Would you like red, white, or....orange wine?

After an embarrassing month of no blog posts, I finally found something that is worthy of sharing with the world.  Just today I stumbled upon (just meaning it popped up on Yahoo) an article that sparked my interest.
The article shares about a new, but actually quite ancient, idea for wine making.  It is something known as orange wine.  They described it as a white wine for red wine lovers.  Who knew?  Read for yourself...
 http://shine.yahoo.com/tistheseason/orange-glad-theres-wine-color-181100872.html

Oops...It happened again...

Every night I have the same struggle.  I open my computer to 'just jump online for a sec to check emails.'  But I end up spending much more than the intended 2 minutes it takes to log onto my email account.  Tonight was not much different, but I told myself, "I will just read this short article called '3Ways to Make Your Fall Wardrobe Look New Again' on Yahoo, and then I will go to bed."  My plan was going smoothly...until, of course, I got to the part about shoe clips.  Until today I have never heard of such a thing, so naturally I had to click on the link to www.AbsolutelyAudrey.com.  With a name like that, how could I refuse?  And there I found a form of heaven on earth...  This website is inspired by Audrey Hepburn and sells clips of bows, jewels, etc. to clip on shoes to make them new and beautiful!  Who knew??  Take a look at them...

Before and After

Sabrina Shoe Clips - Ivory Satin  $20.00

Nadia - Blush Pink  $10.00

Zinnia - Ivory  $15.00

Twiggy Shoe Clips - Cream and Black  $15.00

Tiffany Shoe Clips - Light Green  $12.00

 Yet another thing to spend my hard earned euros on.  But OF COURSE it would be a veery worth while investment... Naturally.

Carefree like a bird...

There are days, there are moments, when I wish I was a bird...  As I watch them dance through the air in such a carefree manner, I long to be like them, to be able to fly free with no cares, no stress, no worries.  I long to be able to fly out of sheer joy and pleasure with no thoughts of the time, the day, or the season.  I also wonder what they think of... What is going on inside the head of a barn swallow as it soars through the air, high one moment, and then dropping quickly down within inches of the ground the next?  Is food it's only goal, or is there some higher pleasure that it takes in feeling the wind in it's face?

But as I wish I could be like the birds, I remember... They have no ability to love, to feel joy...to know God.  Their life may seem like happiness, but really we are so blesses.  We can feel the love of another person.  We  can experience joy in life.  We can have a personal, loving relationship with the One who created the birds...Jesus.  And that, I realize with a smile, is so much better...

People with willpower...

I have been thinking lately about all those famous people who really pulled themselves up by their own bootstraps and became successful through blood, sweat, and tears.  One of my favorite books is Me by Katharine Hepburn.  

She was a woman who when she failed she just got right back up and tried again.  People told her that she was not good enough and that she would never make it, but look how she did.  She is world famous and is recognized as one of the best actresses to ever live.

Another woman who comes to mind is Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel.  Most people know her as simply Coco Chanel, the French fashion designer.  She started with absolutely nothing.  When she was twelve, her mother died and her father left her in the care of nuns and then never returned.  When she was eighteen, she started working, first as a singer and then as a seamstress.  She started designing hats as a hobby, but then turned it into a full-time business.  After that, she added clothing and perfume.  Although her personal life had some flaws and hardships, she still created an empire and thriving business from nothing.  

In a way, Coco Chanel revolutionized the fashion industry in the first part of the 20th century, because she realized that women were being forced to wear clothing that was highly restricting, uncomfortable, and impractical.  She wanted to make clothing that was stylish, classy, and still practical, with many of her designs inspired by men's wear.  During World War II, she realized that women were working in jobs that had been previously filled by men and the wealthy women no longer had women to help them get dressed.  So she began catering to the needs of the time, by making clothing that was easier to put on and also more comfortable for working long hours in factories and on assembly lines, but still fashionable and classy.  When the love of her life, Captain Arthur Edward 'Boy' Capel died in a car accident in 1919, she catered to that need by creating a simple black dress for herself, that could be worn every day.  Little did she know at the time, that this dress would become famous and be known simply as her 'Little Black Dress'.  

