Celebrating his 140th

It's been a while since I've posted, which will be explained in due time. Tonight, in celebration of the 140th anniversary of his birth, I decided to learn more about Gandhi by watching the critically acclaimed 1982 film which bears his name. The film started out with these words flashed over a background of Indian natural landscape: "No man's life can be encompassed in one telling. There is no way to give each year its allotted weight, to include each event, each person who helped to shape a lifetime. What can be done is to be faithful in spirit to the record and try to find one's way to the heart of the man...." I was captivated by those words and thought that they would be appropriate to the biography of any man. They even apply to me as I write my journal entries. How oft I have felt that I could not describe the totality of my own experiences during a single day!

The moral courage displayed by this man is exemplary. First fighting against discrimination in South Africa, and then returning to his homeland of India to assist the people there, Gandhi was a man who always remained true to himself. I had thought that he had always been beloved by the Indian people, but I learned that it was not so. After India gained independence and fighting broke out with Pakistan, the voices of those who cried for death were loud and incessant. Gandhi's usual reaction to such crises -- fasting -- eventually brought people to see their own madness, but only because of the love and respect they had for him. I found it interesting that he was simply doing what was in his power to accomplish and trusting in God that things would somehow work themselves out.

Gandhi's dedication to his principles was unwavering. As I think about the forces of tyranny that seek to sweep over the world, I wonder about the value of nonviolent resistance. Gandhi certainly paved the way for Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights movement that helped America strive toward her best self. But there is always a cost in such methods -- a steep cost in blood -- and I think this cost is part of why I waiver. I don't want to see death and destruction, especially when it is inflicted upon those I love. Yet a part of me sees that if I truly have that same love for all men, I would not harm my aggressors. Perhaps I am not yet ready to walk down that road. From where I stand now at the crossroads, I would not blame any man for traveling down either path.

The film itself was rather long by modern conventions (just over three hours), but it was very well done. If you are looking for lots of action, this one's probably not for you. Same if you want the typical chik flick romance. But if you have the patience for historical drama, welcome aboard; your ship has come in. The cast performed beautifully, particularly Ben Kingsley. When you compare his portrayal to the actual man as shown in the newsreels (some of the valuable DVD extras), the difference is almost undetectable. They obviously went to India to film, and seeing that gave me a new perspective on all of the Indians that I have seen and work with now. I also gained an interest in researching more about how the former British empire and what resulted from her "demise" has helped to shape the modern world. Britain spent the better part of three centuries building her empire only to "let it all go" within the course of a single century. Yet no continent has gone untouched by the British; they owned spots of land everywhere that are all now free and independent nations. I'll add this project to my ever-growing list of things to do. As far as the film goes, it was well worth the time, and I highly recommend it to any and all.

Breakfast Today: Strawberry Cinnamon French Toast

So the other day I get this hankering for something simple yet tasty. And I quickly settled upon this quick and easy dish. I actually had to measure everything out for this, since I have made this so often for myself I practically know how much to add just by sight.

And of course, Tashi wanted to supervise my activities in the kitchen. She took her sometimes usual place on top of the fridge, so I decided to respect my inner "artiste" and take a photo from a different vantage point. The result was this photographic gem.

For the french toast, I started with an egg, which I proceeded to scramble.






To the egg, I added a pinch of sugar, 1/3 cup milk, 1/4 tsp coconut extract, and 1 tsp vanilla extract. The pinch of sugar is just that; I put my hand in the sugar bag and extract that amount I can pinch between my forefinger and thumb.

I usually use whole wheat bread for my French toast. It's just healthier that way. I dip the bread into the egg mixture, flipping it over to make sure that both sides are coated before adding the bread slice to the skillet.

I have learned that I make better use of the cinnamon if I add it to the toast slices while cooking in the skillet. Mixing it in the egg mixture resulted in wasted cinnamon that never adhered more to the side of the mixing dish.

I cook the slices until both sides are a golden brown. This recipe makes just enough egg mixture for two slices.





To sweeten the deal, I served my French toast slices with strawberries and sugar free whipped cream. Yum yum yummy!

Tashi's 1st 2nd Bday

I had planned to have a party with people and food and fun for Tashi's birthday, but as the day approached, I had a change of mind. I began to feel that it would be better for the two of us to have our own little private soiree. It's Tashi's first birthday with me, but it's also her second birthday because she turns two years old today.


