dupont circle

an old friend came through dc this weekend, and we met up at dupont circle near his hotel.  we only had a few hours, so we just strolled around the neighborhood, which turned out to be embassy central.  for reasons i can't quite articulate, i found it fascinating, this microcosm of the world.  the rest of you might not, so apologies ;-) 

we had a pastor who used to say, 'we don't have to go to the world anymore.  the world is coming to us.'  so here you are, a taste of the world in 5 blocks:

neat old architecture

albania

costa rica

 

laos

ireland

myanmar

pakistan

cyprus

the netherlands

chad - the rent for this must cost a quarter of their gdp

cote d'ivoire

south korea

venezuela

comic interlude ;-)

lesotho

turkey

lebanon

brookside gardens

i'll be the first to admit it: with the impending taiwan trip and the renewal of our violin lease (chinese and music being two of our homemade preschool categories), our nature activities have been rather neglected of late.  we did see a reptile show last month featuring a blue-tongued skink, a tegu, a python and a baby crocodile, so that was pretty nifty, but the last few weeks have been covered by issues of Zoobooks and another animal reference collection resurrected from my childhood.  granted, i can now tell you that there are five species of rhinos, of which three have two horns and two have one, but it's not exactly hands-on ;-)

i've had the brookside nature center in the back of my head for a few months, and with a fine day on tap and the girls awake early today, we decided to try it.  unfortunately, when i looked up the directions, i neglected to notice that they are closed on mondays, so that was that =p  fortunately, it's right next door to the brookside gardens, and we unwittingly stumbled on to a treasure that reminded me of the missouri botanical gardens.

after making our way across the boardwalks from the nature center to the gardens, we were met by the conservatory.  the morning was still chilly, so the greenhouse looked extra inviting, and it didn't disappoint.   oodles of flowers, tropical plants, waterfalls, fruit trees basked in the warm sunlight, and so did we.

an aptly named firecracker flower

that tickles!

the girls were delighted by the banana trees

this one's for grandma: a polkadotty plant!

lu declared this one of her favorites, and it seems fitting somehow

after warming up nicely, we headed out to the outdoor gardens, where my battery ran out.  humph.  nothing could have really captured the frolic of climbing every wall, racing down the paths, and gathering imaginary vegetables to serve in the treehouse of the children's garden anyways.  not that i wouldn't have tried ;-)  but here were my last few, and for sure, we will be back!

first they were lizards, now they've progressed to some kind of vertebrate ;-)

culinary corner: calling would-be bread bakers

i've always wanted to bake bread.  nothing better than that aromatic, crackling, homey goodness.  sight, smell, taste, touch, sound - fresh bread has it all.  but i've always been put off by the stickliness of the recipes: 'lukewarm' 105 degree water, knead, rest, rise, seemed like the stars had to align for worthwhile results.

no more!  my friend introduced me to the recipe below, and even invited me over to show me how easy it really was.  our kids mixed the ingredients (all four of them), i let it sit overnight, shaped it, let it sit some more, and voila!  bread by lunchtime with no more than 10 active minutes altogether.  after the first time, i didn't even look at the directions anymore.

so of course, i'm compelled to share =)  all you need is a covered pot and a cotton towel.  i suggest watching the 5 minute video below.  the original recipe is also below, but i'm copying it here to insert my comments (in gold) and pictures.  as for timeline, it works best for me to mix the ingredients at 5 or 6 pm, shape the dough say 9 am, then bake around 11 am.   as you'll see, it's extremely simple, just requires a bit of forethought on the timeline.

Recipe: No-Knead Bread

 

3 cups bread flour (NOT all purpose), more for dusting
1/4 teaspoon yeast (straight from the fridge is fine)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed (i just use flour)

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add about 1 5/8 cups water, (room temperature is fine) and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky (if too dry, add water by spoonfuls as needed). Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, up to 18, at room temperature. 

ready for step 2

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it (recipe says a towel but these days i use a floured cutting board or baking sheet for easy clean up); sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice (see video for technique).   Shape dough into a ball; put dough seam side down and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover lightly with a cotton towel (not terry cloth) and let rise for about 2 hours.

before second rise

after

3.  Half an hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees (i do 425). Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven.   Gather up dough and squeeze together to make a seam at the top, popping any large bubbles.  It may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes (I only do 13 min), until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack and enjoy the crackle!

Yield: One 1½-pound loaf.   YUM!!