When I read about all the principals that Coco Chanel stood for, it saddens me a bit to see what has become of Chanel now.  I often look at the pictures from the Chanel runway shows today and can imagine that Coco Chanel would be rolling over in her grave if she knew what the models are wearing.  I see the models squeezed into these monstrosities that look far from comfortable or practice.  Coco Chanel designed clothing for women to wear in every day life, but I do not even know when women would wear what they show on the runways and catwalks.

Here are some photographs from the 2011 Chanel runway shows:

Chanel Ready To Wear Spring/Summer 2011, Paris Fashion Week

 

Chanel Ready To Wear Spring/Summer 2011

Chanel Autumn/Winter 2011

While I still love many of the collections that Chanel has put out, when I see dresses like the one above, I wish that Coco Chanel were still alive to tell them that a dress like that would be impossible to walk in.  I guess no good thing lasts forever...

Whole Wheat English Muffins

Here's the recipe I tried out yesterday.  Originally the recipe came from tablespoon.com, but I made a few small changes:

Ingredients

• 1 1/3 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tbsp sugar
• 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup milk (warm)
• vegetable oil

Directions

1. 1Combine flours, salt, sugar and yeast.
2. 2Add in butter and milk and mix until the dough is combined and all the flour has been pulled away from the sides.
3. 3Knead for about 10 minutes by hand. The dough should be warm to the touch, smooth and elastic when done.
4. 4Place dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a towel and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour to 1 hour, 15 minutes.
5. 5Remove dough from bowl and divide into 6 to 8 pieces, depending on how big you want your English muffins (6 makes jumbo muffins, 8 makes smallish to regular-sized muffins). Roll each piece into a ball, pulling the sides down and under while rotating it in your hands so the top is taut. Place each piece on a Silpat or lightly greased parchment paper-lined baking sheet, sprinkled with cornmeal if desired.
6. 6Cover with a lightly greased piece of plastic wrap and let rise about 45 minutes to an hour, until doubled.
7. 7Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees F and heat a griddle or cast-iron skillet to medium heat (or about 350 degrees F). Grease the griddle or pour a thin layer of vegetable oil in the skillet.
8. 8Once the muffins are ready, transfer them from the baking sheet to the skillet or griddle and let cook on each side about 5 or 6 minutes, or until a very dark brown. Transfer the cooked muffins to a baking sheet or stone and bake about 5 to 7 minutes so the insides are fully baked.
9. 9Cool the muffins completely on a wire rack before serving (open with a fork, not a knife, to get those nooks and crannies).

Where did the day go?

I have just come to the realization that I have a new addiction: looking at recipes online.  Today as I was looking for a recipe for homemade English muffins, I found a recipe for them quite quickly, but then got totally sidetracked by a new website with thousands of recipes.  It's called http://www.tablespoon.com, and I am currently about 100 recipes into the yeast bread section.  I think I will have to be giving away free bread because there is no way I will be able to eat all of the different breads I am about to make.
The first one I was to try is the Triple-Seed Wheat Bread...

Just the amazing shape of it makes it look soo tasty...  I'm hopelessly drowning in a sea of hunger, overwhelmed taste buds, and recipes.  Help!  

I guess if I have to be addicted to something, this isn't too bad.  

Well, I am going to start my English muffins, and maybe I will make the Triple-Seed bread tomorrow... I need to make a Kaufland run for eggs, though, before I can make it, as I need egg white to brush the top with.  

Journey to the Forest

From Monday to Wednesday this week, I was in the Black Forest (think Black Forest ham and chocolate cake) about 2 hours drive from France, on a staff retreat with all of my co-workers.
     
