After a long day at work and a business trip I slept poorly last night. One of my dreams featured a model railroad by father had built. Funny, since he’s never shown interest in that. Funny too that he built…
Monthly Archives: October 2009
Do These Glasses Make My Head Look Oval?
Here is just one of the thoughts that flitted through my mind today: my glasses are getting looser. Now, you’d think this is because the earpieces are gradually spreading apart and just need to be bent back into shape. But…
Kitchen Marathon
With family in town, I was freed up yesterday to do some serious cooking and baking while Baby Harbat was entertained by her uncle and auntie. On the bread front, I worked on a sourdough boule, which came out pretty…
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: baby harbat, beef stew, brioche, ciabatta, sourdough, wheat sandwich
Plop Plop Fizz Fizz
When I was growing up, my brother and I used the “plop plop fizz fizz” phrase to describe the sound of solid waste dropping into a toilet. Yes, boys are VERY mature. Now, both of us in our thirties, just…
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: alka seltzer, apple liquor, hamelman, julia child, multigrain, nalgene
No Means Yes
Hoo boy, I know I’ll get in trouble for that title. I’m referring to the world of toddlers, where “No!” is the rote response to any question. Every day my wife comes home from work, Baby Harbat’s first word to…
In-frustr-ructure
Why was I taking a driving tour of San Diego’s highways at 1 in the morning last night? It began with a simple enough task: pick up arriving family at the airport who were coming in on a late flight.…
Sourdough Evolution
This past weekend I made Hamelman’s Vermont sourdough, which has 10% rye in it, along with some procedural differences. What a difference all these little changes make! The rye gave the crumb and soft and chewy texture, and overall the…
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged with: apple ciabatta, aurora bakery, clogs, rei, running shoes, salomon, sourdough
The Yin and Yang of Toddlers
Yin: unbelievably cute and lovable miniature person. Yang: contrarian proto-demon with a mischievous penchant for pain. This Sunday I got to see both sides of Baby Harbat. Our plan in the morning was to go for a hike at a…
Litte Miss-chief
Picture 999 When I see this smile, I know she is doing something verboten and will likely make a run for it. I should start doing this at work: when someone asks me to do something I don’t like, I’ll…
Grown-Up Bread
As promised, pictures of the pain rustique. Picture 1000 My verdict: meh. Though it smelled great baking, I don’t think it developed enough flavor or enough structure. It might benefit from an overnight cold ferment, or perhaps another rise. …
