I do feel optimistic and happy when I take a step to try something new (or scary!) and remain open to possibilities. I very much enjoyed my first ice skating adventure yesterday courtesy of Jude. I am also thrilled with home life sans television and the internet. So far, I've found more time to read and I am excited to spend more time creating as well. [Read: watch out for pictures of my 'art,' which typically involves paintings of various people or critters that look like they've been exposed to the nuclear pond outside Mr. Burns's plant in Springfield].
Evenings have also been spent tending to my kombucha 'mother' who I am very proud to report is growing two children of her own. It's simultaneously disgusting and amazing. Try to imagine a foot-diameter flat disc of pancake with two pancakes growing underneath of similar size. I'll work on taking new pictures of mother and baby when Melanie can help as it's a two person job, but here's a bit of a visual from someone else's family:
Actually, it also reminds me of Grands' flaky biscuits though this person's mother seems to be moldy, which is not a good thing (on any level...):
On the bright side, I'm pretty confident I have not yet grown any cutaneous anthrax (relax, it's the most treatable kind...). On the not so bright side, I think I might have to slow down my own consumption before the acidic nature of the tea feeds on my tooth enamel. Eh hem.
My next challenge is to read about and start growing more of our own herbs, vegetables, and fruits in keeping with my desire to be a 'self-serve' household. While I could say that this will be difficult because we have limited outdoor space, the truth is that it will be difficult because I often lack the patience and precision required to cultivate life. Yeah...that didn't sound very good, but it's true. I've already killed a basil plant and watched my cilantro and kale seeds get pummeled by the recent rains.I think I may have to volunteer with some experts this summer to get the hang of things (e.g., Friendly Farm in Iowa City).
After finishing "Chickens in the Road," it's also clear to me that I need to learn how to can and dehydrate. I've been making my own 'freezer jelly' recently, but realized that doesn't protect my efforts in the event of a power loss. My 'jellies' and 'sauces' so far are always only cooked down fruit and spices, but they look like the 'real thing.' [Note to self: I really need to be less lazy and start taking pictures of what I produce.] The most recent one looks just like commercial raspberry jam, but is actually just 2 bags of frozen raspberries cooked down with one paw paw, cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg. The paw paw, if you're not familiar, is a mango-like fruit that can and is being grown in Iowa to produce more 'tropical' fruit of local origin:
They are very tasty lightly thawed (think mango-orange frozen custard), but are also excellent as a textural sweetener in jam. I'm thankful that a student introduced me to them. She was doing her 'individual change project' to eat locally for Sociology of the Environment and mentioned the fruit in class. She ordered hers from the Iowa Valley Food Co-Op and I was able to find them at New Pioneer Food Co-Op. My 'cranberry sauce' for the holidays is another 'fruit-only' version of the holiday classic. I cook down one orange, one bag of frozen cranberries, one bag of frozen pineapple, and the typical spices. Once it's amenable, I squish the daylights out of the cranberries and let the whole thing perk until it's gelatinous. I add a chopped apple after the sauce is cooked (and you can top it with walnuts then, too). No sugar needed in my opinion, but then again I'm also comfortable drinking kombucha tea with a ph barely suitable for human consumption so my taste buds could be a bit skewed. :)
Whew. I'm (long) winded. More on our household food choices and changes soon. Betcha' can't wait.... :) B.
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