On Monday morning we all piled into cars and drove two hours north from the Bodensee to a small town near Nagold.  I ended up in the anciently old Fiat van that belongs to the school with my friend Lorna, her husband, four Germans, another girl from Washington, and an Argentinian.  Quite a diversity for one car.  The van was creaking so much that we all half expected it to just fall apart into little pieces at any moment and leave us sitting on our bench seats in the middle of the Autobahn.

As we drove, we were frequently passed by Audi's, BMW's, and Mercedes', all going well over the speed limit, which is not enforced at all.  Just as frequently, though, we passed large trucks from countries such as Italy, Poland, the Netherlands, Turkey, Romania, and the Czech Republic.

We sped by cornfields, forests, small villages, pastures with horses and cos, and my favorite view of all, vineyards.  Rows upon rows of grapes cover many of the hills here in the south of Germany, trying to soak up the last of the summer sun.

When we passed one particular field of cows lazily eating grass, a very familiar smell reached my nose.  It was that distict smell that always accompanies cows and other animals.  I was instantly transported to my family's car on one of our many road trips through Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado.  I closed my eyes and could imagine my family smelling the same smell, only when most people would promptly cover their nose, my dad would always let out a loud "Ahhhhh..." of satisfaction.
On the ride, I had another wonderful travel companion: a large bag of the most wonderful grapes I have ever tasted.  They came from Italy in lovely wooden crates with painted words in Italian on the sides.  The kitchen where I work got three of these crates last week, and Lorna and I probably ate one entire crate by ourselves.  Just before we left, Robert, the head chef, saw that there was still some grapes left, so he gave them all to me because "they would be raisins" by the time we got back.  So me and the others in the Fiat shared them during the ride, and when we stopped for a quick bathroom break, Lorna threw them and the guys caught them in their mouths.  Altogether a joyful travel...

9/11

Never Forget.

Do you remember how you felt that day?

God, please bring our men and women home...

Investment vs. Cost

So, I ask myself, when is it a wise investment, and when is it just a waste of hard earned cash?  In the case of a good pair of leather boots, I'm thinking investment.
I am discussing this topic because last winter I found myself longing for a good, waterproof pair of leather boots.  Here in Germany, it is quite common for women to have a pair like this, that they have invested in, and wear all winter.  So my current plan is to save up the money, and buy some for myself.  But which ones?  At the moment, boots styled like riding boots are quite popular, and I love how they look.  And how much to spend?  So many questions... But here are two styles I have found that I really like:

Hampshire Women's Riding Boots - Tommy Hilfiger



Ravoli Camel Leather - Franco Sarto


    I like both styles quite a lot, but first I have to come up with the money.  Hopefully it's a wise choice!

"In love in Paris"

In the past few days, the City of Light, Paris, has been on my mind.  It is probably my favorite city in the world.  I have gone there twice now, for about 4 days the first time and then last spring for two weeks.  It has totally stolen my heart.  I love it.  It something I can hardly describe.  I don't love it for the romance, or for the Eiffel Tower, or for the bakeries, or for the wine.  I love it for all that it is.  I love the Parisians sitting every evening by the Seine with a bottle of red and a baguette, the view from the top of the Arc de Triomphe, 
Ladurée and their amazing macaroons, and every other thing that makes up that famous city.  

        So many people say they love Paris but half of them have never even been there.  Others who have been there say they hate it because the people are "rude".  French people and Parisians in particular have gotten this reputation from Americans.  But I have learned something very important during my last year in Europe, and that is that Americans are the exception to the rule.  Americans who have just lived in the U.S. their whole lives think that everyone in the world is as open and overly friendly.  But that is not the case.  Many cultures, including the German and French cultures, just are not that way.  They are not "bad" or "rude" people in general, but simply have a different way of interacting with others.  This becomes even more obvious when they are dealing with strangers or people who do not speak their native tongue.  So I believe that we as Americans need to pause and remember to not think that our own culture is the "right" one, and any other culture that is different than ours is "weird" or "rude". 

