Respectfully Yours

Dear roaming readers,

Mr H and I live in an apartment; about a month ago, the leasing office told us they were going to raise the rent a great deal (for the second time this year) and start charging us for our parking spot.  They would brook no argument and refused to make a compromise, so after meeting with them again to ask if they would reconsider the amount they were increasing and being told "no, here is the notice to vacate if you want it," we decided the time was right to find more affordable housing.

Actually, Mr H decided.  I was fine with his decision; until I woke up the next morning and realized that we had to move.  I had nothing against moving in and of itself; I was just crushed to realize that, since we have been blessed with a kitchen with unusually large storage space and every new apartment we were looking at was incredibly small, I would probably have to put all of my precious dishes and canning equipment in cold storage.  You probably don't have to be reading this blog very long to know that cooking and baking are fairly essential components in my life!  I would think, "Oh, I can make do just fine!" and then I would wake up in the middle of the night and think what a miserable time it would be.  I had spent exactly one year learning how to creatively make everything fit functionally in our apartment (they aren't built for canners or long-term food storage!) - I had spent days agonizing over the storage shed and rea-rea-rearranging shelves until things fell into place perfectly.  To me, organization is critical.  It's much the same as breathing to some people - can't live without it!  I can feel in my bones when the shelves are organized properly, and I can feel in my bones when things haven't quite settled - I went through several kitchen organizations over the period of a few months before things clicked into place perfectly.  Mr H helpfully proposed to me that I could "rearrange the shelves at the new place."  I was frustrated with his response - no pity for me?  No sympathy?  "You don't understand!" I said.  "It took forever to make things fit ... the kitchen is finally organized how I want it!"  I was happy to move, but I was unhappy to have to change.  Didn't he understand that?

Ladies, this is the part where I re-learned something pretty basic that we all know about men.  Something I knew in my head, but needed to learn a little more about.

Mr H was sorely hurt by my comments for some reason that I didn't yet understand.  "You have to trust that I am making the best decision for us," Mr H said.  "You have to trust my decisions!"

I was driving home that night and listening to a Christian radio station.  Shaunti Feldhahn was giving a talk and describing my situation in detail!  She told me very clearly that what I was telling my husband - unintentionally - was that I didn't respect him.  And men need respect!  The Bible tells men to love their wives, and for wives to respect their husbands.  Pretty simple mathematics there.

In fact, Shaunti explained that in a cross-cultural study, they had found the overwhelming majority of men would give up feeling loved in exchange for feeling respected.  That's how important it is!

I don't think any of us would argue with that fact.  What I realized was that my complaining and worrying about moving was not translating to Mr H as a concern over "moving" but as a lack of trust in his decision-making abilities.

I agreed with myself to not whine any more about moving, and to show my complete trust in his decisions (he has always made the best decisions for us!).  Life went on, and we kept exploring new apartment possibilities.  The apartment we had looked at just prior to My Realization was an okay fit for us, but we really wished we could have had the end unit - unfortunately, it was already rented out.  Part of a 4-plex, it had a huge back deck perfect for canning and keeping a large freezer, two sliding glass doors, a spare bedroom, lots of storage inside and underneath, a fabulously open kitchen, and extra closets in the house.  "If only ..." I thought.  But I had already decided to stop whining and to rest in the capable hands of my husband and my God.  So I prayed about it that night and shut up.

The next morning, the landlord called Mr H and told him that - unexpectedly - the couple that was planning to move in to the end unit had cancelled their agreement.  Today we signed the papers and we are moving in!

Answered prayer?  I think so.


Mrs H
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Lazy-Day Sandwich Bread

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After you've gleaned all the good information you need, visit our new blog platform at www.farmandhearth.com to read even more fascinating tidbits from the kitchen and the fields. 

Dear busy bees,

Since life has been a bit frenetic of late (you'll soon be hearing why!), I have been lazy about making bread.  Sadly that means we haven't had bread in a while!  I look forward to the day when I will have a freezer and can bake bread ahead of time ... but until then!!  Today I had just a little time at home in the morning, in between errands and some hospice work, so while I took a shower did my dishes ran the laundry finished some tasks, I made this nice "lazy" loaf of sandwich bread (I doubled it to make two).  I call it lazy because it is a sort of "dump together" recipe, and it is finished in one day; usually, I use the overnight process of bread, which I tend to prefer.  I did make a batch of whole wheat bread dough to stick in the fridge while this was rising, but that is a recipe for another time.