Recipe here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/08/dining/081mrex.html?ref=dining

Article here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/08/dining/08mini.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

Video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13Ah9ES2yTU

dumparings

having mentioned dumplings in my last post, i got dumplings on the brain and had to make some =)  i made a veggie filling (tofu, edamame, rice noodles, bamboo shoots, napa, sauteed garlic, soy sauce and sesame oil) so that the girls could wrap too.  and so that c might actually eat some ;-)

c was able to do it pretty much by herself.  her quote of the night, 'lu and i might be dumpling makers when we grow up.  dumpling makers or dancers!' (note the post-ballet class leotards ;-))



mission accomplished!

year of the dragon

most years, our chinese new year consists of rounding up a few friends for dim sum, if that.   i used to invite people over for a dumpling-making party, but that hasn't happened since pre-kid days.  this year though, we were treated to a homemade feast courtesy of my godmother, coupled with a weekend visit from my parents.  it really felt like a celebration, with good food and good company =)

the girls made some lanterns:

this one is painted carefully and sparingly

while this one's collapsing under the weight of the paint =p

nai nai and ah gong came in the afternoon, with a set of curious george books that was devoured on the spot:

dinner was delicious:

and the after dinner entertainment, well, on the noisy side ;-)

soooo excited to share with my sister ;-)

exercises with nai nai

the girls got their first hong bao (red envelope).  well, i should say the first that was given directly to them =p



on sunday afternoon, we went up to the lakeforest mall, only to find that the chinese new year program didn't start till the next weekend.  oh well!  we hit the library, the train and the play area, so i don't think the girls minded =)

gong shi shin nian!

twenty five weeks

i recently found out that an acquaintance with two girls around the age of ours also has a baby.  i'll go ahead and call her a friend, since i'm hoping that will become the case =)  we met in c's gymnastics class, and it turns out that the baby had been in the hospital that whole time.  she had been born at 25 weeks, a little over a pound.

according to whattoexpect.com, a baby at that stage is "about nine inches long and more than a pound and a half" and "prepares to take his first breath."  reminds me of one of my favorite verses:

just as you do not know how the breath comes to the bones in the mother's womb, so you do not know the work of God, who makes everything[1]

seeing that smiling, cheerful little girl, now 7 months, really struck me because last week we participated in the March For Life.  i have never been an activist, and my interest in politics just barely exceeds my interest in the weather in timbuktu.  maryland law however, has forced even oblivious me to reconsider.  in this state, a fetus, a baby, a nine-inch-long almost breathing whatever-you-want-to-call-it can be aborted.

i don't know what to say to that, except that the thought makes me want to be violently ill.  it's not just the principle but the methods.  i'll spare you the more descriptive yet horribly accurate verbs that can be applied.  i had no idea of the scope of the problem:  according to the Guttmacher Institute, in the US "twenty-two percent of all pregnancies (excluding miscarriages) end in abortion [...] In 2008, 1.21 million abortions were performed."

there is plenty of information out there, plenty of arguments from all kinds of philosophic and religious backgrounds, and i don't claim to have anything to add or even to be particularly well-educated on the subject.   i only know that when i went to the o-b for the first time with that first positive test, the receptionist asked me if i was the mother.  if i was the mother, wasn't the thing i was carrying by definition a baby?

the girls and i spent most of a rainy monday adding our three small presences to the crowd because, as my friend j said, 'j [her son] is growing up, and someday he will ask me, 'what did you do about it?''

everything is better with friends =)

where's waldo? ;-)

the supreme court

[1] ecclesiastes 11:5

culinary corner: potato and gruyere soup

if you like traditional swiss fondue, this is the soup for you!  and it couldn't be quicker.  i stirred in my cilantro and topped with bacon, but you get the idea.

i've already mentioned my new toy, aka immersion blender.  enter 2-pound block of jarlsberg acquired at a bargain price at - where else - costco, and this is what you get.  i based it off of this recipe, but made some alterations, so i'll print my version:

3 medium onions, chopped fine 

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 cups chicken broth

3  cups water 

3 pounds boiling potatoes (recipe said yellow-fleshed, i just used russet) 

1/2 pound Gruyère cheese, grated (about 2 1/2 cups - i used jarlsberg) 

1 tablespoon Madeira or Sherry if desired (i used whiskey, since it was what i had =p)

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, to taste

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

precooked bacon, optional (microwaved to crispy and crumbled)

saute onions in olive oil till golden.  add broth and water, bring to a boil.

cube potatoes and add to soup.  simmer, covered, 10 minutes.  uncover and simmer 5 minutes more.

remove from heat and stir in cheese till melted.  blend with immersion blender or in batches with regular blender.

stir in liquor, worcestershire, cilantro and salt and pepper to taste.

top each bowl with sprinkle of bacon before serving.
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notes:  i might try blending before adding the cheese.  it was a bit of a pain cleaning melted cheese off the blender.  and don't skip the cilantro!  also, for the kids, i took out a few cups of the soup mixture before adding the cheese and blended it separately using cheddar.  you could easily do a soup buffet by cooking and blending the potatoes, then setting out different kinds of cheese to mix in and different condiments.  you'd have to keep the soup base hot though.

enjoy!