So I started out with a special din din. Not what I would call yummy, but wet food is a special treat for Tashi, since she normally eats dry food.




And she was totally anxious to get it. I couldn't set the bowl down to take the pic because she was so anxious to get at it! (And no, I had something else for my dinner. That way the dinner she had all to herself was even more special!)



At length I let her have a special place on the table. She normally eats on the floor beside the table, but seeing as it was a special day for her, I gave her a place at the table.




After dinner, it was time for the cake. I baked it especially for Tashi, even though she's a cat and doesn't get people food and I'm the only one who'll be eating it. But she still sat for me (with a little help from some extra well positioned treats) to sing Happy Birthday to her and help her blow out the candles.




And seeing as it was her birthday, I thought that she could have just a taste of the frosting. Normally she doesn't get people food, but it's just a little, and only on one day of the year.



She thought it was good!








Then, as a final treat, I let her have her favorite toy -- this shiny string. Normally I tease her with it as part of a game that she enjoys playing so much that every time I open the drawer where I keep the string she will come running in from wherever she happens to be. This time, I just let her have the string.



Finally, she decided to stretch out and get comfy. Sounds like the end of a wonderful birthday to me!

Breakfast Today: Oatnut Pancakes

I love the Harvest Grain 'n' Nut Pancakes at IHOP so much that I decided to experiment to find a version that I can make at home and keep my money in my pocket and my gas in my car. After some trials, I succeeded (or at least I crafted a recipe that I really like). The wonderful thing about being on vacation is that I can go to a downtown park for my morning run and then come back to enjoy these hearty and healthy pancakes.

I start with finely chopping a few walnuts, enough to make 1/8 cup finely chopped nuts. There is a reason I am emphasizing "finely chopped". If the nut pieces are too big, the pancakes fall apart when you eat them and even sometimes when you butter them. (It's what we engineers would call an interface surface area problem.)

I then combine the nuts with 1 cup baking mix and 1/3 cup oats. I traditionally get baking mix from the store, but lately I have given thought to making my own. That way my dependency is not on a particular product but on the base ingredients which are good staples to keep on hand anyway.

I then combine the dry mixture with 1 cup milk, 1 egg, and 1 tsp vanilla and cook the pancakes three at a time, silver dollar style. I make sure to scoop a little from the bottom when pouring the batter since the contents have a tendency to sink.

When the pancakes have enough bubbles, I flip them. This recipe makes 9 pancakes and leaves me feeling both full and fulfilled. I've experimented with different flavors of pancakes (including apple cinnamon, banana nut, pear, and lemon), but I have to say this flavor is one of my favorites. Yummy in the tummy!

Dinner Tonight: Pizza Cordon Blue

I came across this interesting idea in one of my cookbooks and decided to give it a try. Indeed, it sounded interesting (I mean, come on, chicken cordon blue as pizza), and I was hungering for something different. Little did I know the taste adventure that awaited me.

I started with the crust. I have this great recipe for crust that I have refined over the years, but the store's pre-made version is almost as good (yes, I said almost) and takes a lot less effort. This pre-made crust was easy to roll out, but I had to reshape the rectangular form into something more accommodating for my round pan.

Next came the sauce. I mixed 1/4 cup fat free sour cream with 2 tbls honey dijon mustard.






Once the sauce is mixed well, I used my spoon to spread it out over the crust. It turned out that I had just enough to place a thin layer of the sauce over the crust with some extra space around the edge of the crust.


With the sauce on the crust, I sprinkled minced onion until all of the sauce was covered as shown.





The recipe calls for Swiss cheese in place of mozarella. I used about two cups worth grated right over the pie.





I then added chopped chicken (which had been pre-cooked, chopped, frozen, and then thawed in the microwave for this occasion) and chopped ham (which was fresh). I finished with a sprinkling of parsley over the pie.

Tashi is always curious when I set to work in my kitchen. This pizza was no exception.









I baked the pie for 16 minutes at 400F. I normally like my cheese and toppings to spread as shown but take the sauce straight up to the crust. In this instance, the lack of sauce around the crust actually turned out to work in my benefit. The crust served as a breadstick of sorts for my side salad. Who knew? This pizza was absolutely incredible. If you love pizza like I do (that would be most of you reading this) and you want something different, Pizza Cordon Blue is a definite winner. Next time I make this -- and I will make this again -- I'd like to add some mushroom and green pepper. Magnifique!