I used all white flour for this bread, but usually we use a mixture of wheat and white, or all wheat.  If you use wheat flour, you will need to add a little extra moisture.

Tip: When using flour, I ALWAYS WEIGH IT to measure.  Sorry to scream. It's just THAT IMPORTANT!!

Lazy-Day Sandwich Bread from Cook's Illustrated The Best American Classics
a single recipe makes one 9-inch loaf

3 1/2 - 3 3/4 cups (17 1/2 to 18 3/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour (plus extra for work surface)
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup warm milk (95 F)
1/3 cup warm water (95 F)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons honey (I used honey & molasses mixed)
 package (about 2 1/4 teaspoons) rapid-rise or instant yeast
Optional: Add vital wheat gluten and/or dough enhancer, per the measurements on the container

Warm environment: Adjust an oven rack to the lowest position and heat the oven to 200 degrees. Once the oven temperature reaches 200 degrees, maintain the heat for 10 minutes, then turn off the oven.
Mixing the dough: Meanwhile, mix flour and salt in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook or paddle.  Mix the milk, water, butter, honey in another bowl - check that temp is about 95 - 110 F.  Sprinkle in yeast and whisk to dissolve.  Turn the machine onto low and slowly add the liquid.  When the dough comes together, increase speed to medium and mix until the dough is smooth and satiny, stopping the machine two or three times to scrape the dough from the hook, if necessary, about 10 minutes.  (After 5 minutes of mixing, if the dough is still sticking to the sides of the bowl, add flour 1 tablespoon at a time and up to 1/4 cup total, until the dough is no longer sticky.) Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface; knead to form a smooth, round ball, about 15 seconds (if, like me, your kitchen is in chaos and you don't have time to wipe down and flour a counter, just hold the dough in both hands and knead in the air!  This works about up to a double-batch!).
First rise: Place the dough in a very large lightly oiled mixing bowl, flipping the dough once so it is lightly coated.  Cover the bowl loosely with plastic wrap and place in the warmed oven until dough doubles in size, about 45 minutes.
To shape the sandwich loaf: Press the dough into thick rectangle about 1 inch thick, and no longer than 9 inches.  With the long side facing you, roll the dough firmly into a snug cylinder, pressing with your fingers to make sure the dough sticks to itself.  Turn the dough seam-side up and pinch the seam closed with your fingers.  Place the dough in a greased 9x5x3" loaf pan. Cover loosely with plastic wrap; set aside in a warm place until dough almost doubles in size, about 25 minutes.
Baking: Keep one oven rack at the lowest position and place the other at the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place an empty loaf pan on the bottom rack (use a metal pan).  Bring about 2 cups of water to a boil and pour into the empty loaf pan in the oven.  Set the bread loaf on the middle rack.  The pan of water will create a steamy environment, giving you a crusty, well, crust!  Bake until an instant-read thermometer stuck to the center of the loaf reads 195 degrees, about 40 - 50 minutes.

Remove bread from pan and cool on wire rack - or it will be soggy on the bottom!

Yum yum, enjoy!

Here's to our daily bread,


Mrs H
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P.S. If you need a little motivation to start baking your own bread, click here.

Canning: Some Basic Questions

Dear friends,

We've talked a lot about canning, and quite a few lovely ladies have asked me for some basic instructions on canning; so I will provide here a crude primer for the canning essentials, and some tips on where to look for further information.

What is canning? 
It is a simple method of preserving food for a long period of time.  It is a perfect fit for people like me who don't have a lot of freezer room, and need to keep food stored in a cupboard.  The canned food will keep in best condition for about a year, which works perfectly for those of us who can a product when it is in its annual season.  However, the food will still be safe to eat and sometimes you end up with random jars of things that last for a few years.