     Ok, I officially got a bit off topic there for a sec...  To sum up, if you fall in the overly romantic idea of Paris category, get your head out of the clouds, and love the city for what it really it, not for what it supposedly is.  And if you fall in the bias idea of Paris category, open your eyes, and take a minute to appreciate another, extremely diverse culture.   

    Right now, Im already thinking about Christmas, and since I won't have my family around me, I am wishing I could go somewhere for Christmas.  And since I love Paris so much, I'm dreaming of a train ride there Christmas Eve for a hot cup of coffee in a cafe while looking out at the snowy streets of the city I love.

One last thing... Did you know that Paris is not called the City of Light for all the sparkling lights on the Eiffel Tower?  Yeah, it was called that for all of the brilliant minds who have lived there, such as Claude Monet, Claude Debussy, Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (we all know what he's famous for), and my personal favorite, Coco Chanel.

Eh, what's up Doc?

This is going to be short and sweet, but I just have to share a story. Today I went to the doctor here in Germany. His english was quite good, concidering it's not his first language. At one point though he wanted asked me, "Now please inspire." It took me a moment to realize he must want me to breath in. I did so and then he asked, "Now please expire." At that point I just about lost it. It took all my will power to not burst into fits of uncontrollable, child-like fits of laughter. It jut made my day. and caught me completely off guard...
[Explaination for those of you not as familiar with the uses of he word "expire". It is often used as a more polite (and slightly old-fashioned) way of saying someone died.]

Turning over a new leaf...or page...or new post?

Here I am again!  Back in the cockpit of my new blog.  The blog, and myself, have gone through some umm...changes? since I last wrote.  Now this is just me recording my discoveries, daily thoughts, and plans of action. 
Well, today, as I was attempting to give some wise, older sisterly, words of advice to my younger sister, I discovered my current life theme or policy.
REMEMBER TO NEVER LET AN CHANCE PASS YOU BY UNNOTICED.  IT MIGHT JUST NEVER KNOCK AT YOUR DOOR AGAIN.
Words to live by.  For me at least...
Oh I made an amazing recipe today. So good.  Black beans, salse, fresh lime juice, cumin, and paprika.  On bread.  Refreshingly not German at all...  And it filled me up enough to power me through my run... Official success.
Ok it is also officially past when I should be off in dream land (or just sleep land, because I dont really dream so much).
Good night for now...

Said attractive men....and me??

Suddenly, it came to me. 
Even though this blog is a journal of my baking career, it doesnt mean I can ONLY write about baking! Right?
So I will now start writing about my observations on life.
Which includes everything from the attractive men I see to the new, and amazing vase I just got for my apartment.
First, the attractive men.  Ive been noticing a trend lately.  Every time I spot a guy who's even remotely attractive...or not even attractive at all, he's taken.  Story of my life:  Me thinking, "Ooo look, incoming attractive man."  Said attractive man immediately walks over into the waiting arms of some, unknown woman.  Me thinking again, "Why??" 
My conclusion?  It must be summer again.  Love is in the air.
So what about me and other currently single women like me?  It got me thinking as I sat on a park bench and watched the couples of every shape and size stroll blissfully by...
Well, it got me thinking, but I still have no answer. 
    
I guess life goes on... 
Ok, since I still have had no brilliant answer to the above question, Ill move on to beforementioned vase...or "vahhhh-z" for those of you who prefer to say it that way. 
Vase:  clear glass, 1 1/2 feet tall.....breathtakingly beautiful...and all mine.  For now anyways.  And unless I manage to break it.  That would be just my luck.
  
It is just the thing to bring some life to my tiny, bare, German apartment.  Currently, it's empty though. 
Note to self: pick flowers.

Umm...yeah, I think that's about the end of my random observations on life.  For now.
Tune in again if you happen to find my ramblings on about nothing...well, not nothing because attractive men are a very important aspect of life...

