Hoo'ville returns

I made another owl. This one is slightly more advanced than my first attempt. Slightly.

This time I appliqued all the pieces using zig-zag stitches around the entire piece...it looks MUCH better than my initial attempt when I just used a topstitch and left unfinished edges. I drew up a pattern for myself (something I've never done before), to make sure that I liked the proportions before I started cutting the fabric.

Since this was a gift for a newborn I made sure that all the fabrics were pre-washed...I also made sure to use materials that were washable so that the new mommy could easily stick this in the laundry, if needed.

I started by piecing together the eyes...which was much more difficult than it sounds. I didn't use any kind of stabilizer, which meant that keeping the two very soft fabric flat was a challenge. (note: I did, very stupidly, try to iron some fusible interfacing to the back of the fleece to help... DON'T do this! it melted. onto my iron. it was a nightmare)

(i made 3 eyes before i finally succeeded...)

In the end, I used two eyes that weren't exactly the same...which I thought gave a wonky-fun look...right?

(appliqued)

After all of the pieces were appliqued to the front of the owl, I sewed the front and back together, turned it inside out and...

(before stuffing)

Then I stuffed 'er up.

(stuffed! the iron is cold...I'm never taking fleece close to an iron again) 

I could have been clever and sewn a tag on BEFORE sewing the sides together and stuffing, but I didn't think that far ahead.

(tagged!)

Then I shipped her off to the brand new baby! (along with this fleece flowered hat).

c'est tout!

alina

éclairs

(mmmmmmm....mmmmmmm)

I made éclairs.

Not for fun, mind you, but as a continuation of chemistry baking experiments. You might think that they don't look very science-y, especially when compared to past experiments. You would be right. The experiment itself was for the pate de choux (the type of pastry used as éclair casing), but it seemed wasteful to have a stack of empty choux- obvious solution: make a chocolate creme patissier and a simple chocolate ganache. Voila! yummy snack.

The purpose of this experiment was to see the difference between a milk based dough and a water based one. I had always assumed that most pate de choux was made with milk, but apparently using water, or a mix of the two, is also very popular. Both options will work, but the proteins in milk add structural and taste differences (milk also affects Maillard browning).

Our first batch was a milk one.

(ball of dough.)

The technique for choux is significantly different from others we have used. The methodology and order of combination is crucial for a successful dough, and much simpler than other "pastry" doughs, which require lamination.

Choux requires a LOT of vigorous mixing.

(check out that vigorous incorporation of eggs)

Choux also requires a wooden spoon. Don't ask me why (yet). I am planning on finding out, but EVERY source I looked into, including the chemistry of baking book, specified a wooden spoon. If any of you know why please share (otherwise I know how I'm spending my weekend: next experiment: choux with a wooden spoon vs. with a metal/plastic spoon...ok, maybe not)

(mlik batch: success!)

After baking the first batch we turned our attention to the water-based dough. We failed. Scientificallly, our explanation is referred to as "human error". We don't really know where we went wrong. I think we may have allowed the butter to separate by over-boiling...Essentially our dough ball before eggs was leaking oil (butter), and then when the eggs were added we ended up with a very, very liquid batter- think pancake.

In order to maintain some semblance of scientific method we baked the dough anyways, just to see what would happen.

(this is what happened...FAIL)

This was our first real failure in our experimenting. It was incredibly disheartening, particularly because we had promised to bring éclairs to our Chem Lab (don't worry...not INTO the lab). But, we learn from mistakes, so it's ok. Our conclusion: Milk makes the better éclair. Of course this conclusion has absolutely no scientific basis since we are the ones who messed up the water batch...but this isn't my lab report.

(lots of messy chocolate)

I wasn't a fan of the filling recipe we used (not a part of the experiment)...but my classmates certainly didn't notice. My professor was super pleased to be fed  to see how far our experiments have come. 

(one last picture to make you hungry)

I'm off to do some (less fun) chemistry. So sad that my whole chemistry course isn't centered around baking. Alas, solubility, thermodynamics and voltaic cells it is.

Come back soon for a wooden spoon update!

c'est tout

alina

(happy)time-out chair

Since we moved in last summer, I've wanted a chair for our bedroom. Mostly so that I have somewhere to dump worn clothes (other than the floor), but also because our bedroom is the least "done-up" room, and I thought it needed some love.

I found a chair on craigslist, and although it was not attractive, it was only $20 (which may sound not so cheap but I was looking for something solid wood with armrests and a cushioned seat). I should mention that this was back in August. I bought the chair and brought it home...it was very grandmotherly (no offense to grandmothers, vintage is totally "in"), and too formal for what I wanted, but I had a vision.

I got to work.

(we removed the WHITE fabric covered seat...and two legs...and started sanding)

I kept sanding and sanding and sanding. Seriously. For months. Because of the curved shapes and small spaces I had to hand sand the chair instead of using a powered-sander. I got busy with school and work, and almost forgot that I had a half-sanded chair sitting in my dad's shed. Almost.

Finally I told myself that I HAD to finish the project. The pile of clothes on the floor was getting to be ridiculous, and I really wanted our bedroom to feel a little bit more finished (I also decided I should sew some curtains...after I completed the chair).