Why can at all?
There are many reasons, and most people who can draw a little from each reason. Knowing the content of the food you are eating is a big one; I prefer organic, and I enjoy supporting local farmers and knowing that my money is staying in the community, and my food is as fresh as possible because it only traveled a few miles.  Organic produce can be pricey, and especially so in the off-seasons.  It is also difficult to buy local produce over the winter; thus, canning provides me with cost-effective, local, organic produce throughout the year.  Continuing with the cost-effective note, it is often possible when you "know people" to get a lot of produce for free or very cheap.  The farmer I usually buy from will give us culls, leftovers, or produce that is too soft and damaged to sell, and we can turn it into sauce or jelly or some other secondary product.  The number one cost effective method for fresh, local, inexpensive produce is obviously to grow your own crops.  I think this is the ultimate goal for most home canners.  This brings us to the final reason for canning - it's very "green"!  The produce (being local) doesn't increase your carbon footprint by much, and the jars and rings can be re-used for over a century (until they break!).  The only thing that is eventually discarded is the rubber-ringed lid, which cannot reseal once it's been boiled.

What can you can? 
Just about anything, if you have a pressure canner.  Vegetables, fruits, any variation on those as pickles, relishes, jellies, etc; vinegars, beans, seafoods, and meats.  It is not recommended to home-can eggs, which would include egg products such as mayonnaise. Of course, you can also can water, if you wanted to.

How does canning work? 
I'll give you the short version here, but you can read more in-depth about it if you like.  There are two types of canning - water-bath canning, and pressure-canning.  The first method is for high acid foods (with a pH level of 4.6 or less) such as fruits, some tomatoes, and pickled items.  They only need to reach 212 deg. F in order to kill molds, yeasts, and bacteria, and inactivate enzymes to halt the rotting process and essentially "freeze" the product in its current state.  The second method, pressure-canning, is for low-acid foods, such as most vegetables, legumes, grains like corn, meats, and some tomatoes.  These products need to reach the higher temperature of 240 deg. F in order to destroy all of the bacteria, spores, and toxins they produce.  Boiling water doesn't get that hot, and this is where the pressure canner comes in.

Pressure canners are scary! 
Yes they are, if you don't follow the rules.  But modern pressure canners have extremely effective ways of sealing the lid down (they will not blow off) and the only possible danger is if you try to take the lid off before the pressure has completely dissipated.  This would be a little like trying to drink your tea when it was still boiling or sleeping on an anthill; I don't know why you would do it.  Personally, I love my pressure canners (I have four!).

What tools do you need to can? 
Not many, actually; most home canning can be done with home-tools converted to the purpose of canning.  Of course, there are lots of specialty tools you can buy to make it easier, too.  For water-bath canning, you need a pot deep enough to cover the jars by at least an inch of water, and a rack to set the jars on.  Before I had racks specifically made for canning, I just tied a bunch of rings together and made a rack.  The jars shouldn't be touching the bottom of the pot; they might break from the heat!  If you buy a water-bath canner, I recommend buying the largest one you can find.  Currently, the largest latest-and-greatest size holds 9 quart jars, but I don't know where to find those for sale (mine was a gift from my mom-in-law!).  If you want to spend more, you can buy very nice stainless-steel water bath canners.
For pressure canning, I recommend the Presto pressure canner.  It cools down fairly quickly, isn't too heavy, holds 7 quart jars or 15 pint jars, and is easy and straightforward to use.  I own three of these, as well as one smaller pressure cooker that only holds four pints (it is more for food than canning).
You will also need jars, rings, and lids.  Fred Meyer and WalMart have the cheapest prices on these.  To lift the lids from the hot water (they must be heated before putting them on the jars) you can use a fork, your fingers if you're quick, or buy a lid wand (a magnetic wand), or make a wand out of a magnet (Mr H says you can make one out of sticks and dung but I haven't tried that yet).
A jar lifter comes in handy for taking the jars out of the boiling water.
You will also need a towel for setting the jars on (I like to put them into a cardboard box lined with a towel so they don't break in the cold air).  Then there are other tools that may be useful depending on what you are canning, such as cheesecloth, jelly strainers, funnels, and Mr H (who is watching me write this) says most importantly you need a Woman.
If you want to get started canning, you can either find most of these tools at garage sales (the lids you usually have to buy new, although I have found unopened boxes at garage sales before) or buy a kit online or at your local grocery store.  But be warned, most grocery stores are extremely overpriced, and Fred Meyer is usually your best option.