Apples, Zimt, H2O...

Well every day recently, Ive looked out my kitchen window to the orchard, and seen the dozens of green apples laying, unused, on the ground.  Also, every day I have told myself that I was going to make applesauce.  So, today Im actually going to do it.  On a cold rainy day like today, nothing sounds better than warm applesauce with a sprinkle of zimt (or cinnamon, for you English speakers) and a cup of tea.  Wonderful.  Oh and a good book of course. 

Clouds, Rain, Baking?

So today I finally have a day off...  Ive been working for a week with no time off.  And its cloudy and rainy outside.  Im thinking Im going to do some baking.  I have eggs in the fridge that need to be used, so I got on Allrecipes.com and looked for quick and easy recipes with eggs.  I found a recipe for Popovers.  I have never heard of popovers until today.  But at the moment Im about dying of starvation, and its nasty weather outside, so fresh, hot bread is sounding pretty darn good.  The tasty goodness of soft warm bread with maybe a bit of butter and cinnamon (or 'zimt' as its called here) and sugar is unbeatable on a day like today.  Heres some pictures of what Im going to try:
     
Hungry yet?  Yeah me too...
Ok, my stomach currently feels like a huge empty hole, so Im off to make some bread! 

Design, design, design?

So now you might say I have several personal variations of bread under my belt.  I have played around with new ingredients and such to come up with some, if I do say so myself, pretty amazing breads... So now what?  Now where do I go?  I need a release for my creativity...So I am thinking, design.  By that I mean, how to I design the bread to look amazing, instead of just tasting amazing.  What can I do with the top of the bread to make it appealing?  So here are some of my ideas...what do you think?

Without the eggs on this one...

This dream I have...

Well from the 'About Me' section, you know already that I love to bake.  I always have, ever since I started baking with my mom at about age 4.  I love to work with dough and figure out new combinations that are taste amazing.  Ive always played around with the idea of starting a bakery of my own someday, but I never had a definite direction I wanted to take with it.  So for years it's just been an idea that passes through my mind every once in a while.  But, now that I have been working in Germany as a chef assistant, I have realized just how much I would love to have my own place to bake for others and share good bread and unique creations.  One day, a few weeks ago, I was making pita bread, the way my mom taught me, and the way she was taught by a friend from Jordan, and it dawned on me that I could combine my love for baking with my love for travels and other cultures.  My vision for my bakery would be a place where people can come and get healthy, all-natural, from scratch bread that is not found in your normal supermarket.  It would also be a place for community.  It would be a place where diversity is celebrated and where people can enjoy other cultures through good bread.  Also, because I always do my best to eat as healthy as possible (except of course for when I must give in to my nagging sweet tooth), I would make all my bread healthy, but not boring.  So many people do not eat healthy breads because to them, healthy breads are dark, tasteless, and down-right not tasty.  This will not be true of my breads...  Because I am vegetarian, I would include vegan and vegetarian breads as well...
So this is my idea...I would love to hear your ideas and thoughts!  Would you go to a bakery like this?  I have never looked into the details of starting a business before, so with the economy, do you think it is possible?  Please help me out!  And continue to read as I share my journey around the world in search of good bread!

So this is how it starts...

So.  To start with I never, ever thought I would be doing this...writing a blog I mean.  Ive never been at all crazy about writing. Which is actually an understatement.  I actually hate writing, so I am still trying to figure out how I ended up here.  I do not even know how to make a blog.  I guess you are just supposed to write about yourself and your life is such a way that other people find it at least slightly entertaining.  In actuality, though, the lives of most bloggers are, I am assuming, just as boring and uninteresting as the lives of the readers.  But I am here, creating a blog, and am becoming more and more interested in how the whole thing actually works.  Will people really read my random ramblings about nothing?  Or will this page just sit, unveiwed, in the depths of cyberspace forever?  I will find out...