Breakfast Today: Ham and Broccoli Quiche

Broccoli for breakfast? When it's a part of this wonderful quiche, absolutely! In my quest to maximize the use of my resources while still eating well, I decided to experiment a little with something that I haven't eaten in a while -- quiche. So when I got back on Saturday from my morning run, I decided that the time had come.

I started by chopping some ham, about 2 cups worth.







Next, I took some frozen broccoli that I thawed slightly with running hot water and chopped it, about 1 cup worth.





I traditionally make my own pie crusts, but in the interest of time, I used a pre-made crust from the store. The thing I have always had a hard time with is making the crimped edges of the crust. I can never seem to get that right. That's one reason why I never considered scuplture as a career. The crust starts out baking at 450F for 4 minutes, and even though I pricked holes in it with a fork, I still had to flatten the huge air bubble that the pie bottom had become.

In a bowl I cracked 3 eggs and beat them.







Then I added 2 cups grated Swiss cheese, 1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese (I like the New York variety best), and 1/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese. The mozzarella I had frozen. The other cheeses were fresh and grated straight into the bowl. Most recipes for quiche that I have seen use only Swiss, but I had the other cheeses and wanted to use them up.

After stirring in the cheeses, I added the ham and broccoli choppings along with 1/8 cup minced onion, a dash of chives, 1 tsp nutmeg, 1/8 cup parsley, and 1 tsp black pepper.



I filled the partially baked crust with the filling mixture and returned it to the oven for 45 minutes at 325F.





My experiment actually produced enough filling for a second quiche, and since I had an extra pie crust (the store sells them in pairs) I thought to make a second quiche. The problem was that I couldn't find another pie pan. I know that I had at least three, which means I probably included the extras in that donation I assembled for Goodwill. So what to do now? My solution was to use a muffin pan and make mini quiches. I cut out patterns from the pie crust and filled the muffin tin.

I had just enough filling left for all six mini quiches.







What was left of the pie crust I rolled into a rectangle with my rolling pin, placed it on a baking sheet, covered it with sugar and cinnamon, and then baked it at 450F for a few minutes after taking out the partially baked mini quiche crusts. That will serve as a nice dessert after some other meal.

Here is the final product. Just looking at this makes me want some. This was so good I actually ate half of this in one setting. No lie!




Even Tashi wanted some! I can't say I blame her, but Tashi is a cat and therefore only gets cat food, not people food.





The mini quiches baked at 325F too but only for 35 minutes. They came out wonderful!

Dinner Tonight: Orange Spam with Couscous

I was looking at the leftovers in my fridge and wondering what I could do to maximize the use of my resources. As I rummaged through the contents, I found some leftover Spam. I don't eat Spam as I once did, but I had some left over from these wonderful crescents I made for a recent church activity. I only had about the same amount that you get in those singles packs, so I thought about what to do with that amount. Spam is like ham as far as where it comes from, I thought, so why not make a glaze and then you could serve it with your leftover couscous? Kill two birds with one stone.

I got out a few ingredients and a bowl to get started. Of course, Tashi always gets curious when I cook, so she was especially curious to see me experimenting.








I took a cup of dark brown sugar, 1/2 cup of orange marmalade, 1/4 cup honey dijon mustard, and a tbl of cloves. The marmalade is the all-fruit kind.



I started mixing this together when I got to this point and had an epiphany: "Hey, moron, since you are probably going to heat the glaze anyway, why not mix the ingredients in the pot and just skip the bowl?"


So I did just that.








While the glaze was heating, I took the Spam and cubed it. Then I placed it into a skillet to fry. I know you can eat Spam raw, something my brother always did while we were growing up. I never did that. If you're meat, you're better cooked. Period.

I turned back to the glaze to see the mixture liquifying a bit. I continued to stir this occasionally.





As I stir, I noticed that the glaze seemed a bit runny to me, so I tossed in 2 tbl of flour to thicken the mixture.





I removed the Spam from the skillet and patted it with paper towels to remove as much of the grease as I could.





Then the cubed Spam goes into the glaze mixture. I stirred just until the mixture started to boil. Then I removed from heat.





I served the Orange Spam over couscous and added in some salad and mixed vegetables on the side. The recipe makes enough for two servings, so I get the scrumdilliuptiousness of the experience repeated. Wonderful!