Recommended Reading
Every canner needs to own the Ball Blue Book (most current version, if you're going to buy one).
I enjoy the recipes in the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving, many of which are also in the Blue Book.
The Blue Book includes tips on drying and freezing (we will have to save that for another day!), and there are many other books that include make-ahead and preserve-able recipes, such as Preserving Summer's Bounty and Saving the Seasons.

Do you have any other questions about canning, or any tips, books, websites, or suggestions of your own?  We could talk about canning all day, and we would if I had my way - but hopefully this primer was enough to catch your interest!


Happy canning,


Mrs H
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Stimulating conversation

Colleagues and collaborators,

Some of you know that I enjoy reading about the brain, admiring the complexity and beauty of that wondrous beast, and studying the physical expression of electrical impulses (that is to say, psychology).

I follow a fascinating blog called Mind Hacks, recommended to me once by my psychology professor (a man fascinated by neurons and synapses and appropriately named Sparks).  The author of Mind Hacks just posted a super sweet link, created by Ohio State University, where you can assist a doctor in performing a deep brain stimulation surgery to set probes for a Parkinsonian patient.

If you have an interest in brains or medicine in general, I recommend the link to you; if you can't even clip your own nails, go read something less intense!

synaptically yours,


Mrs H
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Praise Him, all his heavenly hosts.

Dear devoted readers,

We have just begun another season of choir at our church.  You know that I've written about our choir before; but it is on my heart to reiterate a few things.

It is impossible to say what being part of a ministry does for one.  It takes you to another level in your relationship with Christ; you start committing outwardly, and putting your very real time on the line.  The choir is a unique aspect of ministry - your task is to prepare a place of holiness and a sense of worship, to lead the congregation into the throne room.  You do spiritual warfare during the week, preparing yourself musically and spiritually, and praying over the upcoming service and the people who will be attending.  In fact, the members of the choir are important enough to be listed in their own separate group in a recounting of a group of Israelites (and in other places).

Some people believe that a choir, or a worship team, is up on stage performing before the congregation - just another concert, a chance to show-off.  That may be true in some places; but not here.  Here, the choir and worship team perform their priestly task of worship and thanksgiving with pure attitudes.  Besides creating a spiritual atmosphere, the choir also puts the congregation at ease and enables them to get lost in their own persona worship.  Our worship leader, Andy, spoke to us at our rehearsal the other night.  "The choir being up here has brought us the most energy we've felt in this room for a long time," he said.  "When you are up here singing, you send out a wall of sound.  People don't like to hear themselves singing, but when you're up here clapping and moving and singing, they feel comfortable to join in."

Off-key energy is energy nonetheless, but a tuned and crisp sound - executed to the best of our ability - is that much more beautiful.  We are lifting up our praise to the Lord as an offering of our time, our effort, our varied talents, our desire to serve Him, our desire to bring people to a deeper level in their relationship with Him.  Don't be afraid to join in with the music, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.


blessings,


Mrs H
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Homemade Bread: An explanation is in order

Dear friends,

In case anybody missed it, my last blog wasn't actually a story about bread.  In fact, it had nothing to do with bread.

Somebody said to me once, "Wow - I never realized you could make bread at home .... I just thought you had to buy it, and it was made by some mysterious, complicated method!"

It occurred to me in that moment that that is exactly what school is like.  Any more these days, nobody thinks you can school a kid at home - because all they've seen is store-bought kids.  Go back and read the blog again.

And, just in case your mouth got all lathered up thinking about homemade bread, I'll put a little bread-topping recipe at the end of this blog for your enjoyment.

Cheers to homeschool on the "rise" ...


Mrs H
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Bread Topping 

Any quantity or variation of mixtures on the following ingredients.  After the bread rises in the loaf pans, and before you put it in the oven, brush with water or a mixture of egg white and water (well beaten until homogeneous).  Then sprinkle or slather on toppings to your heart's content.

sesame seeds - white or black, poppy seeds, sunflower seeds, dried fennel seeds, caraway seeds, garlic flakes, coarse sea salt, black pepper, dried shredded parsley, and anything else you have hanging around.  If anybody else has any more topping ideas - please share!  I love topping bread!