pumpkin seeds, toasted shredded coconut.
It's even better the second day...and I plan on adapting the soup to use as a pasta sauce. I'm envisioning it over cheese torteloni or lobster ravioli. mmmmm.
Wish I had thought to snap a picture of it at dinner the other night...but alas.
Instead here's a picture of super daughter carving her jack-o-lantern
Pumpkin Bisque
pureed pumpkin (fresh roasted or canned)
onion diced
garlic chopped
curry powder
garam masala
paprika
black pepper
all spice
ground cloves
ground mace
salt
vegetable stock
coconut milk
apple cider
saute the onion, garlic, and spices in olive oil or butter (or coconut oil), until soft and fragrant. Add in the pumpkin and cook until pumpkin is richly colored. Add in stock, cider and coconut milk....stir well. Bring to high simmer and then lower heat. Allow to gently simmer for about 30 minutes. Using an immersion blender (or food processor) blend to a smooth consistency. Serve garnished with any of the following: grated sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, creme fraiche, toasted pumpkin seeds, toasted shredded coconut.
It's even better the second day...and I plan on adapting the soup to use as a pasta sauce. I'm envisioning it over cheese torteloni or lobster ravioli. mmmmm.
Wish I had thought to snap a picture of it at dinner the other night...but alas.
Instead here's a picture of super daughter carving her jack-o-lantern
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
The eleventh month...
November always has a hurried feel to it for me. It seems as if the clock starts speeding up as the year dwindles down. What about all those things I planned to accomplish during '09? Can I get all my 'to do's' checked off before NYE? The hopeful answer is YES! The more realistic one is; some of them yes, others not so much.
At the moment, due to some unplanned strife, I'm focused on getting projects in my house finished up. This month will see me fixing floors in the kitchen and bathroom, painting, getting rid of yet more clutter and doing a major reorganization of space. I'll also be tying up loose ends in the legal realm, and hopefully finally have all my financial issues on track to being resolved. You know how they say it takes money to make money? They weren't kidding.
On the positive side, thanks to a wonderful friend, I now have a working punch list of things that MUST get done. That alone helps enormously. Also, I finally have a part time job working for St. Michaels Winery as a wine tasting rep. I will be working my first gig for them this coming Friday! So if you are in the neighborhood of Angels Market in Pasadena Md, come on out and let me pour you a sample or two.
In the neutral column, I'm not currently dancing with Belly Dance Delight. I love my troupies, but I just couldn't give the schedule the energy it deserved. I'm still dancing though, just not as much. Hopefully I'll finally be able to put together some paid gigs in Salisbury and continue to take workshops and the occasional private lesson.
On the subject of Belly Dance, I had a super fun photo shoot on the beach in North Carolina at the end of October. I was visiting and 'just happened' to have a lovely pink costume in the car. You never know when a shimmy emergency will occur, and a good dancer is always prepared! Of course we took over 300 photos and I actually like about 10, but that's how the baklava crumbles. I'm hoping to get a few more photo shoots done in the next couple of months. I have a few ideas for a Christmas themed one, as well as an Autumn theme.
I should be posting more soon about the upcoming Maryland Irish Festival in Timonium, as well as reporting back on my Wine Rep experiences. In the mean time, enjoy these photos from Scary Perry and the beach photo shoot.
At the moment, due to some unplanned strife, I'm focused on getting projects in my house finished up. This month will see me fixing floors in the kitchen and bathroom, painting, getting rid of yet more clutter and doing a major reorganization of space. I'll also be tying up loose ends in the legal realm, and hopefully finally have all my financial issues on track to being resolved. You know how they say it takes money to make money? They weren't kidding.
On the positive side, thanks to a wonderful friend, I now have a working punch list of things that MUST get done. That alone helps enormously. Also, I finally have a part time job working for St. Michaels Winery as a wine tasting rep. I will be working my first gig for them this coming Friday! So if you are in the neighborhood of Angels Market in Pasadena Md, come on out and let me pour you a sample or two.
In the neutral column, I'm not currently dancing with Belly Dance Delight. I love my troupies, but I just couldn't give the schedule the energy it deserved. I'm still dancing though, just not as much. Hopefully I'll finally be able to put together some paid gigs in Salisbury and continue to take workshops and the occasional private lesson.
On the subject of Belly Dance, I had a super fun photo shoot on the beach in North Carolina at the end of October. I was visiting and 'just happened' to have a lovely pink costume in the car. You never know when a shimmy emergency will occur, and a good dancer is always prepared! Of course we took over 300 photos and I actually like about 10, but that's how the baklava crumbles. I'm hoping to get a few more photo shoots done in the next couple of months. I have a few ideas for a Christmas themed one, as well as an Autumn theme.
I should be posting more soon about the upcoming Maryland Irish Festival in Timonium, as well as reporting back on my Wine Rep experiences. In the mean time, enjoy these photos from Scary Perry and the beach photo shoot.
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