So I (we...eventually I enlisted help) continued sanding.

(sanding is no fun...I have an awful tendency to sand the skin off my knuckles...)

FINALLY, we finished sanding. Now came the fun and easy parts. I re-upholstered the seat cushion with some fun and bright fabric, and painted the chair (we used primer and paint in one).

(oooh. pretty)

It looks much brighter in person (it's not very pastel/easter-y).

Since I used paint we already had (from our table project), I only had to buy the chair and fabric to cover the seat...so it was a pretty economical project. That is, unless you count the hours of work I put into it...

Moral of the story- re-doing furniture is a lot of fun...when it has straight lines!

c'est tout.
alina

Kosher for Passover

Or not...

(for those who don't get it...the matza and the festival of lights do not go together...)

It is nice to know that Whole Foods was ready with the Matzot back in December...but I'm hoping they bring out fresh ones for the spring...Matza tastes stale enough as is.

I used to go all out for passover. I mean, not just avoiding bread and baked goods, but not eating anything with corn syrup either. (Oh Ashkenazim, why make life harder than it already is?). While this might be seen today as a great low carb diet, it was truly limiting, and no fun. I have since given up avoiding kitniot. And, I consider anything that technically keeps to the rules of kosher for passover, kosher. What I mean is if it takes less than 18 minutes from the moment the grain touches liquid to make, I'm allowed to eat it. This means that a bowl of oatmeal, for me, is fine. Obviously I'm not a true resource with regards to the laws of Kashrut, but I like for things to be logical...and this makes the most sense to me.


I will add that I've been making batches of really delicious no-bake cookies for the last two weeks, which are, according to my logic, kosher for passover (if any of you needed some extra passover friendly dessert ideas...)

Why eat macaroons all day if you can go chocolate/peanutbutter/oatmeal-y?

Oh, and it's ok that I've been downing these no-bake cookies (I boil them for less time than needed and then freeze them and then they are a delicious chewy frozen treat...not just a cookie), because I've been running!

Delicious chocolate pb oatmeal yummy things:

2 tpsb cocoa
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 stick butter (I tend to put just a little bit less than this..)
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 cups oatmeal (I used the quick cook version)
1/2 tsp vanilla (I just add a small splash)

Melt the butter into the cocoa sugar and milk over low heat in a small/medium saucepan. When smooth and fully mixed, turn up heat. Measure out the rest of the ingredients. When the mixture begins to boil start a timer and let boil for 1min and a few seconds (or a little bit longer if you want them to be cookies and not frozen delicious blobs). Remove from heat and add peanut butter and vanilla. Stir until smooth. Add oatmeal. Spoon onto a parchment paper covered cookie sheet. Voila! stick in the freezer and within 30 minutes you have cold chewy deliciousness.

On that note...Happy Passover.

c'est tout!
alina

battle of the sweeteners

I've been tempted to try using Agave syrups for a while now. I've gotten a vibe (mainly from reading healthy-living type blogs) that everyone who does healthy food uses agave as a sweetener.

So.

I turned to my chemistry book, this time looking into different sweeteners and the way they change baked goods.

Today, we made pound cake (in cupcake size for experimental reasons). This time the process was the same and the ingredient list similar (except for the type of sweetener). For one batch we used regular granulated sugar, the second honey, and the third agave. There is one conversion needed to lower the amount of fluid added in the batches with honey and agave (since both come in liquid form), but otherwise, the recipe was identical.

(blue paper: agave (clever, eh?); pink paper: granulated sugar; yellow paper: honey)

(they all baked for the same time- but look at the difference in color and shape!)

(mmm...getting closer to the taste test)

We found that the different sweeteners affected the crust (sugar was crunchiest), the dome shape, and the crumb texture. Not to mention the different color...

(moving in for the kill...taste test BEGIN!)

Mere moments later...

(did I mention that our lab group consists of only two of us? woops)

All three versions were, as the book would have us say, "acceptable". Unlike the muffins from our first experiment, all three versions were tasty and well textured. Having never tried agave before, I had expected it to be interchangeable with sugar taste wise. WRONG. Agave has a very distinct taste, but it was yummy. I least liked the honey, but only because it tasted like honey (which in itself is not an innately bad quality). Also, although the sweeteners did affect the texture (the honey and agave were denser and a little bit chewier), the results were all still yummy.

I should mention that we did make one other change (non-sanctioned by the book), by using coconut oil instead of shortening. This was for two reasons: 1. the idea of using shortening makes me feel ill to my stomach... and 2. if we're already trying agave why not try with the "healthier" fat for an overall healthier muffin?

I am sold with regards to the coconut oil. (we substituted 1 for 1, but we probably could have gotten away with a little bit less coconut oil...the cakes did have a slightly greasy feel). It added great flavor and was very successful in producing quality results as a substitute.

As a disclaimer I will add that DESPITE all the hype, Agave really isn't healthier than sugar. Although it comes from a natural source (like sugar), it is still processed (like sugar). Both provide very little nutritional value, and they have comparable calories per serving. That being said, Agave does have a nice taste, but I'm  still not entirely convinced that it is worth the extra $$. Anyone want to convince me otherwise??

C'est tout.

Alina